Islam is a Secular Religion
30 November 2016
By Saeed Qureshi
Islam basically, is a secular religion which means it allows freedom to other
religions under its canopy. Secularism is neither atheism nor socialism. It is
a concept that stands for freedom to all the religions and denominations to
practice their faith and traditions. The society and the Islamic government in
Spain were secular as Christians, Jews and Muslims were treated as equal
citizens. They were free to pursue their religious obligations without any let
or hindrance from the state or the society.
There exists indisputable convergence between Islam and secularism on such
splendid values as fundamental rights, equality, Social justice, freedom of
expression and tolerance. Secularism and Islam both support capitalism.
Secularism is defined as the political concept of bourgeois democracies. It is
primarily not an economic concept. Secularism has no objection if the
factories, land and banks etc are owned by a few individuals or by the state.
Two episodes from the life of the second caliph of Islam Hazrat Umar amply
illustrate the close interconnection between Islam and secularism in matters
relating to the freedom of expression. One was the explanation of caliph to
the objection of a Muslim about the longer size of his apparel than given to
others from the war booty.
The second is about the esteem for other religions shown by Caliph Umar when
during his visit to Jerusalem (637 A. D.). He declined to pray inside the
Christians' church, on the grounds that his action might not become a
tradition. Such was the level of tolerance or reverence for other faiths by
the founding torch bearers of nascent Islam.
The entire West and both North and South America and the Far East are
essentially secular as in these societies, there is no ban nor any restriction
over other religions to survive and adhere to their faith. Even Islamic
countries like Jordan, Malaysia, Indonesia, Egypt, Syria, Iraq, United Arab
Emirates, Algeria, Turkey, Lebanon (50 % Muslims), Kuwait, Tunis, and Morocco
are treading on the path of secularism.
The religious minorities in these countries are not coerced or harassed to
follow their religious rituals and customs under certain conditions. The
understandable conditions, equally applicable to even Islam and other minority
religions are respect for law and not to smear or deride other religions.
To interpret secularism with a godless culture, faithlessness or atheism is
simple ignorance or gross misconception about the creed of secularism. If
Christians and Jews worshipped and practiced their religious obligations with
complete freedom during the time of Hazrat Muhammad (pbuh) and four caliphs,
what other name can be given to this laudable liberalism and tolerance towards
other religions than secularism.
From the conquests by Islam to the time of Renaissance (14th century onward),
the Muslim states were monarchies, hereditary successions, family dynasties,
or with a strong man at the helm. The distinct concept of a nation state with
attending halls marks of democracy, equality and freedom had not developed or
evolved till the French Revolution (1789-1799). Thereafter, while the western
world turned into nation states, the Islamic world continued to hold on to the
theocracies with the same paradigm of suzerainty by monarchs, kings and
dictators.
Even in theocratic Muslim empires such as Omayyad's, Abbasids, the Ottomans;
the non Muslim populations were seldom forced to abandon their faith and
become Muslims. During the Mughal Muslim rulers period (1526- 1857) in the
undivided India, we have no evidence that religious minorities were forcibly
converted to Islam, constrained to go to their temples or inhibited from
observing their religious chores or festivities.
The resurgence of the Wahhabis, a fanatic band of Islam, during the middle of
the 19th century, was not supported by the Muslim majority in India. As a
result it was brutally crushed both by the British and the Sikhs. That
demonstrates that Muslims were not extremists even during their hay days. The
isolated attempts to impose or enforce orthodoxy have never succeeded because
of the secular outlook of other Muslims.
During the last days of the Ottoman orthodox caliphate, the caliph Abdul Hamid
the second, with the help of Britain tried to crush the liberals, the
seculars, the nationalists with most inhuman, brutal machinations but failed.
He used the ploy of saving the caliphate by declaring the opponents such as
Kamal Ataturk as heathens and apostates. After the defeat of Germany in Second
World War, Turkey being the ally of Germans was penalized by occupation of its
lands by Greek and the British forces.
While the caliph ordered the Turkish armies to surrender before the foreign
invaders, the chief religious authority called Sheikh-ul-Islam issued
religious decree to kill seven persons including Kamal Ataturk who were
fighting against the Greeks, Britain, with a an assurance to the killers of an
abode in paradise. But no one paid heed to his hypocritical calls. Finally the
religious sovereign fled Turkey on board the British ship with his hollow
fervor for the religion Islam.
For the last several decades, Turkey is a secular liberal country. But it is
also one of the most trenchant Islamic states where Islam has been flourishing
ever. It is the model of secular Islam that ordains liberalism, tolerance,
humanism, equality and fundamental rights. Religious freedom with Islam as the
supreme religion of the country can be witnessed in Turkey. The Turkish
religio-political dynasties came to an end with the rise of modern Turkey and
the abolishment of the sultanate and caliphate on March 3, 1924.
The military coup d'état of July 15 this year against the incumbent government
of president Erdogan was effectively put down. The exiled Islamic cleric and
Erdogan's former ally Fethullah Gulen, was accused of calling for the
dismantling of the secular Turkish state in favor of an Islamic Republic.
One can also see a prototype of the same egalitarianism and openness with the
Islamic genre in Malaysia and Indonesia. These are progressive, secular
Islamic states firmly founded on Islam's temporal and ecclesiastical codes.
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