Islam and Peace
Non-Violence and Islam
~ 267 ~
subsequently become possible for religious realities
to be established on an academic level, i.e. exactly
on the same level as material or non-religious
theories.
2. In ancient times when man observed the world, it
appeared to him that in nature there existed things
which were very different from one another. This
observation of appearance produced the mentality
of idolatry. People began to think that in view of the
great diversity of things in existence, their Creator
too would perforce take many and varied shapes.
But scientific study has shown that this variety is
only that of appearance. Otherwise, all things in
nature are different expressions of the same matter.
In this way
shirk
(idolatry) came to be seen as an
intellectually untenable practice, while monotheism
gained the solid support of logic.
3. According to a statement of the Qur’an, the signs
of God lay hidden in the earth and the heavens. The
study of science has made it manifest to all men that
the universe is a great storehouse of divine
arguments. “We will show them Our signs in all the
