Do you still believe?

Glory to Allah Most High, full of Grace and Mercy; He created All, including Man. To Man he gave a special place in His creation. He honored man to be His agent, and to that end, endowed him with understanding. He purified his affections and gave him spiritual insight so that man should understand nature, understand himself and know Allah through his wondrous signs and glorify him in Truth, Reverence and Unity. Amen.

This essay has been written with the intention of bringing to mind a very important question that we as American Muslims need to ask. That question is: “Do we still believe?” My aim is not to offend or attack any believers, but to simply point out areas in our deen as American Muslims, where we are allowing Western values to seep into a perfect and clearly outlined way of life. May Allah open your hearts to this call for personal examination……..

Islam is probably the religion most ignored and misunderstood by people in different parts of the world. One of the reasons may be the inactivity of the Muslims in introducing Islam to other non-Muslim nations appropriately. Another reason is perhaps the psychological barrier between the West and the Muslim world created by a series of wars between two sides. A third reason may be the intentional attempts of some anti-Islamic thinkers, the media and clergy to distort Islam or to prevent Westerners from reaching the truth of the beauty of Islam.

However, the truth remains that Islam was, is and will be. Islam is now the religion of over 1 billion humans and it gains new followers every day. Islam gives the believer the peace of mind which disbelievers lack; because of the comprehensiveness and integrity that Islam has. In Islam, the right is clear and the wrong is clear and there are no compromises. Islam doesn’t include contradictions in its internal structure. Each order in Islam serves other orders in perfect harmony.

In contrast, in Western civilization, for example, everything goes against the other in a soil that may grow anything. Western civilization gave birth to nationalism and then began to fight it. Western civilization gave birth to atheism and then began to fight it. Western civilization gave birth to racial discrimination and began to fight it, or pretended to do so. How can a person have mental peace in a civilization that produces such contradictions, such a strange mixture of philosophies, policies, trends and –isms’s? And more importantly, how can we as American Muslims, hold fast to the rope of Allah in the midst of all these challenging contradictions?

Western civilization has no clear identity, as it is a melting pot of many ideologies, religions, normal things and not so normal things. Being as it is, Western civilization will never bring peace of mind to man, and furthermore, we as Muslims, need to be diligent in our lifelong striving of establishing the deen and allowing the “deen” of Western culture to pull us away from the true Reality. We in the Islamic world can evaluate Western civilization better than the people of the West themselves, because we are, insha’Allah, on the shore of this culture. Because we are not directly involved in this culture and because we have another way of life, we are in a prime position to evaluate and help positively influence the Western way of life. This brings me back to my original question, “Do we still believe?” When posed with this question, most of us will naturally answer yes. However as American Muslims, we are marginally more susceptible to compromising our way of life, as it does not entirely mess with the varying inconsistencies in the Western world.

All around the Muslim world, believers ask if Islam can thrive and function in American society. Day by day, it seems like the gap is widening, mostly due to a constant misinterpretation of Islam. We are, however, responsible for this misinformation in part. Islam, through the Holy Qur’an and Prophet Muhammad’s (s.a.w.) sayings and deeds, gave the Muslims guidance in all aspects of life and thus made Muslims more similar in their customs and acts of behavior. Islam doesn’t leave people at the mercy of inherited traditions which differ from one place to another and which may be right or wrong. Islam gives people a unified set of values that should replace their old customs and values.

Islam is more a way of life than a religion. The Western connotation of “religion” is something that is between the believer and God. Islam is a religion that organizes all the aspects of life on the scale of the individual and the nation, as well as with Allah and with your self. Thus Islam keeps the Muslim away from confusion, because it is logical and rational. Allah is One. Allah has no sons. Allah is not a trinity. Allah does not kill to save. There is no mediation between Allah and man. Islam organizes human nature, but doesn’t go against it. Islam is a complete code of human life.

So is Islam compatible with Western culture? Is the moral corruption and widespread acceptance of sin in the U.S. to far out of control? And most importantly, are our beliefs individually being slowly corroded by this cultures haphazard and directionless system of living? These are very key questions that we must all ask ourselves as Muslims upon the sirat-al-mustaqeem.

Brothers and Sisters, let us not be misled by the many allurements of this world but instead hold fast to the rope of Allah, firmly and patiently.

Reforming Pedigree Marriages in Islam - A. al-Ansari

Marriage advertisements of the “Hyderabad” variety are becoming increasingly unpopular among Muslims in search of pious spouses who are not of Arab or Indo-Pakistani descent. These types of marriages are often arranged by a guardian (wali) with an eye on the prospective mates lineage, socio-economic class, academic and professional associations – and European or “white” physical features. While supporters of pedigree marriages argue it’s permissibility under the principle of social equality (kufu’) in regard to marriage in Islamic law, the practice rebuffs the Qur’ans recommendation to Believers with a similar spiritual outlook in favor of sole material considerations.

Before I proceed, I wish to make clear my lack of qualification to issue legal rulings (fatawa) on marriage or any other matter of fiqh. I readily admit that I manifestly lack competence in the law and would likely err in proportion to the degree of my unfamiliarity with Islamic law. This paper is not a challenge to the established authority of the Sunni legal schools (maddhabs), which I hold in the highest regard. However, the purpose of this writing is to articulate a view of the Sharia that favors a gradual approach to social reform, especially where pedigree marriage is concerned. Pedigree marriages in Islam’s diverse religio-cultural context undermine the Sharia’s legal prerogatives’ to develop an impartial and balanced Muslim society.

Pedigree marriages defy Quranic imperative on marriage. In theory, pedigree marriages are prohibited in Islam. The women forced into such arrangements are supposed to have the right of refusal (Q 4:19). Thus, the Qur’an as the primary source of Islamic law and public policy supports the moral autonomy of the individual. One of the objectives (maqasid) of Sharia is the actualization of harmony between private and public interests. Forced marriages are human rights violations against women.

It can be argued that the Prophet (SAW) had an egalitarian social objective in his approach to marriage policy. There were cases where the Prophet (SAW) could have ordered marriage on his followers where social incompatibility was an issue, but he refrained owing to the fact that divine law is rooted in the Qur’an. For example, in an authentic hadith reported by Muslim, the Prophet advised Fatima bint Qais Qurashiyah to marry Usama, who was the son of a former slave. Accordingly, the scholars interpreted the Prophets role as mediator to mean that – though the Sharia makes allowances for social equality (kufu) in marriage – such considerations should not factor substantially in marriage contracts. Furthermore, because Fatima bint Qais Qurashiyah was asked to marry Usama, it meant that lineage or any of its collateral meanings enjoyed no special benefit in Islam.

Scholars affirm that on family law matters, there exists no need for speculative legal reasoning (ijtihad) due to the Prophet himself providing conclusive rulings on social issues when they arose. Therefore, Quranic rulings were initially rational and utilitarian.

Islam is not exclusive. Indeed only man or woman, of any race or socioeconomic class, upon accepting Islam, freely marry any Muslim man or woman provided it be from pious motives instead of prurience:

“Do not marry unbelieving women until they believe: A slave woman is better than an unbelieving woman. Even though she allure you Nor marry your girls to unbelievers until they believe. Even though he allure you……” [Q2:221]

Pedigree marriages contradict the Sunnah of the Prophet, who repeatedly warned his Companions of the dangers of tribalism and sectarianism. More importantly, Allah (subhana wa; ta’la) cautions against “those who split up their religion and become sects – each party rejoicing in that which is with itself.” [Q30:32]

The Prophet Muhammad (SAW) was a forward thinking cultural and political reformer who took steps toward implementing social policies designed to unify a growing Muslim community and social change to eliminate caste systems upheld on tribal or narrower grounds.

The supporters of pedigree marriages assert that such agreements make social life easy. They also argue that lack of due care in the construction of marriage contracts leads to higher divorce rates, social and economic disequilibrium and cultural extinction. Obviously, the ulema has not condemned pedigree marriages as objectively wrong and therefore, hold that it cannot be prohibited unless all Sunni legal schools (madhabs) agree that it is the case. However, Muslims, especially those in the West are warned of the need to take a moderate approach toward social and political realities in the United States and Europe while maintaining their religious identity.

The Habafi Maddhab reasons that the Qur’an [4:6] endows the adult female with full authority to manage her own financial affairs. This position extends by way of analogy (qiyas) to marriage. Abu Hanifa’s legal opinion was also distinguished by his emphasis on personal liberty and his reluctance to impose unwarranted restrictions on it. Hence, the Imam maintained that neither the community nor the government is entitled to interfere with the personal liberty of the individual as long as the individual has not violated the law. Surprisingly, Abu Hanifa advocated social equality in marriage and empowered the woman’s guardian (wali) to seek annulment of a marriage where a wide discrepancy in the socio-economic status of the spouse existed. Today, Muslims should be cognizant that ethnocentrism is very divisive, given the diverse nature of Muslim communities in the West. Although pedigree marriages promote ethnic and tribal cohesion and serve as an impediment to cultural assimilation into a pluralist society, the practice weakens Islam’s verity which maintains that “physical traits, cultural traditions, dress, food, customs and habits are subsidiary to their main doctrinal identity, that Allah created differences in people in order to facilitate recognition, that the true identity is determined by the manner in which a person or group of any race, color or physical type approaches the business of livening uses his faculties, selects and means for his worldly endeavors.”

“And those whom knowledge has been bestowed may learn that (the Qur’an) is the truth from thy Lord, and that they may believe therein, and their hearts may be made humbly open to it: for verily Allah is the Guide of those who believe to the straight way.” [Q22:54]

US Supreme Court Justice Louis Brandies opined “in a democracy every citizen has a right to teach the truth as grounded in the capacity to think, reason and believe.” As Americans, we must assert our right to convey the truth about Islam. As Muslims, we must believe that truth is contingent on accepting the words of the Qur’an as factual and unimpeachable. Most Americans know little about Islam and the Sharia. Unfortunately, many are led to believe the Sharia to be a repressive legal code based solely on 7^th century Arabian precepts which has not responded positively to world change. The truth about Sharia is that it responds positively to the prospect of legislation on logical and pragmatic grounds to accommodate social change. Pedigree marriages conform to some of the most notorious stereotypes about Islam and Muslims.

It is not the case that social dissimilarities between Muslim spouses portend marital discord, nor is it the case that racially or ethnically mixed Muslim spouses would affect certain death to any particular cultural or language group. Therefore, those obsess over finding an “Hyderabadi” counterpart are not in danger of extinction or object poverty for marrying Believers who do not originate on the Indo-Pakistani subcontinent or Europe. Sadly, such attitudes are manifest actions of colonialisms harmful legacy of ethnic nationalism.

Pedigree marriages foster division in Muslim communities (ummat) based on class, ethnicity and race. The extent of religio-cultural problems caused by these marriages is profoundly detrimental to the public interest (istislah) of Muslim American communities. There exists no racial, ethnic or linguistic prohibitions on marriage in any of the sevently legal verses in the Qur’an (ayat al ahkam) devoted to family law. Muslims should be aware that Islam, as a distinct religio-cultural entity encourages unity and can function as a positive agent for Muslim participation in American society. Modern Muslim activists are aware of the dilemma of increasing religious identity for Muslims because ethnicity itself is an un Islamic concept. Muslims should reform the practice pedigree marriages, so that considerations in the marriage contract yields to Shariat rules on matrimony instead of ethnic or racial motives. In fact, these marriages – as opposed to the practice of kufu’ – has been neither established nor authenticated by the Qur’an or Sunnah, nor is it derived from it.

Finally, Islam is meant to be the agent of utility and blessing for humankind. Muslims are thus reminded that “the Believers, men and women, are protectors, one of another: they enjoin what is just and forbid what is evil; they observe regular prayer, practice regular charity and obey Allah and His Messenger, on them will Allah pour his mercy: For Allah is Exalted in Power, Wise.” [Q9:71]