(part 1 of 2): Islam – A Perfect Way of Life
Introduction
The West makes a natural mistake in understanding Islamic tradition by assuming that religion means the same to Muslims as to most of the followers Religions since the industrial revolution and for some communities even before; that means an area of life that is reserved for certain matters and separated from other areas of life. This does not correspond to the Islamic worldview. There has never been anything like this in the past, and modern attempts to do so are also seen as aberrations.
Islam: a perfect way of life
Islam is a „perfect way of life“. He has provided guidance for every area of life, from individual purity, the rules of action to the structure and politics of society. Islam can never be separated from social, political or economic life because religion provides moral guidance for everything a person does. The first act of faith is to strive to realize God’s will in both private and public life. Muslims see that they, like the world around them, must be completely devoted to God and His will. They also know that this concept of His rule must be established all over the world to create a just society. Like the Jews and the Christians before them, Muslims were called to a covenant relationship with God that made them a community of believers who should serve as a model for other peoples by establishing a moral social order. God says to the Muslim world:
“You are the best church that was created for people. You command what is right and you prohibit injustice… ”(Quran 3: 110)
Throughout history, being Muslim is not just belonging to a religious community of believers but also under Islamic law Life. Because Islamic law is seen as an extension of God’s absolute sovereignty.
God is the only sovereign
God is the absolute sovereign in Islam and therefore He is the Lord of heaven and earth. Just like He is the master of the physical universe, for the true Muslim believers, God is also the legislator for every area of human life. Just like He is the master of the physical world, God is the ruler of human affairs in Islamic doctrine. So God is the supreme legislator [1], the absolute judge and the lawmaker. Who distinguishes right and wrong? Just as the physical world inevitably submits to its master by obeying His ’natural laws‘ of the universe, people must submit to the moral and religious teachings of their master, the one who, for them, distinguishes right from wrong. In other words, God alone has the authority to enact laws, determine worship, decide morality, and set a standard for interpersonal relationships and behaviors. This is because:
„Truly, being is creation and command!“ (Quran 7:54)
The separation of institutional religion & the state
As we mentioned, Islam is recognized as the sole sovereign of human affairs in Islam, so there has never been a distinction between religious and state authority. In Christianity, this distinction between these two authorities is attributed to reports from Jesus in the New Testament, who asked his followers to give Caesar what he deserves and to give God what he deserves. For this reason there have always been two authorities in Christian history up to the present time: ´God and Caesar´ or ´Church and State´. Each has its own laws and legislation, structure and hierarchy. There had never been two powers in the pre-Western Islamic world, and the question of separation had never arisen.
The vision of an Islamic state
The vision of an Islamic state and the purpose of its political authority is to carry out the divine law. Therefore, the ideal Islamic state is a community governed by the law that God has revealed. This does not imply that such a state is necessarily a theocracy under the direct government of religious scholars, nor is it an autocracy that grants absolute power to the ruler. The role of an Islamic state is to provide security and order so that Muslims can fulfill both their religious and secular duties. The Khalif [2] is the guardian of faith and community. His role was not so much checked by the ulama (religious scholars) but improved by them because they give him religious and legal advice. He also appoints the judges to resolve issues in accordance with Islamic law. There is some flexibility in the governmental system and its establishment in Islam, but religion must be fully involved in the state and in society.
Footnotes:
[1] God’s existence proven by the existence of a supreme legislator is called by ´ethical argument´ by western theologians.
The word Khalif is the German term for Khaliefah or successor, because the Khalif follows the Prophet Muhammad as the political leader of the Muslims and in the application of Islamic law in society.
(part 2 of 2): Islam and Democracy
Islam and Democracy
To discuss democracy productively, one must first understand the origins and meaning of this concept itself. But to keep it short, it can be said that according to the „modern“ and most rudimentary understanding of this term, the Islamic thought corresponds to some of its aspects. One such aspect is the fact that Muslims have the right to determine their rulers, hold them accountable and, if necessary, remove them from office. Islam, however, does not empower the governmental system to repeal or change the legislation of religion in society, nor does it give it the right to create new legislation. Legislation is the sole right of God and religion must play the central role in deciding the validity of any new law. Avoiding this right of God contributes to the unforgivable sin of polygamy, because part of the belief in the unity of God is that He and only He has the right to make laws. This means that people or their elected representatives do not have the right to allow what God has forbidden or to declare forbidden what God has allowed. To grant them such a right as well as to follow their legislation is an exaltation by taking them to Lord as God, and this is meant by multi-godliness. Nobody has the right In order to set the limits for interactions between Islam and democracy, Muslims are debating the relationship between Islam and democratic institutions in their societies today. While most Muslims want greater political say, legislation, government responsibility, freedoms and human rights, there are different ways to achieve this. For some, Islam has its own mechanisms that exclude democratic institutions. Others claim that Islam is fully capable of accommodating and supporting democratic institutions. Working for a process of reform, they argue about the compatibility of Islam and certain types of ‚democracy‘ by using traditional Islamic concepts such as counseling (schura) between rulers and rulers, List community consensus (ijma), public interest (maslaha) and scriptural opinion (ijtihad). These mechanisms can be used to support forms of rule with systems of controls and balances in the executive, legislative and judicial branches. However, the rulers of authoritative states tend to ignore, hinder or suppress democratic institutions.
In general, one can see that Islam is a religion that not only regulates the private religious life of the individual, but regulates all aspects of public life. Just as the concept of worship is not limited to mere rituals, but includes all acts of obedience and kindness, so the concept of religion is extended to all areas of life on earth. For a Muslim, the concepts of religion and state are inseparable. This principle must be observed with respect, regardless of which form of government a Muslim society chooses, all of its components must be directly compatible with the principles of religion. In no way can the governmental system terminate, revoke or insert any proxy for religion,
Source: https://www.islamland.com/deu/articles/die-grundlagen-des-politischen-systems-im-islam