Policy of Peace in Islam

SEPTEMBER 21 Policy of Peace in Islam Islam is a religion of peace. The Qur’an calls its (Quranic) way ‘the paths of peace’ (5:16). The Qur’an calls the policy of reconciliation as the best policy (4:128) and that God does not love the disturbance of peace (2:205). According to the Prophet Muhammad, may peace be upon him, a believer is one from whom people feel secure as regards their life and wealth. One practical question arises in this regard that in the present world, for one reason or another, differences, political as well as non-political, as always, arises among individuals as well as groups, Muslims as well as non-Muslims. Now if people refuse to tolerate differences, insisting on ending the differences as soon as they are born, this would result in fighting. With the result that peace could never be obtained in the world. How then in such a situation can peace be secured? One recent example of this difference is that of Jerusalem. Jerusalem is a very ancient historical city. With an added speciality that billions of people believe it to be their sacred place. Jerusalem is a symbol and centre of inspiration for the three great semitic religions of Judaism, Christianity and Islam. For Jews it is a living proof of their ancient grandeur and centre of national history. For Christians, it is the scene of their Saviour’s agony and triumph. For Muslims, the first destination of the Prophet’s mystic journey and the site of one of Islam’s most sacred shrines. Thus for all three faiths it is a centre of pilgrimage and the third holiest place of worship. Now the question arises that when it is a place of worship for all the three religions, how it can be freely accessible to all. How the adherents of all the three religions can have the opportunity to be able to satisfy their religious feelings. Nowadays all around us we hear the slogan ‘Jerusalem is ours’. This slogan has political connotations to it. The raising of this slogan by each party shows that it wants its own political supremacy over Quds or Jerusalem. All the three believe that so long as they are unable to hold their political dominance over this sacred city they cannot perform worship in the proper sense of the word.