Islamic Community
Critic:-
You said: 'The individual is affected by the community and the community by the individual. Spiritual development is facilitated by mutual help and reinforcement and by the condition of the Society and the rest of mankind, and indeed, the whole environment'.
I agree that this is the ideal arrangement and probably works well in Christian monasteries, but the history of mankind, Muslim or otherwise, suggests that within and between societies, in practice, it does not work. There are the difficulties of deciding whose interpretation of the Quran is used, who is worthy of leading that Muslim society, is there coercion or freedom of interpretation and the relationship with 'outsiders'.
Comment:-
We are concerned here with Islam and the Sphere of Islam and not the rest of mankind, the Sphere of Conflict, except in so far that the whole of mankind should eventually become Muslim, that is Surrender to Allah, and enter the Sphere of Unity. Please do not misunderstand this in a naive way - I am NOT speaking about the name or any formal idea, set of dogmas, rituals, institutions, culture or people, but about the reality - real surrender to Reality and Truth).
Islam requires:-
"Hold fast, all together, to the cable of Allah, and do not separate (divide or part in sects); but remember the favours of Allah towards you, when you were enemies and He made friendship between your heart, and on the morrow you became brothers, by His grace. You were on the edge of an abyss of fire, but He rescued you there from. Thus does Allah show to you His revelations; perchance you may be guided; and that there may spring from you a nation who invite to goodness, and bid right conduct, and forbid what is wrong (or indecent); these are the successful." Quran 3:103-104
"Then set your purpose for religion as a man upright by nature - the nature made by Allah in which He has made men; there is no altering (the laws of) Allah's creation; that is the right religion, but most people do not know - turning to Him only, and be careful of your duty to Him and keep up prayer and be not of those who ascribe partners to Him (polytheists), of those who split their religion and became schismatic, every sect rejoicing in its own tenets." Quran 30:30-32
And
"O you who believe! Obey Allah, and obey the Messenger and those in authority amongst you; and if you dispute (quarrel or argue) about anything, refer it to Allah and the Messenger, if you (in truth) believe in Allah and the Last Day; that is better and fairer in the end." Quran 4:59
As mentioned several times, Muslims (those who surrender to Allah, and therefore to Truth) do not go by subjective opinion but try to discover the objective truth. The striving for Truth leads them on the Straight Way. Different people are in different positions on this path. Those who are more advanced help and guide those who are less advanced and those who are less advanced look for the guidance of those who are more advanced. This forms the Cable of Allah.
When people accepts Islam consciously, knowing and understanding it, then they follow these instructions.
Islam does not have Monasteries (Monkery is forbidden), but it does have communities of people who have a knowledgeable and developed leader, the third authority mentioned above. This leadership also forms communities that have a higher leaders. Unfortunately, these communities tend to be small and few in number owing to various economic, cultural and political factors. But the signs are that they are increasing in size and number.
There are also communities led by relatively ignorant and spiritually undeveloped leaders and it is ignorant followers who flock to them. The cure for this is better education. The signs are that this is now happening.
Critic:-
Do you advocate a closed society of Muslims with minimum outside contact or exporting Islam by whatever means so that there is a world wide society? My own view is that relationship with Allah is of an individual nature and it is the individual who is judged in the end rather than a society. It could well be that by incorrect indoctrination, that individual will become Gahanna bound just through abandoning personal responsibility to some other person.
Comment:-
I advocate the Islamic system as described above.
As for individuals, we are not taught self-centeredness by any religion, certainly not by Islam. Individuals are like cells in the body of Humanity and have a function and responsibility with respect to each other and are formed through mutual and collective social and cultural influences.
"O mankind! Be careful of your duty to your Lord, who created you from one soul, and created there from its mate, and scattered from the twain a multitude of men and women. Be careful of your duty towards Allah, in whose name you claim rights of one another, and the wombs that bore you; verily, Allah is Watcher over you." 4:1
Whereas the relationship with Allah is certainly an inner and, therefore, personal matter and depends on personal efforts, it is impossible that any person can develop spiritually by himself - either he is directly chosen by Allah as are the Prophets and Messengers or else he must follow the guidance of the Messengers, Scriptures and those who are already higher up the ladder, and they must be able to overcome the strong worldly temptations surrounding them by reinforcement from a community of like minded people and a suitable culture.
Individuals are prone to personal subjective opinions and prejudices and these trap them. In order to make advances along a way you need a map and not one that you have yourself invented. An individual can, of course, by trial and error, advance his knowledge and skills etc. But it is only by the accumulated experience of millions of people over many thousands of years that any significant progress takes place. All nations now have educational systems in which the accumulated knowledge and expertise is conserved and transmitted and on which further advances are built.
Critic:-
I would be interested to know what practical steps are needed, given the current world situation and how you see the process towards the rest of mankind (6 billion and rising) unfolding. As I've said before I don't have your optimism but would be happy to be proved wrong.
Comment:-
The steps that are needed are correct knowledge, correct understanding and correct education. This requires appropriate and wise leadership.
The lack of optimism, it seems to me, is based on lack of faith. It implies the opinion that Allah's creation is not good and that Allah does not have the power to fulfill His plan.
I do have optimism based on the following:-
(1) That Islam still has the answer.
(2) That Islam will spread - (again, I use the word in its real meaning, not for a set of dogmas or people or culture)
(3) That we have been promised that there will be a new world.
(4) That progress does take place, truth and goodness do triumph.
(5) That Allah has all power and His plan cannot be flouted.
(6) Whatever His plans are they are good by definition.
Critic:-
You said: As for individuals, we are not taught self-centredness by any religion, certainly not by Islam.
I think you misunderstand me here, I was not meaning to imply 'self' centredness as an individual approach, but Allah centred. It is quite possible for an individual to become self sacrificing and self denying for the benefit of all without belonging to any religion. I can see the advantages you mention but it seems that there are so many varieties of social and cultural influences each claiming pre-eminence. I can see benefits of being part of a community but not of a collective.
Comment:-
No I did not misunderstand. But some clarification is probably in order.
When I said "self-centred" I did mean individualism in the sense of not belonging to a Community.
We go by the guidance that God sends us through the Prophets. We have a duty towards others and the world we live in and not just to ourselves. You may recall that Jesus is also reported to have said:-
"That they all may be one; as thou, Father, art in me, and I in thee, that they also may be one in us: that the world may believe that thou hast sent me." John 17:21
You may also know that Christians were given the task to teach the gospel to all nations. Matthew 28:19, Mark 16:15-16, Luke 24:47.
In contrast, the task given to Muslims was not a missionary one, but to surrender to Allah, establish religious freedom (2:256, 5:48, 22:34,67 and oppose oppression. 2:190-193. Note also that the authority of the descendants of Judah (which includes Jesus) comes to an end with the coming of Shiloh or Islam Genesis 49:10, John 16:12-14.
Whereas it is possible for an individual on his own to study the scriptures and practice the discipline, he needs to be very strong minded. It is easier when he has support, encouragement and reinforcement from like minded people, and individuals in communities can achieve much more than individuals alone.
But, of course, it is also true that communities can also exert negative pressure and mislead. It is, therefore, necessary, to choose one's community and friends carefully.
Islam can be regarded as a balance between individualism and communalism. It is, for instance, a method of creating a direct link between the individual and God without mediation of a Saviour as is the case of Christianity - i.e. not through Jesus or a Messenger. Muslims have personal responsibility for their own salvation and are their own priests and we are told:-
"O you who believe! You have charge of (or guardianship of) your own souls; he who errs can do you no hurt if you are rightly guided. Unto Allah will you all return, and He will declare to you the truth of that which you did." 5:105
"Say: O mankind! There has come to you the Truth from your Lord, and he who is guided by it, his guidance is only for his own soul; and he who errs, errs only against it; and I am not a warder over you." 10:109
"Say: I exhort you only to one thing that you awake for Allah's sake in twos or singly, then ponder: there is no madness in your companion; he is only a Warner to you before a severe doom." 34:46
It is also necessary to point out that Islam, as described in the Quran, should not create a community that is described in formal, territorial, racial, cultural, institutional or sectarian terms but refers to all those who have the intention and make the effort to Surrender to Allah, or are in that state to various degrees. It does not, therefore, differentiate between various religions in the narrow sense - all those who followed the genuine Messengers sent by God to all people in all times were Muslims. Hence Quran 2:256, 5:48, 22:34, 67. In this sense, Islam is pluralistic and forms a federation rather than a uniformity or totalitarianism. Here unity is combined with diversity as is the case in the real world. Until recently, all religions co-existed peacefully under Islamic rule.
"Verily, this your religion (or brotherhood) is a single religion (brotherhood); and I am your Lord, so serve Me. But they cut up their affairs (into fragments) amongst themselves, yet they all shall return unto Us; and he who acts right and he who is a believer (or has faith), there is no denial of his efforts, for, verily, We record it for him." 21:92-94
"And, verily, this your religion (or brotherhood) is one religion, and I am your Lord; so keep your duty unto Me. But they (mankind) have broken their religion (or affair) between them into sects, each sect rejoicing in its own tenets." 23:52-53
"Verily, those who disbelieve in Allah and His Messengers and desire to make a distinction between Allah and His messengers, and say: We believe in some and disbelieve in others, and desire to take a midway course between the two, these are the disbelievers, and We have prepared for disbelievers shameful woe!" 4:150-151
See also 2:136, 285, 3:84
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