Ties of Friendship

Friendship is a common feeling for all humans on Earth, irrespective of their geographic location and the cultural and religious beliefs. Friendship is the emotion to share the happiness and vent the anger of oneself with a close person or group of people.

It is said in the Holy Qur'an that the very idea of friendship is being honest and pure with your friends no matter whatever religion and faith your friend is following. The Bible also emphasizes the importance of friendship in many of its stories and passages.

However, for many Christian people, it may feel difficult to make friends with different ethics or who follow different religion. This should not be so. Friendship is a wonderful thing that wins over all cultural and religious differences. It gives you the opportunity of sharing and understanding the beliefs and faiths of other religions in the world.

It is always important to keep the old Aesop fable that depicts the relationship between the lion and the mouse. At first, the lion did not respect other animals nor maintain any friendship with them. The only reasoning he had for this was because they were different species than he was. The mouse, on the other hand, was very friendly to all the animals. One day, when the lion got trapped in a hunter's net, the mouse bit the rope and saved the lion. The lion felt the physical ties around him break, but he was now in the strong ties of friendship with the mouse. From that point on, he became friends with all the creatures around him, regardless of their type.

This is how we should see people of differing religions. Friendship has nothing to do with what a person believes. It is having someone who you can trust and confide in.