Building Bridges Not Walls

Growing up in the only English speaking country in South America , and being Muslim did not make me stand out, I was part of a people of different ethnicities and religions that embraced each other and appreciated the differences. Most Guyanese see Muslims as generous people who share beef at a certain time of the year and give away food nightly for one month during Ramadan. As a child I have never heard the word terrorist or Terrorism


being used to describe Muslims or Islam, to me Islam is the most beautiful practical way of life that is so much more than ritualistic praying at certain times of the day, it is how we eat ,sleep, and associate with our fellow human being and all the creation of Almighty God .. Unfortunately most of what is associated with Islam Today is all the negativity that is seen in the media , but just like the Easter bunny does not represent the true meaning of Easter, these terror groups do not represent me or the true meaning of Islam. The way of life I practice teaches that I should never go to sleep knowing my neighbor is hungry, that even a smile in the face of my brother/sister is charity , to plant trees so mankind and animals may benefit .I was taught to be steadfast in prayer and regular in charity and to be firm and patient in pain and adversity.Let us work together to build friendships despite our differences, let us work to promote what is good and forbid wrong, let us work together to get rid of intolerance and dogmatic views against all people. What if our differences brought us closer instead of tore us apart? Lets build bridges and not walls As salaam u alaikum -May peace be unto you.
Sent by our BV Umm Zakariyya