As leaders in the Muslim and Christian faith community, we are highly aware of society's tendency to pit one faith tradition against another. Hatred and war fill the headlines and history books to such an extent that some may become convinced that our faiths cannot thrive together.
But we must not succumb to this idea. Though our differences are many, our faiths share important common ground, including service and love for the other.
This past week the world witnessed in Paris two horrific offenses to this shared call to love. In one of them, our brothers and sisters in the Jewish faith were specifically targeted by terrorists. In the other, terrorists executed people whom they believed insulted the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him). What happened was horrific, outside the law, and in violation of every organized religion's text, including Islam. We witnessed how a group of people used their "own" religion to breach every boundary of decency to take the lives of people who did not do anything illegal.
Muslims around the world have denounced these acts as un-Islamic and evil. Islamic scholar Yasir Qadhi stated that "loving the Prophet is a necessary requirement of faith. Defending his honor is a sign of belief. This is done by following his teachings and practice, not by murdering in his name."
These acts violated Islamic principles. Islam requires its adherents to follow the local law, wherever they live. Here, the killers acted outside and above the law. They implemented their own version of vigilante justice -- and served as judge, jury and executioner all at once. This violates French law, it violates Islam, and it shocks the conscience of any rational and decent human being. Justice was lost.
Islam requires a peaceful response to insults. There are numerous examples of this in the Quran and examples of the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him). For example: "And the servants of the Most Merciful are those who walk upon the earth gently, and when the ignorant address them harshly, they respond with words of peace." (25:63) When a Muslim finds people mocking Islam, he or she is merely instructed to avoid those people, until they change the subject. Muslims are not to harm the speaker, not even to avoid them altogether, only "until they delve into another subject."
The most important Islamic principle the terrorists violated with this act of violence, is that it is forbidden to take an innocent life. Nowhere in the Quran is permission given for a Muslim to harm another human being, regardless of their religion, other than in self-defense, or as the death penalty for murder or terrorism: "Whosoever kills a human being -- unless it be for murder or for (destroying the peace in the land), it shall be as if he had killed all mankind, and whoso saves the life of one, it shall be as if he had saved the life of all mankind." (5:32)
Applying these principles in the broadest sense, one can see that Islam and the "West" are compatible. I do not see any contradiction as a Muslim following the law of the land, enjoying freedom of speech and religion, although according to Islam, we Muslims are not permitted to mock someone else's religion, lest we lose the moral high ground for others to mock ours.
Whoever these terrorists were, they clearly acted outside of Islam, and Muslims around the world have condemned their acts, while supporting "Western" ideals such as freedom of speech. In fact, the best (and only) way for Muslims and others of good conscience to counter the type of hateful speech illustrated by Charlie Hebdo is by exercising our own right to free speech -- to counter their message with a better one. Without violence.
In response to this tragedy, we ask that all faith communities join the Muslim faith community in condemning these acts, and to spread the awareness that only those who committed the violence are responsible for it. For those who would be tempted to blame the religion or the rest of its 1.6 billion followers for this atrocity would be to fall into the same trap as the terrorists who paint the entire "West" as their enemy.
Beyond simply condemning terrorism and violence, we call on members of all faith communities to be constructive in our efforts to create peace. We must reach out to leaders of other faiths to admit our errors, and to correct the teachings that lead to violence between our families of faith.
Peace does not simply come about on its own, nor is it simply the absence of violence. Peace will come when members of all faith traditions reach out to one another, build friendships with one another, and show love for one another -- as the founders of our faiths taught us to.
The Rev. Matt Schultz is pastor of First Presbyterian Church in Anchorage. He sits on the steering committee of Christians for Equality and moderates the interfaith group "Better Together." Heather Barbour is an Anchorage attorney and leader in the Muslim community. Youssef Barbour is a physician at Alaska Native Medical Center and a Muslim community leader. Usama Obeidi, also a Muslim community leader, contributed review and support.
The views expressed here are the writer's own and are not necessarily endorsed by Alaska Dispatch News, which welcomes a broad range of viewpoints. To submit a piece for consideration, e-mail commentary(at)alaskadispatch.com