Through Force or Faith? — Page 240
?— A Reply to Pope Benedict XVI 240 And good and evil are not alike. Repel evil with that which is best. And lo, he, between whom and thyself was enmity, will become as though he were a warm friend ( S u rah Ha M i m As-Sajdah, 41:34-35). Similarly, the Holy Quran upholds that sound reasoning should form the basis for life decisions. It says: َكِلْهَيِّل ْنَم َكَلَه ْۢنَع ٍةَنِّيَب َّو ىٰيْحَي ْنَم َّيَح ْۢنَع ٍةَنِّيَب … so that they may perish who are doomed to perish by manifest justification, and they may survive who deserve to survive on the strength of manifest justification. … ( S u rah al-Anf a l, 8:45) In these verses, we are advised that when you converse with your adversaries, the objective should be to invite them towards God, and not to show off your knowledge, or to humiliate them. The best conversation is carried out by keeping God’s pleasure in mind, and the intent to proclaim the truth. Moreover, whatever good advice you may give to others, you should also practice it. In the second verse, it is mentioned that evil and good are not equal, therefore truth ultimately prevails. If you think some- thing is wrong, then you should try to correct it through polite and virtuous means. Also, it is instructed here that not only harsh or bad-manners are completely forbidden, even if the opponent is offensive, you are not permitted to be offensive in retaliation. Instead, your reaction should always remain polite. Next, God has also elucidated the point with cogent reasoning that if you respond to evil with goodness and kindness, it would certainly