Page 729 - Atlas of Creation Volume 1

Harun Yahya

immorality, rebellion, cruelty, aggressiveness, murder and bloodshed. He describes those who fail to obey
this command as "following in Satan's footsteps" and adopting a posture that is openly revealed to be sinful
in the Qur'an. A few of the many verses on this matter in the Qur'an read:

But as for those who break God's contract after it has been agreed and sever what God has commanded to
be joined, and cause corruption in the earth, the curse will be upon them. They will have the Evil Abode.
(Surat ar-Ra'd: 25)
Seek the abode of the hereafter with what God has given you, without forgetting your portion of the world.
And do good as God has been good to you. And do not seek to cause mischief on earth. God does not love
mischief makers. (Surat al-Qasas: 77)

As we can see, God has forbidden every kind of mischievous acts in the religion of Islam including ter-
rorism and violence, and condemned those who commit such deeds. A Muslim lends beauty to the world
and improves it.

Islam Defends Tolerance and Freedom of Speech

Islam is a religion which provides and guarantees freedom of ideas, thought and life. It has issued com-

mands to prevent and forbid tension, disputes, slander and even negative thinking among people.
In the same way that it is determinedly opposed to terrorism and all acts of violence, it has also forbid-
den even the slightest ideological pressure to be put on them:

There is no compulsion in religion. Right guidance has become clearly distinct from error. Anyone who re-
jects false gods and believes in God has grasped the Firmest Handhold, which will never give way. God is
All-Hearing, All-Knowing. (Surat al-Baqara: 256)
So remind, you need only to remind. You cannot compel them to believe. (Surat al-Ghashiyah: 22)

Forcing people to believe in a religion or to adopt its forms of belief is completely contrary to the essence
and spirit of Islam. According to Islam, true faith is only possible with free will and freedom of conscience.
Of course, Muslims can advise and encourage each other about the features of Qur'anic morality, but they

will never resort to compulsion, nor any kind of physical or psychological pressure. Neither will they use
any worldly privilege to turn someone towards religion.
Let us imagine a completely opposite model of society. For example, a world in which people are forced
by law to practice religion. Such a model of society is completely contrary to Islam because faith and wor-

ship are only of any value when they are directed to God by the free will of the individual. If a system im-
poses belief and worship on people, then they will become religious only out of fear of that system. From the
religious point of view, what really counts is that religion should be lived for God's good pleasure in an en-
vironment where peopls' consciences are totally free.

God Has Made the Killing of Innocent People Unlawful

According to the Qur'an, one of the greatest sins is to kill a human being who has committed no fault.
...If someone kills another person – unless it is in retaliation for someone else or for causing corruption in
the earth – it is as if he had murdered all mankind. And if anyone gives life to another person, it is as if he
had given life to all mankind. Our Messengers came to them with Clear Signs but even after that many of
them committed outrages in the earth. (Surat al-Ma'ida: 32)

Those who do not call on any other deity together with God and do not kill anyone God has made invio-
late, except with the right to do so, and do not fornicate; anyone who does that will receive an evil punish-
ment. (Surat al-Furqan: 68)
As the verses suggest, a person who kills innocent people for no reason is threatened with a great tor-
ment. God has revealed that killing even a single person is as evil as murdering all mankind. A person who

observes God's limits can do no harm to a single human, let alone massacre thousands of innocent people.
Those who assume that they can avoid justice and thus punishment in this world will never succeed, for
they will have to give an account of their deeds in the presence of God. That is why believers, who know that

they will give an account of their deeds after death, are very meticulous to observe God's limits.

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