How can we bring the Holy Prophet Muhammad (saw) closer to people who hate him?

By showing him as he really was. The hatred usually rests on a distorted picture. Whoever comes to know his unconditional love for people can hardly go on hating him.

Why do some people hate the Holy Prophet Muhammad (saw)? Usually not because they know him, but because they have been shown a false picture. It is the picture of a man who will not listen to reason and does away with anyone who does not believe in him. Sadly, some Muslims have helped paint this picture through their words and actions. Anyone who has such an image in mind can feel nothing but rejection.

So the answer is not argument, but a true picture. The greatest strength of the Holy Prophet Muhammad (saw) was his love for people, a real and unconditional love. He was no oppressor. He was the humblest of men and at the same time the highest in his mission. His struggle was one of reasoning, not of force. This becomes clear when you read the accounts of his life.

The Holy Qur’an draws a clear line. Permission to defend oneself applies only when one is attacked. That is an entirely different situation. To opposition in matters of faith, to disputes over doctrine and belief, it responds not with force but with love, and with an invitation that turns enemies into friends. That is what the verse above says.

Anyone who wants to bring the Holy Prophet Muhammad (saw) closer to others should show him as he was, and above all live that way themselves. Kindness, patience and honesty persuade more than any speech in his defence. A person who expects only hatred and meets goodness begins to think.

The aim is high. We should overcome opponents with so much love that in the end they have no choice but to love in return. Experience shows that this is possible. People who once rejected Islam have become its most devoted friends, because at last they saw it as it truly is.