veiled4allah: Muslims and Jews - one nation under God

This is truly amazing. The Prophet (pbuh) made the Jews of Medina one "ummah," or community with the believers. This even though the Jews immediately, almost as soon as he arrived in the city, rejected him as Messenger of God (pbuh). The Prophet (pbuh) did not force them to become Muslim; he did not expel the Jews from Medina after they rejected him; he did not relegate them to a "second-class citizen" status. No. They were equal members of the city, one "community with the believers," with the freedom to practice their religion. At one time in history, Muslims and Jews were one nation under God. I lament the tension between Muslims and Jews both in America and around the world. It makes so much sense for the two faith communities to be very close to each other: we both worship the same God, the God of Abraham; we both honor and revere both Abraham and Moses; Moses and Abraham are both highly honored in the Qur'an, and they are mentioned by name in the Qur'an more than the Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) himself; there are many stories of the Hebrew Prophets in the Qur'an; in fact, the story of Joseph as mentioned in the Bible and the Qur'an are strikingly similar. Like I said before, Muslims and Jews have so much more in common than in distinction, and it pains me to see so much tension between the two faith communities.

For far too long, the Holy Land has been poisoned by the blood of the senseless loss of innocent lives. For far too long, Palestinians and Israelis have lost their lives in a vicious and senseless circle of violence. For far too long, the Holy Land has cried out from the pain and death she has to endure day after day after day. It should not be so. Lord God, the Most Holy Lord God on High! Please bring peace to the Holy Land. Please let the choking smoke of guns and bombs lift off the place we Muslims, Christians, and Jews hold sacred. Lord God, this is the Land You have blessed, please let it shine in the light of Your Glory, rather than be smothered in the blood of the innocent. My Most Precious Lord, please bring peace to the Holy Land, so that the constant glorification of Your Most Holy Name is no longer drowned out by the deafening sound of guns, missiles, and bombs exploding. In Your Most Holy Name, O Lord, I do ask these things. Amen.