It was sad day today for the Muslims of Christ Church, New Zealand in particular and Muslims all over the world in general when a white Christian man sprayed bullets over the Muslim worshipers gathered in the Mosques for the Friday congregational prayers. As per reports available, forty-one people were shot dead at the Deans Ave mosque, seven were killed at the Linwood Ave attack, and one person shot in the second mosque attack died in hospital. The man, who identified himself on Twitter as “Brenton Tarrant” from Australia and whose whose background NSW counter-terrorism police are now investigating after the revelation that he is from Grafton, said he carried out the attack to “directly reduce immigration rates to European lands”. The terrorist had the nerves and boldness to capture the entire shooting through his helmet mounted camera, the video has been released and is viral on the social media. When he entered the mosque Al Noor, an elderly man greeted him "Come in brother" but was brutally gunned down:
In the video, a man, later identified as Naeem Rashid from Pakistan is seen trying to stop the terrorist but was gunned down. He was taken to hospital but succumbed to his injuries. Naeem's 22 years old son also perished in the attack.
Naeem Rashid (above) - Trying to get hold of the terrorist (below)
The Bangladesh Cricket Team which was there in the city and its members were arriving at the mosque narrowly escaped and the tour has been canceled. Soon after the deadly news, the Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern described the incident as a terrorist attack and one of New Zealand's "darkest days".
While the world mourns and condemns the terror attack, a senator form Queensland, Australia did not have the sagacity to condemn the attack, rather he blamed Muslims for the conditions they had created that instigated the killer to kill. See the letter that is on the Facebook:
Reading this letter, one can safely conclude that such supporters of anti Muslim sentiments are to be blamed and even held accountable for their writings are a proof of open instigation for all those who are obsessed with Islamophobia. May all those who perished in the brutal terrorist attack may rest in peace and be blessed the highest place in Jannah. May their families bear this loss with fortitude. Aameen
The question arises: How should Muslims around the world react to such acts of instigative Islamophobic acts? Please read my earlier post of the subject which I wrote some time ago: How should Muslims react to instigative emotional access
Author's Note: The data above has been collected from the references as given below. If any one differs with the material contained in this post, one may consult the references and their authors. If someone has more material about the subject, he/she is most welcome to share in the comments box to make the post all encompassing.
Please share this page to your friends and family members through Facebook, WhatsApp or any means on Social Media so that they can also be benefited by it and better understand Islam and the Holy Qur'an - Insha Allah (Allah Willing) you shall be blessed with the best of both worlds.
I have been writing about life of Muslims living in the non Muslim countries for awhile now and my experience of knowing about their life and status is rather mixed. Some countries have extremely cordial relations with their Muslim population, some moderate, and some on extreme limits of Islamophobia. For some reasons, I always had a liking for the once united Czechoslovakia since my childhood when collecting stamps and the name of this country fascinated me as it was very difficult to pronounce. I never knew then that one day I would be writing about life of Muslims in part of the erstwhile Czechoslovakia and will be saddened to know how difficult the life of Muslims would be in the Czech Republic. Yes, while reading through different surveys and posts, it seems the tiny population of about 20,000 (hardly any percentage of the total population of the Czech Republic) has the toughest time as compared to all other non Muslim countries in the world. To start with, the first caption that caught my life was "Czech Republic politician calls for ban on Islam" and this is not the only one. Islam which found its presence in the area that now constitutes the Czech Republic in the 10th century AD, has not really flourished well since as compared to other countries of the region. Despite strong trade links between Austria-Hungary and Ottoman Empire emerged during the 19th century, Islam did not leave a meaningful impact on the local culture. A law 1912 by the Austro-Hungarian monarchy recognized Islam as a "state religion" and officially allowed its presence in what is now the Czech Republic. In 1998 the first mosque was opened, in Brno and a year later another, in the capital, Prague. However, attempts to open mosques in other cities have been stopped by local citizens. In 2004 Islam was officially registered in the Czech Republic: the community is thus eligible to obtain funds from the state. Most of the Muslims are from Bosnia-Herzegovina (early 1990s) and former countries of Soviet Union (mostly from Caucasus region, from the late 1990s until the present). A significant and influential part are the middle-class people of Egyptian, Syrian and other Middle Eastern ancestries (typically those who studied in Czechoslovakia and decided to stay). A few hundred Muslims are Czech converts.
The present Czech Republic's tiny Muslim community subject to hate and face disproportionate about of hatred from fellow citizens. "There are shocking levels of islamophobic hysteria, aimed mostly at Muslim refugees (which is insane - there pretty much aren’t any here!). Even people who are normally tolerant often make an exception for Islam," says Veronika Vrabcová, a Czech student of Psychology and Sociology. "Now, most people here won’t take physical action against an actual human being. There has been a case when a girl was thrown off a bus (at a stop) by another passenger because he thought she wore hijab (she didn’t). My colleague got surrounded and spat on while with her little children. (The kicker is she is a Czech converted to Islam and a very gentle and caring person.) I haven’t noticed anything worse than that, but then, I’m not Muslim." I’d say, if you’re noticeably Muslim, or people confuse you with a Muslim on a regular basis, many will make your stay in Czech Republic rather unpleasant, but you aren’t in outright danger (at least at the time I’m writing this). Yes, even if you’re actually a Czech citizen since birth and merely converted. [3]
The Muslims feel that Islam has become a hot-button topic in Czech national politics, where the power to resolve the country's hung parliament could lie with a politician whose only policy is, "No to Islam. No to terrorism". Czech-Japanese entrepreneur Tomio Okamura and his Freedom and Direct Democracy Party (SPD) rode into parliament as the third most powerful party after the recent October nationwide elections, with no discernible policy other than to drive Islam completely out of the Czech Republic. [2] Today the Czechs exhibit 'highest level of racial bias in Europe'. Vladimir Sanka, a 58-year-old Czech Muslim, who is on the board of the Muslim Community in Prague association says: "Most of the Muslims here are doctors, engineers and IT specialists and so on, yet some political parties are trying to change our rights and eliminate Islam." The Muslims are restricted from several basic privileges enjoyed by other faiths, including the right to establish schools, to hold legally recognized weddings and conduct religious ceremonies in public spaces. Making matters worse, growing anti-Islam sentiment has resulted in an uptick in hate speech and even physical attacks against Muslims who moved here long before the refugee crisis. Although one can find halal meat in Prague, one near the just blocks away from the famed Wenceslas Square, people oppose selling halal meat because they consider the Muslim way of slaughtering animals cruel. Also because the Czechs are not okay with any religion. Many people tend to pretend that they don’t care. But every time they see a woman in hijab, they slowly walk away, and if not, you can see marks of concerns. Even worse when they see a man - Muslim, as they imagine that he beats women and so on. Why the Czechs are so averse to Islam or for that matter any religion is because Czechs have highest number of atheist in the world (or for sure in Europe). Only 16% of Czechs believe in ANY God at all. And as Muslims show that they are Muslims - prayer, hijab, dietary requirements etc - so then they are “strange”. Nearly the same feeling of something “strange” is towards catholic / Christian monks / nuns / priests or Hare Krishna folks or Buddhist monks, says Jirka Kanding. Czechs have generally extremely high distrust to ANY authority that will try to interfere with private life or “show them” / “ to teach them” what to do and what is correct. So the reason why Islam is not the religion to be liked by the Czechs. [3] It may be added here that in Slovakia, the other part of erstwhile Czechoslovakia, the state of Muslims in not good either as last year it passed a law effectively banning Islam from gaining official status as a religion. You mat now like to watch this short video on Being a Muslim woman in Czech Republic: the story of Nenávist Balická
So hats off the Muslims of Czech Republic foe keeping up their religion despite all odds and surviving and striving to preserve their religion, Islam. Author's Note: The data above has been collected from the references as given below. If any one differs with the material contained in this post, one may consult the references and their authors. If someone has more material about the subject, he/she is most welcome to share in the comments box to make the post all encompassing.
Please share this page to your friends and family members through Facebook, WhatsApp or any means on Social Media so that they can also be benefited by it and better understand Islam and the Holy Qur'an - Insha Allah (Allah Willing) you shall be blessed with the best of both worlds.
Islam in Canada has not been very old, something like 150 years since. Although the first Muslims recorded were immigrants, they were not from a traditionally Muslim country. Agnes and James Love were of Scottish origin. James Jr., born in 1854, was the first Muslim born in Ontario. John and Martha Simon, another Muslim couple, migrated to Canada from the United States around 1871. The first Canada Census in 1871 recorded the presence of 13 Muslims. The Muslim population grew since specially after the influx of immigrants after the Second World War raised the number to 33 370 by 1971. The majority of immigrants have been highly educated, westernized professionals. They were mostly from Lebanon, Syria, Indonesia, Morocco, Palestine, Egypt, Iraq and the Indian-Pakistani-Bangladeshi subcontinent. From 1966 to 1970, thousands of unskilled labourers of Indo-Pakistani background immigrated to escape discrimination in East Africa and Britain. More recently, Muslim immigrants have included unskilled workers from southern Lebanon, Somalia and the Balkans fleeing their war-torn countries, as well as political refugees from Iran and Afghanistan. [1] According to Canada's 2011 National Household Survey, there were 1,053,945 Muslims in Canada, or about 3.2% of the population, making Islam the second largest religion in the country after Christianity. Currently, every province and territory has a notable Muslim community, with the largest existing in Toronto with over 250,000 Muslims residing in the city and over 20 mosques.[2]
The life as Muslim is as challenging in Canada as any other European country. While men generally get merged with the surrounding people, Muslim women wearing Hijab are singled out and have to bear the brunt of anti Islam sentiments: [5]
“There’s a constant tension for young Muslims — and particularly young Muslim girls — in trying to forge their own identities against the way they’re often represented,” says Jasmin Zine, a professor of sociology at Wilfrid Laurier University in Waterloo, Ont., who studies Muslim youth in Canada. They may not remember 9/11, but they've spent their lives in its specter, she says, aware that a simple decision to go play paint ball could track as terrorism-in-training. Those tensions are everywhere: Wear a hijab or don’t wear a hijab? Pray in the hallways of school or skip it to hang out with friends? Respond to an Islamophobic comment on line or remain silent?
Fajar Khan, 15, says that when we have only girls around us, we are allowed to take off our hijab, and I've done that in the locker room many times. I've been told, “Wow, you have amazing long hair. Why don’t you take off that scarf?” I explain to them what the hijab means to me — it is my honour and my modesty — and how beautiful I feel with it on. I try to encourage my hijabi friends to play sports; I tell them it’s an amazing experience. It is harder to play with a hijab on, but it’s not that hard.
Marium Vahed, 16, says: You see a lot of Islamophobia out there. Sometimes, as a young Muslim girl who is still trying to understand my own religion, I think, “How should I refute that?” Often I find myself being a bystander, because I don’t know how to respond with something that will actually persuade them, or I know from experience that whatever I say won’t persuade them. And I don’t want to put myself out there in a way that’s so public, especially in this world where everything you say can come back to bite you.
The Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's positive view of Muslims and the challenges they are facing due to backlash of anti Islam sentiments around the world with its fallout on Canadian people and supports Muslims, saying: Muslim Canadians contribute enormously to the country. That creates a different example of what’s acceptable. Recently I shared a post in which Justin Trudeau is seen convincing an anti Immigrant Canadian how immigrants have been useful to Canada and how the Canadian must accommodate them despite all negativeness about immigrants. [5]
Muslims are a very useful part of Canada and are always moving forward to carry the positive image of Islam. Many mosques participate in the Doors Open event, inviting other Canadians To 'Visit My Mosque' And Ask Them Anything. These events event aim to dispel misconceptions, foster an appreciation of the Muslim faith in Canada, and celebrate the philanthropy of the Canadian-Muslim community throughout the year. Author's Note: The data above has been collected from the references as given below. IF any one differs with the material contained in this post, one may consult the references and their authors. If someone has more material about the subject, he/she is most welcome to share in the comments box to make the post all encompassing. "We have nothing to hide," Shafiq Ebrahim, vice-president of Jaffari Islamic Centre in Thornhill, Ont., told HuffPost Canada by phone. "We aren't a secret society or mysterious in any way. We're law-abiding people who pay taxes and love our neighbourhood and want to build genuine relationships here." [4] Joel Harden, an NDP MPP for Ottawa Centre who toured the Ottawa Mosque, left some encouraging remarks on Twitter: Took my daughter for a visit with Ahmed, Fatma, Leen and Salma at the Ottawa Mosque for #VisitMyMosque day. I am so proud these folks are our neighbours. In the #ottstorm the @OMA_Mosque and other Ottawa Muslim groups fed over 5000 people. @canadianmv #OttawaCentre. How is it being a Muslim in Canada and the challenges they face that accrue out of the notion Islamophobia, watch the video below:
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Like many European countries, Islam too is the second largest religion in Austria too. As per an estimate (2016), about 8% of the total Austrian population is Muslim. The actual number of Muslims vary between 600,000 to 700,000, mostly Turks, followed by Muslims from Bosnia Herzegovina, Arab countries, Iran, Pakistan and Afghanistan. Most of the Muslim population belongs to the Sunni sect of Islam.
The first evidence of Muslims in Austria dates back to nomadic tribes from Asia that entered the region in 895. Following the Ottoman conquest of the Habsburg Empire in the late 15th century, more Muslims moved into the territory that makes up modern-day Austria. However, they were expelled after the Habsburg Empire took control of the region in the late 17th century but a few were allowed to remain. The largest number of Muslims came under Austrian control after the Austro-Hungarian occupation of Bosnia and Herzegovina in 1878. Austria was the first European country to recognize Islam as an official religion in 1912 following its annexation of Bosnia and Herzegovina. However, Muslims moved into Austria in sizable numbers in the 1960s when migrant workers from Yugoslavia and Turkey moved to the country. Many Muslim refugees of the Yugoslav Wars also moved to Austria during the 1990s. In 2013, Austria granted the status of a recognized religious community to Alevism, a branch of Shia Muslims. Perhaps in the wake of growing Islamophobia, a new law was passed by the Austrian parliament in 2015 which illegalized the foreign funding of mosques and paying salaries of imams. The law also gave Muslims additional rights, such as the rights to halal food and pastoral care in the military. The government was of the view that the changes were intended to "clearly combat" the influence of Islamic extremism in Austria. [1]
The life of Muslims in Austria has never been easy. However, in recent years it is getting even worse. In October 2017, the Austrian government passed a law named the "Prohibition on the Covering of the Face." The law was introduced by the center-left Chancellor Christian Kern. Anyone wearing clothes that obscure their face in public is liable to a fine of €150 and must remove the offending garment “on the spot” if ordered by police. This act is out rightly rejected by the local Muslims as it directly affects the Muslim women.
An open display of hostility against the Muslims - Photo The Washington Post
Lat year before the elections, an open display of growing hostility of Austrians towards Muslims was seen in streets of Vienna. Some major political parties were observed deliberately brandishing Islamophobia. A torch-lit procession of ultra-nationalists gathered on the outskirts of Vienna to listen to fiery speeches on the anniversary of a 17th-century victory over Muslim Ottomans. “Today we have to defend our homeland again,” thundered the leader of the Identitaren movement. [3] There are 205 registered mosques in Austria with hundreds more unregistered prayer rooms. There are four mosques in the country that were purpose-built with minarets. However, recently, there has been also been a clampdown over mosques, specially the ones funded by foreign countries, specially Turkey which funds most of the mosques in Austria to cater for the needs of Turk Muslims in Austria. The Muslim asylum seekers have a more difficult life as they are considered suspicious and are generally rounded up for questioning. Thus most of them have stopped going to the mosques since the placement of the rightest government in the center.
The mosques are silent these days, a metaphor of sorts for the low profile many Muslims are keeping because they no longer feel welcome in Austria. One of the worshipers at Schura Mosque on a recent Friday was Viennese Councilman Omar al-Rawi. He said Muslim asylum-seekers are especially afraid to enter mosques nowadays. "They say, 'We won't go to pray because maybe they will think we are radicals so it's better not to pray'" until their refugee status is approved, he explains. [2]
Majority of voters voted for the Sebastian Kurz party for keeping Austria safe from terror attacks carried out by Muslim extremists elsewhere in Europe, as well as curbing asylum and immigration. In June earlier this year, the Austrian Chancellor Sebastian Kurz promised a crackdown on radical Islam - saying is ‘just the beginning’ of a crackdown.
"These factors stir up uneasiness and fears and makes the Muslim to be seen as 'the other,'" says Carla Amina Baghajati, 51, who is spokeswoman for the Islamic Religious Community in Austria. That "other," she adds, is perceived as a threat to the Austrian norms." The distance between Muslims and top political brass is widening and can be felt. Sebastian Kurz, who used to play an active role in bringing Muslims and the government closer when he was integration minister in 2011, is now distancing himself and no longer attends Islamic holiday events. [2]
The Turkish government has responded aggressively to the Austrian government's clampdown on Muslims and their prayer places and have accused Austrian leaders of "ideologically charged practices that are in violation of universal legal principles, social integration policies, minority rights and the ethics of coexistence." A Turkish government spokesman has been quoted as saying: "The move was "a reflection of the Islamophobic, racist and discriminatory wave in this country." However, Kurz's government insists that the move is intended to protect Austria from radical religious extremism. [3] The Muslims are very apprehensive of the treatment meted out to them in Austria. “When parties address the issue of Islam, it’s always in a negative context,” said Vienna City Councillor Omar al-Rawi who previously worked as integration representative for Austria’s Islamic Community, a key Muslim group. “The populist undertone is always present. It’s a shame because Austria used to be a success model for how to deal with Muslims,” the 56-year-old from Baghdad told AFP. [5] The verbal and physical abuse of Muslims in Austria, which between 2015 and 2016 — the most recent year for which statistics were available — rose 62 percent to 253 incidents. Veiled or Hijab wearing Muslim women are often the main target. Besides, there are other problems as well, including vandalism at Muslim businesses and mosques. While Muslims feel outscored by the people and government of Austria, radicalization among young Muslims is also a concern, with some 300 Austrians having joined Islamic State fighters in Syria and Iraq. “Most Muslims here are good people but the danger of insidious political Islam is real,” said Austrian-Iraqi journalist Amer Albayati who heads the Liberal Muslims Initiative of Austria. [5] The year 2018 dawned with the birth of the first child of Austria and the newly born baby girl happens to have been born to a Muslim couple. Asel Tamga's her birth sparked outpouring of racist abuse towards the parents. When the couple shared their photo posing with their baby on Facebook, it sparked hateful and racist comments because they are Muslim. The uproar was so intense that the Austrian President Alexander Van der Bellen, had to step in and hit back at abusers. President Van der Bellen shared a Facebook post condemning the hateful attacks on Baby Asel, and added his own stern words of wisdom. After wishing Asel welcome to the world, he added that; 'all people are born free and equal to dignity and rights. [6] However, despite the odds and rejection into the society, Islam is on the rise in Austria and growing "dramatically." Watch the video below:
Muslims continue to celebrate their religious days like the two Eids and the month of Ramadan - the month of fasting and actively engage in prayer congregations specially on Fridays. In order to inculcate inter faith harmony and understanding, a Tag der offenen Moschee (Open Mosque Day) was first organized in October 2013 with the aim of building interfaith connections between Austrian Muslims and non-Muslims. The event has continued every year since. Well this is how life of Muslims is in Austria.The data has been collected from the Internet and I wish I could find anything positive about life of Muslims in Austria since most of the material I came across is negative. I wish Muslims of Austria best of luck and I do hope their struggle for their just rights will bring fruit one day, In sha Allah (God willing) !!
Please share this page to your friends and family members through Facebook, WhatsApp or any means on Social Media so that they can also be benefited by it and better understand Islam and the Holy Qur'an - Insha Allah (Allah Willing) you shall be blessed with the best of both worlds.
Islam is the fastest growing religion of the world and many ‘fear’ that a day may come that the total number Muslims may surpass the total number of majority Christian religion in many countries. This a fear is made to take its roots among the Christians that Islam is a threat and so stems the notion “Islamophobia,” which has now a root cause of religious intolerance because f which radical and anti-Islam groups are getting popular both overtly and covertly to “check” Islam from growing.
In fact religious intolerance is gaining momentum in many countries to an extent that even the Jews have started to feel that their greater danger is not from the Muslims, but from the Christian white supremacy. Thus this religious intolerance which is gaining momentum the world over is creating a phobia which may not be as real or big as is being projected in media. A recent “terror’ attack in Melbourne Australia made Australia media crying Terror Islam. And when many such attacks are made by white Christians, specially in the USA where it has almost become a norm, no one labels the white Christians as terrorist. In fact after each such white Christian attack, there always is a statement that the attacker had mental problems, was depressed or under the effect of some unimaginable disease. In Britain, slapping, spitting and pushing of Muslims and subjecting them to terrifying racist attacks, specially females, is a routine to an extent that media takes no note of it. But even if one Muslim retaliates in self defence, the entire media becomes hysterical that the Muslim was in fact radical, just waiting for an excuse to burst out. The anti-Muslim sentiments erupted in early 70s and then on to an extent that in a report by the Runnymede Trust's Commission on British Muslims and Islamophobia (CBMI) entitled Islamophobia: A Challenge for Us All (1997) which concluded that the "anti-Muslim prejudice had grown so considerably and so rapidly in recent years that a new item in the vocabulary was needed." And thus to the satisfaction of everyone and to round up the Muslims everywhere they could be found to be under the pretext of Islamophobia. And thus the use of the term Islamophobia has become common to express "dislike of or prejudice against Islam or Muslims, especially as a political force." But this is not the end as there many more terms used to express the same effects like anti-Muslimism, intolerance against Muslims, anti-Muslim prejudice, anti-Muslim bigotry, hatred of Muslims, anti-Islamism, Muslimophobia, demonization of Islam, or demonization of Muslims. The intensity of Islamophobia have recently gained momentum, specially after the September 11 attacks in the USA, the rise of Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant and multiple terror attacks in Europe. Some even associate the rising fears due to increased presence of Muslims in the United States and in the European Union.
Now we all know and even the majority rationale thinkers know that the 9/11 attacks were engineered to find an excuse for the USA to move out and attack stable Muslim countries of Iraq and Libya and create such a chaos that for years altogether the presence of US and its allies' forces remain in the Middle East to ensure "peace and stability of the region" they themselves destabilized, and to expand their scope of operations further in the region. And now we see the clear manifestation of this agenda as Yemen and Syria are under a constant state of war and which has also allowed the other stake holders like Iran, Turkey and Saudi Arabia to settle their own scores and gains. The creation of ISIS to many is part of the manifestation which played a great role in projecting 'barbaric Islam' beheading Christians and even Muslims to instill fear of Islamophobia. When one sees videos of people being beheaded, this really scare them and thus an intrinsic hatred has been developed and whenever any radical Muslim takes a solitary action, this validates their game plan to tarnish the image of Islam, and allow the US and its allies stay in troubled region. Now how can we counter the effects of Islamophobia and help constitution of an atmosphere which is free from radicalization and allows non Muslims to feel at ease when in company of Muslims. To my mind here are some of the approach lines:
First and foremost reaction to islamophobia should be humility, yet steadfastness in the face of toughest of opposition and hostility. We should not forget how our Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) was subject to horrible insults and hate crimes in his lifetime. He remained steadfast, patient and tolerant in the face of toughest of the opposition. Even when people of Taif stoned him and Angel Gabriel wanted a nod from the Prophet to destroy the entire community, the bleeding Prophet did not opt for the extreme action, for He was confidant that one day his opponents would understand the truth He was spreading. And so did it happen, and world witnessed it. So let us be prepared for the worst and with our steadfastness and conviction persuade those on the opposing end that Islam is a religion of peace and we as Muslims would never support any act of terror for it goes against our very basic ethos.
All Muslims are not terrorists - but some terrorists are Muslims. This actually is the main thrust line we should discuss whenever we are confronting a hostile crowd. After all the young men killing own countrymen, specially in USA, does not mean that all Americans are lunatics or mentally sick.So why for the action of few radicals the who Muslim community or the religion of Islam be blamed.
There is a misinformation being spread that Islam is a violent religion which encourages killing. This is simply outrageous. In fact Islam teaches that 'Whosoever kills a person ... it shall be as if he has killed all mankind.' So how can Islam promote terrorism and allow killing of the innocents.
While islamophobia seems to be dominant anti Muslim sentiment, it may be noted that a very meager percentage of general public supports the notion. So we must find like minded people from other side of the fence and launch campaigns to show our unity with the society and dissociation with any acts of violence involving Muslims.
We must stress that the hate game of religions, faith and races are one and the the same thing. The purpose behind each move is to disturb peace for the ulterior motives of a very minority. The United We Stand slogan to combat all acts of racism, antisemitism and Islamophobia must be professed and actively pursued.
In fact we should use islamophobia same as antisemitism is used to hit back at the Jews. We Muslims too are sufferers of islamophobia the same way Jews are or for that matter people of any faith or region.
We mus allow interfaith gatherings by opening our doors to people of other faiths so that they see for themselves how peaceful we profess our religion. In some countries, Muslims invite people of other faiths to join in on their religious days like Eid for inculcating and fostering love and understanding of each other.
While doing so, we should also be on the look out for the hate preachers in our mosques and community centers and root them out before they pollute young innocent minds and instigate them for the fulfillment of their ulterior motives.
We must involve our local counselors and people who matter in community that they should support their Muslim community in fight against islamophobia. By involving them, we will have a better voice to be heard and understood appropriately.
And last but not the least of course is to dispel the notion of Jihad. A least understood Islamic term, Jihad cannot be waged without the proclamation of the head of an Islamic country. ISIS and groups like these do not have moral and religious authority to kill people on the pretext of Jihad. Remember, "The literal meaning of Jihad is struggle or effort, and it means much more than holy war. Muslims use the word Jihad to describe three different kinds of struggle: A believer's internal struggle to live out the Muslim faith as well as possible. The struggle to build a good Muslim society." And we should let others to understand this very clearly. It has become a fashion to think of war mongering no sooner the word jihad is heard. Anyone who is using jihad for own designs should be discouraged with firm hand so that he does not bring bad name to the community and religion as a whole.
All is not bad it seems. In a recent report, Muslim Advocates found 80 instances of 'clear anti-Muslim rhetoric' employed by political candidates in 2017 and 2018. And it is claimed that Anti-Muslim campaigning in the US is a 'losing strategy'.
So let us start right from this do on to fight the notion of islamophobia and present to the world a model that has been enshrined in the Holy Qur'an and as practically exhibited by our noble and revered Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him).
Please share this page to your friends and family members through Facebook, WhatsApp or any means on Social Media so that they can also be benefited by it and better understand Islam and the Holy Qur'an - Insha Allah (Allah Willing) you shall be blessed with the best of both worlds.
Islam is the fastest growing religion of the world and many countries are fearing that in time Islam may overtake Christianity which at present dominates the religion chart. Many non Muslims, instead of acknowledging the main cause of true growth rate, attribute the larger family size the cause of the fast growth rate of Muslims. But the fact of the matter is that most non Muslims embracing Islam confess that they finally found the truth in Islam and they had had no regret leaving their faith of birth. As per one estimate, there are 2.1 billion Christians while Islam is just trailing closely with 1.3 billion Muslims around the globe.
These 'alarming' figures make many worry and thus there is a deliberate effort of propagating the concept of "Islamophobia" and funding mercenaries and dissidents in the garb of ISIS and other terrorist groups to destabilize the world peace and thus throw all blame of the unrest on Islam. In most European countries, where Islam is the second major religion, a wave of disinformation is being spread twisting verses of Qur'an or using them out of context to mislead people and show supremacy of Bible. I have written a post earlier on the subject "Disinformation about Islam" quoting many Christian sites which aim to spread disinformation and have given counter arguments to put the records straight. However, those feeling threatened by spread of Islam have now started another campaign: Maligning the Prophet of Allah, Muhammad (peace be upon him) by publishing derogatory caricatures to instigate Muslims to retaliate and then label Islam as violent and terrorist. The Charlie Hebdo of Paris did exactly the same which disturbed peace due to retaliation of Muslims. Instead of condemning the newspaper for the instigative caricatures, millions around the world who had likely never picked up a copy of Charlie Hebdo embraced the slogan "Je suis Charlie" in solidarity While much of the (Christian) world has rallied in solidarity with the publication, its irreverent cartoonists and their right to free speech, there were some saner rejections too. Bill Donohue, president of the Catholic League, a U.S. organization that "defends the rights of Catholics," issued a statement titled "Muslims are right to be angry." In it, Donohue criticized the publication's history of offending the world's religiously devout, including non-Muslims. In fact his statement ended with a quote from U.S. founding father James Madison: "Liberty may be endangered by the abuses of liberty, as well as by the abuses of power." In other words, we may be free to speak, but we have to appreciate the value of that right. But not learning any lessons from the French episode of defaming the Prophet of Islam, only this year in June, Geert Wilders, a member of Netherlands parliamentarian decided to hold a competition on caricatures of Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) in November this year. This time it drew much criticism from around the world, specially Pakistan, and Geert Wilders was forced to cancel the competition, but has vowed to still go ahead with his sinister plan sometime in future. For he is of the opinion: “The contest is not meant to provoke, but to show that we do not haggle with our freedom.” The very purpose of such instigative emotional accesses is very clear: To hurt Muslims by hitting at the revered personality of the last messenger of Allah, Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) by taking the cover of freedom of speech and expression. And when Muslims retaliate, they should be labelled as terrorists and violators of world peace. But they fail to understand that despite all their negativities about Islam, people are still attracted to Islam and everyday more and more non Muslims come under the fold of Islam for they believe they have finally found the truth. Please read many such personal experiences shared in our blog under the heading of Embracing Islam.
Now how should Muslims react to this emotional instigation? We as Muslims must understand that Islam is religion of peace and that is how the Prophet of Allah it demonstrated by His daily routine of life, expecting Muslims to emulate His life, live peacefully and spread the message by their peaceful behaviour so that others are naturally attracted to Islam, Killing in response to insult, no matter how gross, must be unequivocally condemned. Here I would like to quote a few instances from the practical life of the Prophet of Allah to show how he always exercised restraint even in the face of extreme provocation and maltreatment:
Once while in the company of His companions, a person walked in and straightaway went to the Prophet of Allah and demanded return of money that the Prophet had taken as a loan from. Now well imagine, a person of the stature of a prophet, yet He was so hard pressed to obtain loan from others. While the Prophet asked for some time, the man got furious and took old of the collar of Prophet's shirt. This naturally infuriated the companions and they got up to take the man away. But the Prophet of Allah mentioned them to stay calm and said: Since I owe him, he has all the right to demand it back.
There was a disbeliever old women who whenever the Prophet walked past her house, she would throw garbage on her. But the Prophet never uttered a word or showed any reaction. And one day when the Prophet passed by her home and she did not get out, the Prophet knocked her house to inquire whether she was well or otherwise.
When the Prophet of Allah visited Taif for conveying the message of Allah, the disbelievers of the city not only rejected Him outrightly and stoned him to an extent that his whole body was covered in blood. Seeing the plight of His prophet, Allah sent His angel Jibraeel (Gabriel) for help. Angel Gabriel asked the Prophet that if he allowed, He (angel Gabriel) could bring devastation on the people who have so hurt the Prophet of Allah. But Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) told him not to do anything of the sort, for one day people of city would repent their action and come under the fold of Islam. And after capture of Makkah, the entire people living in the lands around including Taif embraced Islam.
What do these incidents show: Restraint even in the face of extreme provocation. And this is the lesson that we have to learn and exhibit in true letter and spirit. In fact the degradation of status of Prophet of Allah is acceptance of His high status which threatens the non Muslims and is one of the major causes of many of them embracing Islam for the entire life of the Prophet has been a role model for all future generations. It is now our duty as Muslims to not only inculcate the habits and lifestyle of the Prophet in our personalities and exhibit the same practically in our daily life so that non Muslims take a carry-able impression and seek truth and become Muslims. In the wake of recent acts of violence, see how the Australian newspaper has captioned the news and how one of our recently converted Muslim friend responded in his message on the Facebook:
We should also try to dispel the wrong picture painted about Islam and Prophet of Allah and try to explain the true message of Islam that is embodied in the Holy Qur'an and infused in the life of the Holy Prophet, for He was a walking Qur'an for no action of His ever defied the message contained in Qur'an and commandments of Allah. The disinformation spread deliberately against Islam and Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) needs to be dispelled with by reasoning and logics and not by emotional outburst and violence which will take people away from Islam and paint it as violent and inhuman. The message of peace of Islam would get blurred by our illogical and emotional response to the machinations and Instigative Emotional Accesses by the non Muslims. Now listen to the video below of the learned Islamic scholar Professor Ghamdi on the subject and understand how Muslims should react when someone tries to instigate them emotionally. (The video is in Urdu)
So Muslims, please cling to the peaceful Islam and do not get lured into Instigative Emotional Accesses by the non Muslims and DO NOT act irrationally by resorting to violence. Remember, reasoning and logic is much effective response than violence. Indulge into discussions with non Muslims to tell them What is Right and the plain Truth, rather then arguing with them to prove who is right.
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