JIL English Edition

I am a reform-minded Muslim. Therefore, I acknowledge that the Quran does contain violent passages. Just like Christians and Jews have done with their respective scriptures, we need to reinterpret these passages to take them out of the 7th century - and into the pluralistic 21st century in which we are living.

To have a different interpretation about certain doctrines in Islam cannot be seen as blasphemy. The orthodox mullahs or ulama who see themselves as the guardian of “truth” always think that their interpretation embodies the truth of Islam itself. They deliberately efface the line demarcating between “religion” and “the discourse on religion”, between din and al-khithab al-dini, as Egpytian thinker Nasr Hamid Abu Zayd once aptly put. 

In the midst of this miserable condition, determination to achieve Islamic independence in the intellectual, social, political and economical field has blown the wave of reformation in the Muslim world. However, the independence must not be understood as reclusion and rejection upon other civilizations. Islamic reformation is the result of incessant dialectic interaction between the Islamic normative doctrines and the surrounding contemporary symptoms.

Muslims seemed to reduce their religious comprehension, and started to emphasize more on ritual piety rather than social piety. Muslims have been drowned in the calculation of individual reward and sin, and have not been aware upon social problems such as poverty, corruption, flood and unemployment that directly affected people’s benefit ( maslahat).

Both Muslims and concerned Western intellectuals should start to de-sacralize the role of texts in the debate, so that we can arrive at a truly constructive dialogue. It is about time that we recognize and encourage different colors in religion. This also requires a less forced attitude towards religion in public spaces.

Islam claimed and is proud to be religion without priesthood system. In fact, the Muslim leaders used to have similar pretension, they claim of having the right to publish the list of do’s and don’ts for Muslims, based on the authority of holy books and prophet teachings.

It is important to note that the shining Islamic civilization in the past did not stand alone. It was the result of dynamic interaction with other civilizations such as Greek, Egypt, Persia, and India. Muslim scientists used to hold dialog with and learn from other civilizations. The image of open minded, tolerant and pluralist dominated the character of Muslim scientists in that time.

This case indicates that whenever religion did not appear in peaceful form and respect humanity, its adherent will move away. When it is being rigid and nonnegotiable with the context, it will lose its prophetic mission. When religious institution becomes dominant, the politic of identity and power relation will take over.

My civilization as an Arab-Muslim laid not on the obligatory of wearing headscarf, furthermore niqab and burqa. I had left shallow perception about standard of civilization based on artificial matters. I dream about civilization that preserves morality.

Some viewed that woman is creature who arouse man’s desire and libido therefore she should stay indoor. Her voice is aurat, her body opens the way to discord ( fitna), her mind is deficient, and her faith is incomplete. Therefore, she has no freedom to do anything or to determine her choice.