Comments on: Shaykh Abul Hasan Ali Nadwi and His Message for Muslims in the West

By: Azhar

Azhar — Thu, 23 May 2013 16:01:01 +0000

A very heavy judgement passed by Sheikh. No doubt, Islam is the answer for many of social issues. It is not easy to understand the west unless you live in it. There are forces of good and bad regardless of space and time. East has the similar problem as the West. What boils down to what aspect of good or bad is project whether it is East or West.
Currently, West (at least USA) gives the Freedom of religion and gathering that is the main asset of the WEST.

Compare to the core Islamic country Saudi Arabia, USA is much flexible on giving such freedom and honoring its people who contribute to the society regardlress of their relegion or ethnicity. Wherease muslim counteris have not adopted the very message of Islam that abolishes tribal or ethnic preferences.

Yes,west has greed of materialism but physical (economical) aspect of life has been elevated but at the price of moral and family values which the Church is struggling to bring it back. With the growth of muslim community this is happening right now.

The East has focused on the unit of society that is family and it still is intact, but Moral values are at decline due to economical conditions. I remember the 80’s when I left Pakistan for USA. In a Pakistani neighborhood, if a person used to take bribe everyone in the neighborhood would know look down upon. Today after 25 Years, bribe is so common that the one who does not take bribe stands out.

My point here is that do we have time to study the West?
We have so much opportunity to fix ourselves in the light of Quran and Sunnah. This is the need of today and should be the focus and priority of our Ulema.

– Azhar (Dallas)

By: anthony

anthony — Wed, 08 May 2013 21:42:34 +0000

Adherents to Shaykh Abul Hasan Ali Nadawi would sense the wind brushing against the sails of human thought receiving
the thrust that natural wind would ever desire to move the intellect forward as natural as Islam being “natural”
My sails are open. How else can we receive the winds of change that move bow to stern and yet still rely on the keel,the timber of longitude,to help us humans with a little latitude.

By: azam n

azam n — Mon, 06 May 2013 22:28:51 +0000

I think one of the problems with Shaykh Nadwi along with other Muslim scholars overseas is that they do not really understand the complexity and diversity of they call “The West.” Yes it is true that Europe and North America developed a level of education, culture, based on modern secular identity along with an economic revolution rooted in corporate profits. However, there always remained an undercurrent of opposition from the Christian community, particularly the clergy against the excesses of moral degradation, assumptions of political power, lack of concern for the poor, and the loss of religion in the public square. The mainline protestant churches are just as outraged by immoral popular culture and the excesses of Wall Street is outside observers such as Shaykh Nadwi. Indeed, religion in America has made a come back in the form of the Evangelical movement at the turn of the 20th century, along with the rise of other movements such as the Church of the Latter Day Saints, along with Conservative Judaism. So, I do not share his conclusion that “Western civilization” never looked back from its hedonistic, modern, and secular worldview.