My faith is not superior, what about yours?

I do not claim my faith to be superior or inferior to any, and if I do that, I have not understood the need for a faith in God, which puts all of us on par to respect each other’s space, sustenance and nurturence.  Religion brings humility and builds bridges between people and the nations, whereas arrogance kills relationship and generates conflicts.  The day is not far, when most of us will be comfortable with that idea. I am looking forward to a day when all of us can comfortably believe that religion is an instrument to forge co-existence and living in harmony.

If we learn to respect the otherness of others, and accept the God given uniqueness of each one of us, then conflicts fade and solutions emerge. That is all God wants! For us to preserve the balance with which he has created the universe.

Are you comfortable in saying," I do not claim my faith to be superior to any, I am a _______ (Atheist to Zoroastrian) and pleased to be one."

Could you make that declaration below in the comment?  We need to create a momentum. I am blessed to provide you the material to back you up.

More at : http://foundationforpluralism.blogspot.com/2015/03/my-faith-is-not-superior-what-about.html

"I believe each one of us is created by the same creative process, with a singular source [GOD] for such creation, and respecting each one of his creations is the best form of praising, worshiping and honoring the creator.

I believe knowledge leads to understanding and understanding to acceptance and appreciation of people with a different point of view.  If we can learn to accept and respect the God given uniqueness of each one of the 7 billion of us, then conflicts fade and solutions emerge."

"I have freed my God from religious confinement and believe that the divine's presence belongs to everyone, and he/she/it is everywhere. I see God's greatness in every which way and in every place of worship. I don't like to lock up God in any singular spot or limit him into a form.

No one owns Jesus, Krishna, Muhammad or others: "Ram is not the property of Hindus, he belongs to all, Christians don't own Jesus, and Mohammed and his message belongs to all". I feel that none of us should bottle up the great teachers into small cells, their teachings are universal and they belong to all.

"If you don’t understand other’s teaching is one thing, but if you look down upon others wisdom, it amounts to prejudice that puts a noose around your freedom and it also stops you from learning all the good you can learn from all religious teachers”. I believe Learning about other faiths simply enhances one’s search for the truth." The truth is the same, manifestations are different, knowing that brings spirituality.

"I believe that the connection with the Creator is inversely proportional to the ego. Greater the ego, (arrogance) lesser the connection, on the other hand, greater the humility, greater the spirituality. I am grateful that the creator has helped me learn to respect and honor all faiths, and my faith teaches me never to denigrate other beliefs.  Islam is my path and blessed to travel on it."

As beauty is in the eyes of the beholder, "religion is in the heart of the believer." Each faith is beautiful to the believer and we should honor that.

"I honor cherish and respect every which way people have come to praise and worship the almighty, including but not limited to the Baha'i, Buddhist, Christian, Hindu, Islamic, Jain, Judaism, Sikh, Wicca, Zoroastrian and several indigenous systems of belief. I am committed to defend the divinity of every faith with no exception and it is in no conflict with my faith, which is Islam."

"I am a Muslim and blessed to be one and I pray every one feels the same about his or her individual faith. My faith connects me with my Creator and answers the purpose of life, death, accountability and results. The Islam I know is what the majority of Muslims practice around the world; it is universal, all embracing and pluralistic. I relate with every faith and see the same essence and beauty in them as I see in Islam. I am comfortable with every beautiful way people have come to worship the divine.  We do not have to undermine other faiths to make our faith better, faith is beyond comparisons. Faith brings humility to oneself and not arrogance."

To be a Muslim is to be a peacemaker, one who seeks to mitigate conflicts and nurtures goodwill for peaceful co-existence. A Muslims is someone who submits to the idea of peace and harmony, and works to sustain it. That is indeed the purpose of religion, any religion. 

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Mike Ghouse is a public speaker, thinker, writer and a commentator on Pluralism, Islam, India, Israel-Palestine, Politics and other issues of the day. He is a human rights activist, and his book standing up for others will be out soon | He is producing a full feature film ” Sacred” to be released on 9/11 and a documentary “Americans together” for a July 4 release.  He is a frequent guest commentator on Fox News and syndicated Talk Radio shows and a writer at major news papers including Dallas Morning News and Huffington Post. All about him is listed in 63 links at www.MikeGhouse.net and his writings are at www.TheGhousediary.com – Mike is committed to building cohesive societies and offers pluralistic solutions on issues of the day.