Muslims should take lead in public morals .
Mo
This is not what is needed. What is required is the clear,
unambiguous, some might say strict and uncompromising moral
code, exactly as it was revealed in the Quran and taught and
practised by the Holy Prophet of Islam.
It is true, for example, that Islam has set limits on the
parts of the body which both males and females can reveal.
The wisdom of this restriction can be seen nowadays in the
uncontrolled trend towards nudism in the West.
Neither can there be any doubt that Islam has not only
prohibited immodesty and adultery, it has prohibited even
coming close to such acts (Al-Quran, 6:151, 17:32). This
includes uncontrolled intermingling of the sexes, and
touching any part of the body of a member of the opposite
sex.
In His All-Knowing Wisdom, Almighty God has exhorted us to
block the path leading to immorality, in order to completely
eliminate acts of immorality themselves.
Yes, and whatever anyone might say, Islam frowns on any type
of pictorial reproduction of the human form. Not only can
this lead to icon-building and human idol-worship (as we saw
in the tragic case of Princess Diana). It can also lead to
pornography and other forms of demeanour of human dignity,
as we can see in almost every film and video which comes
from the West, and some of those being displayed in
movie-houses in Pakistan.
The wisdom of all the original teachings of Islam can be
seen clearer then ever now, as the West slides into sexual
anarchy and moral nihilism. Apart from Islam, there is no
other code existing in the world today which upholds the
moral standards which human nature holds dear, yet which are
fast disappearing from modern life. It is time that Muslims
made a choice. Are they going to continue their imitation
and emulation of the West? If so, there is no shortage of
stark and naked examples of where this will take them.
Or are the Muslims going to realise their responsibilities
as Bearers of the Book of God, the only Scripture still
existing in its original form, with its clear, detailed and
precise moral code, covering every walk and exigency of
life? If Muslims take this course, they will not only be
fulfilling their responsibility as Muslims.
They will also be doing their fellow citizens of the world a
huge favour.
J.M. Butt is an English Muslim, living and working in
Pakistan, who travels widely in the Muslim world
<Picture>
Baring of western civilisation
J.M. Butt
One of Mahatma Gandhi's more memorable quotations came when
he was asked what he thought about western civilisation: "I
think it would be a good idea", came his spontaneous reply.
I was reminded of this quotation listening to BBC World
Service one day last week. The morning and evening news
bulletins contained two interesting items. In the morning,
we were told about a photographer in New York who had hit on
the idea of taking 150 people out to Time Square, and
getting them to pose. Nothing new about that, you might say.
But this photographer had hit on a novel idea: he got his
subjects to pose in the nude.
In the evening, we were told about a similar trend in South
Africa. A tour operator had decided to offer potential
customers a new __ or should I say nude __ package: Safaris
with nothing on (not only the animals, the human onlookers
as well).
It is interesting to consider this trend towards increased
nudity in the light of an art exhibition which has been
going on at London's Tate Gallery for the last few months.
The exhibition has been of the works of the French
Impressionist artist Claude Monet. It has been received with
huge acclaim. What has caused some concern among critics is
the fact that Monet is not a living artist: he died in
1926.
Does this recourse __ at the end of 20th century __ to art
from the beginning of the century, mean that western art has
nothing new to offer? We might well offer an answer to this
rhetorical question. Western civilisation is indeed bereft
of new ideas: it does however have plenty of nude ideas.
But there is a limit to the number of clothes one can take
off. In the trend towards increased baring of the body,
western civilisation is destined to meet a dead end. What
then?
Some thirty years ago, a French person explained to me the
different methods of the various colonial powers. "The
English come with law, the French with culture and the
Americans with guns," the person explained. She might have
added, in the context of the present age: "The
neo-colonialists come with nudity". There is little else
that the much-vaunted western civilisation has to offer the
world nowadays.
One reason that the West has been entered such an alarming
downward moral spiral is that the custodian of public
morality in the West __ the Christian Church __ instead of
taking a stand on moral issues, has chosen to follow the
mood of the day. We thus see the Church of England, at their
recent synod, seriously debating questions such as the
approval of homosexual marriages and the appointment of
homosexual priests.
It is not surprising that Christianity should follow the
lead of the people in regard to moral questions. The very
doctrines of the modern Christian church have been fashioned
in accordance with popular demand. Salvation on the basis of
actions, as taught by Jesus and other Prophets, was
considered a hard and uncompromising path to follow, so the
"doctrine of atonement" was fashioned, whereby Jesus died on
the Cross to save mankind.
Similarly, it was difficult to fathom a God whom people
could not see, so the idea of God in the form of man (the
Son of God) was invented by the Christians. And so on.
Clearly, a religion which is so flexible to public demand in
the realm of beliefs, will also sway before public demand in
the realm of morality. That is what we see happening today.
Having been unable to hold firm to the teachings of Prophet
Jesus (on whom be peace) on questions of belief, the
Christian Church is now relenting before popular opinion on
questions of morality.
The need in the West, and indeed around the world, is for a
religion which stands firm to the teachings of its founder.
A religion which holds its divinely-revealed scripture, and
the teachings of its Prophet, as inviolable, sacrosanct and
unchangeable. A religion which is preserved in its original
form, exactly as it was revealed by God and practised by its
progenitor.
There is only one such religion, and that is Islam.
All around the world, people are looking for a moral code, a
spiritual point of reference. In countries which have been
subjected to western colonialism over the last two hundred
years, all the West has to offer now is increased
licentiousness and promiscuity. This prescription may give
some temporary sensual gratification, but it does not offer
lasting spiritual fulfilment.
Former communist countries are also bewildered as to which
way to turn. Bereft of Marxist philosophy, which held itself
up as a panacea for all ills, people in these countries are
clawing for something to hold onto: cultism, crime,
increasingly bizarre forms of outlandish behaviour __ all
these things hold people's fancy for a while, then again
there is nothing to fall back on.
At this time, when people around the world are crying out
for a clear moral order, Muslims should be ushering their
fellow world-citizens to Islam. It is sad indeed that very
few are doing this. Instead, most are engaged in political
and nationalistic rivalries with other communities. Others
are following the West in its self-destructive moral
turmoil. Some, while doing lip-service to Islam, are
presenting a watered down form of the religion of the Holy
Prophet, which they consider to be suitably tailored to the
desires and demands of the modern age.
Mo
with child marriage , slave concubines , multiple wives ,
temporary half hour Muta 'marriages' , easy divorce and no
maintainence..
Sabir Sultan
SS
On Wed, 12 May 1999 12:10:09 GMT, 10033...@compuserve.com (Mo)
wrote: