The indignation or simply disappointment in the Muslim segment of the Russian Internet over the reaction of dear compatriots or former compatriots to the events in Christchurch, New Zealand, earlier this week has noticeably shifted to euphoria over the opposite reaction to these events by New Zealanders themselves. There is a reason for this! The Prime Minister, policewomen and thousands of ordinary New Zealand women who are wearing headscarves in solidarity with Muslims these days, the call to Friday prayer broadcast on national television, the crowds of New Zealanders who gathered at the place of prayer, the sincere words, gestures and symbols of solidarity from these people. Undoubtedly, all of this should be appreciated and gratitude should be expressed. And not just in words now, when emotions are overwhelming everyone. Muslims living in non-Muslim societies who receive such support should remember this, so that when their non-Muslim neighbors are in trouble, they can provide support and show human solidarity with them. Usually, this is what happens, but it must be mentioned in connection with the fact that in such cases, voices are always raised in the Islamic community that it is unacceptable to show solidarity with non-Muslims, that our hearts and thoughts should be with our suffering and disadvantaged co-religionists whom no one thinks of, and so on. Undoubtedly, we should think of our fellow believers and help them as much as we can, but living among other people, if we want to receive support from them in difficult times, we should make it a rule to provide that support in similar situations as a matter of course. Though of course not in all non-Muslim societies where Muslims live, they are ready to provide such support and need it from them, and this is putting it mildly…
At the same time, what our co-religionists need to be warned about now is the effect of the triumphant victor. Yes, Islam as the religion of Allah will triumph one way or another, no matter how its enemies try to extinguish its light. But as far as Muslims are concerned, they have nothing to triumph over at the moment. What these New Zealanders have shown in terms of humanity and compassion speaks in their favor, and may Allah reward them for it in this world and save them and reward them in the Hereafter — but this is not the merit of Muslims. Unfortunately, it will not bring back the deceased Muslims. However, not only their relatives and neighbors (who, of course, are not in the right state of mind at the moment), but also their co-religionists who could become victims of such attacks, must draw conclusions from this situation. Have they analyzed the reasons that allowed a villain to surprise peaceful people and kill fifty people as if in a computer game, without encountering any effective resistance? How many mosques and Islamic centers in non-Muslim countries, where people with the same views as the attacker live nearby, have increased their security this week? Have they discussed how to strengthen them, especially during crowded gatherings — Friday prayers, Eid prayers, and Taraweeh prayers?
Sadly, there is an extremely widespread mindset of religious freeloaders in the Islamic community today, when Muslims, ignoring the responsibilities imposed on them by the Sharia and common sense, remain confident that Allah will give them victory no matter what. Even worse, when the thinking of religious freeloaders turns into the thinking of religious masochists, who believe that the price of this success should be the blood and tears of Muslims, caused not by an objective necessity, as in the conditions of war, when casualties are inevitable and justified, but solely by their passivity and laxity, their failure to fulfill their individual and collective obligations of a practical, worldly (mu’amalat) nature.
We must learn to think strategically and to see the other side of every situation. Yes, calamity can contain the possibility of triumph, as we have seen today from the perspective of Islam towards its enemies who wanted to plague it in New Zealand. However, it must be understood that what appears to be a triumph can also contain challenges that, if not analyzed in advance and answers prepared for them, can lead to new blows and tragedies.
Surely there is no Muslim whose heart could not rejoice at the announcement of the testimony of the Oneness of Allah to millions of people on New Zealand’s national television. However, as we have observed in following the reactions, this did not please all non-Muslims, including those who sympathized on a human level with the victims and their families. The reasons are clear — New Zealand is a country founded on Christian values, and one would think that if tomorrow, after (God forbid) an attack on a Christian church in a Muslim country, the words of a Christian prayer containing its dogmas were broadcast on national television, it would also cause incomprehension among many Muslims who sympathize with the victims and their families.
The above statement should not be understood to be against broadcasting the call to prayer or against non-Muslim women wearing hijab, especially in cases where it is based purely on human emotions. Of course not, it should be welcomed and we should be grateful for it. But it is important to understand it correctly and not to misunderstand it, and what is even more important is to learn how to accept it correctly and not to commit actions that could harm our religion or our faith.
The first aspect concerns tactfulness, which should be demonstrated in relations with non-Muslims, whose openness can easily and quickly turn into disappointment and hostility if we abuse it. The second aspect, however, is no less risky — while accepting this support and trying to repay those who give it, we must not forget the purpose of all this, i.e., why we live on this earth, why we are Muslims, and what it means. And, as some comments have shown, this understanding is sometimes lost among some Muslims who, under the influence of such emotions and on the wave of such solidarity, begin to say (and think!) that religion doesn’t matter, the most important thing is to be human, and so on. There is no doubt that it is necessary to be human, but if religion doesn’t matter, just ask yourself why killers like this one or his predecessors come to kill Muslims and shoot mosques? Maybe it’s a reminder that religion does matter, and our fellow Muslims, even if they didn’t want to, are paying a high price for the honor of belonging to that religion.
We need to learn to be human and to see situations where humanity should come first, despite all differences, as the New Zealanders are demonstrating today. But we have to look at things objectively and remember that these differences exist, that we are being killed and will continue to be killed because we are associated with our religion, which we should not hide, lose or discredit, but rather present it to people in a beautiful and wise way, attracting them rather than pushing them away.
And understand that the price of this affiliation is great in many ways, and it is our responsibility to increase its gains and reduce its losses as much as possible.