UNDERSTANDING THE MODERN AGE
Freedom And Progress
THE modern age evolved through a long historical process. It began with the revolution ushered in by Islam in the 7th century CE, and reached its fruition in the 20th century. The modern civilization is favourable to Islam, not opposed to it contrary to what some think. However it does not mean that all aspects of this civilization are fully compatible with Islamic teachings.
No revolution ever puts a complete end to human freedom, nor is any revolution completely ideal. It would be a mixed bag of the inviolable and flexible aspects to accommodate human freedom. To properly evaluate a revolution, one must bear in mind that it always has certain basic or essential aspects, while there are other aspects which become part of it on account of human freedom.
The Islamic revolution of the 7th century CE gave humanity many valuable gifts. It ended the age of nature worship and brought in the worship of one God. With the passage of time, certain undesirable developments also occurred—hereditary monarchy replacing the Caliphate that was based on mutual consultation and Muslims fighting amongst themselves in the name of Islam. These undesirable developments were a result of the exercise of human freedom. The emergence of Islam was undoubtedly a great blessing for humankind. But one must view the history of Islam separately from these developments alluded to above, to properly appreciate this blessing.
To properly appreciate the contribution of Islam, one
must view the history of Islam separately from the developments
that were a result of the exercise of human free-will
The same is true of modern culture. Western civilization has gifted humanity many wonderful things—the discovery of natural laws that had hitherto remained hidden, the replacing of monarchy with democracy, the ending of religious persecution, the development of scientific methodology, many new scientific disciplines, the establishment of the United Nations as a forum to resolve international disputes etc.
Freedom gives power to use ones discretion. A hallmark of Western civilization, its benefits depend on the motives behind its use good To properly appreciate the contribution of Islam, one must view the history of Islam separately from the developments that were a result of the exercise of human free-will. Spirit of Islam Issue 31 July 2015 21 The God given right of freedom of choice will not be abrogated till the Day of Judgment. or bad, significant or petty. War and the accompanying violence and destruction driven by political ambition to dominate and exploit, aggression produced by a materialistic mentality, exploitation and various ills produced by the relentless pursuit of personal and communal interests; are all examples of the negative use of freedom. The positives are several—democracy, scientific discoveries, and great literary works have benefited humanity immensely. But to lump together all the undesirable elements and label them as a definite ‘Western agenda’ would be unrealistic.
A balanced evaluation should consider both aspects. A lopsided view could end in choking freedom. The result would be the classic case of throwing away the baby with the bathwater.
The God given right of freedom of choice will not be
abrogated till the Day of Judgment.
If this notion of an ‘agenda’ is accepted as true, the same analysis would apply to Muslim history. Critics might claim that while Islam championed the oneness of God, it has established hereditary rule in the name of the Caliphate, promoted internecine conflict on the basis of different interpretations of Islam, promoting ill-will against nonMuslim peoples by manufacturing the notion of Dar-ul-Islam (Abode of Islam) and Dar-ul-Kufr (Abode of disbelief).
Clearly, it is important to differentiate between the revolution brought about by Islam and those issues that became associated with it because of the exercise of human free-will. Labelling of the latter as a part of the ‘agenda of Islam’ is, therefore, incorrect. In the same way, it is also incorrect to conflate the undesirable elements associated with modern Western civilization, and to label them as a ‘Western agenda’.
Revolutions bring in new thinking, some may be desirable and some not. The former measure up to an ideal standard; the latter, on account of the exercise of human freedom, come to be associated with the revolution.
God has blessed human beings with the freedom to choose. This right will not be abrogated till the Day of Judgment. This freedom is termed ‘the Trust’ in the Quran (33: 72). Human beings are free to use this Godgiven freedom as they wish, with or without others approval.
The use of free-will is visible in all activities in our lives. Both Muslim and modern Western civilization have explored this freedom. To properly understand human history, this factor must be given due consideration.