26 January 2006

Is Islam The issue?

To answer Foulla's question: What if laicity is the solution?

Foulla wants to know if Laicity will help women get the decent men that will respect women as a being. however some of the commentators like Behrooz see the issue differently, and here what i think:

Behrooz has a point Foulla, we do as Muslims tend to use Islam right and left and forget sometimes to differentiate between what is religion and what is traditions and culture.

That being said, I have also to agree with what some say about the religion not being the real issue. I want to point out to something that may be the reason why Islam was accused more then any other religion, ever before, of mistreating women.

Before I try my luck sharing what I have with the rest of you, we all should keep in mind that on his last address, the prophet Mohamed (may god bless his soul!) said that Islam as a religion was sent to the world as whole and that it is meant to be flexible. Islam is suppose to follow the evolution of societies and what worked for them back then might not be applicable to us today.

So since Islam is meant to be interpreted and adjusted to the needs and demands to the new world, mistakes and manipulation can and have taken place. We do not pay attention or even question what we are told about this or that by our Cheikh—Correct?-- for the simple reason that all regimes are manipulating us and had us believe hard as a rock that we can’t question what our clerics say. It is a no! To even ask question about any point in the religion. I will give the example of Morocco; where a Ceikh is highly regarded in our societies and you can’t argue with what he say even if you have the certainty that it is incorrect. So let’s say if he says that Islam wants women to stay at home and be the object of the society, you will have an estimable portion of Moroccans doing as they were told without questioning any of it.

And as you all certainly know, most of clerics in the Islamic world are Men and because some of them are ‘Biased’ and ‘Macho’ theologians’ misinterpretation and misleading definitions are existent. But the worst is that most of those come to us from a society that is viewed by several Muslims around the world as higher Islamic authority.

Another point to add to that is that politics is now part of religion, or influences the practice of the religion. Have you ever asked yourself why does certain countries though very close to each other and belonging to same time zone don’t fast the same day, well don’t be surprised I heard that for example some countries won’t fast the same day as Saudi Arabia because it stopped given them aids.

More will come but i prefer to wait for your honest feedback...

5 comments:

makdom said...

Assalamualaikum,

In the eyes of "God" there is no difference between man and woman.
Islam should not be treated as a religion it is a fact and as clear as you can see the mountains, the sky, the sea and all your surroundings. Prophets are being sent to remind humans of their creator and to give guidance as how to live well in this world.

. said...

Soumiaz, of the post I strogly support two points.
1. The role of regional traditions and local cultures in the formation of Islam in those places
2. The fusion of Politics and Religion, which makes Islam still less accessible and more disguised than ever. Especially today that Islam feels no shortage in having political and international enemies; and we sometimes inadvertently help them more than they can imagine. I am never surprised when a Westerner praises post in which we self-condemn.

Also what worries me is that some now prefer to approach Islam in an eclectic way. They take the parts which go with their own desires and even biases and mark the ones which don't, at its best, as misinterpreation, or as barbarous, savage, uncivilised etc.

soumiaz said...

Behrooz, Foulla and Madom,

I agree with all you say, and Foulla Ijtihad is one of the solution however there is more that need to be done.

I know god given me the respect that i deserve Makdom. I do get scared Behrooz when i see what people have done of this religion but Foulla what can you do when even educated people follow what does not make sense?
Think with me hear guys, there should be something!!!

Thank you for doing this!

Anonymous said...

Bon,
la question de laîcité ne doit même pas être posée en terre d'Islam puisque notre religion est la plus laîque dans le sens ou elle considère la relation entre individu et son créateur comme une chose qui ne concerne que le premier.
Mais, elle se pose parce que vu le poids de l'histoire et de la géographie, nous avons toujours vécu dans une société masculine.
A mon avis, la laïcité n'est pas à elle seule la clé du problème de la femme. Le développement économique, social et culturel serait un moyen de surmonter l'inégalité qui est certes disparate d'un pays musulman à un autre comme tu as bien précisé dans la réponse de ton mari.

Anonymous said...

Flemming Rose born 3/14/1956 into a Jewish family in the Ukraine has a major in Russian language and literature from University of Copenhagen. From 1990 to 1996 he was the Moscow correspondent for the newspaper Berlingske Tidende. Between 1996 and 1999 he was the correspondent for the same newspaper in Washington, D.C.. In 1999 he became Moscow correspondent for the newspaper Jyllands-Posten and January 2005 the cultural editor of that paper (KulturWeekend). He fled Denmark where he was under police protection to Miami, Florida in fear for his life where he is currently in hiding.