Documente Academic
Documente Profesional
Documente Cultură
Forgiving people and moving on is often seen as praiseworthy. However, not everyone feels it always
possible to forgive.
• The Qur’an tells Muslims to make peace with their enemies and act justly towards them. Allah, it says,
‘loves those who act justly’. (Qur’an 49: 9).
• It also says not to seek revenge when we are wronged by others. Rather, we should reply to evil with
good actions. In this way, we can make peace with our former enemies (Qur’an 41: 34).
However, there are people within each of these religions who may not always believe forgiveness is
possible. For example, some Muslims still regard Shirk (denying the oneness of God) as an unforgiveable
sin. Others may believe that some crimes (such as the murder of children) can never be forgiven.
Exam Practice!
Explain two Christian beliefs about forgiveness.
Decisions to go to war are often very controversial. Some people believe wars may be necessary because:
• it is necessary to fight dictators who threaten human rights and global stability;
• organisations like the United Nations must sometimes fight to restore peace.
However, some people oppose going to war in all circumstances. These people are known as pacifists.
They argue wars should never be fought because:
• modern weapons like nuclear war are so destructive that their use can never be accepted. Wars should
therefore always be avoided.
Exam Practice!
‘It is never acceptable to fight in a war.’
However, some Christians believe it is never acceptable to fight in wars. One pacifist Christian group is
the Quakers. Groups such as these may believe war is unacceptable because:
War in Scripture
‘Then Jesus said to him, “Put your sword back into its place. For all who take
the sword will perish by the sword.”’ (Matthew 26: 52)
Exam Practice!
Explain two contrasting Christian views on war. (4 marks)
A good example of a holy war is the one fought by the Prophet Muhammad against the forces of
Makkah. Muhammad only fought when attacked and, when his enemies surrendered, did not seek
revenge on them.
War in Scripture
’If they do fight you, kill them – this what such disbelievers deserve – but if they
stop, then God is most forgiving and merciful. Fight them until there is no more
persecution.’ (Qur’an 2: 191-193)
‘Those who have been attacked are permitted to take up arms because they have
been wronged.’ (Qur’an 22: 39)
Exam Practice!
Explain two Muslim views on war. (4 marks)
Exam Practice!
‘It can be acceptable to use weapons of mass destruction in some situations.’
Both Muslims and Christians have strict rules on when a war may be fought. Because of the nature of
terrorism, it cannot fulfil the criteria necessary to satisfy Just War theory or lesser jihad.
Though the Bible and the Qur’an do not address terrorism directly, their teachings strongly imply that
it is unacceptable. You can see some passages below that Christians and Muslims may turn to when
considering the issue of terrorism.
Furthermore, it should be noted that in recent years some terrorists have committed suicidal attacks.
Neither Islam nor Christianity could support these as both religions do not allow suicide, which is seen
as ‘playing God’.
Terrorism in Scripture
‘Do not take life which Allah has made sacred.’ (Qur’an 17:33)
‘A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another; even as I have
loved you, that you also love one another.’ (John 13: 34)
Exam Practice!
Explain two reasons why Muslims should oppose terrorism.
A religious group famous for its work for peace is Pax Christi, a Catholic peace organisation. They work
for peace in the following ways:
• Organising campaigns and protests against war. These help raise public awareness of conflicts and
pressures governments into acting to resolve them.
• Providing peace education in schools. This aims to help build a more peaceful world in the future.
• Working in warzones to record the destruction and human rights abuses that occur in war. They then
try to bring these to the attention of the media to spread awareness of conflicts.
Exam Practice!
Explain two ways religious people can work for peace. (4 marks)