The Collapse Of The Muslim Civilization And The Rise Of Fundamentalism
The collapse of the Muslim civilization toward the end of the 15th century, after centuries of Crusades, ended the Renaissance that lasted from the 8th through the 15th centuries when Muslims ruled the civilized world. This put the Muslims under colonial imperialism determined to keep them divided, poor, and uneducated to supply the colonial powers with cheap raw materials, labor, and open unregulated markets.
Colonialists encouraged the rise of Muslim fundamentalism which is bent on freezing Islam into 15th century words and concepts using labels such as sunnah, Shari'ah, and the preservation of the traditions of Islam. This prevents Muslims from continuously developing to meet the challenges of a rapidly changing world and to adapt useful non Muslim concepts and institutions to the needs of the Muslims.
Fundamentalists oppose any effort to keep the eternal and universal message of the Qur'an effective in today's environment. They miss the fact that Muslim law (Shari'ah) and the interpretation of the Qur'an at the end of the 15th century reflected the best efforts of Muslim scholars over a period of 8 centuries.
The Qur'an is not a book of words, stories or commandments. The Qur'an is the eternal and universal word of God in the form of Arabic clues, signs, and guidelines (Ayat) to help the Muslim succeed in this world and in the hereafter.
The message of Islam cannot be frozen in time and has no single or official interpretation. Islam has no religious hierarchy which means that the efforts of all Muslim scholars are no more than their personal interpretation of the message of the Qur'an. Muslims can accept or reject such an interpretation because individuals are responsible for their own actions and spirituality. Individuals cannot transfer that responsibility to others regardless of how many books or official titles others may have.
The 15th century scholars, who formulated what is called today: Islamic Shari'ah, are not prophets and their best efforts must be subject to radical revisions to help the Muslims close the gap between their societies and the West.
The collapse of the Muslim civilization should not be construed as a failure of Islam as a spiritual path. The collapse was caused by a failure of the state and its institutions to adapt to a changing world.
Muslims can still turn to God and use the Qur'an to advance along the spiritual path based on their best interpretation of the divine clues regardless of what the fundamentalists say or do. This interpretation will change as they advance along the spiritual path. The interpretation will also change as the world the Muslims live in changes.
The true spirit of Islam can be found today in the teachings and practices of the Sufis.
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Revised on 10/3/99
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