‘The Jihad Of Jesus is not the jihad we are used to hearing about!
It has been hard to keep my heart kind while I have been a part of Christian Solidarity Worldwide, advocating for persecuted Christians, usually at the hands of some Moslem group somewhere.
The book is very challenging. It speaks to both Christians and Moslems jointly and examines what might be the causes of our frequent enmities, asking whether they are caused by our faiths or by self-centredness. It “confesses” past sins of both groups, starting with the Christian ones, and then it offers things we can do together in a determined way to change ourselves and those around us without swords and violence. It is also carefully showing how Jesus’ radical teachings give us the blueprint for this Jihad.
I have read this, thought about it, told others about it, and am still thinking about it. I have found this book a real gem, and it has effectively overthrown in me many wrong assumptions I have held about our beliefs. It shows how we, Moslems and Christians, have so often each misread our holy books for purposes of power and greed – perverting the concept of a personal holy spiritual struggle or jihad into a cause for huge scale brutality. And it sets out the many teachings we share about sacrificing ourselves to bring constructive changes in this world by deliberate and active patience, kindness and non-aggression, the true Jihad.’