Muhammad: Seal of the Prophets — Page 158
MUHAMMAD : SEAL OF THE PROPHETS 158 Permission to fight is granted to those against whom war is made, because they have been wronged, and Allah indeed has the power to help them. They are those who have been driven out of their homes unjustly only because they affirmed: Our Lord is Allah. If Allah did not repel the aggression of some people by means of others, cloisters and churches and synagogues and mosques, wherein the name of Allah is oft commemorated, would surely be destroyed. Allah will surely help him who helps His cause; Allah is ind eed Powerful, Mighty. If We establish these persecuted ones in the earth, they will observe Prayer and pay the Zakat, and enjoin good and forbid evil. With Allah rests the final issue of all affairs (22:40 - 2). If Allah were not to repel a section of mankind by another, the earth would be filled with disorder, but Allah is full of bounty towards all peoples (2:252). It must be appreciated, however, that Islam regards war as an abnormal and destructive activity, to which recourse can be had only in the last resort. The Holy Quran describes war as a conflagration, and declares that it is God’s purpose to put out such a conflagration whenever it erupts, meaning that when war becomes inevitable it should be so waged as to cause the least possible amount of damage to life and property; and that hostilities should be brought to a close as quickly as possible, as is said: ‘Wh enever they kindle a fire for war, Allah extinguishes it. They strive to create disorder in the earth and Allah loves not