The most significant
change taking
place in our contemporary world is in the sphere of religion. In
general, humanity is going through a period in which the
role of religion is on the increase. Obviously, taking into
account the fundamental character of religion as an entire
philosophy of life, we cannot compare it to any other
phenomenon.
Religion conveys
changes in all aspects of one s life; moral, spiritual, political, economic,
educational, interpersonal relations and in so many others that in
short, religion brings about radical changes in the lives of those who wish to live by it.
Among the major
religions of the world, Islam has always been known for the
comprehensive character of its teachings. Its history offers glorious examples of human models of liberation and revolutionary
change. Highest among these models stands
the figure of our beloved Prophet Mu
h am mad .
We must, therefore,
not be surprised if today we see Islam, in spite of all opposition,
emerging on the world stage to usher in a new era for humanity.
The aim of Islam is
to transform societies,
but this can only happen if the transformation
first happens on a personal level.
The biggest inadequacy of modern materialistic culture is its blindness to the true meaning of the human being; its incapacity to comprehend and achieve the highest aspiration which is the
elevation of the human soul.
The revolutionary role of Islam in the contemporary
world must be understood in the light of its profound capacity
to help the human being to become what he can and should
become.
The Holy Qur an, the life and the teachings of the Prophet Muhammad s], his Sunna, and the example of the pure individuals
within his family, the life and the
precious work of thousands of pious Muslim
scholars, mystics, jurists, and philosophers
have highlighted the interest that Islam has in helping the human being “to become what he can and must become”.
In other words they
are there to help us to achieve the perfection which we are capable of, which
our inner selves desperately aspire to, and
for which God has created us.
Their examples must
be studied, analyzed,
understood and consciously imitated if we
want to become human beings worthy
of this name and especially if we
want to acquire the right provisions for our “final journey .
The Islamic system of
life is based on equilibrium between the spiritual and material. Its belief
system takes human nature into account and
has therefore laid a path configured
as a middle way between the two, producing reconciliation and a fusion between these two apparently contrasting aspects of human life.
In reality anyone who wants to be a complete
being” cannot walk a different walk. Islam in its teachings and educational work has taken into consideration the environment in which men and women live
their material lives. We are referring
here to the social aspect of life in
which an individual has to make use of
all the material means at his/her disposal in order to live.
Taking into
consideration human nature and its particular essence, Islam has
established norms of a general and particular character. Such norms represent
the Islamic Programme ” for the education and development of the human
being. A part of these precepts concerns the duties of men and women in
relation to God, such as the acceptance and
recognition of one s own dependence
in relation to His majesty; one s
own poverty and indigence in relation to His richness and self-sufficiency, one s own ignorance in relation to His omniscience, one s own weakness in relation to His power and our submission to His will.
Mother part of
Islamic precepts concerns the duties of men and women as members
of society and in relation to other human beings. Obviously in trying to fulfil these particular type of duties, one has always to keep in mind ones responsibility
towards the Divine, the only One to whom we submit. In the system established by the Islamic religion, social life is configured as a nurturing ground for the
spiritual life. The spiritual light that
radiates from a Muslim who puts Islamic
precepts into practice truly illuminates
all their social actions.
In this way while one
is with other human
beings he is also fully with God. Even though he lives among many, the individual remains engaged in his own spiritual quest. Everyday life, with its many
twists and turns, might be a struggle but
the heart continues to strive for the serenity that comes from seeing everywhere the “face of God”.