By Raïssa Robles – I am deeply saddened by the news that Ustadz Sharif Zain Jali, the spiritual adviser of Moro National Liberation chief Nur Misuari, died Sunday at the age of 74.

I had known him for decades. As a journalist, I try to keep an emotional and social distance from my sources.

But somehow, through the years Jali became not just a source to me. From him I learned the gentleness of Muslims and their humanity. He was always open to all my questions about Islam and what was happening in Mindanao.