Christianity and Islam are the two dominant religious groups in our world. According to the Pew Research Center Report, the number of Muslims worldwide will be "nearly as numerous as Christians" by 2050. The study also points to the interesting statistic that for the first time in history, the number of Christians and Muslims will be 2.9 billion and 2.8 billion respectively. In view of this, interfaith relations assume an added significance. Christians and Muslims have a duty to work toward peace and betterment of humanity through a shared framework. It is imperative that the mainstream leadership take an active role in promoting positive relations that are based on the universal principles of these two world religions.
The extremely heinous acts committed by "Muslim" terrorist groups like ISIS are a betrayal of Islamic teachings, in the same way the genocide of Muslims in the Central African Republic (CAR) by "Christian" terrorists is a betrayal of Christian teachings; or the violence against Christians and Muslims in India by "Hindu" terrorists is a betrayal of Hinduism; or the violence against the Rohingiya Muslims in Burma by "Buddhist" terrorists is a betrayal of Buddhism. These horrendous acts should not be allowed to deflate the desire and passion among mainstream followers of all religions to continue to build relationships toward making this world safe for our future generations.
As I noted in my earlier blog, the Christian-Muslim Dialogue sponsored by the Minnesota Council of Churches and the Islamic Center of Minnesota recently celebrated its 25th anniversary. Dr. Jay Rock and Dr. Jamal Badawi were the keynote speakers at this celebration. Dr. Badawi's framework for Muslim-Christian relations from a Muslim perspective was quite compelling. I would like to summarize that framework, quoting from his world renowned research paper, which is considered a mainstream thesis.
1. Faith in One Universal God (Allah in Arabic language): Islam is founded on the belief that there is only one God, who is the universal Creator, Sustainer and Cherisher of all. Being the sole creator of all humankind precludes any notion of multiple, competing creators, each marshalling his creation against the other "gods" and their creation. Allah is One and is impartial toward His creation. He provides for all, including those who reject faith in Him, or even those who defy Him. He cares for the well being of all and gives them ample opportunity to repent to Him and end the state of separateness suffered by those who reject Him or are unmindful of Him. This belief implies that all humans are equal before Allah in terms of their humanity, irrespective of their particular beliefs. Only Allah is the ultimate judge of any person's "theological correctness." No human should be oppressed or mistreated by other fellow humans because of a perceived "theological incorrectness."
2. Unity and universality of the core teachings of all prophets: That core message is peace in submission to Allah; literally Islam. According to the Qur'an, a Muslim must accept, revere and believe in all the prophets of Allah, without discrimination. They all represent one brotherhood of faith extending vertically to include many generations and horizontally to embrace all humanity. In the Qur'an we read: " …we [Muslims] make no distinction between any of His messengers [i.e. God's messengers]" (2:285). We read also: " Behold, We have revealed to you [O Muhammad] as We revealed to Noah and all the prophets after him…" (4: 163). Still in another verse we read: " In matters of faith, He [God] has ordained for you that which He had enjoined upon Abraham, Moses and Jesus: steadfastly uphold the [true] faith and make no divisions therein…" (42:13). These Qur'anic texts preclude the notion of narrow partisanship that may lead to hatred or even violence against communities who perceive themselves as followers of other prophets.
3. Universal Human dignity: The Qur'an gives various reasons why each human being must be honored and dignified on account being human irrespective of his or her chosen beliefs. Such honor is symbolized by the way the Qur'an describes Allah's creation of the human in the best of molds and commanding the angels to bow down in respect to Adam. The Qur'an describes the human as the trustee of Allah on earth. Allah created everything on earth and in the heavens for the benefit of the human race. Sanctity of human life is affirmed in the Qur'an " Nor take life, which God has made sacred, except for just cause…" (17:33). The Qur'an confirms God's revelation to previous prophets that "…if anyone slays a human being, unless it be [punishment] for murder, or for spreading mischief on earth, it shall be as though he had slain all humankind; whereas, if anyone saves a life, it shall be as though he had saved the lives of all humankind" [5:32]. Beyond sanctity of life, In the Qur'an we read: "Indeed We [God] have conferred dignity on the children of Adam…" [17:70]. It is noted that this verse is inclusive of all humans irrespective of their religions or even their belief in God. Rejection of belief in God will surely have consequences in the afterlife. However, it is up to God to determine these consequences. Such future determination has no bearing on the respect of the humanity of every person in this life. After all, the human is a free agent, and as such each is individually responsible before God for his/her belief and moral choices. A person can be held accountable in this life only if such a moral choice infringes on the rights of individual or society such as the commission of crimes or acts of aggression. In other words, no human is entitled to dehumanize or punish another on the sole ground that the later is following a different religion or no religion at all. This value implies that peaceful co-existence among followers of all religions and respecting their humanity is not only possible, but also mandated in the Qur'an.
4. Universal justice: The Arabic term for justice is "Adl" means "to be in a state of equilibrium, to be balanced." That balance is inherent in the cosmic order and ecology as much as it is inherent in spiritual and ethical values. The Qur'an warns against disturbing that balance. Within that broad context, we can examine the concept of justice as it relates to human relationships based on Islam's primary sources. Briefly, that concept has the following characteristics:
a. Justice is not mere "political correctness" or something to be pursued exclusively, for worldly gain. For the believer, it is a divine command.