THE WORD OF GOD

The remedy for ignorance is asking questions. (Prophet Muhammad) The spirit of enquiry is the hallmark of an open society and the above saying of the Prophet aptly illustrates this principle. A culture of curiosity and open-mindedness will foster development in any society by motivating its members to learn enthusiastically and enrich their knowledge. This is because awareness of one’s ignorance is half of knowledge, as it becomes a stepping-stone to seeking and finding answers. A questioning mind is like a flowing river that is replenished with fresh thoughts and ideas and continues on its journey. YOUR QUESTIONS ANSWERED If the purpose of intercommunity dialogue is to understand each other and to learn from each other—does it mean only understanding each other’s religions, or also each other’s economic, social, political conditions and problems? In other words, do you think such dialogue should be theological or sociological or both? Social issues are common in nature. When you carry out discussions on social issues, it means you are trying to share with others. In matters of social issues, you are giving others something and at the same time, taking something from others. Discussion on social issues is our common worldly requirement. Here, the formula of the well-known social thinker Jeremy Bentham is applicable: “The greatest good for the greatest number.” That is, many people sit together to discuss issues of society and whatever jointly emerges from the discussions shall be adopted for all. However, the arena of religion is quite different. Religion is the subject of truth. In the matter of religion, if it is believed that everything is the truth, then that would be tantamount to negation of the truth. Truth, on account of its very nature, requires oneness. Truth is one that is the truth with the capital T. Every individual is required to seek the truth, and to find out the truth which according to his finding is the truth with the capital T. Without making this kind of finding he will live in confusion. But, at the same time the other fact of life is that everyone is living in a society. Thus, one should adopt the formula of better social living, that is, mutual respect without discrimination. If one doesn’t adhere to this principle, there will result violence and bloodshed in the society. We have to, therefore, differentiate between social issues and religious issues.