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THE HEART OF ISLAM
who love Him” (5:54). There is a certitude for Muslims that God is all-loving, as He is all-compassionate and allforgiving, as stated in the verses, “Surely my Lord is AllMerciful, All-Love” (11:90) and “He is the All-Forgiving, the All-Loving” (85:14). Even the Prophet’s following of God’s commands is related to his love for God, for as the Sacred Text states, “Say (O Muh.ammad): If ye love God, follow me” (3:31). One of the titles of the Prophet is in fact H . abı¯b Alla¯h, usually translated as “Friend of God,” but meaning also “Beloved of God.” In Christianity it is said that God is Love, and often from that perspective Islam is criticized for having a conception of God that lacks love. In this context it is of interest to turn to the observation of an outsider from the medieval period, the famous Jewish sage and poet Abraham ibn Ezra, who wrote: The Muslims sing of love and of passion The Christians of war and revenge The Greeks of wisdom and devices The Indians of parables and riddles And the Israelites—songs and praises to the Lord of Hosts.1 The assertion that Muslims do not know Divine Love is as absurd as claiming that Muslims know nothing of Divine Compassion. Neither Judaism nor Hinduism identifies God simply or purely with love, but that does not mean either of these religions, any more than Islam, is devoid of the notion of Divine Love, which flowered in them in the form of the Hasidic and bhakti movements, respectively. Islam states that God is Love, since this is one of His Divine Names, but it does not identify God solely with love, for