As we all know that there was an attempt to burn Qur’an and encouragement for people to burn Qur’an in America, It is very important to know what a Muslim’s reaction should be when these events takes place. It is very important for us Muslims to be on same page and react rationally on a universal level. In this Blog I will attempt to discuss what our reaction should be and what should we do to not fall prey to these controversies.
What Happened?
Earlier this year there was a campaign “Burn Qur’an Day” which was initially propagated on Facebook and then was declared to be undertaken by a Church in Florida. Pastor of this Church also encouraged fellow Americans to burn Qur’an on 9/11 to mark the 10th anniversary of the so called Attacks.
The response in Muslim world was overwhelming. This reaction was also strong due to earlier painting of Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) in Denmark. People took law in hands in countries like Pakistan, Afghanistan and Egypt. It is funny when Muslims burn a Muslim brother’s shop or a car in response to someone claiming to attempt to burn Qur’an.
First of all non-Muslims were hoping for this response so that the whole propaganda succeeds. They wanted us to fall prey to this event and respond violently and prove that we are barbaric, inhumane and uncivilised and of course lead people to perceive this is what Qur’an teaches.
What our response should be?Earlier this year there was a campaign “Burn Qur’an Day” which was initially propagated on Facebook and then was declared to be undertaken by a Church in Florida. Pastor of this Church also encouraged fellow Americans to burn Qur’an on 9/11 to mark the 10th anniversary of the so called Attacks.
The response in Muslim world was overwhelming. This reaction was also strong due to earlier painting of Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) in Denmark. People took law in hands in countries like Pakistan, Afghanistan and Egypt. It is funny when Muslims burn a Muslim brother’s shop or a car in response to someone claiming to attempt to burn Qur’an.
First of all non-Muslims were hoping for this response so that the whole propaganda succeeds. They wanted us to fall prey to this event and respond violently and prove that we are barbaric, inhumane and uncivilised and of course lead people to perceive this is what Qur’an teaches.
This is neither the first time this has happened nor the last time. Prophet (pbuh) himself had to go through such events. Qur’an brought an ideological change to the predominantly Judah, Christian and Pagan society that was uncivilised, inhumane, and barbaric. It is a tradition of non-Muslims to humiliate Muslims psychologically by insulting Qur’an and the Messenger of Allah (pbuh). When unbelievers insulted Prophet and Qur’an, Allah asked his Prophet to be patient in a most beautiful way and intellectually. Muslims should understand that there is no such thing as Burning Qur’an. Allah has guaranteed and preserved Qur’an. Trying to insult Qur’an is like spitting at Sun. It will only come back on your face. It is only their loss not ours. Furthermore Allah says in Surah An-Kaboot that these ayaat that we revealed are miraculous signs that lie in the chest of those who have been given knowledge. If they want to burn Qur’an they have to burn our chest. Burning paper and ink will only increase our knowledge and their darkness. In contrast if we take Qur’an for granted then will Qur’an be destroyed? NO. Allah will replace us with a better ummah and Qur’an will remain preserved.
Muslims then should be worried about themselves first. If we do not do Zikr of Allah, if we do not recite Qur’an, if we do not memorise Qur’an, if we do not preach Qur’an, if we do not understand Qur’an, if we do not teach our children Qur’an, are we any better than those who wants to insult Qur’an? NO. We should look ourselves in the mirror. Our crime is more serious than these people. The word of Allah is supreme and will remain supreme till the day of judgement. This is the devine speech of Allah. Therefore it is our duty to fill the right of Qur’an over us.
Non-Muslims have joined forces to defame Qur’an. One of their weapons is to make Muslims feel guilty about the topic of Jihad in Qur’an. They are making everyone believe how barbaric Qur’anic teachings are and how Qur’an promotes violence. This is of course being done on government level, in universities, on streets and in our faces. Their main weapon is our ignorance and lack of knowledge of our own book. Muslims feel guilty when they say that Qur’an promotes violence. How about checking it yourself and then clearing those misconceptions? How about standing up for truth? How about exposing these lies? How about preaching real teachings of Qu’an? How about preparing ourselves to defend Qur’an? How about asking Allah for guidance and help? How about showing them mirror? Yes, when they say Sharia law is out dated, barbaric etc why not show them their own book? Their books promote violence and terrorism not ours. They are the ignorant ones. They are the one who don’t read their own book. They are the one who should refute what their book claims. Bible promotes killing of innocent children, men and women, destruction of homes, destruction of land, destruction of trees and even extermination whole races if they do not believe in Biblical teachings. We are supposed to be Qair e Ummah who invites people to good and stop from bad. We are supposed to lead by example. We are supposed to be patient. We are supposed to be humble. We are supposed to be knowledgeable. We are supposed to be leaders. We are supposed to be united. We are supposed to be peaceful and promote peace.
The biggest weapon they have is not their military might. It is not their unity. It is not their wealth. It is our IGNORANCE and LACK OF KNOWLEDGE of ISLAM. We should read, understand and implement Qur’an. We have to equip ourselves with the knowledge. We should understand what their misconceptions or accusations are. We should know the answer to every misconception and accusation they have. This is the requirement of the hour. It is a matter of urgency. We have to build more institutions and Mosques and attach ourselves with the teaching of Islam.
Remember, if you can’t defend Islam on intellectual level you cannot defend yourself. We should acknowledge and be aware and be confident that ONLY ISLAM can be defended intellectually, morally, logically, scientifically and ideologically. All other religions will fall flat on their faces when they are required to be defended intellectually. Seeking knowledge and equipping our youth with the answers and understanding of Islam is the only answer we have. It’s not our mission to earn money, buy a house, buy a car or busy ourselves in entertainment. It is our mission to practice and preach Islam. Majid Abdul
Sydney, Australia
