Strong protests against insult to prophet (pbuh)
Photo: AFP
In the wake of violence that erupted in Egypt and Libya over a controversial film on Prophet Muhammad (pbuh), one of my American friends has asked why Muslims always react violently over any controversy over Prophet Muhammad (pbuh). Well, I believe not only my friend but also millions of people around the world probably have the same question. In order to dig deeper down to find the correct answer, we first have to understand where Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) stands in the minds of all believing Muslims. It is not only blasphemous to insult and associate the prophet (pbuh) with something slanderous but at the same time Muslims have a very high place and utmost respect for their prophet. As a matter of fact, from theological perspective Muslims are supposed to love and respect their prophet more than their parents. But irrespective of their level of love for the prophet, Muslims are not supposed to react in such a way. There are two reasons for that. First, if the Muslims deeply study the life of their beloved prophet(pbuh), they cannot find a single incident in prophet's (pbuh) life where he acted in a similar way when he was slandered personally, especially during the time in Mecca. Instead, there are numerous incidents where his arch enemies were impressed by his kindness and magnanimity. This made those non-believers embrace Islam. He used to deal with these people with great wisdom that God blessed him with. Therefore this kind of reaction by some Muslims in a way exposes their very ignorance about the life and work of their beloved prophet. Second, this kind of act or reaction (without wisdom) confirms the negative propaganda that enemies of Islam are trying to propagate about the Muslims. There is no doubt that what was shown in the film is objectionable and Muslims ought to protest this kind of religious bigotry (in the name of free speech). But the way they are doing it is counterproductive. Better education, economic self-sufficiency, good leadership and broader unity among the Muslim Ummah are more important to fight against this kind of religious bigotry and spread the message of our beloved prophet (pbuh) than violence and hot headedness.
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