A NEED FOR UNDERSTANDING

Muslim Christian Dialogue

As is usual for Muslims, I will begin, in the Name of the One, All-merciful, and All-compassionate God, and ask for guidance.

Salaamu Aleikum – peace be upon you – is the universal Muslim greeting, yet how few in the Christian west look at the world of Islam and see peace, or mercy and compassion. Why is this so? Is it just the result of the bigotry of popular journalism, or were Muslims always seen by non-Muslims as dangerous men with loud voices and narrow minds? The idea certainly has a long tradition, as our mediaeval foreign correspondents showed even less concern for truth than their modern tabloid brothers, and Muhammad, the trustworthy, gentle and forgiving, refusing to curse his enemies and blessing them instead, became the stuff of Crusader nightmares, wild-eyed and vengeful.

Not much seems to have changed in the media view of Islam, but even so, can Muslims really say that Muhammad’s message is reflected in the present actions of those who claim to follow him? But then again, is the message of Jesus to be seen in this century’s European experience, with Christians butchering Christians using up to the minute high-technology (except at Christmas when everything stops for a verse or two of Silent Night)? Have the lovers of truth and tolerance, peace, mercy and compassion, always had such a lousy time?

This article is proving extraordinarily difficult to write. The field of Muslim-Christian relations is a vast minefield, fogged with the smoke of old wars, and shrill with the blame for new ones. What is there that needs to be said? When the name of my religion is being tossed around by politicians on the international TV news, and the spokesmen for my beliefs move me to rage, frustration, and despair, is there anything that I can say in a few words that would be of any use? Can I avoid talking nonsense with arrogant certainty, and avoid stating my opinions in terms of indisputable truth? Usually I find the best thing is to look to the beginning, and where possible give my opinions in the words of the Qur’an.

In the earliest years of the Muslim community in Makkah, few in number, they refused to worship before gods made of wood and stone, and for that they were persecuted and tortured. At Muhammad’s recommendation a small group travelled to Abyssinia, hoping to find protection in the land of the Christian Negus. When asked to clarify their beliefs and understanding, one of the Muslims by the name of Jafar stated their case and recited some verses from Qur’an. In his judgement the Negus stated that between their religion and his was no more difference than the length of a line which he scratched in the earthy floor, and thereafter the Muslims lived in his country under his protection.

This relationship was not an unusual one in those early days, Muslims, Christians, and Jews were all aware that their similarities were greater than their differences. All believed in One God, Revealed Books, the Day of Judgement and the Afterlife. All were aware that the real dispute was not amongst themselves, but with idolatry, atheism, and amorality. Muslims were bound to protect “cloisters and churches, oratories and mosques, wherein God’s Name is much mentioned” (1) “And who does greater evil than he who bars God’s places of worship, so that His Name be not rehearsed in them, and strives to destroy them? Such men might never enter them, save in fear.” (2)

Indeed, the Muslims of the day had a great affection for the Christians, and why not, when “We sent … Jesus son of Mary, and gave unto him the Gospel. And We set in the hearts of those who followed him tenderness and mercy”. (3) But people who admit brotherhood through shared principles and values, can still have deep disagreements as to the best way to approach the truth. In Qur’an Muslims are guided in their approach to Jews and Christians “Say: ‘People of the Book! Come now to a word common between us and you, that we serve none but God, and that we associate nothing with Him’” (4), and “dispute not with the People of the Book save in the fairer manner, except for those of them that do wrong; and say, ‘We believe in what has been sent down to us, and what has been sent down to you our God and your God is One, and to Him we have surrendered’”. (5)

Muslims had quite clear points of difference with many Christians, feeling that the message of Christ had been distorted by some of his followers through the years, “And We gave Jesus son of Mary the clear signs, and confirmed him with the Holy Spirit. And had God willed, those who came after him would not have fought one against the other after the clear signs had come to them; but they fell into variance, and some of them believed, and some disbelieved” (6), “those who say ‘We are Christians’ … and they have forgotten a portion of that they were reminded of. So We have stirred up among them enmity and hatred, till the Day of Resurrection”. (7)

In fact, Muslims have less differences with some Christians than many Christians have between themselves, the Trinity, the death on the cross, and the familial relationship between God and Jesus being the main points for discussion. A Muslim would say “Jesus son of Mary, was only the Messenger of God, and His Word that He committed to Mary, and a Spirit from Him. So believe in God and His Messengers, and say not, ‘Three’. Refrain; it is better for you. God is only One God.” (8), and “they did not slay him, neither crucified him, only a likeness of that was shown to them … no indeed; God raised him up to Him; God is All-mighty, All-wise.” (9), and “Truly, the likeness of Jesus, in God’s sight, is as Adam’s likeness; He created him of dust, then said to him, ‘Be,’ and he was.” (10)

It can be seen that Muslims feel a great devotion and reverence for Jesus, as well as for Mary, “she who guarded her virginity. We breathed into her of Our spirit, and appointed her and her son to be a sign unto all beings. Surely this community of yours is one community, and I am your Lord; so serve Me.” (11)

The need for unity amongst all those who serve One God is constantly stressed in Islam, and warnings are given not to be “of those who have divided up their religion, and become sects, each several party rejoicing in what is theirs” (12), but in the event of disagreements we are told how to compete with those of different views. “To every one of you We have appointed a right way and an open road. If God had willed, He would have made you one nation; but that He may try you in what has come to you. So be you forward in good works; unto God shall you return all together.” (13) Good works are the things that count.

Talk is not enough; the proof of commitment is in one’s actions. Belief is constantly linked with doing good, and prayer with the social security of the zakat (a tax on wealth for distribution to the poor), one of the five essential pillars of Islam. Indeed, “Woe to those that pray and are heedless of their prayers, to those who make pious display and refuse charity”. (14) Of course, “Woe to those that pray” has very different implications when taken out of context, something we have to watch for when making hasty judgements.

“O believers, take not Jews and Christians as friends; they are friends of each other. Whoso of you makes them his friends is one of them.” (15) has a different meaning if not seen in the context of people embracing Islam out of political expediency, while laying the groundwork for a change of heart with a change of the political wind. It is also necessary to know that “you will surely find the nearest of them in love to the believers are those who say ‘We are Christians’, because some of them are priests and monks, and they wax not proud, and when they hear what has been sent down to the Messenger, you see their eyes overflow with tears because of the truth they recognize.” (16)

Selection, rearrangement, and juxtaposition are means of using the scriptures to make different points, and the devil can use it to sway men’s minds just the same as  you and me (may God protect us from his whisperings in our hearts). So despite the nice things I just quoted about priests and monks, Muhammad specifically forbade the formation of a clergy. The prevention of tyranny is even more important in the community of the spirit, and grotesque excesses have always been perpetrated in the belief that ‘God said we must’, and ‘God is on our side’. What atrocities have been committed in God’s Name when men “have taken their rabbis and their monks as lords apart from God.” (17)

A Muslim is directly responsible to God for his actions, and in his prayers and spiritual life he needs no intermediary. Of course, correct knowledge is necessary for correct action, and to seek knowledge is a sacred duty in Islam, but we must beware the religious scholar who is like “an ass carrying books” (18) When it seems that some Muslims wish to tell me what I can and cannot read, who will protect me from the arrogance of hypocrisy and ignorance? Can I rely on Christians to defend my right to judge for myself and take responsibility for my own conclusions? When the hypocrites “are visited by an affliction for what their own hands have forwarded, then they come to you swearing by God, ‘We sought only kindness and conciliation’, God knows what is in their hearts; so turn away from them, and admonish them, and say to them penetrating words about themselves.” (19)

But how can one recognise the knowledgeable and sincere? Ignorance is hard to recognise with little knowledge of your own, but at least it can be rectified if a person is sincere. Muhammad said he came with the religion of truth and tolerance, so that is one way to assess those who came nearest to his example. As Jafar said to the Negus, Muhammad enjoined us to speak the truth, to fulfil our promises, to be merciful and respect the rights of our neighbours, and to refrain from crimes and bloodshed. He taught us not to speak evil of women, or to deprive orphans of their rightful dues; he ordered us to shrink from vice and abstain from evil actions, to offer prayers, to give alms and to observe the Fast.

In these actions and abstentions can be seen the sincerity of a Muslim, or anyone else committed to a similar way of life, and perhaps such simple and practical notions are a place from which dialogue can start, and start it must if our shrinking world is to survive. For this world does not belong to theologians and the clergy, nor is Paradise reserved for Muslims, Christians and Jews. The good news of the Message is for all sincere men and women “Whoever believes in God and the Last Day, and works righteousness – their wage awaits them with their Lord, and no fear shall be on them, and neither shall they sorrow.” (20)

Salaamu aleikum.

Qur’an quotations