I was struck by this comment: ‘The believer deals with people with a genuine and true smile. The means of achieving the genuine and true smile is by remembering the blessings of Allah upon one.’
There are many millions of people who offer selfless service to their neighbour, to those in desperate need of food, clothing, jobs, education and medical treatment. Millions do this voluntarily, using their own time, at their own cost. They do it with a smile. They do it without publicity; it is part of their daily routine. People of faith do it because they see God, however described, in this most sensitive and touching of service and not just because they are moved with compassion for the sufferer. This is a genuine form of the ‘spirituality of being human’. It does not have to be linked to Mosque, Church, Temple or Synagogue. It is a human encounter, made divine precisely because it carries self-giving love, inspired by faith in the needs of fellow humans, given greater importance to those of faith.
Those who see the smile may not respond with a smile. They feel helpless, unable to restore the dignity they have lost through the selfishness of their brothers and sisters. They have been rendered worthless. The horror of that loss is so great a smile is impossible. The visitor understands; he/she brings a loving smile full of the warmth of love. This opens up a way to re-find that smile. It does not happen immediately, but with each visit a little bit more dignity is restored; the smile slowly returns. Behind the smiling face is a conviction that life is worthwhile, in spite of pain, loss of dignity and a sense of powerlessness. Slowly that smiling face becomes the sign of love from another, the sign of hope returning and, eventually, the reawakening of dignity. For those of faith it is the gift from God, it is the spirituality which brings hope beyond the horrific pain of the present moment, a hope all but lost until that smiling face of the unnamed visitor arrived. But do we, men and women of faith, truly recognise the importance of the spirituality of the smile?
