Tragedies and tribulations that fill todays's headlines, breaking news, and one's timelines put one in anguish and grief as one, time and again, confronts the question that has lingered for so long.

And, when your Lord said to the angels, "Indeed, I will make upon the earth a successive authority." They said, "Will You place upon it one who causes corruption therein and sheds blood, while we declare Your praise and sanctify You?" Allah said, "Indeed, I know that which you do not know."

Dear Lord, what is it that You know about us that makes us, mankind, worthy of such elevation despite these atrocities we have committed, the destruction and harm we have caused?

رَبَّنَا اغْفِرْ لَنَا ذُنُوبَنَا وَإِسْرَافَنَا فِي أَمْرِنَا وَثَبِّتْ أَقْدَامَنَا وانصُرْنَا عَلَى الْقَوْمِ الْكَافِرِينَِ