Islam, Jihad and Forgiveness

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In Honolulu June 10, 2005, at the monthly meeting of the Hawaii Forgiveness Project, a presentation was given by Ra'ana Dilruba Yasmin on the subject of Islam, Forgiveness and Jihad.

She is from Sylhet, Bangladesh, and from Pakistan, and was accompanied by her husband, Reza. This meeting drew one of the largest groups to the Forgiveness Project in the past year.

The presentation included these thoughts:

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The seminal principle of Judaism is justice; a central principle of Christianity is compassion. Islam values both justice and compassion, and considers them complementary to each other. You should strive to establish justice, but forgive those who fail to treat you justly in spite of your efforts, perhaps due to their shortcomings or plain ignorance. Islam also says:

"If any show patience and forgive, that truly would be an exercise of courageous will and resolution in the conduct of affairs." Qur'an: Sura 42:43 (Counsel)

Forgiveness plays an essential part in human relations, and magnanimity is most certainly a sign of strength. Mercy out of power rather than mercy out of weakness is recommended.

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You may click here to download the entire presentation (in PDF-Acrobat format). You may also wish to consult a scholarly work on Forgiveness in Islam, written by Dr. Amir Ali, Ph.D, of the University of Chicago.

May all the sons and daughters of Abraham learn to live together in peace.

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