Aoun: Ashura proves that there is no freedom without pain

Local Editor, 28-12-2009

The head of the Change and Reform parliamentary bloc MP Michel Aoun said on Sunday that revolutions were a fateful path for humanity, highlighting that people have to suffer in order to achieve goals and reach independence.

Aoun said that the Muslim Shia commemoration of Ashura is similar to the Christian church's Lenten commemoration of Good Friday because both religions value the definition of a martyr.

"Ashura ritual pain resembles Christ's pain," Aoun said; adding that without pain there could be no freedom and independence.

He added that Shia Muslims and Christians share similar principles, such as the belief in the return of Christ for Christians and the return of the Imam Mahdi for Shia Muslims.