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Democracy in light of islam
Essay on principle of democracy in Islam
Essay on principle of democracy in Islam
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Discuss the argument that characterise the debate about Islam and democracy
Since the rise of the Islamic movements around the world especially in the Middle East and the current tension between Muslim and the Western countries in particular after 9/11, the different debates and arguments has been made by scholars, in particular Western intellectuals about the capability of the Islam to accept the principles of democracy. I will examine the relationship between Islam and politics, definition of Islam and democracy, the connection between Islamic teaching (Hadith and Quran) and Islamic movements and different perspectives of Islamists or Islamic countries. There are two different visions about the subject in which some argued that Islam is in opposite direction of democracy while some argued that some aspects of Islam such as Shura (consultation) and Ijma(Consensus) are naturally democratic. This essay will focusses on some different arguments and perspectives to find out how Islam tolerates the modernity and to what extent Islam itself and Islamic movements are compatible with or against democracy.
As we look at the history of Islamic society there were some different kind of state from Medina to Umayyad, Abbasid, Ottoman Empire, and in our modern industrial era such as Saudi Arabia as a conservative Wahhabi state, Golf monarchy countries, Iran as a Shia republic state, Sudan and Pakistan as military stats and Turkey as a new democratic Islamic state. It seems that Islam did not suggest a specific model of state, but Quran stated some social and political values such as justice, consultation and establishing a no-autocratic method of government as says: “… If you judge, judge with justice between them. Verily, Allah loves tho...
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One of his current works is trying to create an Islamic democracy unlike the US or Europe that focuses on “fairness, justice, equality, unity, and charity” (The Week Staff).
Print. Doak, Robin. Empire of the Islamic World. Rev. ed.
Islam culture in a way that was not seen in JudeoChristian ones. ( Murray 91). The
Burns, Thomas J. "Islam." Religion and Society. OU Campus' Dale Hall, Norman. 14 Apr. 2014. Lecture.
On the Harmony of Religion and Philosophy gives us insight to the philosophical views of a certain sect of Islam, and how it influenced it 's followers to view the world around them. Although it is helpful, this is written from a very biased position and it cannot be said that the views of the author are the views of Muslim culture as a whole. There is a constant attack on another religious group throughout the article that helps us to understand what this specific sect deems right and wrong through comparison of the groups.
Robinson, B.A. (2002, October 14). Islam: Is it a religion of violence or of peace.
In both given articles, “The Roots of Muslim Rage” by Bernard Lewis, and “The Roots of Muslim Rage Revisited” by Nicolaas J.E. van der Zee, argue about the enhancement of the Muslim fundamentalism with different perspectives; however, I believe that Lewis’ view may be quiet misleading to the actual perception. Lewis indicates that Muslim fundamentalism is conceived through the Muslim community’s oppression and dissatisfaction with the West’s political involvement, as well as “Islam is a source of aggression” . In defiance of Lewis’ opinion, the word ‘Islam’ comes from the word peace as well as the will of submission to God. The notion of aggression and violence that Lewis conceptualizes to be the headline of Islam does not have any supporting
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Saleh, Leena. "Beating the Bully." Islamic Horizons, 1 Mar. 2013. eLibrary. Web. 30 Oct. 2013.
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Bouhdiba, Abdelwahab. "The Message of Islam." Diogenes (International Council for Philosophy and Humanistic Studies). Humanities Full Text. 2005. Web.
“Are political Islam and democracy compatible?” This question has been troubling both Muslims and non-Muslims living in East and West for a long time now. Contemporary Islamic political thought has become deeply influenced by attempts at reconciling Islam and democracy. Muslim thinkers who deal with political debates cannot disregard the significance of the democratic system, as it is the prevailing theme of modern western political thought. Hence, it is necessary for any alternative political system, whether it is religious or secular, to explore its position with regards to democratic government. In fact, a large literature and media publications have developed over the last century on this heated discourse of democracy versus Islam. While many argue that Islam has all the ingredients of modern state and democratic society, many other reject the phenomena “modernism” and “democracy” as a whole because of their “foreign nature”—alien to “Islamic values”. For Islamists and modernists, the motivation for such effort to either embrace or reject democracy often is to remove suspicion about the nature and goals of Islamic movements and Islamic revivalism or resurgence. But before diving into this discourse, one needs to understand the definition and origins of “democracy.” Although purely a Western ideology in its origin, there is no consensus on the definition of “democracy” as a political system. The Oxford English Dictionary describes democracy as: “A system of government by the whole population or all the eligible members of a state, typically through elected representatives” (“democracy, n.”). In my paper, I will examine whether or not democracy and Sunni political Islam are compatible through the eyes of three revolutionary Sun...
Khan, Sir Muhammad Zafrullah (1989). Islam: Its Meaning for Modern Man. New York & Evanston: Harper & Row.