its definitely not the best of the articles, but still is a good one to ignite a heated discussion on the topic…
VIEW: In search of Liberal Muslims —Syed Mansoor Hussain
For the life of me, I cannot understand what ‘enlightened moderation’ means. Does it mean that when we embark upon the road to enlightenment, we should do it moderately? Or, is it the other way around, meaning that if we become truly enlightened (about what?) then we will become moderate (about what?)
For most of my life, I have considered myself a liberal person, but I have never thought of myself as a Liberal Muslim. Over the last few years, there has been a worldwide search for Liberal Muslims. Media in the west especially, but also in many Muslim countries, have expended much ink on this issue. Books have been written, learned articles published and think-tank position papers issued about who and what exactly is a Liberal Muslim. Presenting such a breed to the non-Muslim world as some entity that was as yet undiscovered, but existed all along, has indeed become a regular industry.
I would like to submit that there is no such thing as a Liberal Muslim. The problem, with apologies to Ogden Nash is about the difference between the big-L Liberal and the small-l liberal! A liberal person is an “open minded” person, who does not take things too seriously. However, a Liberal is somebody who believes in Liberalism as a political and social philosophy. Liberalism places individual rights in a primary position; it presumes that all laws that govern any society must first protect the right of an individual to decide what his or her own behaviour and system of beliefs should be as long as it does not conflict with the rights of others. Liberalism also presumes that such individual freedoms can only exist in a society where the people make the laws.
Islam, as we well know, is a system of Divine Laws for all times, and governs all aspects of the life of a Muslim. Therefore, to conflate it with Liberalism is entirely disingenuous. There are many Muslims who are open minded and willing to accept new ideas and information. However, if they believe in Islam, they cannot accept new ideas about certain things unless these have gone through the rigorous and difficult process of ijtehad. Another term, often used synonymously with liberal is “moderate”, the idea being that there also exists a category of Muslims who are moderate in their beliefs. This again is highly suspect as a category. Clearly, either we believe in Islam, or we do not, but we cannot believe in it moderately. It is an all or none proposition. Yes, it is possible for Muslims to be moderate in their behaviour about things in general, but not about what they believe in.
Similar to these is the concept of “enlightened moderation”. For the life of me, I cannot understand what this means. Does it mean that when embarked upon the road to enlightenment, we should do it moderately? Or, is it the other way around, and means that if we become truly enlightened (about what?) then we will become moderate (about what?). It seems that all such concepts are aimed at trying to present a category of Muslims who somehow are not entirely wedded to their beliefs and as such might be susceptible to modern ideas. It would be much more constructive in my opinion if those that propagate modern ideas come out openly and state what these are. We can then initiate an open debate about these ideas and their impact on a system wedded to the concept of the primacy of Divine Laws. Without doubt such a debate is needed.
The problem as I see it is that when confronted by western systems of government, there exists the need to somehow square our belief systems with them. Having lived in the US for many years, it is obvious to me that this is one major conflict many American Muslims have great difficulty dealing with. In Pakistan we now have an ostensibly western-style parliamentary democracy that has been extensively hybridised to fit into our cultural and religious background. But, this is at best a compromise. Such a system cannot last, and will in time be brought down by its own internal contradictions.
Western-style democracies are based on notions of secularism and pluralism, and in an Islamic milieu such notions cannot survive religious scrutiny. But before we discard western concepts of government in their entirety, we must also realise that most of their systems of laws are also based on ethical and moral principles derived from their own religious background. There is much we can learn from their history, especially about religious conflicts within Christianity and how they were able to resolve them and move on to the present system of representative government where all religious denominations can coexist. The choice for us obviously cannot be between a purely western system and a theocratic retrogressive model along the lines of the Taliban in Afghanistan. Both these models have failed in most Muslim countries. Therefore, the need is to work on the creation of a new system that can take into consideration religious sensibilities and modern requirements at the same time. To use a cliché, it is time to think outside the box!
Such a quest might seem Quixotic at best, but without embarking upon it, there is little chance that Pakistan, and many other Muslim countries, can move towards truly representative and just forms of government. The first step in that direction, it would seem, is to realise that there exists a tremendous diversity within Islam in terms of interpretation and practice. Unless we accept the idea that all those who believe in Islam are Muslims and they have an equal right to be treated as such, there can be no democracy in any form. Here perhaps it might be worthwhile quoting one of the truly “enlightened” Muslims: “I assert that all people of the Qibla are Momins and that none of them becomes an infidel by omission of [some] deeds. He who has faith and also performs his duties is without doubt a Momin and destined for Paradise. He who is devoid of both faith and practice is an infidel and destined for Hell. He who has faith, but fails to act accordingly is certainly a Muslim, but a sinful one. It is up to God to punish or forgive him.” (From Imam Abu Hanifa’s response to a letter from Uthman Batti.)
The writer, a cardiac surgeon, has practised and taught medicine in the US. He can be reached at [email protected]
- = S o U r C e = -](http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=story_25-9-2004_pg3_2)
