zest
PAKISTAN
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 Topic initiated on Sunday, August 5, 2007 - 7:57 PM 
Maulana Farooq Ahmed Khan on Khuda Key Liye
Playing with the Qur’an
While discussing the issue of marriage of a Muslim woman with a non-Muslim on a JEO TV talk show Fifty Minutes Mr Dr Farooq Khan, Islamic Scholar from Al-Mawrid Institute of Islamic Sciences (as the caption under his name read), has expressed a very radical view. He held that Islam has promulgated different legal rulings for different circumstances in this regard. He maintained that in the beginning of the Prophetic mission, when fewer people had accepted Islam, people were not allowed to separate their spouses after their conversion. After the migration the Islamic society started to develop. At this stage, he held, the Holy Qur’an legislated rulings governing the marriages of the converts who had migrated. Later on marriage with the polytheists was prohibited. However, the women of the People of the Book were still allowed to be taken in marriage.
After dividing the gradual promulgation of the rulings governing marriage contacts and making it to seem three different sets of rulings he audaciously concluded that:
a) There are three possible circumstances considering the religious status of the society.
b) It can either be a complete Muslim society with a political set up and a perfect code of law or a non-Muslim one where majority people do not take guidance from Islam in their social and religious life. It can be in a phase of transformation as was during the early Madinan years in early Islam
c) Islam has introduced different rulings governing all these three different situations.
d) Therefore, we cannot subject a woman living in, for example UK to the Shari’ahh rulings promulgated for a completely mature Muslim society.
We all know that this stance is not only uneducated, hasty, ignorant and misguiding regarding the view of the Muslims scholars who failed to appreciate such fine classification of the Shari’ah rulings but also misrepresents the view of the scholars associated with Al-Mawrid.
I do not doubt the acumen of the erudite scholar who can write a Qur’anic exegesis devoting as little time as he gives to taking breakfast. However, my yearn to learn the basis of the fatwa and my duty to the Muslim scholarship of the past as well as today forces me to request revered scholar to through light on the following questions.
1. Has the erudite scholar considered, for a while, that what he said is still to be proved from the Holy Qur’an?
2. The simple fact that it was not only the marriage conventions and legal rulings which were imparted gradually till they reached their culmination but also the teachings about beliefs, practices, worship rituals, and social, financial and political directives, all were promulgated this way. Will it possible to say that a Muslim living in America may not offer prayer as prescribed for the Muslims, may not pay the Zakah as detailed in the Sharia’h and may not consider the wife of his father disallowed to him?
3. Have not the scholars of the Ummah reached at a conclusion in this regard after thorough research in the sources including Allamah Ghamidi?
4. Has the renowned scholar deconstructed the findings of even Allamah Ghamidi who believes that:
a) Islam prohibits marriage with the polytheists.
b) it has however allowed marriage with the women of the People of the Book that too in certain circumstances. The Muslim women may not marry the men among the People of the Book. For all these things he has textual proofs from the Holy Qur’an itself which are convincing and must be deconstructed before presenting any counter view?
5. Is he able to study, understand and draw upon the sources of religious knowledge in Islam?
6. Does the Qur’anic assertion “illaa ma qad salaf (except what has gone)” placed after a number of rulings, not conclusively cut any door to such a view?
7. Wasn’t it incumbent upon him to make clear that his view collides head on with not only of the view of the scholars of the past but also with that of Allamah Ghamidi? People could easily ascribe this to Allamah sahib who is of course quit of any such novelty in the religion.
I would request the learned scholar to please explain these points to this student of Islam and make clear to the people that his views are isolated opinions and my not be ascribed to the Institution or the scholars attached with the it. Merely relying on one’s association with an Institute of repute and pronouncing fatwas may earn disrepute to the Institute.
Regards,
Zest |
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