Manama: A Bahraini religious scholar has called for an institute to be set up to train preachers to promote moderation in religious speeches and discourse.

“We need to have an institute that is open on all sects and schools of thought,” said Abdul Latif Al Mahmoud, the head of the National Unity Gathering and member of the Supreme Council for Judicial Affairs.

“We should not have only one school of thought that causes divisions among followers of the various schools. We have 140 mosques in Bahrain where Friday sermons are delivered, and while most of them have a moderate line, there are some radical sermons,” he said in remarks published by local daily Al Ayam on Sunday.

The scholar said that the reliance of the preachers on only one school of thought meant an introverted stance and a one-sided approach that limited openness and interaction with others.

“They become so attached to their school of thought that they do not give any consideration to other schools and interpretations. They become increasingly radicalised and they start using terms and expressions that provoke people who follow other schools,” he said. “However, if the preacher is open in his approaches and he is tolerant, he interacts with the other schools and does not allow himself to become radical in his thoughts, feelings or approaches.”

Al Mahmoud warned that a combination of radical ideas and high emotions invariably resulted in high levels of hatred and sectarian discourse.

“These preachers are then exploited by some people with self-serving agendas and use them to further their plans and execute them,” he said. “We unfortunately have many negative examples of this terrible and extremist state of mind. We had the Talibans in the past and we now have those who are affiliated with the so-called Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant [Isil] or Daesh. Radicals have no specific sect and they are often used to target Muslims, mainly by intelligence agencies, to divide the Muslim nation,” Al Mahmoud said.

However, the scholar rejected a proposal floated by some people in Bahrain to have a standardised sermon to be delivered by all the Friday preachers.