Letter to the editor: Muslims condemn violence

Eight people were shot to death at three massage parlors in the Atlanta area last month, raising fears that the crimes may have targeted people of Asian descent. Such an attack, race or gender based, serves no purpose other than to destroy the peace of a society and to bring devastation to the community and the wider world.

My religion, Islam, condemns violence and extremism. The Holy Quran proclaims “that whosoever killed a person — unless it be for killing a person or for creating disorder in the land — it shall be as if he had killed all mankind.”

Prophet Muhammad said, “There is no superiority of an Arab over a non-Arab, or of a non- Arab over an Arab, and no superiority of a white person over a black person or of a black person over a white person, except on the basis of personal piety and righteousness.”

The worldwide spiritual leader of Ahmadiyya Muslim Community, Caliph to Messiah Ahmad, His Holiness Hadhrat Mirza Masroor Ahmad, said, “Another principle of Islam to develop peace is that we should not tolerate injustice towards others or for their rights to be usurped. In the same way that we would not accept for our own rights to be taken, we should not be willing to accept it for others.”

As a member of Ahmadiyya Muslim Community, I condemn the use of violence on the innocent, and my thoughts and prayers are with the families of the victim of this horrific crime.

Peace and blessings.

Abdur-Rahman Shareef

Wilkinsburg

The writer is outreach coordinator for the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community.