Re: Defining the Islamic State

I won't go into a long discussion of Islam. I can find much to criticize in
all fundamentalist religions, and in fact, in aspects of "mainstream"
religion as well. However, I am a member of the WSN list, and as such, I
feel a responsibility to dissociate myself from the comments of "Charles J.
Reid" reprinted below.  I am astounded that such shallow, narrow-minded,
stereotyping appears on a list such as this and would not want anyone who
reads it to assume that it represents any kind of sizeable percentage of the
WSN list.

Respectfully,

Alan Spector


P.S. Has Mr. Reid paid much attention to the protection of child molesting
priests by the Catholic Church or the late night Protestant Christian
"Healers" on late night television, or the preaching of extreme Zionists.
The one sided stereotyping of "Islam" in general is appalling.

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----- Original Message -----
From: "Charles J. Reid" <cjreid@sonic.net>
To: "Seyed Javad" <seyedjavad@hotmail.com>
Cc: <wsn@csf.colorado.edu>
Sent: Thursday, March 07, 2002 1:27 PM
Subject: Re: Defining the Islamic State


> My response to this piece is simply this: Modern Islam is dominated by
> forces who lack rationality and the "scientific method". The state of
> Islam today is about where the Catholic Church was at the time of Giordano
> Bruno and Galileo. There is no theological leadership to move the Islamic
> community from this absolutist, ideocratic state. What is needed IS a
> change of state. As long as madrasses where "the West is the enemy and if
> you die killing you live'll forever with 70 virgins" is taught, instead of
> reading, mathematics, and science, Islam will continue to be a primitive
> community -- by and large -- and a point may be reached that the ony
> alternative other cultures have is "contain it" like we did the Soviet
> Union, so it will implode on the basis of its own irrationalities.
>
> //CJR
>
> On Sun, 3 Mar 2002, Seyed Javad wrote:
>
> >
> >
> > In this article, one of the Contemporary Muslim thinkers define what an
> > Islamic State is:
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> > seyedjavad
> > From: "Muzaffar Iqbal"
> > To: "Muzaffar Iqbal"
> > Subject: quantum note for friday march 1
> > Date: Sat, 2 Mar 2002 20:06:16 -0700
> > Friday March 01, 2002-- Zilhaj 16,1422 A.H.
> > Defining the Islamic State
> > Dr Muzaffar Iqbal
> > The writer is a freelance columnist
> > How would a contemporary Islamic state differ from non-Islamic states?
> > Who
> > would rule this state and how? What would it be like to live in such a
> > state? What would such a state do with the enormous gap between the
> > economic, scientific and technological status of Muslims and
non-Muslims?
> > These are some of the questions that need clear answers before any such
> > state can come into existence. These are also the questions which should
> > have been answered by Pakistan's Islamic parties in this election year,
> > if
> > they are serious.
> > Muslims believe that the Qur'an and Sunnah are two living sources that
> > are
> > as relevant today as they were fourteen hundred years ago when they were
> > first revealed. They also believe that these twin sources contain all
the
> > guiding principles that are needed by them now. At least this is the
> > position of the normative Islamic tradition and it is held by all
Muslims
> > who have their spiritual and intellectual roots in the Islamic
tradition.
> > The real question, then, is how to translate the guiding principles
found
> > in
> > these two sources into a practical model that will work in our times.
> > This
> > is the task and challenge that Muslims have been actively pursuing for
> > more
> > than a century, after waking up from their slumber, they found
themselves
> > colonized and realized that something has to be done. The most immediate
> > challenge was to get rid of the colonizing powers. But in the very
> > struggle
> > for independence, there was something fundamentally wrong: no where in
> > the
> > Muslim world did people realize that this struggle for independence has
> > to
> > be based on Islam and not on nationalism.
> > This wrong footing was exactly what the French and the British
colonizers
> > had hoped for. They had actively sought to create an intellectual
> > northern
> > alliance, which would call for a western-style government and demand
> > independence on the model of Britain and France. And when the native
> > resources had been drenched and the cost of maintaining direct control
on
> > the colonies was becoming more than what they were willing to pay, the
> > colonizers departed leaving behind the firm grip of an administrative,
> > educational and ruling structure so that it could be governed through
> > remote
> > control.
> > Thus, Muslims in their own traditional lands were randomly divided into
> > contemporary states, each governed by a system which ensured their
> > continuous enslavement. For centuries, these people had lived in mutual
> > reliance, though not always in harmony. Between Hijaz and the great
> > steppes
> > of Central Asia, there was a vast territory that was and still remains
> > the
> > home of Muslims. But then it was linked together through a chain of
great
> > cities which were also centers of learning. And while certain rulers at
> > certain times brought huge armies against other Muslim rulers, the Hajj
> > and
> > trade caravans traversed the Silk Route and continued to serve as the
> > most
> > important vehicle for the flow of ideas and goods.
> > All of this was shattered with the occupation of Muslim lands by
> > Europeans.
> > And none of this was restored after their departure. This is a
> > fundamental
> > point that needs to be understood in no uncertain terms. The nation
> > states
> > that have emerged in the post World War II era are inherently incapable
> > of
> > independent existence; this is also an economic impossibility. Thus no
> > amount of reform would make it possible for these countries to be
> > self-sufficient and truly independent states with enough human and
> > material
> > resources to be free of IMF bondage. One cannot make a circle out of a
> > square, no matter how one bangs it around.
> > Given these fact, what is the route to real independence and an
honorable
> > existence? How can Muslims regain control of their destinies? How can
> > they
> > live a life that is not defined and dictated by the new Great Axis of
> > Evil:
> > the United States of America, Britain and Israel? This is the question
on
> > which all Muslim intellectuals and thinkers need to focus. The
> > post-September 11 events had hijacked all efforts from this most
> > important
> > task faced by Muslims; it is time to return to it.
> > Those who think that they can achieve this by forming some kind of
> > underground network that kidnaps reporters and kills them are clearly
> > working against this cause. Likewise, those who wish to take up arms
> > against
> > their own rulers, create nothing but chaos. Similarly, those who are
busy
> > in
> > propagating a made in America version of Islam are also playing with
> > fire.
> > Islam, let us reiterate, is not merely a private affair that takes up
> > public
> > face on Fridays; Islam is a living tradition, defined by an
> > all-encompassing
> > code. Indeed, Allah has called Himself, al-Muheet, the all encompassing.
> > So, the task before Muslims is really clear. They need to devise a
> > practical
> > strategy to regain control of their destiny as a community of believers.
> > The
> > defining factor for their existence is neither sectarian, nor tribal or
> > national identity, but an identity based on the Qur'an. This is the
> > unambiguous position of the Qur'an itself. It declares in no uncertain
> > terms
> > that Allah has made different communities and the best of communities is
> > the
> > one which holds on to the rope of Allah. This is the community of
> > believers:
> > "You are the best community that has been sent forth to mankind [in
that]
> > you enjoin right and forbid wrong and have faith in Allah" (Q. 3:110).
> > In this task of regaining freedom, the very first thing to be understood
> > is
> > that Islam cannot be imposed by somehow gaining hold of the government
> > and
> > bringing out bands of militia. This is not the way of Islam. The
struggle
> > of
> > so-called Islamic political parties to win elections and form
governments
> > to
> > implement Islam is doomed. And so are those who demand imposition of
> > Islam
> > by state decrees. True, there are some injections of Islamic Law (the
> > Shariah) that require state legislation. But most of Islam does not
> > require
> > state laws for its implementation.
> > An Islamic state emerges; it is not established. An Islamic state comes
> > into
> > existence through the most natural of ways, it is not a state that is
> > established by decrees. An Islamic state is the end result of a long
> > process
> > of education, cultivation of Islamic ethos in private as well as public
> > life. An Islamic state is like a beautiful tree that comes into
existence
> > because someone once planted a seed. An Islamic state is defined by the
> > character of its inhabitants, not by the writ of law.
> > The character of the inhabitants of an Islamic state is the defining
> > factor
> > for the Islamic state. Given the current conditions of the Muslim world,
> > the
> > greatest missing element in the emergence of an Islamic state is none
> > other
> > than this defining factor. And this is what requires the greatest
> > attention
> > of all those who wish to establish an Islamic state.
> > In the simplest of terms, an Islamic state is a state in which the prime
> > goal of the inhabitants of the land is to be a model of the Qur'anic
> > teachings. These are the people with whom Allah is pleased and who are
> > pleased with Allah, as the Qur'an tells us. This is the only route to an
> > Islamic state. Its most important constituent is none other than the
men,
> > women and children who live in it.
> > Thus, any organization, political or non-political, which wants to
> > contribute toward the emergence of an Islamic state, need to concentrate
> > on
> > its most important building block: individual human beings. But how?
What
> > are the ways to do so? The answer must be sought in another question:
How
> > did the Prophet of Islam do it? And that is the topic for the next
> > column.
> > ----------------------------------------------
> > Center for Islam and Science
> > www.cis-ca.org
> > ------------------------------
> >
> >
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