Straight Talk with Sheikh Shaheed SatardienReasons why Islam and Europe are compatible:Sheikh Shaheed Satardien continues his analysis of the ‘Europe and Islam’ debate Continued from last week...
Islam empowered women as its egalitarian streak plays itself out in relations between the sexes. Muhammad, Islam’s prophet, actually was a reformer in his day. Following the Qur’an, he limited the number of wives a man could have and strongly recommended against polygamy. The Qur’an laid out a set of marriage laws that guarantees married women their family names, their own possessions and capital, the right to agree upon whom they will marry, and the right to initiate divorce.
In Islam’s early period, women were professionals and property owners, as increasingly they are today. None of this may seem obvious to most non-Muslims because of cultural overlays that at times make Islam appear to be a repressive faith toward women. But if you look more closely, you can see the egalitarian streak preserved in the Qur’an finding expression in contemporary terms
Islam shares the non-Muslim’s new interest in food purity and diet. Muslims conduct a month-long fast during the holy month of Ramadan, a practice that many non-Muslims admire and even seek to emulate (I happened to spend quite a bit of time with a non-Muslim friend during Ramadan this year). Muslims also observe dietary laws that restrict the kind of meat they can eat. These laws require that the permitted (halal) meat is prepared in a manner that emphasises cleanliness and a humane treatment of animals. These laws ride on the same trends that have made organic foods so popular.
Islam is tolerant of other faiths. Islam has a history of respecting other religions. In Muhammad’s day, Christians, Sabians, and Jews in Muslim lands retained their own courts and enjoyed considerable autonomy. As Islam spread east, toward India and China, it came to view Zoroastrianism, Hinduism and Buddhism as valid paths to salvation.
As Islam spread north and west, Judaism especially benefited. The return of the Jews to Jerusalem, after centuries as outcasts, only came about after Muslims took the city in 638. The first thing the Muslims did there was to rescue the Temple Mount, which by then had been turned into a garbage heap.
Today, of course, the long discord between Israel and Palestine has acquired harsh religious overtones. Yet the fact remains that this is a battle for real estate, not a war between two faiths. Islam and Judaism revere the same prophetic lineage, back to Abraham, and no amount of bullets or barbed wire can change that. As The New York Times recently reported, while Muslim/Jewish tensions sometimes flare on university campuses, lately these same students have found ways to forge common links. For one thing, the two religions share similar dietary laws, including ritual slaughter and a prohibition on pork.
Islam encourages the pursuit of religious freedom. The tale of the pilgrims landing at Plymouth Rock in America is not the world’s first story of religious emigration. Muham-mad and his little band of 100 followers fled religious persecution, too, from Mecca in the year 622. They only survived by going to Yathrib (now called Madinah), an oasis a few hundred miles north, where they established a new community based on a religion they could only practice secretly back home. No wonder, then, that in our own day, many Muslims have settled all over as pilgrims from oppression, leaving places like Kashmir, Bosnia, and Kosovo, where being a Muslim may have radically shortened your life span.
When the 20th century’s list of emigrant exiles is added up, it will prove to be heavy with Muslims, that’s for sure.
It should be clear that Islam is a religion that calls for activity and action and that encourages honest and truthful efforts and work to enhance one’s life. Muslims are urged to work hard to improve their lives and serve their society. Islam also calls for the cultivation of the land and making the best use of its sources. It does encourage work, and instructs Muslims to honestly and faithfully spare no efforts to improve their lives. The following Qur’anic citation proves this fact: “And when the prayer is ended, then disperse in the land and seek of Allah’s bounty, and remember Allah much, that ye may be successful” (Al-Jumu’ah 62:10).
Next week: Sheikh Satardien on whether ‘Western civilisation’ is at war with Islam
Sheikh Shaheed Satardien is chairman of the Supreme Muslim Council of Ireland, an umbrella group in its developmental stages
sheikhshaheed@gmail.com
In Islam’s early period, women were professionals and property owners, as increasingly they are today. None of this may seem obvious to most non-Muslims because of cultural overlays that at times make Islam appear to be a repressive faith toward women. But if you look more closely, you can see the egalitarian streak preserved in the Qur’an finding expression in contemporary terms
Islam shares the non-Muslim’s new interest in food purity and diet. Muslims conduct a month-long fast during the holy month of Ramadan, a practice that many non-Muslims admire and even seek to emulate (I happened to spend quite a bit of time with a non-Muslim friend during Ramadan this year). Muslims also observe dietary laws that restrict the kind of meat they can eat. These laws require that the permitted (halal) meat is prepared in a manner that emphasises cleanliness and a humane treatment of animals. These laws ride on the same trends that have made organic foods so popular.
Islam is tolerant of other faiths. Islam has a history of respecting other religions. In Muhammad’s day, Christians, Sabians, and Jews in Muslim lands retained their own courts and enjoyed considerable autonomy. As Islam spread east, toward India and China, it came to view Zoroastrianism, Hinduism and Buddhism as valid paths to salvation.
As Islam spread north and west, Judaism especially benefited. The return of the Jews to Jerusalem, after centuries as outcasts, only came about after Muslims took the city in 638. The first thing the Muslims did there was to rescue the Temple Mount, which by then had been turned into a garbage heap.
Today, of course, the long discord between Israel and Palestine has acquired harsh religious overtones. Yet the fact remains that this is a battle for real estate, not a war between two faiths. Islam and Judaism revere the same prophetic lineage, back to Abraham, and no amount of bullets or barbed wire can change that. As The New York Times recently reported, while Muslim/Jewish tensions sometimes flare on university campuses, lately these same students have found ways to forge common links. For one thing, the two religions share similar dietary laws, including ritual slaughter and a prohibition on pork.
Islam encourages the pursuit of religious freedom. The tale of the pilgrims landing at Plymouth Rock in America is not the world’s first story of religious emigration. Muham-mad and his little band of 100 followers fled religious persecution, too, from Mecca in the year 622. They only survived by going to Yathrib (now called Madinah), an oasis a few hundred miles north, where they established a new community based on a religion they could only practice secretly back home. No wonder, then, that in our own day, many Muslims have settled all over as pilgrims from oppression, leaving places like Kashmir, Bosnia, and Kosovo, where being a Muslim may have radically shortened your life span.
When the 20th century’s list of emigrant exiles is added up, it will prove to be heavy with Muslims, that’s for sure.
It should be clear that Islam is a religion that calls for activity and action and that encourages honest and truthful efforts and work to enhance one’s life. Muslims are urged to work hard to improve their lives and serve their society. Islam also calls for the cultivation of the land and making the best use of its sources. It does encourage work, and instructs Muslims to honestly and faithfully spare no efforts to improve their lives. The following Qur’anic citation proves this fact: “And when the prayer is ended, then disperse in the land and seek of Allah’s bounty, and remember Allah much, that ye may be successful” (Al-Jumu’ah 62:10).
Next week: Sheikh Satardien on whether ‘Western civilisation’ is at war with Islam
Sheikh Shaheed Satardien is chairman of the Supreme Muslim Council of Ireland, an umbrella group in its developmental stages
sheikhshaheed@gmail.com
