Post by Prince of Destiny on Jan 2, 2006 23:09:07 GMT -5
Muslim Women, Islam and Feminist Islam
Muslim women bring prayers to Washington
washingtontimes.com/upi-breaking/20050408-070423-4489r.htm
Washington, DC, Apr. 8 (UPI) -- Two women -- one of them a veteran campaigner and the other a novice -- prayed beside men Friday in Washington's Islamic Center, the hub of America's Muslim community.
"It felt so beautiful," said Rahat Khan, a tax accountant from Maryland. "I was really proud and pleased to see all these Muslim men, creating space for us."
According to Nomani and her supporters, including an Islamic scholar Amina Wadud, Islam does not prevent women from leading prayers or Saying their prayers beside men. They note that even today, men and women pray side by side in Islam's two holiest mosques in Mecca and Medina, in Saudi Arabia.
Traditionalists, who have dominated mosques for centuries, disagree. They acknowledge that women pray in the same space as men in Mecca and Medina, especially during the annual pilgrimage when millions come to the two cities for Hajj. But they argue that these are very sacred places where men and women both focus on their prayers. In ordinary mosques, they say, a woman's presence can distract a man, particularly because Muslim prayers are more physical and involving bending, bowing and prostrating.
"If our presence distracts men, it is their problem, not our," says Nomani who came to Washington earlier this week to extend her campaign to the U.S. capital.
Muslim Women, Islam and Feminist Islam
The issue of woman in Islam was clear and never debated among Muslims. Allah (swt) created men and women and legislated general responsibilities for both, such as carrying the Daw'ah and holding the rulers accountable, in addition to designating specific responsibilities for each gender. Muslims acknowledged that sovereignty belongs to Allah, and the rules related to both men and women are Islamic rules deduced through ijtihad based upon the daleel. It was implicitly recognized among Muslims that the process of ijtihad and the concept of daleel are not sex-dependent, and thus, a "male" or "female" understanding of Islam never emerged. The only understanding that Islam produced for any concept or rule was the legal understanding based upon the daleel. As a result, all Muslims, whether man or woman, adhered to the Islamic rules in their entirety, and the Muslims with this understanding were saved from the "sex wars" that continue to plague the West until today.
It was this understanding that the Muslims lacked in dealing with the onslaught from the West regarding the status of women in Islam. The ideological invasion initiated by the West raised issues related to the Islamic Social System, such as why the man is allowed to marry four women and why the woman must cover her entire body except the face and hands. Even more damaging was the very concept of the status of women in Islam which the West constructed and propagated - a slave in a male-dominated society. The proper response to all of this would be to realize that the outlook of the West towards women stem from a specific viewpoint. The Muslims could have easily addressed this issue by presenting Islam with its intellectual basis, forcing the West to question whether the human being or Allah was fit to decide what status would be conferred to both men and women. However, the Muslims made a critical mistake by attempting to justify the status of women in Islam to accommodate the Western outlook. Some Muslims reacted to the accusations initiated by the West began by calling for Western ideas such as woman's liberation and equality between the sexes, thinking that doing so would stave off some of the attacks. As a reaction to this group, another section of Muslims went to the opposite extreme and claimed that the woman should not leave her home and are prohibited from trade, education, and politics. A third group emerged in an attempt to reconcile between the two camps, which was no more than an attempt to reconcile between Western thoughts and Islamic emotions.
The end result of these attempts to address this issue was a total disaster. As a direct outcome of these movements, the Muslim Ummah was faced with three options regarding the status of women: To adopt the Western model, which was based on a reaction to an incorrect viewpoint; or to adopt what was labeled as the "Islamic" model, which was a reaction to a reaction; or to adopt the model which attempted to mix Islam with the Western outlook, which was a compromise between two reactions. Further compounding the problem was the fact that the Muslims began to lose the distinction between Islam and various local cultures and traditions which did in fact discriminate heavily upon women. Many aspects of these traditions and cultures were deemed Islamic, particularly on the issue of women. This intermixing of Islam with local culture succeeded in magnifying the image among Muslims and non-Muslims that Islam is oppressive to women
Intellectual Rape Of Muslim Women
The Muslim world today faces a very grave situation. Not only have Muslims been disunited and removed from their homelands, but their women are ebing raped on a daily basis. I refer not only to the physical rape of our women but I also refer to ‘Intellectual Rape” of Muslim women.
When the Prophet Muhammad (saw) brought the message of Islam to mankind, it revolutionized the status of women; from granting her the basic right of life (not being killed for being female) to giving her rights in the economic, political and social spheres of life. Islam also placed great deal of emphasis on the need for knowledge for both men and women. Muhammad (saw) said: “The search of knowledge is a duty for every Muslim (male and female).”
The Quran states: “only those of his servants who are learned truly fear god.” (35:28)
If this is so then why is it that Muslim women of today are in last place in the intellectual race of knowledge, specifically Islamic knowledge? Where are the female scholars? The revival of women scholars can be brought about by following examples of Islamic history. Of the many female figures in the past, Aisha (ra) and Umm-al-Fadl (ra) were great scholarly women. They both fought in the way of Islam with the strongest weapon – knowledge. Aisha (ra) is remembered primarily for her intelligence and outstanding memory. She was one of the most reliable sources of hadith, reporting more than a thousand. Both men and women would approach Aisha (ra) for her vast knowledge of Islam. She was a great Muslim scholar of her time and to this day is held in the highest regard.
Umm-al-Fadl (ra) was the second woman to embrace Islam after Khadijah (ra) despite the fact that her husband remained non-Muslim. Her traits of powerful speech and expression of knowledge can be traced to an incident which occurred in medina. It was very often that the people gathered at Umm-al-Fadl ‘s (ra) house and both the Ansaar and Muhajiroon were present at the meeting. A dispute had broken out as the Ansaar questioned why they had to give up so much for the Muhajiroon. It was Umm-al-Fadl (ra) who appeased that conflict when she said that if anyone had knowledge, they would know that Islam is but a brotherhood and we must sacrifice for each other. She (ra) called for Muslims unity if anybody did not agree. She asked them to leave. The Prophet (saw) was also present was impressed by umm-al-Fadl’s understanding and expression of Islamic knowledge. Umm-al-Fadl was also responsible for a large dawah movement on the outskirts of Medina resulting in the conversion of more then one thousand people.
The lives of Aisha (ra) and Umm-al-Fadl (ra) show us what heights Muslim women can reach. We must take them as our role models in seeking knowledge and understanding the truth. Islam has encouraged and commanded us in the quest of knowledge. There are no limitations of Muslim women becoming scholars so why create them? Unfortunately, too many Muslims feel that ignorance means obedience so the Muslim women are not encouraged to come out of their intellectual slumber. This is the mentality that must be conquered and this letter is a wake up call to all Muslims: a call to fight against the “Intellectual Rape” Muslim women facing today. So if true Islamic revival is to occur the women as well as the men must pick up their armor of knowledge and fight together for the institution of Islam. Knowledge is the only thing, which can overcome the darkness of ignorance, which hangs over us today.
If these above facts are discussed with Muslim women, how they understand issues, they do really thinking from Muslim's point of view or from Women's point of view, then inshallah we can able to make a revival in their thoughts.
Prince of Destiny