Islam and the Freedom of Conscience — Page 68
~ 68 ~ 37 Therefore, O Muslims, you should declare: We believe in all the Prophets of God belonging to this world and we do not discriminate between them as to reject one and accept the others. 'Name one book like the Holy Quran which is so dedicated for the cause of peace. The universal beneficence of God has not been confined by the Quran to any specific House. It acknowledges the Prophets of the House of Israel, one and all, be they Jacob [Ya‘q u b as ], Isaac [Is ha q as ], Moses [M u s a as ], David [D a w u d as ] or Jesus [‘ I s a as ]. And it acknowledges the Prophets of other nations regardless of whether they dwelt in India or Persia. None of them have been labelled as deceitful or imposters. On the contrary, it clearly proclaims that Prophets appeared in every nation and in every township and laid the foundation of peace between all the peoples. Alas, this Messenger of Peace is abused and treated with contempt by all peoples alike. Countrymen, I have not expressed this view to offend you or to hurt your sensibilities in any way. But I do desire to submit, in all sincerity, that those who have made it their second nature to vilify the Prophets of other faiths and 37 We make no distinction between any of them, and to Him we submit. S u rah Al ‐ Baqarah, 2:137