Excerpts from addresses by Imam Zaid Shakir and Shaykh Hamza Yusuf
These eminent and well beloved speakers spoke more than once during the conference. Key foci of their talks were the economy, and law and order in a just society. Often enwrapped in the force of their arguments I would forget to take notes. Here is an amalgamation from what I do have MashaAllah.
Imam Zaid Shakir Positive Law and the Quest for a Just Society (title from my interpretation)
In a critique of the debate of positive law versus natural law the Imam called upon the Muslim community to participate in the judicial and societal codification processes of the western societies they live in.
For those of us not so familiar with the terms, positive law is a term used generally to define laws enacted/codified by use of logic and reason (e.g. some parts of the constitution of the USA) and natural law is a term used to mean the inherent sense of justice and injustice we possess. Proponents of both camps have debated to a great extent the positive and negative of both views. Aristotle has been supposed the father of natural law, while Socrates and Plato are also considered strong proponents of it. In Islamic law, the concept of ‘Istislah’ bears some similarity to the concept of natural law as understood in the west. Al-Ghazali tied the definition of what is ‘naturally good’ to legal precepts in the Qur’an and Sunnah. Ibn Rushd (better known as Averroes) on a commentary on Plato’s Republic also tied natural law to tenets in the Islamic sharia, and his writings later influenced Thomas Aquinas who is considered to have brought natural law to the modern (i.e. post medieval) fold.
He began highlighting the example of the current economic crisis brought about by the western economic principle of building on credit. Saying that if you think about it, western economies are really all a pyramid scheme the Imam asked that we revisit our scholars and find solutions based on morality and ethics for the current problems we face. He quoted the famous words of Edmund Burke who said;
“The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men and women to do nothing”
It is not without reason, the Imam stated, that Allah subahan wa ta’ala is bringing Muslims in multitudes to the west at this critical juncture of world social history. He reiterated that we as a community have a rich history of academia, intellectualism, and the ability to provide sophisticated answers to deep social problems, and that we must stop doing nothing, and begin to contribute to solving problems plaguing western economies and social justice systems.
He expounded on the existing critique of positive law as being divorced from morality. And he made the strong statement that ‘as Muslims, we have the authority to say that positive law can be wedded to a higher morality’. This is the unique gift Islam has to give to social systems, the ability to integrate profound spiritual truths with day-to-day social laws necessary to maintain a just moral society.
He gave two examples.
One the Quranic ayah known to many of us, but mostly in a simple way;
“Men are the protectors and maintainers of women…” [Sûrah al-Nisâ’: 34].
The statement that men are to protect and maintain women also encompasses the meanings that men must act to protect women’s rights in society as a whole. Pornography, prostitution, and human trafficking are massive industries in the modern world that directly or indirectly denigrate the status of thousands of women and girls. Ponder deeply in to the Quranic call for men to protect women and understand that this entails a larger social responsibility and moral context than we often think.
The other example he gave is of the Muslim gold standard in economic dealings. Both in the Quran and in the Sunnah the explicit call to use a gold standard is made. I will elaborate on this aspect later on under the report on Shaykh Hamza’s talk as he spoke at length on this topic.
Imam Zaid Shakir inspired hope by reminding us of that noted chapter in world history where the Mongols ravaged and brought to its knees the Muslim empire in the 13th Century AD. We all know, that within about 200 years of the Mongol victories, those very marauding forces who had desecrated Muslim monuments and massacred the Muslim people almost all became Muslim themselves. Alhamdulillah this is the strength of Islam and of those who practise Islam.
“Our strength is knowledge and moral strength” “No society can endure if it’s morally and intellectually bankrupt”
Islam will endure. These words bring to mind another great talk by Dr. Tariq Suwaidan, the published professor of management and leadership, who gave three excellent lectures on how to be a good leader. In one of those lectures, he thundered ‘Do you doubt, O Muslims?.. Islam will prevail. Do you doubt?!”
Shaykh Hamza Yusuf Sunnah or Mammon – Prosperity or Bankruptcy?
The published abstract; ‘Mammon? In New Testament terms it represents the false god of riches and avarice. It represents the accumulation of wealth as an object of worship and of its greedy pursuit. When wealth becomes an evil tat is Mammon. Who worships Mammon? The greedy who make their wealth a deity. Regarding those who persist in accumulating wealth by engaging in a system of Riba, Allah says their gain will be blithed, destroyed, obliterated. In other words, whatever they earn will vanish. If you are concerned, as you should be, about the current global financial crisis, this talk will shine the tremendous light of Prophetic wisdom on Mammon’
This talk definitely did shine the tremendous light of Prophetic wisdom on the machinations of modern economics and the economics of justice. I was enthralled through most of it and regret that my notes are few. However, the gist of this talk was expounding the necessity for economic justice in a society.
Economic justice is a God given right, that no government should deviate from when setting and implementing fiscal policy. The Qur’an is very clear in it’s principle of the forbiddance to create something out of nothing. Therefore modern complicated monetary instruments such as hedge funds etc are not allowable in an Islamic system. The gold standard, which is based on real assets, is the only standard acceptable as a just economic system. Shaykh Hamza quoted from the noted economist Alan Greenspan who in the 1960s said that the ‘gold standard is incompatible with chronic deficit spending’. Therefore the current credit crisis propagated and grown by the economics of a system based on the buying and selling of credit is would not have occurred if modern economic super powers had stuck to the gold standard.
Shaykh Hamza asked us all to read Naomi Klein’s book, ‘The shock doctrine’, in which this highly respected journalist outlines the creation of modern economic imperialism through the establishment of global commercial behemoths.
In the absence of the gold standard, there is no protection for the common man. People are not able to protect their savings from inflation and therefore are almost forced in to capitulation in to the credit system. This is economic injustice which is impermissible in an Islamic social system.
The economics practised by the Prophet sallaalu alaihi wa sallam, who was head of state to a very large empire at one time, and the Quran injunctions on economic practise are there for us to take as guidance. It is imperative we study these diligently. At one time our scholars had delved in to this subject deeply, it is time we revisited lost knowledge and shared our treasure with the world.
Here is the first of a series of posts that will inshaAllah report selected talks from the conference;
Bism Allah ar-Rahmaan ar-Raheem,
REVIVING THE ISLAMIC SPIRIT 2008
This three day conference began after Jumuah prayer on Friday December 26th and finished late in to the night of the Sunday December 28th. Over 10,000 people is a rough count of the attendance, a tripling of the conference of the year before. A grand hall seating that number at which talks were given and another grand hall housing a ‘souk’ full of myriad booths- incense, scarves, abayath, clothes, colour, hijabs, and books upon books upon books, and it goes on. In three days I could not visit many of the stalls it was so large, invoking such a spirit of what a bazaar in the old towns and cities of the Islamic empire must have been like. Beside the souk and parallel to it, in the same hall a vast space laid aside for prayer. All the salaath made in Jama’ah, it was truly glorious to pray with thousands of people. My nearest experience to the Hajj MashaAllah.
It is not an easy task to paraphrase the gist of all the talks I attended, even to capture all that was encompassed in one lecture is difficult. The speakers were inspired, animated, insightful, knowledgable and struck so many chords in the audience. Talks were peppered with applause and the Takbeer rang out so frequently, that itself a lesson.
Monia Mazigh and Mahar Arar
Hope and Despair
Monia and Mahar sat down with an interviewer for half an hour. In this half hour we learned of the strong love between Monia and Mahar and the strength of Monia. She spoke of the message in her book Hope and Despair. He listened and supported her. Dr. Monia Mazigh (PhD in Financial Economics, McGill) who once contested the federal ele
ction as a candidate for the NDP, was a pleasure and inspiration to listen to. When her husband Mahar was illegally detained and tortured in Syria, Monia began her fight to free him and successfully did so. Here is advice she had to give;
Muslims tend to victimize themselves and this is wrong. She said it is imperative to fight bitterness by ACTING. Be vocal, do things, do not sit and blame the world for treating you wrong, go out there and effect chance.
She treated her ordeal as an opportunity and challenge a
nd refused to despair. She said the experience has taught them that life is more about work not play, it’s more about doing things to help others with the time available.
A key message from Monia;
“You have to contribute to your rights or otherwise they will slip away from you”
Advice on how to go about effecting change from Monia;
Education is important- learn the system
Awareness is important- be in society with your mind as well a your body
Do something you/your country/your kids will be proud of one day
Prof. Tariq Ramadan
Islam and the Spiritual Journey
The published abstract is as follows; In this lecture Professor Tariq Ramadan proposes that for Muslims to answer the call of God’s messenger in the 21st Century, it will require a spiritual journey to reform one’s inner space and to learn the most beautiful and the most difficult lesson of Islam: you find God only by rediscovering your own nature and the essence of your nature is the only that can free you from its appearance.
He will address that apparent paradox of the spiritual journey and experience – the lesson that the constant effort, the jihad, that we make in order to live good lives, purify, control and liberate our heart is, in the end, a reconciliation with the deepest level of our being, the fitra – where the spark gleams that God originally breathed in to our heart.
In a talk that repeated struck chord upon chord of resonance with all who listened, this truly inspired thinker and intellectual force, by the grace of Allah crystallized fundamentals of worship in to a well presented lesson in essential prerequisites for rising in spirituality and peace.
He defined religion as a house and likened spirituality to the atmosphere in that house. A house without a beautiful atmosphere does not make a pleasant abode, whereas one of love and warmth invites all who enter it.
Spirituality is based on purity, love, service and forgiveness.
Purity – How does one purify oneself? For a Muslim, there is no act possible in which you can remove the remembrance of Allah. This remembrance is a purification for you. Purify your heart and come back to the center. The centrality of the universe is the Creator. All that is external, existential, by nature are distracting forces unless they are embraced through the remembrance of the one Controller. If in dhikr, then rather than forces that take you away from the center, they bring you back to the center. This then purifies.
Love - The love of Allah for one is indeed not to be taken lightly. It is valuable, and as all things valuable, must be guarded closely and well nurtured to make it grow. Follow the Prophet sallalaahu alaihi wasallam to increase yourself in the love of Allah. As Muhammed sallalaahu alaihi wasallam was the most beloved human being to Allah and the best of mankind, walking in his footsteps can and will only get you closer to Allah and more beloved to your Creator. And indeed Allah most high, is the most appreciative and sees all actions, all intentions.
Two Essential steps to get closer to Allah or Foundations for spirituality
The BOOK
“Your relationship to the Quran is the index of your relationship to Allah”
What more can I say? This one sentence verbatim from Ramadan sums the whole. He reiterated over and over again not to forget the word of Allah, not to denigrate it to a holly place on your mantelshelf, but to live it, know it, go to it, study it, be close to it. It is the direct word of God! How stupid to not know it the best you can.
The PILLARS
“Be strict with the pillars of your faith”
People who are strict with the five pillars of Islam become closer to Allah. These people, said Prof. Ramadan, are able to see things others do not. They attain knowledge from Allah. Their hearts and minds are enlightened. They grow in spirituality as they are disciplined in their practise of the pillars of faith. A apt similitude is that of the musician; it is only due to relentless and long practise that one masters the art of the instrument, and then makes beautiful music where before there was only discordant sound. The musician who is adept seems to make the most melodious music as if effortless! Thus so would you be in your worship of Allah. And just as a musician will slip in his ability to play if he neglects his art, so would you slip away from your closeness to Allah if you neglect the enjoined acts that take you closer to your Lord. This is jihad-un-nafs! Do not expect it to be easy.
“Spirituality is the way you manage your time and discipline is essential for spirituality”
A seeker of the sciences and lover of the arts, I continue on my journey during this worldy time, striving to live a purposeful life in peaceful submission to the one God.
