Religious Responses to Victims of War

• Effects of war


  • Casualties are unavoidable
  • Physical effects (Being disfigured, Loss of limbs, Loss of sight or hearing)
  • Psychological effects (Post-traumatic stress disorder, Death of a partner, Families being separated, Orphaned children, Fear and terror from living in life-threatening situations, People having to flee their town/country)
  • Financial effects (Poverty in the family as the main earner can no longer work, Homes destroyed)
  • Environmental effects (Crop failures, Natural habitats destroyed)
  • Social/political effects (People having to flee their town/country, Lawlessness and gang violence, Loss of infrastructure like power, roads, water or sanitation, Political instability and ineffective government)
• Religious motivations for helping victims of war

  • God is believed to be just, loving and peaceful
  • Love, justice and peace can be a motivating factor behind a just war for both Christians and Muslims
  • Love, justice and peace needs to be established after conflict too by helping the victims of war
• Islamic teachings that motivate helping the victims of war: '"To save a life would be as great a virtue as to save all of mankind" (Qur'an 5:32)'
• Islamic teachings that motivate helping the victims of war: '"Allah loves the doers of good" (Qur'an 3:134)'
• Islamic teachings that motivate helping the victims of war: '"Zakah is for 'the poor... the needy... for the cause of Allah and for the [stranded] traveler'" (Qur'an 9:60)'
• Islamic teachings that motivate helping the victims of war

  • Each life is incredibly valuable to Allah
  • Allah expects His followers to do good deeds
  • The victims of war would fall into these categories of Zakah
• Christian teachings that motivate helping the victims of war: '"Love your neighbour as you love yourself" (Matt 22:39)'
• Christian teachings that motivate helping the victims of war: '"So God created human beings, making them to be like himself" (Gen 1:27)'
• Christian teachings that motivate helping the victims of war: '"Do everything possible on your part to live in peace with everybody" (Rom 12:18)'
• Christian teachings that motivate helping the victims of war

  • Show the love of God to all people
  • Each life is sacred and therefore incredibly valuable
  • Do everything possible to establish long-lasting peace
• Christian Aid


  • One of the largest Christian organisations helping the victims of war
  • Aim to end poverty
  • Help victims of war in two ways: short-term and long-term
• Islamic Relief


  • Founded by a group of Islamic postgraduate students inspired by their Islamic faith
  • Seek to help victims of war in two ways: short-term and long-term