World Crisis and the Pathway to Peace — Page 108
108 At an international level each nation would work together with a spirit of true sympathy and compassion towards one another. Another key principle Islam teaches is that, in an effort to de- velop peace, it is necessary for all parties to never display any form of pride or arrogance. This was perfectly illustrated by the Holy Prophet sa when he famously said a black person is not superior to a white person and nor is a white person superior to a black person. Neither is a European greater or superior to any other na- tional, nor are Africans, Asians or the people of any other part of the world. Differences of nationality, colour or ethnicity act merely as a form of identity and recognition. The truth is that in the modern world we all depend upon one another. Today even the major powers, like Europe or the United States, cannot survive by remaining completely isolated from all others. African countries cannot remain isolated and hope to flourish and neither can Asian countries or the people from any other part of the world. For example, if you want your economy to flourish, then you must be willing to embrace international trade. A clear example of how the world is now inter-linked is illustrated by the fact that the European or the world’s financial crisis of the past few years has negatively affected, more or less, every country of the world. Furthermore, for countries to advance in science, or to excel in other fields of expertise, requires them to cooperate and help each other. We should always remember that the people of the world, whether they are from Africa, Europe, Asia or anywhere else, have been given great intellectual capabilities by Allah the Almighty. If all parties utilise their God-given faculties to the best of their abilities for the betterment of mankind, then we will find that the