Islam Promotes Tolerance & Prohibits Terrorism

[Excerpt 4th]

Allah Prohibits Terrorism & Promotes Tolerance

“…And those who restrain their anger (swallowing their anger as if swallowing a thorn, out of patience & tolerance) and pardon men; and God loves those who do good to others."
Analysis on this verse by Yusuf Ali in his, THE HOLY QUR'AN-English Translation of the meanings & Commentary: "…They do not get angry when other people behave badly, or their own good plans fail…for they forgive and cover other men's faults…"

“And you do not dispute with the People of the Book, except with means better (than mere disputation), unless it be with those of them who inflict wrong (and injury): but say, “We believe in the Revelation which has come down to us and in that which came down to you; our God and your God is One; and is to Him We bow (in Islam).”
Analysis on this verse by Yusuf Ali in his, THE HOLY QUR'AN-English Translation of the meanings & Commentary: "Mere disputations are futile. In order to achieve our purpose as true standard bearers for Allah, we shall have to find true common grounds of belief, as stated in the latter part of this verse, and also to show by our urbanity, kindness, sincerity, truth, and genuine anxiety, for the good of others, that we are not cranks or merely seeking selfish or questionable aims."

Muhammad's(S) Wisdom on Tolerance as against Terrorism

“…My slave hurried to bring death upon himself (through suicide). So I will not allow him to enter Paradise”.
-Bukhari & Muslim(Hadithul-Qudsii)

“There is no man who kills a sparrow, (not even a man) or any other living creatures (even it may be more despicable than a little sparrow) without its deserving it, but God will ask him about it (on the Last Day)”.
-An-Nasa'i
Test Cases of Tolerance & Mercy of the Prophet & his Companions

He advocated against killing of innocent none Muslims and destroying their places of worship

According to Dr. Aslam Abdullah, in an article dubbed, “Did Prophet Muhammad spread Islam with a Sword?” in the January-February 2013 edition of The Message International magazine, entitled, “Clearing the Air & Knowing Muhammad”, that, “The best and most direct evidence for the way Islam was propagated are the words of Prophet Muhammad to St. Catherine's Monastery at the foot of Mt. Sinai, during a time in history when no one was talking about freedom of religion, cultural pluralism and tolerance, or protection of human life. Prophet Muhammad wrote to the monks the following:

“This is a message from Muhammad bin Abdullah, as a covenant to those who adopt Christianity, near and far, we are with them. Verily, the servants, the helpers, my followers, and I defend them, because Christians are my citizens; and by Allah! I hold out against anything that displeases them. No compulsion is to be on them. Neither are their judges to be removed from their jobs nor their monks from their monasteries. No one is to destroy a house of their religion, to damage it, or to carry anything from it to the Muslims' houses. Should anyone take any of these, he would spoil God's covenant and disobey His Prophet. Verily, they [the Christians] are my allies and have my secure charter against all that they hate. No one is to force them to travel or to oblige them to fight. The Muslims are to fight for them. If a female Christian is married to a Muslim, it is not to take place without her approval. She is not to be prevented from visiting her church to pray. Their churches are to be respected. They are neither to be prevented from repairing them nor the sacredness of their covenants. No one of the Ummah [Muslim nation] is to disobey the covenant till the Last Day [end of the world]”.

The above quote by Dr. Aslam clearly crystallizes yet another statement by the Prophet, discouraging and despising an act of violence, radicalism, extremism and terrorism against none Muslims. It rather advises and advocates mutual co-operation, religious tolerance and social shielding towards the none Muslims.

He used to allow Jews and Christians to worship in his mosque

The Prophet was the first person to have established inter-faith relationship toward the rest of the two Abrahamic faiths (Jews and Christians). He used to allowed Jews and Christians to pray their own form of prayer in his mosque. There was an instance when the Christians left their cross (symbol of Christ crucifixion) in front of the Kiblah (direction Muslims face for prayer) and when it was time for prayer, and the companions were worried about praying in front of the cross and wanted to move it away from the kiblah, the prophet ordered for a blanket and covered the cross and assured them that they could still pray in front of it since their intention is not to worship the cross. The Prophet did that out of caution in order not to allow them to touch the cross of Christians without their approval.

Western Intellectuals view Islam as Tolerant, not Terrorist Faith

“The Islamic empire was able to play host to Christians and Jews for centuries; but the Western Europe has found it almost impossible to tolerate Muslims…in their territory…Islam kept the notions of social justice, equality, tolerance & practical compassion in the forefront of the Muslim conscience for centuries…It is a religion that was not based on the sword–despite the Western myth… (Islam) it has created a just society, which would enable both men and women to fulfill their true potential.”
--- Karen Armstrong, Muhammad—A Biography of the Prophet

“I wanted to know the best of the one who holds today undisputed sway over the hearts of millions of mankind…I became more than convinced that it was not the sword that won a place for Islam in those days in the scheme of life. It was the rigid simplicity, the utter self-effacement of the Prophet, the scrupulous regard for his pledges, his intense devotion to his friends and followers, his intrepidity, his fearlessness, his absolute trust in God and in his own mission. These and not the sword carried everything before them and surmounted every obstacle.”
--- Mahatma Gandhi, a famous freedom fighter of India

Husseini Yushau BabalWaiz,is the Research & Outreach Coordinator at the Center for Media & Peace Initiatives Inc. New York, Author of three books and tutor in Arabic and Islamic Studies [email protected]
NB: Folks, This the fourth excerpt of my third book entitled :“Islam Promotes Tolerance & Prohibits Terrorism”, sub-titled: “Reviving the Islamic Advocacy of Mercy & Magnanimity to Mankind”. This has become necessary due to the current and contemporary cases of terrorism and radicalism which is associated with Islam and Muslims, and the western media alleges these acts of sadism and savagery are sanctioned by our faith. We hope this and the subsequent excerpts will set the record straight. After serializing the entire manuscript, I will resume the history series by the will of Allah