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Spirit of Islam Issue 35 November 2015
God wants that in
matters of religion,
every person should
enjoy freedom to
choose their own
path.
Violence involves two (or more) people—one who engages in violence,
and one who is victimised. Earlier, religion was considered as a state
subject and the only legitimate religion was the official religion, the
religion of the state. Practicing any other religion was considered
a crime synonymous with rebellion against the state. Such bigoted
attitudes perpetrated religious persecution.
Monarchs did not allow dissension, with any
opposition being perceived as a threat to
their rule; and hence did not tolerate it. This
state of affairs was against God’s Creation
Plan. God wants that in matters of religion,
every person should enjoy freedom to choose
their own path. The Prophet of Islam and his
followers were commanded to end religious
persecution
(THE QURAN 8: 39)
, and allow such
natural conditions that God desires to prevail
among people.
This plan of God is referred to in the above-cited
Hadith
. It says that in
accordance with God’s decision, religious freedom must be established
and religious persecution be rooted out for ever.
With the age of religious freedom well established in the 20
th
century,
no one faces persecution any more. Only those individuals or groups
engaging in unnecessary violence will face violence, giving their
opponents the opportunity to engage in retaliatory violence. One
who engages in violence will face retaliatory violence, irrespective of
whether he does it in the name of religion or any other name.
o
Spiritual versus Material
Being spiritual means rectifying one's
relationship with other human beings. It is far
from meaning the renunciation of all contacts
with the material world.