Witnesses of Mercy for Peace and Reconciliation

60 WITNESSING MERCY FOR PEACE AND RECONCILIAT ION n the name of Allah, the Compassionate, the Merciful. Praises be to Allah, the Lord of heaven and earth, and peace and blessings be upon the messenger of Allah. I am truly happy to participate in this meeting which I hope contributes to the spread of peace and mercy throughout the world. In the first verses of the Qur’an that are recited every time someone prostrates themselves in prayer, the words: “The Compassionate, the Merciful,” are repeated four times in the first two lines. These are honourable names of God the Almighty that are indicative of mercy. The prophet Solomon (PBUH) mentioned the two names in the introduction of his letter to Balqis, the Queen of Sheba. Every day, Muslims repeat these two names of God (may He be exalted) 68 times, which grant His servants a general mercy that covers everything and every place, because He (may He be exalted) said: “My mercy encom- passes all things.” 1 He is the Merciful who has mercy in His paradise for those who have faith in Him. Paradise is mercy from Allah (may He be exalted) and because the Lord is char- acterised by mercy, it opens the door to the servants of God for hope; although His mercy is not isolated from His other attributes and, indeed He (glory be to Him) punishes those who deserve punishment. Mercy is mentioned in the Qur’an 268 times, many of them in the context of speaking to sinners whom He desires to return to Him under His forgiveness and mercy. Allah (glory be to Him) also has mercy on all of crea- tion. Surah 30 states that the servants of God must look to the traces of the mercy of Allah who vitalises the earth with rain as mercy to His servants. And in Surah 35 there is a passage that declares that the keys to mercy are in the hand of Allah and no one can block His mercy, for He sends His mercy by virtue of His wisdom. In Surah 30, Allah Almighty mentions that He created for the sons of Adam partners of their kind, and He connected male and female with the bond of affection and mercy. Qur’anic discourse makes the connection between mercy and the prophets. Mercy corresponds to prophethood, for all of the messengers were sent forth with mercy. In Surah 6, Allah (may He be exalted) gave to His prophet Moses (PBUH) the Torah by virtue of His favour, grace, and mercy towards Moses and towards those of His people who believe. And in Surah 28, the Qur’an describes the Torah as a model and mercy towards Moses and those who follow him, just as it also describes the Torah as counsel and mercy. Allah created His prophet Isa (Jesus) (PBUH) and sent Him as a sign of mercy, as in Surah 19 where Allah regarded Him from the high estate. He sent Him as a mercy to humanity when praise, glory, and great ben- efits happened to the people. He (PBUH) is a mercy to humanity because He came to guide them towards righteousness. In Surah 57, the followers of Isa and His disciples have made Allah in their hearts pity and mercy. Thus, they learned the gospel and followed Isa who is charac- terised by mercy. Also, Muhammad (PBUH) was mercy, for the Exalted One said: “And we have not sent you, except as a mercy to the worlds.” 2 He was characterised by mercy and a companion of good behaviour. He connects the mercy of Allah with creation to show their mercifulness towards one another, for Muhammad (PBUH) said: “Allah will not be merciful to those who are not merciful to man- kind” 3 and this applies to all humankind. From his mercy came Sharia law to prevent any dis- crimination against those who have a covenant with the Muslims and the Dhimmis. Muhammad (PBUH) said: “If anyone wrongs a person protected by a covenant, violates his rights, burdens him with more work than he is able to do, or takes something from him without his consent, then I will be his advocate on the Day of Resurrection.” 4 Muhammad (PBUH) emphasised the threat against those who dishonoured the prohibition against their bloody killing, saying: “Whoever kills a person pro- tected by a treaty will never smell the fragrance of Paradise. Verily, its fragrance can be found a distance of forty years of travel.” 5 Even the greeting that he brought: “Peace be unto Sheikh Dr. Abdalrahman Allowaihiq I