Originally Posted on NY Daily News
Lynwood, Wash.: At the time of the Prophet Muhammad, an old non-Muslim lady decided to embarrass him in public. She swept her house and put all the garbage in a basket and threw it on him as he walked past her house. Much to her disappointment, he did not utter a single word of retaliation. She decided to go on with this tradition every morning. One day, the Prophet Muhammad did not see her and became worried, so he knocked at her door. Upon finding out that she was sick, the Prophet Muhammad asked if she needed help. Fascinated by the caring tone in the voice of the Prophet Muhammad, she forgot all her fear and asked for some water. He gave her some in a cup and prayed for her health. Then he started to clean her house and nursed her back to health. This is how the Prophet Muhammad treated a person who allegedly committed the biggest blasphemy ever — with love!
But today, some arrogant criminals hijack his teachings for violence and try to kill innocent people. I, as an Ahmadi Muslim, condemn the Garland shooting because it does not follow the teachings of Prophet Muhammad. I also, however, criticize the so-called free speech event hosted by Pamela Geller’s American Freedom Defense Initiative, which has been labeled a hate group. Criticism of a religion must not be conflated with senseless maligning of its founder. The event offered a $10,000 prize to the winning cartoon, but one is left asking what society has gained from it. Would the event’s participants find any merit in an abusive “draw Jesus” event? Sheheryar Ahmad
