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 PrintableVersion September 11: an Open Letter to our Muslim friendsDear Muslim Friend,I want to greet you at this time when our minds are naturally full of what happened a year ago. It has been good for me to reflect on those events and to ask God what attitudes He wants to change in me. Certainly I want to submit more readily to His will and I've discovered a verse in our Scripture which contains a clear command. In Leviticus 19.34 God says: 'The stranger living with you must be treated as one of your native-born. Love him as yourself'. When I read these words I realised how I have failed to show friendship to Muslims who live in Britain. In fact, to be honest, I have made the excuse: 'Muslims are mostly terrorists and fundamentalists who want to impose their harsh, out-of-date laws on Britain.' I know very well that this is a caricature exaggerated by the media, but I have used it as an excuse for not talking to Muslims when I see them. In recent months God has been changing this negative attitude in me. He has taken away my fears and opened my heart to Muslims who live around me. I have written a little green booklet about the common beliefs that we Christians and Muslims have. I remember how surprised I was when I read that that Muslims believe that Jesus was sinless, and that God miraculously raised Him up to heaven, and that they also believe that He will come again to this planet and get a much better reception than He did 2,000 years ago. Wonderful! We've obviously got lots we can talk about together. Why don't Christians and Muslims meet more for a cup of tea? I agree when Muslims so often say that our Western world is morally bankrupt and thoroughly selfish. It's not surprising, because most Westerners don't believe in God anyway. I was so happy to discover that the prayer Muslims so often repeat has several ideas which are emphasised in our Christian Scriptures. In fact I think we Christians often pray using similar words to yours, especially when you pray: 'Show us the right path'. We Christians look at the way Jesus lived and study His teaching to help us find God's path in the world. In the Injil (gospel) Jesus teaches us by His words and example not to take revenge on those who hurt us and not to retaliate when others cause us pain. We find this very difficult. Just now, I'm discussing with my Christian friends what this really means, because some of my friends in Pakistan have been hurt in the recent attacks on churches and schools and hospitals. Should I forgive those terrorists, or should I wish them dead? We Christians have a lot to learn, but we know the example of Jesus is where we should begin. At present I am studying the Gospel of St. Luke (Injil). It is only about 30 pages long. Would you like a copy? You can get in touch with me by email (jjmartin@connectfree.co.uk). Yes, I would really like to hear from you. Your sincere friend,
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