2.1 The range of Religion Adherence in the society

As it has been seen in the previous topic the backwardness of the Muslim is unequivocally the result of being away from their religion. However, there are some people who hold quite an opposite view. They claim that the reason of the Muslims backwardness is their adherence to their religion. Their allegation is based on the idea that when the west gave up all religions and freed themselves from the bond of every kind of doctrines, they reached the highest level of civilized advancement. In this topic, the range and scope of Muslim adherence to their religion will be discussed in order to understand if the religion was the source of the Muslims advancement or their backwardness.

The Qur'an categorically states that the divine message is the source of man's glory. It is the light that Allah gives to us to guide us to success whether in this worldly life or in the Hereafter. Allah says, "Can he who was dead, to whom We gave life and a Light whereby he can walk amongst men, be like him who is in depths of darkness from which he can never come out" (6: 122). Thus, the Muslims had the unique advantage of being blessed with a Divine Message (the Qur'an). They did not have to fall back on their own judgment on the vital questions of life, and therefore were saved from manifold difficulties, perplexity and perils that are attendant upon such a course. The Divine Word has illuminated all the avenues of life for them and had enabled them to progress towards a destination which they clearly envisaged. When the Muslim ummah adhered to its religion at the beginning of Islam, it had power, might and strength, and were advanced in all aspects of life. They quickly burst the boundaries of Arabia to lead the world. Their leadership held the guarantee of light and happiness for the world.

2.1 The range of Religion Adherence in the society

It is to be noted that the West did not advance in different branches of knowledge except after learning and taking knowledge from the Muslims in the early centuries of Islam. But the Muslim ummah started to fall short in its commitment to its religion and introduced into their life all things that are not part of their religion. That led to falling behind and becoming backward to a large extent. If we go back to what our forebears followed in religious terms, we would become great and honored and would prevail over all people. Hence, when Abu Sufyaan spoke to Heraclius, the Byzantine ruler - and Byzantium at that time was regarded as a superpower - and told him about the way of the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) and his companions, he said: "If what you are saying is true, then he will take possession of what lies beneath these two feet of mine."

One of the diseases which afflicted the Muslims is that they are divided into different sects in the same way as the non-Muslims are divided. They are not united and the reason of this is that not all of them adhere to the Qur'an and the Sunnah. Mankind must have ample and correct knowledge of Islam based on the Qur'an and the authentic Sunnah in order to be with the rightly guided Ummah (Muslim Nation) of the Prophet (PBUH) who will be saved from the Hell-Fire: Abu Hurairah narrated that the Prophet (PBUH) said: "The Jews were split up into seventy-one or seventy-two sects; and the Christians were split up into seventy one or seventy-two sects; and my community will be split up into seventy-three sects." (Abu Dawud 4579)

The Qur'an warns the Muslims against disputes and sectarianism in many verses the Qur'an says: "And hold firmly to the rope (His Covenant or the Qur'an) of Allah all together and do not become divided. And remember the favor of Allah upon you - when you were enemies and He brought your hearts together and you...

2.1 The range of Religion Adherence in the society

...became, by His favor, brothers. And you were on the edge of a pit of the Fire, and He saved you from it. Thus does Allah make clear to you His verses that you may be guided." (3: 103). In another verse the Qur'an affirms the fact that dispute and dividision is the major cause of their defeat in front of their enemies, the Qur'an says: " And obey Allah and His Messenger, and do not dispute and [thus] lose courage and [then] your strength would depart; and be patient. Indeed, Allah is with the patient.. (8: 46). The dispute will lead to disunity and consequently to weaknesses and defeat. The two verses are giving the Muslims the key of victory over their enemies which is unity and solidarity and adhering to the source of their might and glory i.e. the Divine Revelation the rope of God.

The Qur'an says " So do not weaken and do not grieve, and you will be superior if you are [true] believers." (3: 139) This verse was revealed at a time when Islam was in its infancy, and the Islamic state had not been founded. The light of faith had not at that time spread beyond the Arabian Peninsula. Its people generally led a life of extreme poverty. They lived for the most part on dates, camel flesh and barely bread; they wore rough, coarse clothes and lived in mud huts or tenets. Their misery and helplessness at that time has been described in these words by neither the Qur'an, than which there can be no better nor more trustworthy testimony: "And remember, when you were few and reckoned feeble in the land and were in fear lest men should extirpate you. (8: 26)

Such was the condition of the Arabs. In contrast, the Romans and the Persians enjoyed world leadership. They had built up a magnificent civilizations and their writ was absolute for vast numbers of people. The Eastern and Western parts of the known world were divided between these two parts of the known world were divided...

2.1 The range of Religion Adherence in the society

...between these two powers. They enjoyed immense wealth and power and all the good things of life were available to them in abundance. At that time surat Yusuf was revealed to the Prophet Muhammad (PBUH). It aimed to console and comfort the Prophet; the leader of the Muslim community. The Surah ends with these words: "Till when the messengers despaired and thought that they were denied, then came unto them Our help, and whom We would was saved. And Our wrath cannot be warded from the guilty".

The Muslims' encounter with the Quraish of Makka, the Romans and the Persians was, materially, very unequal, but they had one thing which their opponents did not have; the wealth of faith. Before that faith all the false gods of worldly wealth and power crumbled. It was in these circumstances that the Qur'an challenged these two powerful nations of Rome and Persia, while at the same time infusing dignity and self-confidence into the weak, helpless Arab Muslims.

As far as the claim that when the West gave up all religions and freed themselves from them, they reached the highest level of civilized advancement, it does not stand on a firm ground or academic objectivity. First of all we have to set a distinction between the nature of a religion which encourages its adherent to travel in the earth in order to uncover its hidden secrets and obtain every kind of knowledge and a religion where the authority of the clergymen turned to be a hindrance in front of every kind of advancement and progress. In the beginning, when the West revolted, their revolution was not directed against their religion, rather it was a revolution against the authority of the Church. For instance, when Kant wrote his Critique of Pure Reason (1751), he did not prove the non-existence of God or aimed to be anti-religion (nor was it intended to) rather it was a criticism of the authority of the Church. To be sure, in his Critique of Practical Reason (1788), Kant posits God as a useful working hypothesis, necessary for the functioning of society.

2.1 The range of Religion Adherence in the society

And yet, in liberating people from church tutelage, the Enlightenment philosophers also marginalized religion. The French Revolution enthroned the "autonomous" individual that rose to become the new idol, replacing God as the true measure of all things. In a grandiose fit of hubris, man's autonomy was celebrated as boundless and universal.

People, however, proved unable to endure the agnostic position between knowing and not-knowing represented by Kant, unable to be suspended in a theological and philosophical limbo: to live as if God existed, but without conclusive scientific proof of His existence. No wonder the average 18th century citizens was drawn to Pascal's (1623-1662) wager, which holds that erring in favor of faith is the smaller risk: "if you win, you win it all; if you loose, you lost nothing." All the same, the deistic 18th century inevitably transformed itself into the atheistic 19th century spearheaded by Ludwig Feuerbach (1804-1872), Charles Darwin (1809-1882), Karl Marx (1818-1883), and Sigmund Freud (1856-1939)

Anyway, without going into further details into how the West set their religion aside, it is highly important to shed the light on the devastating consequences of their atheism. Ottovon Hasburg believed that "Europe without Christianity is bound to collapse like a house of cards." Before him, Gilbert K. Chestrton through to its logical conclusion would necessarily lead to madness.

But the change was not so fast. In the beginning, societies afflicted by atheism are still benefiting from a residue of traditional values, and cultural habits. But even these cultural assets are slowly melting away. People are beginning to live without restraint and follow their hedonist credo by busily cramming their limited little...

2.1 The range of Religion Adherence in the society

...lives with as much sensual gratification as possible, while increasingly losing sight of the common good and the family. Nowadays, people can even learn hedonism at institute for "Happiness Research", a phenomenon speaking volumes about the contemporary state of mind. That hedonism has reached the rank of an unofficial state religion can be deduced from this T-shirt imprint recently seen with the compelling message: I want fun N O W!

Once this point is reached- and large parts of the Western world have indeed there- the collapse of the family, as bedrock of human society, becomes imminent. Symptoms of this calamity are indeed frightening. In the USA, not more than 15 percent of all new marriages are given a statistical chance for survival. In parts of Scandinavia, more than half of all children are born out of wedlock. Millions of single mothers are about to release an entire generation of youngster into society whose emotional development may have been hampered by the absence of a father - to a point where their mature behavior as a mate may suffer. Single motherhood may be an unavoidable fate in many cases; at any rate, more and more young women. In Germany about 30 % of them now chose to remain childless.

These days' insurance policies are available to purchase coverage for the financial consequences of unwanted parenthood. It is not just these indemnified children who suffer terribly from only being able to see their fathers on weekends - if they are lucky enough to have a father. When both parents work they tend to assuage their guilty conscience by bribing their kids with the latest toys, trying to buy their love, thus raising little exortationists and a new generation hopelessly addicted to consumerism. In their formative years their kids are turned over to their peer groups, where all-too-often undergo ring leaders - heavily armed budding criminals - are already running their own rug businesses.

2.1 The range of Religion Adherence in the society

American children since 1960s have been losing about 12 hours a week of former parental attention. At the same time, American grandparents have grown even more distant. Over the same time period the suicide rate of teenagers doubled, while the crime rate among youngsters has quadrupled. Available facts indicate that in the so-called developed countries where the citizens consider themselves highly developed, cultured and affluent, suicide has been occurring day by day at alarming rates. Many American for instance, commit suicide every day. In fact every 90 seconds a young American attempts suicide, of which one out of 60 succeeds. An estimated 30, 000 people in the United States kill themselves annually, including some 5, 000 young Americans between the age of 15 and 24. An estimated 100, 000 youths attempt suicide annually. Almost 1, 900 adolescents - most of them white males - succeed in killing themselves annually. If children feel rejected at home and in school and ostracized by their peers, it is only logical that violence breaks out, as in the recent American school shoot-outs. Television and video games suggest violence as the ultimate solution to problems and treat sex like merchandise. Thus emotionally starving children gradually cross the vanishing threshold from the virtual world to the real world. This virtual violence is of course to justify the real violence of the American soldiers in Iraq and the make future generation and particular and the American citizens in general accept this violent policy which they are paying a very expensive price.

An additional problem is that the American children who feel that they are not loved and not wanted are following the lead of the adults when smoking to fight stress. Many of them are dying of traffic accidents (30 % of teenager deaths) as from suicide (12 %) and murder (18%) combined. Before reaching the age of maturity kids will have experienced 15, 000 virtual killings, rapes and brawls. No wonder then, since they tend to be "screenagers" rather than teenagers, in the worst cases spending more than 30 hours per week in front of...

2.1 The range of Religion Adherence in the society

...computer games and movie screens. Thus virtual violence begets real violence. The deeply rooted alcoholism in Western culture is a culprit in all that.

The FBI reported 20, 675 murder in the US in 1988, reflecting a murder rate of eight per 100, 000 residents. The 1988 murder rate was up 3 % from 1987, 11 percent from 1984, but down 4 % from a decade ago in 1979. Last year rat was also down 8 % from the 1981 rate of 22, 516 murders. This besides more than half million cases of robbery, up five percent from 1987, 12 percent from 1984 and 13 percent from 1979. The FBI was also aware of 1, 073, 998 motor-vehicle theft in 1981.

This not to mention the too many problems like abortion "sexual wilderness" that could be seen homosexuality and lesbianism. Post world war, homosexuality is considered by psychiatry a perversion. Then 1972 edition of the American diagnostic handbook on the classification of psychiatric diseases, homosexuality began to mutate into a mental "disease." In the very next edition of the same handbook homosexuality no longer qualified for treatment; instead it had become an "orientation", just one more option, a choice of "lifestyle"; in short, a normal phenomenon which should not be subjected to therapy.

Statistics released by the World Health organization (WHO) reveal that the total confirmed AIDS worldwide passed the 200,000 mark in 1989. The United Sates, the world's worst AIDS-affected country, accounts for more than 113 thousand of total AIDS victims worldwide in the same year. Brazil (9,555 cases through December of 1989) is the highest in Latin America, and ranks second to the united states, on a global basis.

2.1 The range of Religion Adherence in the society

France with 8, 022 cases is the highest in Europe, and is the world's third ranking country. Other major AIDS-stricken areas are Malawi at rate of 22.2 per 100,000 people), Switzerland (5.9 per 100.00 people) and Australia (2.8 per 100, 00 people).

This premise enabled the suppression of strong scientific evidence suggesting that AIDS had been spreading under the immuno-depressive conditions specific to male homosexuality - in concert with other habits that damage the immune system, such as drug and alcohol abuse. The fact that AIDS epidemic originated in the homosexual milieu of San Francisco, and not somewhere among green monkeys in the African jungle, was now deemed undesirable.

One more problem is that divorce in the West has been persistent at alarming rates. Britain has the highest divorce rate in the twelve nation European community and holds a third place for children born out of wedlock. Statistics indicates a divorce rate of 12, 9 per 1000 marriages among Britons, a performance rivaled only the Danes with 12, 8 per 1000. This third place for divorce went to the Netherlands, which showed a significantly lower rate of 8, 7 per 1000. At the bottom of the list is Ireland where the dissolution of marriage was forbidden by law.

This was only some of the many consequences of replacing the divine guidance with man-made law. In fact it had don more harm than good to humanity. There is everything in the West except the light of the Book of God and Divine guidance. If man sincerely believes in God, surrenders to His Will, obeys His commandments, he will be the master of everything on this earth, on the contrary if a man is without faith, he will be the slave to his material advancement.

2.1 The range of Religion Adherence in the society

The Muslims do not renounce the world but regard it as an important transitional stage in man's onward journey, for his real and final home is in the Hereafter. Their attitude towards life should by governed by the Qur'an, the source of their glory which says; "And for that abode of the Hereafter We assign it unto those who seeks not oppression in the earth, nor yet corruption. The (good) sequel is for those who ward off evil (28: 83).

In Islam man is the center of gravity and is the launching instrument which can put Islam, or any other system for the matter, into full action on a full scale. Man from the Islamic point of view has two complementary natures, very intimately interrelated and continually interacting upon each other. These are the inner nature (soul or self or heart, or power of reasoning or intelligence) and the outer nature (the body). The soul should not be neglected. It should be provided with all the spiritual nourishment needed for piety and righteousness as the body is regularly provided with its material needs. No one of them should be given attention at the expense of the other. There should be some kind of equilibrium between the soul and the body, and between man's spiritual needs and the material ones, otherwise man will suffer and live in a state of disorder and a disaster will happen.