The Supreme Leader of the Islamic Revolution this morning (Thursday), in a meeting with the members of the Assembly of Leadership Experts, called this lofty and very important Assembly a symbol of the union between "Republic" and "Islamism" and referring to the irreplaceable, vital and continuous presence of the people in various scenes, he said: The strong stamina of the people of the system is a national wealth with which Allah has given the proof to the scholars and all the officials of the system, and we all must strive diligently to preserve and increase this invaluable asset.
Congratulating the arrival of the holy month of Sha'ban and its great and joyous sacred days, he considered the Assembly of Experts to be a valid symbol of religious democracy and added: This Assembly, elected by the people in light of a completely healthy implementation of democracy, is composed of religious scholars and reflects the spiritual essence of the system.
The Leader of the revolution listed the position, importance, and sensitivity of the Assembly of Experts as being above any other centre or group in the system and said: This Assembly is responsible for determining the leadership, and with its care, it guarantees the existence and continuity of the conditions of leadership and such a significant position places weighty responsibilities on the members of the Assembly, and no negligence in performing these duties is accepted in Allah's presence.
Ayatollah Khamenei considered the efforts of the experts in dealing with various issues of the country as a leadership demand and a valid undertaking, and at the same time, he said: The most important of all issues is to pay serious attention to both the internal and external duties of the members of the Assembly of Experts.
He called the continuation of the activity of the Assembly of Experts investigation board in handling and taking care of "maintaining the conditions of leadership and performing the duties outlined in the constitution and other definitive leadership responsibilities" very important and added: The most important task of leadership is to monitor and maintain the overall movement, as well as the movement of essential parts of the system, in the direction of the revolution, so as to ensure that there is no deviation from the main path and that the Islamic revolution does not deviate like other revolutions.
The Leader of the revolution considered the logical, reasoned and continuous explanation of the position of the Assembly of experts for public opinion, especially for the young generation, to be the duty of the members of this Assembly and added: The correct explanation of the determining position of the Assembly of Experts brings people to the polls with enthusiasm in the elections of this Assembly; of course, since the members of this Assembly are also scholars, this imposes other heavy duties on them.
The Leader of the Revolution declared that enmity towards the Assembly of Experts would be tantamount to enmity towards the Islamic Republic and said: Some enmities with the Islamic Republic stem from political issues and its positions on topics such as Palestine, but some enmities are with the system itself, because this system stands against people who believe in the western version who are against any interference of religion in social issues or against the leaders of liberal democracy who under the false pretence of freedom and democracy, have planned to dominate and plunder the world's resources, and by putting "democracy and freedom" next to "religion" it has complicated their plan.
He considered it necessary to explain the main cause of the enmities to the people and added: after explaining this main reason, nobody should claim, either in cyberspace or otherwise, that the Islamic Republic is creating enemies for itself since the main reason for this enmity lies in the religious democracy that the Islamic Republic upholds, which nullifies the plans of ill-wishers.
Ayatollah Khamenei called the second position of the members of the Assembly of Experts their "scholarly position" and said: The Islamic Republic enjoys a strong popular foundation, and the people and the system have a relationship of reliance on each other, which is a national treasure and a truth that is rare or even one-of-a-kind in the world. This reliance has been evident in the case of the Corona pandemic and the people coming to the aid of the victims, as well as through pious help and the presence of people in helping those affected by natural disasters, which is truly remarkable.
He called the march on the 22nd of Bahman of this year as another manifestation of the strong popular foundation of the system and noted: Where in the world, thousands of people from a multitude of backgrounds and tastes, ranging from older people in their twilight years to young teenagers, gather for a political cause that has been taking place annually for forty-odd years in often adverse weather conditions? This is the system's strong popular support and foundation, which we are used to and may not fully appreciate.
The Leader of the revolution added: The presence of the people has given us officials and scholars strong proof, and we must continuously preserve and increase this wealth and fulfil our duties in this field, and it is not enough to simply be proud of this national wealth.
He emphasized the essential and irreplaceable role of religion and scholars in the formation of such national and revolutionary movements and noted:
In the Islamic revolution, Imam Khomeini (r.a) played a role as a religious scholar and as an authority on matters of religion; based on the thousand-year legacy of religious scholars and the trust and belief that was formed in them, he was able to move the nation, from Tehran to distant villages and cities, with a single slogan, a feat which any other political party or personality could not achieve.
Ayatollah Khamenei considered the great treasure and threat-repelling presence of the people as vital for the system and said:
Scholars, regardless of having or not having government responsibility, have heavy duties to preserve this vast capital, the most important of which is the Jihad of explanation, while "piety, honesty, chastity, avoiding suspicious things, divine motivation, and calling to people with action and not just with words" encourage and reassure people.
Scholars, regardless of having or not having government responsibility, must protect and maintain this valuable cultural asset. Their most essential task is to engage in the "Jihad of explanation." To help them in this, they should strive to live with piety, honesty, and chastity and avoid any suspicious activities while being driven by divine motivation and taking action rather than just speaking words.
He ordered the scholars to communicate with the youth and university students and to attend the student centres and said: with new words, new expressions and new logic, open a dialogue with the young people and open their mental knots; of course, in the face of questions which we don't know the answer to, we can say I don't know or that I have to check.
The Leader of the revolution called the formation of Ma'rifa (interior knowledge) circles consisting of the many young intellectuals in different cities centred around great scholars and members of the Assembly of Experts as another step towards effective communication with the youth and added: One should not be offended by uncertainty, as the late martyr Motahari discovered the question and uncertainty and its answer himself, one should prepare to face the doubts and uncertainties that may come their way.
Ayatollah Khamenei added: uncertainties are like sanctions and motivate us to study, think, and research in order to find answers, just as sanctions forced us to achieve new advancements in various issues such as defence, treatment, and health. If not for these sanctions, these technical and industrial developments would not have existed.
He considered the questions and doubts of the young people to require logical and persuasive explanations and said: Let's be careful not to say anything illogical and baseless, but of course, the task of intellectual support for young groups and people with ideas is the responsibility of Qom Hawzah and other Hawzahs.
In the final part of his speech, Ayatollah Khamenei, emphasizing the need to create hope, called the continuous politics of the enemy a source of despair and referring to a letter from a political group in 1990 to one of the country's officials. He said: One year after the departure of the great Imam (r.a), that group wrote in a dismal open that the country and the nation had reached the brink of destruction.
The Leader of the Islamic Revolution added: Those whose lives and personalities have been subject to destruction and demolition look at things from a negative point of view, but those who have a hopeful heart and mind look at issues and changes with hope. We pray that Allah grants us success to fulfil our duties with this perspective and without fatigue or laziness, and with the grace of Allah and the help of people.
At the beginning of this meeting, Hujjat-al Islam Wal-Muslimeen Raisi, the Vice Chairman of the Assembly of Leadership Experts, gave a report on the three working sections of the 11th official meeting of this Council.
"Elections of members of the board of directors, commissions and think tanks", "Separate meetings with the presence of the Quds Force Commander of the Revolutionary Guards about regional developments and the Minister of Economy about livelihood issues",; And also "discussion about cultural and economic concerns and analysis of the fall riots in the speeches before the order of 14 members of this parliament" were the main points of Mr Raisi's report.