A Message for Our Time — Page 45
45 Serving Humanity—A Form Of Worship Of Allah in turn will take them towards God Almighty and make them recipients of His pleasure. Similarly, in chapter 2, verse 196, the Holy Quran states that if a person wishes to save himself from humiliation, degradation and ruin, he must be kind, generous and do good to others, without expectation of anything in return. Chapter 4, verse 37 of the Holy Quran states that Muslims should care for their neighbours and reiterates that it is the duty of a true Muslim to fulfil the rights of the needy and orphans. It instructs Muslims to be benevolent and to treat anyone under their supervision with love, patience, and affection. For example, if a Muslim has a subordinate at work, they should treat them with kindness and generosity. Furthermore, in chapter 47, verse 39 of the Holy Quran, Allah the Almighty instructs Muslims to spend their wealth for the sake of helping others. Those who are unwilling to do so have been declared as niggardly and the Quran states that such miserly ways are not liked by Allah and are a means of darkening a person’s soul. All the verses I have quoted emphasise the fact that, if Muslims desire to attain the love of Allah the Almighty, they must first show love to the creation of God. The verses clearly illustrate that the very foundation and bedrock of Islam is service to human- ity. My purpose in sharing these Quranic quotes is so that you all know that Islam is not what is commonly portrayed in the media. It is not a religion of extremism, violence, or terrorism; rather, it is a religion of love, compassion, and tolerance. It is a religion that considers service to humanity as a fundamental obligation placed upon its followers. Thus, how could it be possible that a true Muslim be hard-hearted or fail to help those who are suffer- ing or facing any type of hardship?