French riot police patrol in central Paris as part of the highest level of “Vigipirate” security plan after a shooting at the Paris offices of Charlie Hebdo, in this January 9, 2015 photo.

The Council of Senior Scholars have slammed publications continuing to publish blasphemous cartoons saying it does not constitute freedom of expression but rather a form of hate speech.

These actions are playing into the hands of extremists who are looking for reasons to attack people and sow terror, said Fahd Al-Majed, secretary general of the council.

“Hurting the sentiments of Muslims across the world with such cartoons does not solve any problems, nor does it achieve any commendable goal. In the end, it only serves the interests of extremists who are looking for justifications to commit more murders and terror,” Al-Majed said.

“The world should strive for mutual respect and creative coexistence, which can never be achieved by belittling sacred religious symbols,” Al-Majed said, quoting a verse from the Holy Qur’an prohibiting the abuse of the religious beliefs of others.

Imam and khateeb at the Grand Mosque Sheikh Saud Al-Shuraim said the love of the Prophet is a blessing granted to Muslims by Almighty God, to develop their spirituality.

Real love for God and His messenger can only be achieved if people ensure that they are committed to it in “words, deeds and thoughts,” Al-Shuraim said in his Friday sermon. He said that Muslims can only be successful if they follow the teachings of Islam as articulated by the Prophet.

He also said Islamic history is replete with examples of how Muslim communities gained a higher status because of this behavior.

Muslim communities only weaken when they move away from the example of the Prophet or place worldly knowledge ahead of divine inspiration. This also encourages the enemies of Islam to undermine the message of the Messenger, he said.

He said that the love of the Prophet is not a product of the imagination, or an “unbearable burden but a spiritual experience, an expansion of the heart and a joy that cannot be experienced except by those who are granted it.”

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