"Repel evil by that which is better."
Quran 23:96
This is one of my favorite passages from the Quran, and I'm hoping that I haven't written on it already. Well, even if I have it still bears repeating because it is a beautiful message. In Islam we do not believe that good deeds and bad deeds carry the same weight. Essentially, good deeds way more, so you always get more credit for doing good deeds than you get blame for doing bad deeds. As we've discussed, one of the foundation directives in Islam is to return the worse with the better. If anything, this is the single biggest takeaway on how Islam has impacted my life. I aspire, although I fail an awful lot, to be constantly mindful of the people and situations around me, and my response to them. It costs precious little to dole out small kindnesses all day long, even to a person who is not being kind to you. And here's the thing, even if you view the notion that good deeds count more than bad deeds are merely metaphoric, as compared to more truly metaphysical, it's still a lovely way to lead one's life. We spend way too much time brutalizing each other for our shortcomings. Our old Imam at the mosque, who I often butted heads with, would point out in sermons that we needed to devote more time to making sure that the other brothers and sisters were doing things correctly. I think we needed to spend a lot more time celebrating each other.
Nasr states, "This universal commandment means that in the fact of the idolaters' lies and taunts one should reply with words of peace and greeting, reminding them of the Blessings of God and using beautiful discourse based on evidence and persuasion. See also 41:34: Repel [evil] with that which is better; and 29:46: And dispute not with the People of the Book, save in the most virtuous manner."
Quran 23:96
This is one of my favorite passages from the Quran, and I'm hoping that I haven't written on it already. Well, even if I have it still bears repeating because it is a beautiful message. In Islam we do not believe that good deeds and bad deeds carry the same weight. Essentially, good deeds way more, so you always get more credit for doing good deeds than you get blame for doing bad deeds. As we've discussed, one of the foundation directives in Islam is to return the worse with the better. If anything, this is the single biggest takeaway on how Islam has impacted my life. I aspire, although I fail an awful lot, to be constantly mindful of the people and situations around me, and my response to them. It costs precious little to dole out small kindnesses all day long, even to a person who is not being kind to you. And here's the thing, even if you view the notion that good deeds count more than bad deeds are merely metaphoric, as compared to more truly metaphysical, it's still a lovely way to lead one's life. We spend way too much time brutalizing each other for our shortcomings. Our old Imam at the mosque, who I often butted heads with, would point out in sermons that we needed to devote more time to making sure that the other brothers and sisters were doing things correctly. I think we needed to spend a lot more time celebrating each other.
Nasr states, "This universal commandment means that in the fact of the idolaters' lies and taunts one should reply with words of peace and greeting, reminding them of the Blessings of God and using beautiful discourse based on evidence and persuasion. See also 41:34: Repel [evil] with that which is better; and 29:46: And dispute not with the People of the Book, save in the most virtuous manner."
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