I agree with Khalid Zaheer in his article of January 22, titled “Has faith caused more harm than good?”.
AMANZIMTOTI, SOUTH AFRICA: I agree with Khalid Zaheer in his article of January 22, titled “Has faith caused more harm than good?”.
I think everything in moderation is great, but extremism is a curse. It appears, however, that this is increasing in Pakistan. It starts with school textbooks and expands in mosques where prayer leaders give fiery speeches laced with intolerance. They start labelling people, whose interpretation of faith they don’t see eye to eye with, as ‘infidels’ and then condemn them.
We are all children of God and even when we disagree with certain routines and rituals, we all want the same things in life. Krishnamurti, a philosopher of the early 20th century, once pointed out that all faiths have one destination, they only differ on the route to get there. And as long as we are heading in the same direction, we are basically all alike.
In this age where we live in a global village, tolerance and respect for those who think differently should be our motto; only then can we prosper. Maybe that is why many Muslims are flocking to non-Muslim countries, seeking economic betterment.
Sharif Lone
Published in The Express Tribune, January 23rd, 2011.
