On the Pope, peace and Islam

Let’s face it, the image of Islam in the West today leaves a lot to be desired. So the Pope’s recent words in favour of Muslims and Islam as a religion of peace could not have come at a more opportune time. During the Pontiff’s recent visit to Turkey, he described the holy book of Muslims, the Quran, as "a prophetic book of peace."  Such comments by the Pope should be welcome by a Muslim world that is in need of spiritual allies and healing. 

Pope Francis, who is renowned for his humility and commitment to service, has made a noteworthy effort to reach out to the Muslim world and offer his help and advice. During the Argentinean pontiff’s visit to Turkey, a country that is sheltering an estimated 1.5 million refugees from neighbouring conflicts in Syria and Turkey, he addressed many important issues. Pope Francis met with leaders such as Turkish President, Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Ecumenical Patriarch of the Eastern Orthodox Church Bartholomew I, with whom he issued a joint statement expressing the unity of Orthodox and Catholic Christians and that of “people of good will… [in] promoting a constructive dialogue with Islam based on mutual respect and friendship”.

In a highly symbolic gesture, the Pope took off his shoes and stood silently as Rahmi Yaran, the Grand Mufti of Istanbul, prayed towards the Muslim holy city of Mecca in what was described as a “moment of silent adoration.”

In a press conference on the return flight of the Pope, he was quoted by the Official Vatican Network as saying:

“I sincerely believe that we cannot say all Muslims are terrorists, just as we cannot say that all Christians are fundamentalists - we also have fundamentalists among us, all religions have these small groups. I told the President [Erdogan] that it would be good to issue a clear condemnation against these kinds of groups. All religious leaders, scholars, clerics, intellectuals and politicians should do this. This way they hear it from their leaders' mouths. There needs to be international condemnation from Muslims across the world. It must be said, ‘No, this is not what the Quran is about!’ This is the first thing.”

I agree. Although there have been many condemnations by Muslim leadership in the past, it is a message that stands repeating. Like a mantra or the trill of birds that rejuvenates the imaginative power, the message of peace that Islam originally brought must be revived in the minds of the world. The point encapsulated in the famous saying of the Prophet Muhammad: “There should be neither harming nor reciprocating harm,” should be chanted in the ears of today’s youth. The message of mercy that came with the advent of Islam must be resurrected and hung like a standard that brings hope to those have been robbed of theirs by the scourge of crime, terrorism, corruption and tyranny.

The message of the peace, beauty and mercy of the Islamic faith must be spoken by those who believe in it genuinely and are committed to creating that reality in the world around them. The greeting of “Asalamu Alaykum” or “peace be upon you” that is uttered in greetings and upon ending prayer must become transformative concepts in the lives of Muslims. This is not a form of apologetics; it is the conclusion of a man who has witnessed the blight of terrorism, both by states and by non-states, upon the tapestry of humanity. 

Muslims of conscience can bring about this change by beginning with themselves and their personal spheres of influence. Leaders at the state and institutional level have a duty to take a genuine look at the messages that they are sending to those who they serve. Leaders used to be servants of the people who carried a trust, or “amana” of the people. The trust of these leaders needs to be restored before they can credibly preach a message of peace to their people. 

The message of tolerance and forbearance that was brought with Islam has been lost amidst headlines reciting incident upon incident of violence that have infested the Muslim world and captured the imaginations of the Western world and thereby reinforcing age old stereotypes of Arabs and Muslims as savages. The truism that Islam advocates peace will be effective when it comes from credible Muslim intellectuals and leadership in areas affected by turmoil, not from Westerners on the outside looking in. 

Establishing peace as an alternative will involve providing alternatives to the harsh realities that are faced by those who resort to violence as a solution to their problems. The Pope touched upon addressing the problem of poverty as an approach towards eliminating violence in the Middle East - this is essential. It is no longer enough in an interconnected world in which people on opposite sides of the world can communicate in seconds via Twitter, Facebook and Instagram for leaders to give lip service to these issues and not follow through with actionable steps.

Today, more than ever, people are jaded by the corruption of leaders who talk of protecting their citizenry but abandon them when the sounds of bombs and gunfire ring out in the streets, and who speak of the beauty of Islam with one breath and suppress the rights of their people with another. As the Quran states in 13:11: “Indeed, Allah will not change the condition of a people until they change what is in themselves.”  The time for that change is now.

Saleem Safdar is an attorney who resides in the Washington, DC Metro area.

The views expressed in this article belong to the author and do not necessarily reflect the editorial policy of Middle East Eye.

Photo: Pope Francis leaves Turkey in company with Turkish Military ceremony at the end of a three-day visit, in Istanbul on 30 November (AA)