How Can a Muslim Contribute to Islam?
Islam is all about divine values (including Shariah law), God wants for His servants to follow, admire and obey in every human levels of existence possible: personal, private and individual, collective such as political, military, economic, social, legal, institutionally and organizationally etc. These values have legal rulings attached to it such as some are obligatory, prohibited and some recommended and permissible. Muslims both individually and collectively must create contexts and conditions for these values to thrive. This is most easy in a Muslim demography where Muslim rule is established. Which values are personally applied and which collectively applied need understanding of Islamic jurisprudence, Prophetic life, rule and the praxis of Ahl Bayt. For example, I, as an individual can implement Islamic criminal law or enforce Zakat collection? No! Collective laws need both judgmental authorities, based on legal validation and political authority as practiced by Prophet of Islam and the Muslim caliphs from the start. It is groups and individuals like ISIS, a creation of secularist Baathist of Iraq and other interested parties who made collective value application an “open for all” act. Political Islam is the head of Islamic value preservation and development because political Islam not only implements its collective obligation and prohibitions but also makes room and environment for individual Islamic values to thrive. For example, in western fascist political environment Muslims are required to assimilate i.e. become like westerners and many demand Muslim women remove Hijab or Muslim children learn LGBTQ in educational curriculum. The environment that their western political world view creates is thus against Islam. In fact, whole era of colonialism was to forcefully westernize the world.
Working for reviving Islamic values, creating an atmosphere and base for both of these collective and individual activities is Islamic activism. Some Islamic activists work in western context by the tools of free speech and free expression as much as it is allowed for Muslims. Some Islamic activists such as Muslim brotherhood, PAS/Jamaat Islami work in the Muslim context to revive political Islam. Imam Khomeini’s work included both individual and collective activism and in fact many Muslims activists do both. However, many do not, and this paper is to address how those individual Muslims can become individual activists in their personal capacity.\
Every Muslim individual has a resource which he or she can use. Some people own business, some people own cash, some people own power of pen and tongue, some people own connections and some people own influence for example and some can be a hybrid entity. These are all resources Muslims can use for Islamic activism.
Someone who has connections may use this resource to make people aware about known identities, threats and dangers of Islamophobic personalities, businesses and activities. The individual Muslim activist may inform the security apparatus of Muslim countries about them and/or the individual Muslim can inform his connections about them and make them aware.
Someone who has a business as resource may implement filtering mechanism to root out Islamophobic identities, practices and activities.
The business owner may enforce all potential employees and employees to reject Islamophobia, identities and groups which are Islamophobic such as Hindutva, Zionism, Fascism etc. The business owner may also use the tools to boycott and/or direct action against these identities, practices and groups so their existence become miserable or even ceases.
Individual Muslim can also support Islamic causes, sentiments and displays online and offline by likes, donations, collaboration, joining and commenting. Be nice, gentle, charitable and helpful to the general people but don't behave meek, gullible, naïve becoming exploitable and selling your Islamic identity.
People with tongue and/or pen are learnt about Islam, its history and history of the enemies. They will contribute by persuasion and rhetoric. They will go in the offensive against the enemies online and offline. Never give benefit of the doubt to active hostiles, hostilities and hostile ideologies.
Support each other by charity and other forms of help so that Muslims do not become victim of criminal and evil exploitation. Take initiatives and create platforms so that Muslim suffering and humiliation are brought to your localities’ attention. By reaching out to non-Muslim people financially and emotionally who are suffering, through a religious front will also be an act of Dawah.
Islamic activism is thus about not only traditional Dawah like Tablighi but also preserving the freedom and making context and environment to practice Shariah law individually and collectively, and also keeping aware of hostilities, hostile entities and hostile ideologies that may be intruding and creeping in this Islamic existence. Muslims must have a zeal, competitive mind and the mindset of “don’t let go chronic humiliation”.
Working for reviving Islamic values, creating an atmosphere and base for both of these collective and individual activities is Islamic activism. Some Islamic activists work in western context by the tools of free speech and free expression as much as it is allowed for Muslims. Some Islamic activists such as Muslim brotherhood, PAS/Jamaat Islami work in the Muslim context to revive political Islam. Imam Khomeini’s work included both individual and collective activism and in fact many Muslims activists do both. However, many do not, and this paper is to address how those individual Muslims can become individual activists in their personal capacity.\
Every Muslim individual has a resource which he or she can use. Some people own business, some people own cash, some people own power of pen and tongue, some people own connections and some people own influence for example and some can be a hybrid entity. These are all resources Muslims can use for Islamic activism.
Someone who has connections may use this resource to make people aware about known identities, threats and dangers of Islamophobic personalities, businesses and activities. The individual Muslim activist may inform the security apparatus of Muslim countries about them and/or the individual Muslim can inform his connections about them and make them aware.
Someone who has a business as resource may implement filtering mechanism to root out Islamophobic identities, practices and activities.
The business owner may enforce all potential employees and employees to reject Islamophobia, identities and groups which are Islamophobic such as Hindutva, Zionism, Fascism etc. The business owner may also use the tools to boycott and/or direct action against these identities, practices and groups so their existence become miserable or even ceases.
Individual Muslim can also support Islamic causes, sentiments and displays online and offline by likes, donations, collaboration, joining and commenting. Be nice, gentle, charitable and helpful to the general people but don't behave meek, gullible, naïve becoming exploitable and selling your Islamic identity.
People with tongue and/or pen are learnt about Islam, its history and history of the enemies. They will contribute by persuasion and rhetoric. They will go in the offensive against the enemies online and offline. Never give benefit of the doubt to active hostiles, hostilities and hostile ideologies.
Support each other by charity and other forms of help so that Muslims do not become victim of criminal and evil exploitation. Take initiatives and create platforms so that Muslim suffering and humiliation are brought to your localities’ attention. By reaching out to non-Muslim people financially and emotionally who are suffering, through a religious front will also be an act of Dawah.
Islamic activism is thus about not only traditional Dawah like Tablighi but also preserving the freedom and making context and environment to practice Shariah law individually and collectively, and also keeping aware of hostilities, hostile entities and hostile ideologies that may be intruding and creeping in this Islamic existence. Muslims must have a zeal, competitive mind and the mindset of “don’t let go chronic humiliation”.
