Democracy Vs. Islam: A Comparison Of Democracy And Islam

Democracy and Islam, an article written by Irfan Ahmad1 strives to show that there is a possibility that Islam can move towards democracy. On the other hand, Islam and Liberal Democracy: A Historical Overview, an article written by Bernard Lewis2 discusses how a democracy is unable to work in Islamic States. In this essay, I will be comparing and contrasting the two articles. Both Bernard and Irfan carry weight in their arguments and have certain strong points, as well as weaknesses. The major difference between the two articles is the variation of the core definition of democracy that the writers have, and their distinct perspectives of the workings of a democracy. In addition, the articles also differ in their chosen format and the authors’ thoughts on the Catholic and Western influence. The fundamental dispute of democracy and Islam are strong in both articles, and they are resolved in a respective manner. Irfan was successful in formulating a more compelling case and was able to maintain better structure; however, I am a firm believer that Islam is a theocratic system and it is not compatible with democracy as a system of governance.

The debate of Islam and democracy is never-ending, and the reason being, the grounds on which they debate tend to have cracks. It is important to define democracy before exploring this topic. Merriam-Webster defines democracy as “a form of government in which people choose leaders by voting”; this is a well-balanced description of the eloquent word. Both Bernard and Irfan put forth their definition of the word democracy, describing what they consider democracy to be, and then they begin to voice their opinions. Bernard Lewis approaches it on a limited scale as he shows the democratic system as wh...

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...er, I also believe that this would result in an unjust Islamic state. I personally believe that one cannot measure how religious a person is. It is between them and their God, and be it politicians or leaders, we are unable to do justice to what the Qur’an regulates are right and wrong. We are flawed, thus any system we create will have those flaws within. It would simply be a secular political system in which all people are treated as equals, which is unjust as each individual has their own relationship with Allah. As much as my generation would want to believe that Islam and democracy are compatible, it simply is not possible. Indeed, both can coexist globally, but merging the two would be like trying to fix something that is not broken. The root of Islamic law is incompatible with democracy; Islam is a theocratic system where it is only Allah that may judge you.