Issues in Islam as Viewed by the Progressivists - Term Paper Example

Issues in Islam as viewed by the Progressivists Progress is a necessary part of life. It mostly becomes necessary for two main reasons. Either the old ways of doing things are overtaken by time or new ways make life easier and more in touch with the changing times. The case applies to the Muslim religion. This is a religion in which a substantial number of the world population believes. The largest numbers are however to be found in the Middle East and Asia. This is the founding home for many of the world’s religions. With the passage of time have arisen different practices within this religion. There are also the practices that have emerged as a result of the poor interpretation of the Holy Book. The first thing that comes to mind is the idea of Jihad. This has encouraged overenthusiastic members of the religion to go all out in war to seek to protect it. More recently however, there has been terrorism that has sought to use the name of Islam in vain. This paper shall seek to explore al those emergent trends and seek to place them within the context of a ‘progressive Islam’ as espoused by three well known authors. It is important to point out from the outset that there are few disagreements between these writers on what a progressive Islam should be like. After all, what they all seek in general is a break from the past and an adoption of new ways of doing things. This entails adopting less contentious positions with regard to issues like Jihad, Sharia Law, attitudes towards women and even issues of political tolerance. That is not to state however that there are no differences. The point is that there is an overwhelming consensus on the main issues which in many ways dilutes the weight in the areas of dispute. The three main writers to be considered are Omid Safi, Charles Kurzman and Ahmed Nassef. All of them have made significant contributions in writing with the exception of Nassef, who relatively has contributed less in writing. His main hunting ground however seems like in mobilization of people. The next stage shall be to itroduce each of these authors and intellectuals by stating their main works so as to provide an important context within which to judge their positions. Ahmed Nassef is best known as the founder of the progressive website Muslim Wake Up. This website envisions a religion that is better up to speed with happenings in the real world. This site was founded in 2003. The group does not however concentrate on criticizing Muslims who are not progressive. Rather they further the Muslim agenda through demonstrations. They demonstrate against bigotry, racism and oppression. The fact that they use new media tools is the most clear sign of their progressive credentials (www.muslimWakeUp.com) Kurzman and Omid have in many ways adopted a common approach. They are both intellectuals and therefore prefer to voice their opinions mostly through writing. This is a means that is very effective and also has a wide reach. They both write about issues affecting the Muslim population both at home and abroad. These issues include institutional racism, mostly in the West. As one is aware for instance there is a kind of xenophobia that is directed at the Muslims especially after September 11th. This was a turning point in relations between the Muslim nations and the west (Kurzman, 1998). On that day, extremist elements closely associated with Osama Bin Laden’s Al Qaeda bombed high value installations in the United States. What followed was President Bush’s war on terror which was largely targeted at extremist elements in Muslim nations across the world. This has angered Muslims a lot. Despite efforts by President Obama to ‘reset’ the relations with the Muslim world, the initial enthusiasm has been replaced by skepticism (Omid, 2003). These two writers believe more dialogue with the West rather than less will promote even more understanding. It will relieve the unease with which Muslims are viewed abroad and the animosity with which Europeans and other Western nationals are received with. It is important to bear in mind that the War on Terror was largely supported by the West. This was has resulted in the deaths of countless Muslim men, women and children. The other angle to this foreign relations angle also implicates Israel. There is a strong feeling in Muslim nations that Israel is an aggressor. Many Muslim feel that the Middle East crisis that pits Israel against Palestine is a war that they should be engaged in themselves. This passion is cautioned against by both these authors. Such enthusiasm when tolerated over time can develop into fundamentalism and result into acts of terror (Omid, 2003). Closely related to this issue is the idea of Jihad. Jihad is Holy War in Islam. This should be directed at people and interests who are against the teachings of the religion. It is also a central component in the war on terror. Thousands of young men are getting recruited into groups that have made it their business to protect the Holy teachings (Kurzman, 2003). This has a huge effect on the young men. Some are recruited from among the Muslim population abroad to carry out attacks in their new countries. This is very worrying because one should expect that these young men who are well educated should be able to see through such dishonesty and instead pursue alternative means to peace. There are several young men of Pakistani origin for instance who are recruited while abroad and have to go back to their native countries for weapons training before returning home to carry out their murderous missions (Omid, 2003). Another issue that they address regularly which is closely related to those mentioned above has to do with intolerance. This has both a political, cultural as well as religious angle. There is a lot of intolerance that has been bred in the Muslim world partly as a result of the skewed teachings of the Koran and also because of the dictatorships that have reigned supreme in Muslim majority nations. The recent Arab Spring is a case in point. Both writers are of the idea that the revolution was an idea whose time had come. This is because there have been leaders who for a long time have been imposed on their people as part of the West’s agenda to protect its own self interests. These interests mostly centre on energy security since many Muslim majority nations also double up as major oil producers (Nassef, www.muslimWakeUp.com) These leaders were deposed by the Arab spring. They include Tunisia’s Ben Ali, Libya’s Gaddafi and Egypt’s Mubarak. Some of these ‘non-accomodationist’ leaders still remain. They include Syria’s Assad among others. These leaders have fuelled political intolerance in their populations by getting stuck to power for decades. They have given them the impression that the only way those who are sidelined can access power is by armed rebellion. There is also the issue of religious intolerance. This has become a major concern within Islam. There are several groups that engage in political activities but which try to justify their acts on religion. These groups include the Taliban and even al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb. This is a case in point of how politics and religion are disastrously entangled in some Muslim nations. The two are closely related and they affect the lives of the people in very tangible ways (Omid, 2003). There is also the issue of factionalism within Islam. Muslims forge a common front when their rights are infringed on by a ‘religious outsider’ but it should be known that some of the fiercest battles the Muslims fight are amongst themselves. There are two main wings of Islam, Sunni and Shia. These two groups compete for dominance in various Muslim states. The main examples are Iraq and current Syria. Under Saddam, Iraq was ruled by the Sunni. There were no honest efforts to accommodate the other groups in society. This bred religious as well as political intolerance that partly led to a breakup of the state. There were efforts to lock out the Sunni from power after the takeover of the Americans. The De-Baathification laws were part of that. In Syria, there is a minority group led by Assad that occupies all the major posts in industry, military and civil service. This is called the dictatorship of the minority. Another important issue as far as Islam is concerned is the place of women. Despite the growth in the Muslim majority nations, women have not yet been fully brought on board. They are still seen as assistants to men. They have limited freedoms. For instance in places like Saudi Arabia, women are not allowed to venture outside without the permission of a male relative. Sometimes they can even be accompanied by their own sons (Kurzman, 1998). Add to this the fact that women’s education is not keenly implemented and you end up with a society in which women’s rights are not taken seriously enough. Empowering the women is the next frontier in as far as the growth of Muslim states is concerned. The writers all support the empowerment of women. Their progressive attitudes towards gender relations have allowed them to contemplate a society in which the woman’s place does not have to be only in the kitchen. There is also the issue of fatwa’s. These are orders given to kill any person whose views are perceived to be either anti-Islam or even disrespectful of Islam. One of the more popular cases is that of the writer of ‘The Satanic verses’. He explored subjects that viewed Islam negatively in this thesis. The orders were issued to kill him and his life has not been the same ever since. The writers caution against this kind of intolerance. They advise that opinions must be tolerated. Islam is a multifarious entity and therefore there cannot be a single absolute version of Islam (Omid, 2003­). Justice is as important to Islam as it is to any other religion. There are however different interpretations of justice. There are the more extreme groups who believe it is their duty to mete out justice and not that of the maker. These groups encourage inhuman means of dispensing justice like lashing, stoning and even amputating body parts. This has over time made Islam more feared than understood. The truth is that there is no religion which can tolerate such gross human rights abuses. The writers encourage a more conciliatory approach to justice. This is because violence only seems to breed more violence (Nassef, www.muslimWakeUp.com) Closely related to justice are the Islamic sex laws. These are meant to regulate human behavior. The standards they however impose are stricter on the part of the women than the men. Take the recent Arab Spring for instance. There were women arrested for protesting. They were then taken for ‘virginity tests’. This is because unmarried women are not supposed to sleep with anyone. This is a classic example of how the women are intimidated on the basis of sex laws. For the progressivist’s, the sex laws should provide a more level playing field whether all people are judged using similar criteria (Omid, 2003). On the whole, there seems to be a lot of issues that are keeping the progressivist’s busy. There seems to be an entire repertoire of issues that are affecting different Muslims. There are issues of a political, social, cultural and even economic nature. These issues can only be resolved, according to the progressivist’s, by embracing more modern approaches to life. Part of the modernization will involve learning from the West, exactly what many Muslims hate to do. This proves that for the disadvantaged, it still remains a long walk to freedom and equality. Works Cited Safi, Omid.Progressive Muslims.New York: Oneworld Publications, 2003.Print. Ahmed Nassef’s website Muslim WakeUp! www.muslimWakeUp.com Kurzman, Charles.Liberal Islam. London: Oxford University Press, 1998.Print. Read More