The traditional “Inter Faith- Iftar Dinner of the Marmara Group Foundation was held at the Adile Sultan Palace in Istanbul on 17 September 2007 Prof. Dr. Ali BARDAKOĞLU Mustafa CERİÇ Antonio LUCİBELLO Marc TIDD Izak HALEVA MESROB II Yusuf SAĞ Yusuf ÇETİN The traditional “Inter Faith- Iftar Dinner of the Marmara Group Foundation was held at the Adile Sultan Palace in Istanbul on 17 September 2007   Under the patronage of His Eminence, Prof. Dr. Ali Bardakoğlu, the President of the Religious Affairs of Turkey, the traditional “Interfaith Iftar Dinner of the Marmara Group Foundation was held at the Adile Sultan Palace in Istanbul on 17 September 2007, with the participation of Dr. Mustafa Efendi Çeriç, Head of Religious Affairs of Bosnia, Major Marc L. Tidd, Chaplain of the US Navy; Archbishop Yusuf Sağ of the Assyrian Catholic congregation in Turkey and acting Patriarch Yusuf Çetin, the religious leader of the Turkish Assyrian Community; Turkey’s Chief Rabbi, Izak Haleva; Papal Nurcio Msgr. Antonio Lucibello, Vatican’s Envoy to Turkey; and His Eminence Mesrob II, Patriarch of the Armenian Community of Turkey. At the dinner, the theme of which was “Love and Peace with Dialogue” the above mentioned eminent personalities each made well received remarks and delivered messages. His eminence Dr. Mustafa Efendi Çeriç of Bosnia underlined the importance of the venue, the occasion and the participants in this prestigious event. He said that everyone who comes to Istanbul can find part of his identity in this historic city which throughout history brought together several cultures in total harmony. He added that what is written in the religious books must be felt in the hearts and it is too dangerous to leave the handling of the religious affairs to the clergy, the politics to the politicians and the matters concerning peace to the generals. US Navy Chaplain Maj. Tidd pointed out their motto: “Co-operation without compromise”, and said that, “ As chaplains from many different religions, we commit ourselves to work together, to cooperate, in spite of religious differences we might have, while we also remain faithful to our religious convictions.” Archbishop Yusuf Sağ and Acting Patriarch Yusuf Çetin, touched upon the elements of love, friendship, giving, compassion and trust which were necessary to co-exist together in perfect peace and harmony in the colorful mosaics of Turkey. Chief Rabbi Haleva, said that these traditional gatherings organized by the Marmara Group are clear indications to the presence of love, compassion and friendship in the hearts of the Turkish people who have welcomed his congregation throughout centuries. Armenian Patriarch Mesrob II, indicated that the Marmara Group Foundation has continued the wonderful Ottoman tradition of bringing together during the holy month of Ramadan, the members of the Moslem, Christian and Jewish faiths a noble fashion and this tradition is being crowned with the participation and presence of the President of the State Religious Affairs, Prof. Dr. Ali Bardakoğlu. Prof. Dr. Ali Bardakoğlu, thanked all the eminent participants and congratulated Dr. Akkan Suver, the president of the Marmara Group Foundation for initiating and realizing this “IFTAR” Tradition and pointed out the fact that the sufferings faced by our world today is caused by the lack of love among people towards each other and said that instead of trying to change the others we should concentrate on improving our own “selves”. Among the four hundred participants at the event, several foreign ambassadors from Ankara, many of the Consul Generals in Istanbul, prominent politicians and businessmen, academicians, artists and literary personalities, retired generals, as well as the leaders of TOBB, TURSAB, TUSIAD, DEIK and Istanbul Chamber of Commerce were present. The three hour event ended with the traditional family photo event.