Iffat Mirza, Cambridge
The French President, Emanuel Macron, did more than just raise eyebrows when he stated that ‘Islam is a religion which is experiencing a crisis today, all over the world.’[1] Prompting boycotts of French products all over the Islamic world and protests also, his words definitely ignited a fire. Though this is nothing new. Islam, has always historically been seen in opposition to European society, and since the time of the Crusades, has been described with contempt.[2]
The Muslim world, admittedly, is undergoing a series of crises, but anyone with even an iota of understanding of the history of the Middle East would see that it is not a matter of Islam, rather that of exploitation, extraction, and interventions which have led to the upheaval we see today. To suggest this is Islam’s doing is not only incorrect, historically, but it is also a bold attempt to distance from a problem that has been implanted in the region over the years.
As a young person who has lived through Brexit, the climate crisis, a civil rights movement, grown up seeing wars and unrest all over the world, for me the only stable part of my life has been my faith in Islam. In the Holy Qur’an Chapter 2 Verse 3 it states ‘This is a perfect Book; there is no doubt in it; it is a guidance for the righteous.’[3] In my own personal experience, I can attest to the truth of this statement. Whether it has been a source of peace for myself or a source of inspiration for exploration of scientific knowledge and philosophy, there is indeed an infinite amount of wisdom to be extracted from the Holy Book. The fact that the Holy Qur’an expresses truths which have only been scientifically verified in the last few centuries is a testament to the fact that it is indeed the ‘perfect book.’
President Macron particularly used the term ‘Islam des Lumières’ or ‘Islam of Enlightenment’ which is of course, signalling to France’s own proud history of the likes of Voltaire and Rousseau, the harbinger of French secularism.[4] The irony, of course, is that Islam is inherently an enlightened religion and its history stands as proof of it. I’m not sure the same can be said for Western Europe when viewed through the ages. As Argentine- Mexican philosopher, Enrique Dussel, explains, whilst the so-called ‘Dark Ages’ were a moment of regression and dogmatism in Europe, the rest of the World, from China to Mesoamerica flourished, and indeed, the Muslim Arabs were at the fore of scientific discovery and philosophical discourse.[5] If anything, it was Europe who arrived late to the Enlightenment.
This is not a competition – it is not productive to consider who truly lays claim to enlightenment. However, it must be considered that Islam is in fact a religion that holds ‘western’ values perhaps even in higher regard than the West does so. It was under the guiding principles of the Holy Qur’an and the Holy Prophet (may the peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) that women were emancipated. It was at the time of the Second Rightly Guided Caliph, Hazrat Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) that a welfare system was established, it was under the Muslim empire that extensive knowledge of the human body within us and the universe outside of us was studied and understood.
Meanwhile, if any European dared to put forth any scientific theory that opposed the dogmatic rule, they would be put to brutal death or imprisonment, for example Copernicus and Galileo both suffered at the hands of the ruling elite.
To suggest that Islam is undergoing a crisis is a naïve way to consider world events, and one that is entirely unproductive as it allows those with ill intentions to take it into their own hands to try and corrupt Islam from its true teachings in order to justify their own vested interests. Indeed, it is such rhetoric that was espoused during the Cold War that got us into this situation in the first place as theocracies arose out of international interventions.
[1] https://www.euronews.com/2020/11/02/macron-and-islam-what-has-the-french-president-actually-said-to-outrage-the-muslim-world
[2] https://www.aljazeera.com/opinions/2016/12/28/the-legacy-of-the-crusades-in-contemporary-muslim-world
[3] The Holy Qur’an, chapter 2 verse 3, translated by Maulwi Sher Ali Sahib (ra)
[4] https://www.euronews.com/2020/11/02/macron-and-islam-what-has-the-french-president-actually-said-to-outrage-the-muslim-world
Voice of British Muslim Women 
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