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Like many others, I’ve been trying to get my head around the plight of thousands caught up in the onslaught by soldiers of the so-called Islamic State in Syria and Iraq. Images of cold blooded killings, and terrified and bewildered children haunt the mind. Worse, the killers, some from Britain, say they are doing this in the name of Islam. Their actions have been condemned by Muslim leader around the world. Over the weekend some of Britain’s leading Muslim clerics issued a statement calling on all Muslims to have nothing to do with what they termed a ‘false and poisonous ideology’. I am sure their views reflect the feelings of the vast majority of Muslims and I can understand the hurt felt by some in the community over the use of language that links them with the actions of a small minority. Some of my Muslim friends find it particularly hurtful to see mindless killers being described as ‘Islamists’. To my mind, neither this tarring of a whole community because of the actions of a few, nor the frequent use of the word ‘Asian’ to diffuse blame onto an even wider community, help us understand how some in our different faiths, justify unspeakable acts in the name of their religion. In a thoughtful article in the Times last weekend, Mathew Syed reminds us that religious texts are often written in the specific context of a very different world of hundreds of years ago. Most people understand this and simply look to underlying ethical guidance within them. But some selectively quote passages out of context to justify clearly unacceptable behaviour. As the saying goes: the devil can quote scriptures for his purpose. Guru Nanak was aware of the danger from the manipulation of religious sentiment. While he himself put forward key ethical teachings, such as those on equality and responsible living, successor Gurus were charged with the difficult task of keeping these to the fore in changing social and political circumstances. Today we are naturally worried about the dangers we may face from returning British religious extremists and the need to safeguard ourselves. But due emphasis should also be given to the urgent need for people of all faiths to ensure common underlying imperatives are couched in today’s terms. In so doing they will avoid the potential for harmful distortions. It will also help to make religion, what the founders of our different faiths intended, a positive force for good.