‘Only love can conquer hate’

Besides being a brilliant song, ‘What’s Going On’ is also, for me, a perfect spiritual accompaniment for Ramadan and Lent. In a couple of weeks, Muslims will be celebrating the end of the holy month of Ramadan by marking Eid Al-Fitr, the Festival of Breaking the Fast.

‘Eid’ means ‘holiday’ or ‘festival’ while ‘fitr’, especially when rendered as its derivative, ‘fitrah’, means something like ‘innate disposition’ or ‘essence’. In other words, the practices cultivated during Ramadan – including fasting, prayer, reciting the Qur’an, and charitable giving – are meant to remind Muslims of humanity’s true essence which is ordained by God, who is Al-Rahman and Al-Rahim, merciful to all and compassionate to each. 

In the Islamic tradition, it was during Ramadan that the first verses of the Qur’an were revealed by God to the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) through the Angel Gabriel as an intermediary. This happened one night during Muhammad’s spiritual retreat, or seclusion, in the cave of Hira just outside Mecca in the Arabian peninsula. This experience was anything but comforting. When Gabriel uttered a single-word command – ‘Read!’ – Muhammad protested, since he was illiterate, ‘I am no reader!’ According to one tradition, the angel then forcibly held Muhammad and ‘pressed’ him so hard that he felt ‘distressed’. This happened three times before Muhammad was miraculously able to transcribe unto his heart and recite the verses that would later form the opening of the 96th chapter of the holy book of Islam, the Qur’an. 

Yet Muhammad’s terror did not end there. According to Islamic tradition, Muhammad returned home discombobulated and overwhelmed, seeking solace from his wife Khadija. She not only believed him but believed in him and became his strongest source of love and support until she died a decade later. Thus began Muhammad’s prophetic mission, quietly and tentatively at first before growing over the next 23 years.  

According to the Qur’an, Muhammad was not alone in experiencing this combination of reluctance, fear, and disorientation when receiving the divine revelation. Moses, the Virgin Mary, Jonah, and many other prophets and messengers were also assailed by doubt and distress upon first hearing God’s command before they eventually obeyed.
 
I relate this story not as a truth to be imposed on anyone. I share it to explain what I mean when I say that faith gives me comfort and inspiration during times of trouble. Comfort is not always synonymous with feeling cuddled or lullabied by God. Rather, comfort from faith can come as a jarring, transformative discomfort. 

News of war is always a shock to my system – mine is a generation whose coming of age was defined by the Iran-Iraq war, the first and second Palestinian Intifadas, the first and second Gulf Wars, the Bosnian and Rwandan genocides, and the Sierra Leone civil war. But religious and spiritual inspirations – including scripture, prayer, fasting, and Motown classics – provoke a different kind of discomfort and shock. This is the purifying discomfort and shock of remembering the essence of our faith amidst wars and rumours of war – only love can conquer hate. 

Join us at the Together Alliance on 28 March if you can, and read on for more actions, events, and resources to fortify the essence of your faith.