Reflections on the ICS 2019 opening speech entitled 'The Role of Religion in A Global World'

Religion in the modern world is facing increased challenges. Its role and relevance is being questioned while at the same time the expectation of it to address global and contemporary issues increases consistently. In light of this, religious communities around the world seek to put the role of religion into perspective amid various challenges that are seemingly new.

The conference on “Religious Values in a Plural World” was organised to bring the diverse religious communities together and discuss the positive role of religion with qualities of pro-activeness and being contributive to the rapidly changing context of the modern world. Shaykh Hamza Yusuf delivered the opening speech as a representative for Forum for Promoting Peace in Muslim Societies on behalf of its President, Shaykh Abdallah bin Bayyah whom due to health issues could not be present.

Shaykh Hamza gave a broad perspective on the issues of multiplicity and religious diversity as he touched on various topics in a structured manner. However so, I feel that the first few parts of the lecture were mentioned briefly and hence didn’t do justice to some important points that I would like to highlight here in my reflections for the speech.

Shaykh Hamza Yusuf spoke in the words of Shaykh Bin Bayyah himself, sending his regards and wishes to the organisers and participants. Shaykh Hamza then began with an analogy of how religion can arguably be seen as a type of nuclear power. A nuclear power is elementally huge and effectively clean but on the other hand it can also produce toxic by-products that needs to be contained. Similarly, religion in the social context can be used for both good and evil depending on whoever is using it.

This metaphor, applied particularly to the Islamic Tradition, is similarly dependent on how the religious texts are interpreted. Scholars have formulated a certain methodology in interpreting these texts which according to Shaykh Hamza, his teacher Shaykh Bin Bayyah is an inheritor of. This methodology necessitates a balanced approach to both Text and Context as part of the living Islamic Tradition.

I find this part of the speech to carry a significant weight. In what seems to be one of the pivotal causes for a lot of problems today, there is apparently less emphasis on the question of methodology. Shaykh Hamza mentioned “inheritor of” which signifies how this methodology in interpreting texts have been cultivated and transmitted through specialists of the field rather than it being a discourse for the general public to regulate, just as how medicine is mainly managed by specialists or doctors in the medical field.

Shaykh Hamza also mentioned that to arrive at a relevant and an appropriate understanding of scriptural matters, the two important elements of context and texts have to be carefully considered. Neither can outweigh the other. For example, reading the texts without a proper grasp of context might lead to a wrong understanding and application of the religious law. This can be seen in how some groups justify their terror attacks in peaceful conditions using verses that were meant for hostile and war conditions.

Regarding context, it is argued that Muslim minorities have very different elements that make up its context such as its circumstances, individuals, socio dynamics and customs. The changing reality differs from that of the other prevalent Muslim majority societies. Thus, scholars of Islamic Jurisprudence have turned their focus to the juristic study of Muslims living in minority-based contexts due to the big amount of issues that have yet to be addressed. Shaykh Abdallah Bin Bayyah views that there are three types of Muslim minorities; the assimilationists, isolationists or integrationists. The third type is the ideal model. It neither isolates from society nor does it forsake its identity.

Isolationists are the smaller community that chooses to entirely retreat and live in a separate condition which will lead to two outcomes. They either isolate peacefully like the Amish community as mentioned in the speech, or they develop an aggressive and antagonistic attitude towards ‘the Other’ and the larger community. The former outcome will not be able to sustain its isolation in the long run if they continue to co-exist with the larger community and will eventually need some forms of peaceful integration.

The assimilationists on the other hand, would dissolve into the bigger society at the cost of losing their own identity. This is particularly why Shaykh Abdallah Bin Bayyah sees the need to call for minority Muslims to integrate sensibly into society, promoting peaceful values and contributing to its development while still maintaining their Muslim identity.

On the question of integration, Shaykh Abdallah Bin Bayyah argues that it can be made possible if various communities appreciate the shared core values. Religions have common denominators that can be collectively cherished as foundation for building strong bridges of understanding. Shaykh Hamza mentioned that if one were to read the Analects of Confucius, it would connote some similar values to reading the hadith of the Prophet (peace be upon Him). These shared values with the likes of respecting the elderly, honesty, hard work, can be the mutual points to unite factions of both religious and even secular communities.

The speech is then followed by a concise explanation on the main headline of the conference, Religious Values in Plural Societies. Shaykh Hamza then shared the initiatives that were organised by Forum for Peace and ended the speech complimenting Singapore and its efforts to build a strong nation that celebrates diversity. Although encompassing, I wish the speech could have been given more time to understand and be appreciated better. In general, however, I sensed the speech made a good impression to the different religious communities that attended the conference and to fellow Muslims a deeper appreciation for religious diversity.

As a graduate studying in the religious field, this speech left me a significant impact, particularly on how religiosity is practiced in the social sphere. Taqwa or having a constant remembrance of God is an individual struggle that is regularly emphasised in class. The competency to understand the socio-dynamics and play our part in contributing to the ever changing and diverse community groups is another aspect of the religious education that seems to be a continuous learning journey. In other words, the phase of putting knowledge into practice with wisdom.

A point of reflection that left me an impact was how Shaykh Hamza, together with his teacher Shaykh Abdallah Bin Bayyah are able to perceive current issues and address them through forming this Forum. Their efforts have now become a reference for scholars and discourses to refer to such as the Amman Message and the Marrakesh Declaration. There are surely some setbacks, more so, when it is often affiliated with politics. However, while others choose to isolate themselves from current realities, they choose to deal them openly with wisdom and knowledge as taught by the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon Him).

With the rise in the religious population in the modern world, religion clearly remains to be as relevant as ever. We have seen an increase in multi-faith societies co-existing within the same borders. This calls for a greater investment in religious literacy. According to Harvard’s Religious Literacy Project* - “Understanding complex religious influences is a critical dimension of understanding modern human affairs. In spite of this awareness, there remains a widespread illiteracy about religion that spans the globe. There are many consequences of this illiteracy, but the most urgent is that it fuels conflict and antagonisms and hinders cooperative endeavors in all arenas of human experience”.

Aside from unfortunate events that were caused by exploiting the name of religion, countless social projects initiated by religious communities have also helped to make the world a better place. Islam in particular, unfairly painted to be a belligerent religion have also countlessly proven otherwise if not as an important element by itself in contributing to peace and stability.

The Role of Religion in A Global World