Can Islam Live at Peace with Other Faiths - Essay Example

Can Islam Live At Peace With Other Faiths? INTRODUCTION Prevalence of peace within the society is deemed to be among the primary aims for every religion within the present day scenario. Every religion has their own set of beliefs, values and cultures which further enhance the significance of a particular religion amid other religions (Ernst 1-8). Contextually, Islam is one of such religions, which has numerous teachings of faiths and beliefs for the followers. It has been learnt that within the Islamic religion, peace is believed to be attained by submitting one’s own body, mind and soul to the Allah. The teaching of this particular religion often argues about the source of peace to be the inner-thoughts of individuals which he/she depicts in front of others (Siddiqui 1-16). However, in the recent decades with the increasing activities of terrorism all over the world and active involvement of Islam in the same, it is often argued that whether this particular religion can live at peace with other religions in this ever globalizing society. THESIS STATEMENT It is evident that Islam also has its own philosophies and practices that can ensure peace within the religion and all over the world. In order to provide a better and a clearer understanding on this particular debate, this essay will intend to depict the religious differences and similarities of Islam with other faiths on the basis of social peace. This can further enable to provide an apparent response on whether Islam can live at peace with other faiths. PEACE AND ISLAM People hold different beliefs about the prevalence of peace in Islam especially owing to the fact that the religion is involved in conducting good deeds as well as involving in active terrorism throughout the world over the years. Peace in Islam is often regarded as a myth since little clear perception prevails among the people about the same. It is quite a fact that as per the teachings as well as the religious significance of Islam, the aspect of violence and terrorism and the overall religion of Islam are contradictory to one another (Ernst 18-26). It is argued that violence and terrorism were never been within the core values of the Islam religion. Relating the values of the Islamic religion with terrorism and violence will simply be an approach of denying the principles and teachings of the prophet. The alignment of the Islamic religion with peace can also be comprehended from the fact that the term Islam itself means ‘peace’ as per the Arabic slim (Siddiqui 36-41). As per the values and teachings of the Prophet, a person belonging to the Islamic religion will have the safest hand to take care of others. In accordance with one of the attributes motioned in the Quran i.e. As-Salam, God itself is the sign of peace and hence each and every Muslim must follow the path of peace. It has also been noted that as per the teachings of Prophet in Quran, Islam is a religion that is not only the preserver of peace all over, but is also the promoter of peace. It wishes peace and wellbeing to the people of other religions as well. In keeping with one of the excerpts in Quran, reconciliation is the best aspect and not confrontation. This facet means that peace is best and far better as compared to war or violence. It is believed that when the Prophet is availed with two options i.e. reconciliation and confrontation, he would choose peace or reconciliation as it is much easier to follow. Hence, it is quite apparent that Islam and its teachings do not support violence or terrorism but it is a promoter of peace and humanity among the followers i.e. each and every Islam (Peters 291-315). ALIGNMENT OF PEACE IN ISLAM AND OTHER FAITHS Similar to Islamism, peace can be seen as among the core values and principles of other religions as well. In this regard, the significance and the prevalence of peace and non-violence in Christianity and Hinduism would be vital to discuss (Siddiqui 28-31). Notably, as per the teachings of Jesus, all of his followers must intend to uphold peace and harmony within the society and same should be promoted to other religions as well (Ernst 56-80). In accordance with the principles mentioned within the New Testament, maintaining peace is one of the core principles that each and every follower within the religion of Christianity must comply with. The significance of peace within the religion of Christianity can also be better comprehended from the fact that the word itself has been mentioned more than 90 times in the New Testament. It has been stated in the New Testament that peace is the heart of the life of Jesus and during the course of his existence, the Lord promoted peace as one of his prime teachings. Furthermore, in each of the messages of Jesus for his followers, peace was being conveyed as significant. Peace is also regarded as identify and virtue of every Christian. Therefore, collectively it can be said that seeking peace and at the same time avoiding conflicts is the duty and responsibility of every Christian as per the teachings of Jesus and message conveyed through Bible (Siddiqui 121-162). Similarly, in the religion of Hinduism and its teachings, peace is regarded as a prominent and non-avoidable element. As per the teachings of Hinduism, peace will not prevail until and unless people or the followers seek to promote and practice peaceful practices within the society. In keeping with the holy Bhagavad Gita, people should be ready for both happiness and distress in life and both the aspects should be equally accepted. The teachings in Bhagavad Gita further suggest that people should perform their own duties and responsibilities without thinking about the consequences. This means that people should feel peaceful and happy by conducting their activities and they should not regret from the same irrespective of the outcomes. The teachings further portrayed that one can convey peace from his/her behavior. The teachings also prominently emphasized the fact that if one could not ensure peace within their own self; they will not be in a position to promote or convey the same to others (Engineer 165-211). It has also been comprehended that consistent with the teachings of Hinduism, peace is not only to ensure avoidance to violence and conflict for one own self or regions but it also includes contributing towards ensuring peace for the whole world and for every individual irrespective of their religion. This can also mean that the follower of Hinduism shall not only be a preserver of peace but also be a promoter of the same. Peace can and should be conveyed and promoted through various means such as actions, fulfillment of duties and responsibilities, treating and respecting people of other religion equally among others. These principles depict the core values of the Hindus and way they should practice peaceful existence (Engineer 165-211). It can be determined from the above depiction that alike Islam each of the religions provides utmost significance towards ensuring peace within the society. Similar to that of Islam, each of the religions extensively discusses about the importance of ensuring peace and harmony as a core duty. Hence, it can argued that since every religion provides utmost heed to peace and harmony in their principle, it is quite possible that on the grounds of values, beliefs and teachings, Islamism can live in peace with other faiths and religions. However, a reasoned conclusion of the debate is provided subsequently. CRITICAL ANALYSIS ON WHETHER ISLAM CAN LIVE AT PEACE WITH OTHER FAITHS It has been witnessed that Islam and its principle teachings promote peace and harmony to each of its followers. The religion intends to contribute positively towards prevailing peace throughout the world. However, increasing alignment of the religion of Islam with terrorism and violence further raise questions over the co-existence of Islam with different other faiths in a peaceful and harmonious manner without the existence of conflicts. In this regard, it is often argued that it is not the Islam that is being involved in terrorism and violent activities. The involvement of other religions is also quite considerable in this context. It is quite evident that not all the people in the religion of Islam are violent and hence the entire religion should not be regarded as the promoter of terrorism. The Quran teaches all to remain peaceful and live together as one. It is the responsibility of the followers to ensure that the teachings of the prophet are being duly practiced. Moreover, there is no religion in the world that teaches violence and terrorism and hence the co-existence of Islam with other faiths is quite possible. Form a contradictory point of view, it has been learnt that the face of Islam has changed over the years. Though Islamism is one of the biggest religions of the world in terms of its prevalence, it is still being seen as a promoter of peace. At the same time, it is also known that the religion of Christianity also involves with activities of terrorism and violence in various parts of the world. However, it is believed that the primary cause of such approaches from the Islam and the Christianity largely resemblances with their ignorance towards their religious teachings. Both the religions preach peace along with values but their religious practices hinder the practical existence of the teachings. Correspondingly, when both Islam and other faiths emphasize more towards practicing values rather than executing their religious rituals, they can be able to live and co-exist in a peaceful way. It is also believed that the removing the sense of enmity against others religions and faiths will also enable Islam and other faiths to ensure peaceful and harmonious co-existence. However, in the reverse scenario, when Islam approaches to dominate and rule over other faith and vice versa, the aspect of peaceful co-existence might be considered highly uncertain. Furthermore, it can also be stated that all religions are follower of God and not much difference exist between their principles values and teachings. Hence, it will not be ambiguous to state that Islam could be able to live at peace with other religions. It is only the difference in the thinking and perception of people of different religions that hinder them to live peacefully and equally within the society (Schmidt-Leukel 1-63). However, on the contrary, the increasing number of wars that takes place on the basis of religion and religious values further makes the thought of co-existence of Islam with other faiths and vice versa to be quite uncertain and unambiguous. Hence, it will be quite challenging to present a precise conclusion on whether Islam can co-exist peacefully with other religion or faiths or not. Although a change in the thinking and perception of the people within Islam and other faiths might ensure peaceful co-existence of different religions in one common dimension. CONCLUSION From the above analysis, it can be evidently stated that each religion has its own teachings and principles that emphasize the practices along with prevalence of peace within the people and the society altogether. Similarly, Islam which is often seen as a major promoter of terrorism and violence also has extensive teachings that preach for peace and harmony throughout the world. The Quran depicts that it is the duty and responsibility of each of the followers of Islam to promote and practice peace and obstruct and avoid violence. Likewise, other faiths also include similar teachings regarding the practice of peace within the religion. Contextually, it has been comprehended that the faith of Islam and other religions can possibly co-exist since there is little difference amid the teachings of different religions. However, the presence of dominance and rivalry amid countries and people on religious grounds can further hinder the co-existence of Islam with different faiths. Therefore, it can be concluded that it will be ambiguous to take any stand on whether Islam can live peacefully with other faiths. In the face of the globalizing society, the social stakeholders need to take stand from different religions to ensure peace and harmony and not to blame religious issues for emerging global conflicts which will certainly be a dominating factor globally to ensure ever-lasting peace amid different faiths. Works Cited Ernst, Carl. W. How to Read the Quran: A New Guide, with Select Translations, 2011. US: University of North Carolina Press. Print. Engineer, Asghar Ali. “A Muslim View of Hinduism.” University of Miami (n.d.): 162-210. Print.   Peters, F. E. “The Quest of the Historical Muhammad.” International Journal of Middle East Studies 23.2 (1991): 291-315. Print. Siddiqui, Mona. How to Read the Quran, 2014. US: Granta Books. Print. Siddiqui, Ataullah. “A Muslim View of Christianity.” University of Miami (n.d.): 121-162. Print. Schmidt-Leukel, Perry. “Islam and Inter Faith Relations.” SCM Press (2007): 1-63. Print. Read More