There is a huge church right across the place where I live. There is a convent attached to the church and every day that I have the leisure to observe from my terrace, I see hundreds of girls within the walls of the school. A blue coloured sign of ‘St. Joseph’s Cathedral’ and huge walls of the convent keeps it separate from the outside world.
There is also a mosque on the same street. It’s a small mosque, but it has made the life of numerous people in the vicinity easy as it is near their houses.
It goes without saying that they both beckon to their respective followers without fail; the bells ringing thrice a day, the Azaan five times. Each act as a reminder for fellow believers to take a break from worldly affairs and pray.
For me, it was confusing. Why would anyone want to go across cross the street and bow to three gods when bowing to one was not only better but the right and only way to do so as a believer of faith? As time passed, I realised how stupid I had been. I had been questioning the difference of belief but I had remained oblivious to and never admired how the shrines of two different yet similar religions existed together side by side, peacefully. They were not unlike two neighbours who were on good terms with one another.
Over a period of few months, I had the opportunity to interact with some Christians and I realised that there wasn’t much difference between us. We only needed to learn to accept these differences just as we would our similarities.
Then the blasphemous acts began. They happened in quick successions. I was furious. In fact, I was hurt and felt betrayed. The only question on my lips was why. Why was it happening? But I guess it’s what every Muslim was thinking at the moment.
Did we ever insult their God and prophet?
Then why did they insult ours? It’s not that it was the first time. No, it wasn’t. We have lost count of the number of times this has happened. Still, I refuse to hate. I refuse to hate people of other religions for the heinous acts of a few. After all, I don’t want the whole world to consider me a terrorist based on the acts of a few Muslims. Thus, I refuse to hate Christians because of the act of some who were morally and socially corrupt. They were not even faithful to their own religion.
And yet it does not answer my question. How do we respond to the attacks? The blasphemous acts were directed towards my beloved Prophet (PBUH). On the one hand was the man I knew as Saadiq and Ameen, titles given to him before he had started preaching Islam. He had forgiven a woman who used to throw trash at him; he had forgiven even a nation which showered him with stones and made it unbearable for him to live. On the other hand were the disgraceful acts.
But, then, if we are to follow his teachings and his practices, then the examples quoted above should motivate us to live in peace, to not hate the offenders but to forgive them and live in harmony. It took me a long time to reach this stance; I have stuck to it since.