The Gulf Crisis and New World Order — Page 81
The Gulf Crisis & The New World Order The verse: "The most honourable among you is the most righteous" signifies that Islam permits the distinction between individuals or among nations only on one consideration, and that is the criterion of Taqwa or righteousness. If anyone is more righteous, irrespective of his nationality or religious affiliations, colour or creed, geographic or regional attachments, he or she should be respected without the consideration of these differences. So based on this criterion of righteousness an Englishman can be at par with the Welsh, the Welsh can join the Scottish and a Scottish person may combine with the Irish. This principle would create their harmony with the African people, the Arabs, the Russians, the Chinese, the Americans and with the people of all nationalities in the world. Eventually all the righteous people would be linked together. This criterion of righteousness (Taqwa) is the only national concept presented by Islam. Islam accepts no rival concept. Respect would be on the basis of righteousness and it would be righteousness alone taken into consideration. People who will be so unified would create a "nation" of the righteous people, but this grouping would not conform to the political divisions or political attachments. EVIDENCE OF RISING RACIAL PRFJUDICE IN EUROPE New developments are now shaping up in the Soviet Union and perverse new national concepts are on the rise. At the same time, new tendencies of racial hatred are emerging in Europe as well as in the Western world, which have a bearing on their internal as well as external matters. In Europe, feelings of distrust of one nation against the other are mounting and an atmosphere of lack of confidence is growing. Today, if there exists a feeling of envy, tomorrow it will be transformed into jealousy. So, whereas on the one hand Europe appears to be getting united, on the other hand the seeds of division have already been sown in this drive for the so called unity, and it appears certain that the new unifying states in Europe will face internal differences, which will be further intensified in the atmosphere of jealousy and mistrust. Now consider the case of 81