Re: What Would Reform Islam Look Like?
It’s true that in “real life” today, I’d say that probably most of the dictates of Shari’ah (however you interpret them) aren’t followed and, in fact, not even known about by the populace at large.
But let me add a twist.
Suppose there arose a group of concerned Muslims who took a long, hard look at the Muslim world around them and basically agreed with your point about people not behaving Islamically. Being noble, knowledgable members of the Ummah, they set about changing this sorry situation, inviting ignorant Muslims to all that is good, enjoining what is right, and forbidding what is wrong, all the while drawing upon their considerable understanding of the Qur’an and the Sunnah.
Lets further assume that this not not confined to any one point in time and space, but is linked successively thoughout history wherever the clarion call for for wayward Muslims to amend their transgessing ways is made. In each and every case, these people are pushing forth an “Islamic Reformation”.
Here’s the rub: To simplify to epigrammatic proportions, it is not possible to have a future reformation in Islam as in the case of what happened in Europe with Christianity, because the “Islamic Reformation” was already initiated a long time ago. For any religious “Reformation” to take place, it actually refers to going back to first principles of that ideology, which are assumed to be good. This is what happened in the Protestant Reformation, and also steadily built up in Islam with the ascendancy of people like Imam Ghazali, Ibn Taymiyyah, and Muhammad ibn Abdul-Wahhab, and more recently, Hassan Al-Banna, Maulana Maududi, Sayyid Qutb etc. All were “Islamic Martin Luthers”, to varying degrees.
But going back to basics in Islam, as an “Islamic Reformation” would have it, takes you to Muhammad and the first four “rightly guided” Caliphs. Going back to their values would mark, without a shadow of doubt, a present disaster for human rights and enlightenment values. In accordance with this “Islamic Reformation”, the areas of Shari’ah that are most likely to be implemented in modern-day Muslim countries are those dealing with family law, women, and the like, which are typically horribly misogynistic. Especially if, of course, the ulama scholars are constantly dispensing fatwas and advice based on all aspects of Shari’ah, as seen on sites like Islam Q&Aand Ask the Imam.
In contrast, what the misnomer “Reform Islam”, which I described in my first post, represents is a Transformation, not a Reformation. It begins by completely rejecting the example of Muhammad, especially the Medinan Muhammad and the values he advocated. So, yes, I agree with those Muslims who insist there is no need for a future “Islamic Martin Luther”; they already have gotten it. Several of them, in fact. Bin Laden and his fellow Wahhabis are only among the most recent crop of fellow Muslim reformers.
In my opening post, I asked everyone whether it’s possible for a “Reform Islam” to exist, and if so, who has the right to define and interpret it? I also expressed scepticism on “Reform Islam” ever being accepted in mass droves. I think that probably most people here would seem to agree with me. And from what I have come across elsewhere, I can say with some certainty that there is no irresistable incentive among Muslims, other than scatttered fringe elements, to take up such a modern reading. In any fight between “Reform Islam” and “Islamic Reformation”, it’s pretty clear which would win. Every time. And it’s very likely to stay that way.
