Does Islam need a Reform or we just need new interpreters?

Published at www.WorldMuslimCongress.com

International Conference   
"Intellectual Crises of the Muslim Ummah: Rethinking Traditional Solutions"
Aligarh Muslim University, April 6-7, 2015
PAPER PRESENTATION
by Mike Ghouse

Does Islam need a Reform or we just need new interpreters?

Reform is one of the most detested words among Muslims. On the one hand the academics see the corrupted versions of Islamic interpretations and rightfully want to fix it, whereas, the firebrand religious leaders take it as an attack on their tradition and willing to shed the blood to defend it.

Click on the image for larger image

And how do we bring the change? The key is communicating the intent (niyya) and a need to understand the issue without pulling the rug from underneath their feet.

Justice is one word in Islam that wraps balance, harmony, fairness, mercy and equity together for the society to function cohesively, where no one has live in fear of the other but God. Without it, things will degenerate into a dysfunctional society.

In the last decade the pristine Islam we knew has been mangled up, and it is our duty to restore it. 

Sharia is central to all this, which was designed to offer complete guidance to personal and public behavior of a Muslim, and justice to humanity. However, due to human management Justice was not served. 

We have identified a few problems in “applications” of the Sharia laws that undermine the principles of justice in dealing with apostasy, blasphemy, rape, divorce, dhimmi, separation, marriage, child custody, and inheritance, interfaith and other issues.

We need to fix the laws  without it a large swatch of population becomes rudderless. In the Indian context, we may want to go with UCC as it’s’ intent is Justice and is enforceable.

Mike Ghouse, World Muslim Congress, Dallas | Washington (214) 325-1916 |SpeakerMikeGhouse@gmail.com
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Mike Ghouse is a public speaker, thinker, writer and a commentator onPluralism, Islam, India, Israel-Palestine, Politics and other issues of the day. He is a human rights activist, and his book standing up for others will be out soon | He is producing a full feature film ” Sacred” to be released on 9/11 and a documentary “Americans together” for a July 4 release.  He is a frequent guest commentator on Fox News and syndicated Talk Radio shows and a writer at major news papers including Dallas Morning News and Huffington Post. All about him is listed in 63 links at www.MikeGhouse.net and his writings are at www.TheGhousediary.com – Mike is committed to building cohesive societies and offers pluralistic solutions on issues of the day.

Can Muslims lead a conglomeration of faith communities? International Conference at Aligarh Muslim University

Published at www.WorldMuslimCongress.com

International Conference   
"Intellectual Crises of the Muslim Ummah: Rethinking Traditional Solutions"
Aligarh Muslim University, April 6-7, 2015

ABSTRACT OF PRESENTAION
by Mike Ghouse

Can Muslims lead a conglomeration of faith communities?  Implications of Kalmae siwa

Muslims can lead a willing conglomeration of faith communities if they start believing in being Mukhlooqul Aalameen, representing the interests of all humanity.  It is an extension of their belief in God as Rabbul Aalameen and prophet as Rahmatul Aalameen.

Was Islam ever meant to be a religion for Muslims? Indeed the message of Islam was for those who submitted to the idea of oneness of humanity, universe and its creator, and further believed in accountability of their actions in preserving the harmony of the universe.

God has set himself up as a God of universe - the very first verse in the first and last chapters of Quran declares “Rabbul Aalameen” and “God of humanity” and throughout the Quran the theme is the same.

Quran is not for Muslims, and by making it exclusively ours, we are reducing God to be our property and denying him to others and thus creating a Muslim specific God, as if others have their own.

Implications of 3:64and 3:85God is advising to be truthful, state your belief and acknowledge the otherness of other's belief (109.6) , but come to common terms and figure out how to work together. The best ones among you are the ones who learn about each other. Knowledge leads to understanding and understanding to acceptance and appreciation of another point of view. 

We have an obligation to lead the world in creating cohesive societies where no one has to live in apprehension or fear of the other.

Mike Ghouse, World Muslim Congress, Dallas | Washington (214) 325-1916 |SpeakerMikeGhouse@gmail.com
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Mike Ghouse is a public speaker, thinker, writer and a commentator on Pluralism,Islam, India, Israel-Palestine, Politics and other issues of the day. He is a human rights activist, and his book standing up for others will be out soon | He is producing a full feature film ” Sacred” to be released on 9/11 and a documentary “Americans together” for a July 4 release.  He is a frequent guest commentator on Fox News and syndicated Talk Radio shows and a writer at major news papers including Dallas Morning News and Huffington Post. All about him is listed in 63 links at www.MikeGhouse.net and his writings are at www.TheGhousediary.com – Mike is committed to building cohesive societies and offers pluralistic solutions on issues of the day.

Quran Formula - Quran verses about Justice

URL - http://quraan-today.blogspot.com/2014/07/quran-formula-quran-verses-about-justice.html

Let me share a formula that I have discovered in Quran about most of the verses about justice.  I hope this gives you confidence about Quran and its wisdom, you can apply this to any verse, provided you read three verses before and three verses after the given verse.  Take a look at the 2^nd part of item 5, it sounds bad, but if you read the first part and 2^nd, it makes sense.

1. You mind your own business
2. Someone throws you out of your own space and seeks to destroy you.
3. You ask them to back off
4. If they still come after you, you hit them back in self-defense.
5. If they do not stop, you chase them and shoot them wherever you find them
6. But if they seek to retrieve, you let them
7. The Ultimate goal of Islam is peace, harmony and cohesive societies, most people get this right and a few don’t, and that is the case with every faith and everything in life.

Items 1-5 is universal law, indeed it is the American law. Quran takes you a step further.

Here are some of the articles/compilations in this site, there are more items buried within the articles.

Slay the Idolaters, wherever you find them, Sura Tauba 9
http://quraan-today.blogspot.com/2007/12/slay-idolaters-95.html

Muslim response to Dutch legislators lies about Quran
http://quraan-today.blogspot.com/2008/03/wilders-fitna-and-muslims_30.html

Free will and Jiziyah 9:29
http://quraan-today.blogspot.com/2010/03/quraan-2256-free-will-v-929-compulsion.html

If you get a chance read “Mission of World Muslim Congress” at www.WorldMuslimCongress.com and now I am adding American Muslim Agenda to it.

Jazak Allah Khair

Mike Ghouse is a Muslim speaker, thinker and a writer, and presides over the World Muslim congress, a think tank, and a forum with the express goals of nurturing pluralistic values embedded in Islam to build cohesive societies. More about Mike at www.Mikeghouse.net

Sura Kafirun - "Un-believers" a chapter in Quran about civil dialogue and pluralism

QURANIC GUIDANCE ON HOW TO CONDUCT CIVIL DIALOGUE

The following understanding of Sura Kafirun was written on July 5, 2008, almost five years ago and now, on this day February 09, 2013, it is being dedicated to Pastor Bob Roberts for his bold take on respecting the otherness of others,  URL- The link http://quraan-today.blogspot.com/2008/07/sura-kafirun-un-believers.html


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Kafirun is a Chapter from Qur’an that addresses the believers (of other faiths) in the most dignified way, putting everyone on par without denigrating any. It is an exceptional example of civil conduct for one to follow. Nowhere in this chapter a claim is made that the faith of Muslims is superior to others, or others' faith to be inferior.

Throughout the chapter, the other is treated respectfully as an equal, “I do not worship what you worship, and you do not worship what I worship” – it does not say your worship is inferior to mine. The element of arrogance was not given a room in this chapter. Because you hold a different belief, your belief is not belittled.  

This chapter is about consciously nurturing civility in societies. It is not about overlooking the differences and focusing on commonalities, it is simply about accepting the otherness of other. You are who you are and I am who I am and let's figure out how we can co-exist with the least tensions. This is the basis of pluralism - i.e., respecting the otherness of others.

I believe all religions are beautiful and none is graded to be superior or inferior.  I may not believe what others believe, as others may not believe what I believe. I will accept them for who they are, as they would accept me for who I am. I will not disrespect any faith, as it amounts to arrogance, and God simply does not like anyone who is arrogant, indeed, arrogance is the root cause of all conflicts. 


Arrogance kills the very spirit of society – Justice, peace and equality. Islam is about live and let live. Learning to accept and respect others' right to exist and figure out the best way to co-exist. A majority of Muslims get this right, and few don't, indeed that is the case with every religion. 

As the saying goes "beauty is in the eyes of the beholder", I would add "faith is in the heart of the believer". As a person of faith, yours and my role is to mitigate the conflicts and nurture goodwill among peoples and nations. That brings peace, and that is the other word for Islam.

In another chapter, God essentially says, I have created ya'll from a single couple, and made you into many tribes, communities and nations. Each one of you is different and unique with your own thumb print, DNA, taste bud and behavior bud. He also said, had I willed, I would have punched you all out from a factory template to exact specifications, all males to be precisely same height, weight, color and same with the females. But I chose to make you unique and gave you complete free will to create harmony and cohesiveness within and with what surrounds you. Then he concludes, the best one among is you is the one who learns about each other. Knowledge leads to understanding and understanding to acceptance and appreciation of the other resulting in harmony and peace.

What does submitting to God's will mean? Just as we love the food we cook, enjoy the results of the work we do, God loves his creation and likes everyone to get along. God's will is that we care for the life and environment and lead a just life that leads to a state of peace and harmony for his creation. That’s the bottom line; that is what Jesus meant when he said “follow me" or Krishna said ““surrender to me".

The following chapter in Qur'an does not say, that others' belief is inferior, in fact it says, as your belief is dear to you, as my belief is dear to me. So much respect is given to the other faith.

At this time, one of the best Qur'an translations available is by Mohammad Asad and I recommend you to use it as a reference, rather than some of the mistranslations on the market. Even this translation has a few flaws in dealing with women, but this translation is better than most other translations. 


I would recommend you to check out a few columns to understand the wrong doing and deliberate mistranslations of the Qur'aan, both by the early European Kings to paint Islam in the bad light for their own gains and by the Muslims after the fall of Ottoman empire to egg on Muslims to support their cause, you also see a piece on origins of Islamophobia.

There was a movie made by Geert Wilders and he continues to dupe the Neocons (Literalist or sticklers in every faith) by quoting 14 verses from Qur'an as hateful, indeed they are, but they are not in Qur'aan. This blog is dedicated to clarify false statements recycled every day about Qur'aan. Finding the truth is your own responsibility -when you remove the ill-will from your heart, it brings freedom, salvation, nirvana, mukti, moksha, nijaat and true liberation.

Now here are the 6 beautiful verses of Quran... Indeed, I am blessed to use this language in dealing with differences.



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109:1 SAY: "O you who deny the truth!
Topics discussed in this Verse: [Unbelievers]Qul ya ayyuha alkafiroona
قُلْ يَا أَيُّهَا الْكَافِرُونَ (109:1)
Baset - Hussari - Minshawi
My understanding: Addressing those individuals who denied the truth spoken by the Prophet.

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109:2 "I do not worship that which you worship,
Topics discussed in this Verse: [Unbelievers]
La aAAbudu ma taAAbudoonaلَا أَعْبُدُ مَا تَعْبُدُونَ
109:2 Baset - Hussari - Minshawi

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109:3 and neither do you worship that which I worship!
[1]وَلَا أَنتُمْ عَابِدُونَ مَا أَعْبُدُ (
109:3)
Baset - Hussari - Minshawi

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109:4 "And I will not worship ~hat which you have [ever] worshipped,
Topics discussed in this Verse: [Unbelievers]
Wala ana AAabidun ma AAabadtum
وَلَا أَنَا عَابِدٌ مَّا عَبَدتُّمْ (109:4)
Baset - Hussari - Minshawi

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109:5 and neither will you [ever] worship that which I worship. [2]Topics discussed in this Verse:
[Unbelievers]Wala antum AAabidoona ma aAAbuduوَلَا أَنتُمْ عَابِدُونَ مَا أَعْبُدُ (109:5)
Baset - Hussari - Minshawi

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109:6 Unto you, your moral law, and unto me, mine !"
[3]Topics discussed in this Verse:
[Islam] [Muhammad:faith of] [Unbelievers]
Lakum deenukum waliya deeniلَكُمْ دِينُكُمْ وَلِيَ دِينِ (109:6) Baset - Hussari - Minshawi

Islam is about free will and accountability to keep the harmony of creation intact. If someone compels you to believe, pray, eat or wear, then it is not Islam. Quran is clear many many times - no one bears the burden of others. For societal equilibrium we all agree to do certain things and give up certain things as a part of living and culture. 

Please note, this good material for teaching pluralism and civil dialogue.

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Mike Ghouse is a Muslim committed to understand, explore and share the idea of Rabbul Aalameen, the creator, nourisher and sustainer of the Universe, taught to us by the Mercy to mankind who was respectful of others, and whom people trusted for his integrity, honesty, civility and truthfulness. He believes if you follow God's guidance and Prophet's examples, you ought to be Mukhlooqul Aalameen - human being for the goodness of mankind.  More about Mike at www.MikeGhouse.net and www.TheGhouseDiary.com.