Women And Islam

By Tyseer Aboulnasr, Ph.D.


IMAGE OF MUSLIM WOMENAs a Muslim woman, I found myself thrown right into the controversy of women's role in today's society. Over and over I had to explain that what you see in a Hollywood movie about Islam has nothing to do with Islam. For years and years, the average western person has been subjected to one image of a Muslim woman: mysteriously veiled, heavily guarded, living in a harem with a brutal sex maniac for a husband. One can't really blame this person if he or she accepts this image as true especially if he or she never saw Muslim women in any other light.
So how can one start this preconceived image and get this person to see where a woman fits in a truly Muslim society? I can only try to highlight the status of women in the actual teachings of Islam as opposed to the practices of many so-called Muslim countries and the misrepresentation of Hollywood movies. Then, it would be up to the individual to pass a fair judgement on where women stand in a truly Muslim society.
MEN AND WOMEN ARE EQUALLet us start right from the beginning, the creation of Adam and Eve as revealed by God in the Qur'an. Adam and Eve were forbidden to eat fruit from the tree but both were tempted by Satan to taste it. They both sinned and later regretted it. God repeatedly reprimanded them both. Thus, in no way was Eve and subsequently all women held responsible for the original sin nor was she considered as Satan's way to get to Adam and all his male descendants. That, to start with, breaks to pieces the general belief that women are the cause of men's sufferings on earth, that they are Satan's temptation, an evil to be avoided if at all possible. In Islam, men and women are created equal as human beings though obviously not identical. Throughout the Qur'an, it is repeated over and over that men and women are created as companions on earth to complement and comfort one another. They are both held accountable for their deeds, individually. Both are rewarded or punished equally for their deeds. Muslims have been spared the debate about whether a woman had a soul or whether she was a person or not. That was never questioned while it was a hot issue in western societies up to the 1930's when the Supreme Court of Canada passed a judgement that women really are persons! This was simply a fact asserted by a religion that was born in a society where burying newborn girls alive, out of shame, as common practice. Sons were a source of pride while girls brought along disgrace. Islam immediately prohibited such a brutal discrimination. It was spelled out clearly that one person, be it male or female, can be better than another by virtue of his or her piety alone, not sex, not origin.
ACTIVE PARTICIPATIONHowever, Islam's regard for women is not simply giving her a chance to survive. Muslims, men and women, are told to seek knowledge and education wherever they find it and to use this knowledge to help fellow human beings. This is a duty about which they will be asked on Judgement Day. When the Prophet himself could not read or write, his wife Hafsa, taught others to read and write. History tells us about the immense contribution of women to the Islamic community. The first believer in the message of the Prophet Muhammad was a woman. She was his wife, Khadija, and his source of protection from the pagans of Mecca in the early years. The Prophet himself was later actually physically saved by a woman during one of the battles after having been isolated by the pagans. Later, after he died, many of his sayings and teachings were narrated by another woman, his second wife Aisha. These sayings are an essential part of Islamic teachings. So what does that say about how Islam views woman, to entrust her with these roles? The Muslim woman's active participation in community affairs was established from the earliest days. This includes the right to vote. She has always been a separate individual with a separate vote. She had to swear allegiance independently of her husband and father.
MARRIAGE AND DIVORCENow what happened if this Muslim woman got married. For starters, she couldn't be married against her will, her consent was essential. If she did accept, she did not give up her family name for her husband's name. She did not have to be a staunch feminist or proclaim I am not a property to be passed on from father to husband. She simply was never expected to change her name. Important as that may be symbolically, it is even more important, on a practical level, that she was always considered a separate financial entity. When she married, her property remained her own and her husband had no access to it without her consent. She wasn't even required to share in the family's expenses even if she were a lot richer than the man. She was entitled to an explicit share of inheritance from family members. That share might be less than her male counterpart but that was only fair considering that her money was hers to keep while his money belongs to his whole family including his wife and any other women in his family who need financial support. All this was established more than 1400 years ago even before people in Europe realized it was unfair to shut daughters out of their father's inheritance or for the man to automatically acquire his wife's wealth upon her marriage.
If the marriage relationship fails and a divorce becomes the only option, a woman's rights are protected. A Muslim woman is entitled to maintain the right to divorce her husband if she specifies that right in the marriage contract. Otherwise, he retains that right. In any case, whoever has this right does not change the fact that divorce is considered a last resort, highly discouraged and to be used only if attempts for reconciliation by family members and even the judge have failed.
A MOTHERAs a mother, she is held in the highest regard. We are told that our mothers are the most worthy of our care, love and companionship. Fathers come in a distant second. Because God knows his own creation, he knows that men would be tempted to abuse their physical strength when dealing with women. Repeatedly, throughout the Qur'an and in the Prophet's sayings, men are reminded of their responsibility to be kind and compassionate to women. That was again stressed by the Prophet in his last public address where he highlighted the essentials of Islam. Men are told that the best among you are the kindest to the women in their families. They are often reminded not to take advantage of the woman's relative physical weakness since they will eventually have to answer to an even stronger Being, God himself.
WOMEN'S DRESSAll this seems to paint such a beautiful picture of women in Islam but what about the veil or, less romantic but more real, the Muslim dress code? Islam, as a whole, is described in the Qur'an as a religion of the centre balancing the needs and freedom of the individual with the good of the society. This is the general rule which also governs the relationship between men and women in society. They have the right to work and mix together as long as that right is not abused, hurting the society as a whole. This implies that the environment in which they see and talk to one another should be a clean respectable environment where sexual temptation is practically eliminated. Some westerners, and regrettably, some Muslims, take this to imply locking up the women or hiding them in veils. However, that contradicts the practices in the Prophet's life when women fought in battles, nursed the wounded, argued with the Caliph and even taught religion. The whole idea of modesty in dress is to ensure that both sides are not distracted by physical appearances. The dress code applies equally to men and women. Both should not look sexually inviting. That might not seem like too much fun, it certainly will not allow for Dallas-like episodes, but it would improve the chances for a better family-oriented society where men and women treat each other with mutual respect as human beings, rather than as sex objects. These are the general requirements for the Muslim dress code for men and women. How women actually dress in specific Muslim countries has a lot to do with the local culture and not just with Islam.
FACT OR FICTION: YOUR CHOICEOne can't help but wonder, if Islam is so good for women, how come what we see in countries with Muslim majorities is utterly different? If it makes things any easier to understand, without, justifying them, the same applies to all other religions. I am sure Jesus would be appalled to see how his teachings have been twisted around for ages to the extent of promoting slavery or tolerating exploitation through turning the other cheek.
Muslims, like people of other beliefs have done a super job of twisting their religion to suit the needs of the more powerful in their society by generalizing specific rules on the one hand and limiting general rules on the other as they find convenient. Add this to innovations added onto the religion to suit the local cultures and you get something that may or may not represent the original. If on top of that you have a media that is either too ignorant or too hostile then the end product that reaches the average unbiased non-Muslim definitely has nothing to do with the real teachings of Islam. The only hope lies in people realizing that before one judges anything, one has to separate fact from fiction, opinions from actual happenings, etc. . . The true image of a true Muslim woman in a true Muslim society may not be as fascinating as what we see in the movies. However, if given a choice between this image and any other alternative available to date, I doubt it will be a hard choice.

Understanding Islam

Imagine that you have traveled to another location to attend to personal affairs. You step off a train in some locale, take your bags and proceed to your destination. You walk a few paces to find some transport. Then the reality of ideological contamination assaults you. A man confronts you face to face and screams at you in another language. His face contorted with hate, almost touches yours, the neck veins are throbbing, his temples are bursting, his hair is flying and with fist pumping theatrics he spits in your face and walks away. Thus battered and a little terrified, you find a taxi and inquire nervously to the driver what just happened. He replies, ‘oh that was a man of religion and peace warning you to leave and that infidels are not wanted here.’ How ironic. Confused you touch your attaché bag full of charity money that you are donating to the local hospital as a gift from Christians in your own country to this desolate backwater, and wonder what you are doing in this location. Not all people who believe in various ideologies are fanatics of course. Not all Christians for instance are charitable or good. Many ‘militant’ Christians are brainwashed, corrupt, ignorant and just as dangerous in their proselytizing zealotry as the vainest Muslim. Yet I have never been able to satisfactorily find in any writings; webzines; punditry; or resource why Islam is named as a ‘religion’. It is a mystifying myth that confuses the central issue of our times – that of defending civilization against what I would term is nothing more than barbaric paganism. Why is Islam a religion? If Islam is a religion why isn’t Scientology? After all the Scientologists named Tom Cruise as a Bishop of their church. Cruise regularly screams and shrieks that of course Scientology is a valid faith and spiritual program. Why not ascribe to Cruise and his followers the status of a church-going, faith-bound religion? Islam is not monolithic. Sunnism, Shiaism, Salafism and many other subgroups all have different sects, beliefs, and degrees of commitment. Yet the central fact remains that the Koran, the Hadiths [supplements explaining what Mohammed really meant in the Koran] and Sharia Law [the legal code which enforces Koranic doctrine], are the foundations of Islamic life. There might be differences between the sub groups and sects on the literal interpretation of various parts of the trinity of the Islamic ideology, but all Muslims believe that civil, political and religious society is subservient to the Koran, Hadiths and Sharia Law. Islam like Scientology, Hitlerite paganism, or the fascist tenets that inform Russian or Chinese exceptionalism exemplified in Communist doctrine, is the opposite of Christianity. Paganisms elevate the leader, the cult, the universality of the program, and the destruction of individuality, responsibility and the meaning of life. Paganisms prefer death; a violent reordering of reality and the imposition of slavery to the ideology, in place of the world of the six senses, freedom and the celebration of life. In the Christian world, Caesar can take what is his; and you shall keep what is yours including your own personal system of faith. Charity, aid, recognition that slavery is wrong, females are equal, that good acts transcend this world, and that character and honor matter – all this and more comes from Christianity. Many parts of Christian history can be criticized and many acts of bloody violence emanated from religious hatred. But the underlying reality is that the faith and mental code that informs Christianity helped shape, and is a vital part of, civilization. What does Islam teach? The Koran is full of hate and bile against Jews and Christians. The Koran supported by the Hadiths loudly proclaims that all of mankind must be Muslim. The leaders of Islam for the past 1400 years have stated, with unrelenting fanaticism, that their ideology will dominate the world. A wide swathe of Islamic populations, perhaps 25 % or more, has no regard for other ideas, cultures, or even life itself. This is evidenced by the daily butchering in Iraq and elsewhere as Muslims kill other Muslim innocents for various reasons including revenge killings; murdering those who help the infidel; lusting for power; or destroying those who are less fundamentalist. What you see in Baghdad is the clear expression of a paganism with no regard for life, for innocents or for civilization. Why then is Islam still declared a religion? Because it screams in your face that it is. Because it builds temples on top of buildings and sites from other more advanced cultures. Because Muslims threaten you if you dare question their religiosity. Because they strut with ignorant pride in collective self-madness assured that they will dominate lesser beings. Because like Tom Cruise and the Scientologists they assault you if you dare question their sanity. Culture is King. If you want to understand the culture of an ideology, or the culture of society at large look at its leadership, review the personality of its founders and analyze their ‘great men and women’. The American Constitution was premised on ideas from John Locke and the ancient Stoics. Jefferson’s holy trinity [life liberty and the pursuit of happiness], is rooted in Christianity, the Western Enlightenment and the English liberal tradition. This is one reason why the United States is great, moral and powerful. Now look at Islam. Mohammad was the exact converse of Christ. Mohammad was an illiterate who killed; murdered; raped; engaged in concubinal and lascivious sex; stole; plundered; and engaged in war to spread his political control. Christ did none of these things. Mohammed took a 3000 year old moon-cult, added some monotheistic inventions he took from the Jews and Christians and proclaimed it holy and good. He in effect invented a political ideology and said it was the natural successor to the Christian state and only he could interpret Ali-ilah’s [moon cult deity] word. Read about the 1400 year jihad against any and all cultures. Arabs, Turks, and Muslims have warred and destroyed civilizations ranging from black Africa, to white Europe, to the Buddhists and Hindus in India. 30 million blacks were sold into slavery [vs. 10 million shipped to the ‘new world’]; 25 million or more whites were used as chattel in Muslim empires; and about 30 million Hindus and Buddhists were killed by marauding Muslim armies. This perpetual war, hate, acrimony and pagan fanaticism has never been equaled in the history of man. Yet Islam is revered as a ‘religion’. I would like the media, the politicians and the Islamic elite to explain why we should take seriously this idea that Islam is a religion. Was Hitlerism a religion too? It is not enough to scream and spit in my face and threaten me for asking this question. Maybe outlining why others should respect an obscenely violent and pagan cult from Arabia as a religion, would be a good starting point at dialogue to help defuse Islamic violence. Then again Muslims have historically never proven themselves adept at rational discourse. Neither were the Nazis or the Communists – those two other favorites of our media elite. I look forward to hailing Bishop Cruise at the Church of Scientology sometime soon.bpraying to the moon cult.

Why is Islam a religion?

Imagine that you have traveled to another location to attend to personal affairs. You step off a train in some locale, take your bags and proceed to your destination. You walk a few paces to find some transport. Then the reality of ideological contamination assaults you. A man confronts you face to face and screams at you in another language. His face contorted with hate, almost touches yours, the neck veins are throbbing, his temples are bursting, his hair is flying and with fist pumping theatrics he spits in your face and walks away. Thus battered and a little terrified, you find a taxi and inquire nervously to the driver what just happened. He replies, ‘oh that was a man of religion and peace warning you to leave and that infidels are not wanted here.’ How ironic. Confused you touch your attaché bag full of charity money that you are donating to the local hospital as a gift from Christians in your own country to this desolate backwater, and wonder what you are doing in this location. Not all people who believe in various ideologies are fanatics of course. Not all Christians for instance are charitable or good. Many ‘militant’ Christians are brainwashed, corrupt, ignorant and just as dangerous in their proselytizing zealotry as the vainest Muslim. Yet I have never been able to satisfactorily find in any writings; webzines; punditry; or resource why Islam is named as a ‘religion’. It is a mystifying myth that confuses the central issue of our times – that of defending civilization against what I would term is nothing more than barbaric paganism. Why is Islam a religion? If Islam is a religion why isn’t Scientology? After all the Scientologists named Tom Cruise as a Bishop of their church. Cruise regularly screams and shrieks that of course Scientology is a valid faith and spiritual program. Why not ascribe to Cruise and his followers the status of a church-going, faith-bound religion? Islam is not monolithic. Sunnism, Shiaism, Salafism and many other subgroups all have different sects, beliefs, and degrees of commitment. Yet the central fact remains that the Koran, the Hadiths [supplements explaining what Mohammed really meant in the Koran] and Sharia Law [the legal code which enforces Koranic doctrine], are the foundations of Islamic life. There might be differences between the sub groups and sects on the literal interpretation of various parts of the trinity of the Islamic ideology, but all Muslims believe that civil, political and religious society is subservient to the Koran, Hadiths and Sharia Law. Islam like Scientology, Hitlerite paganism, or the fascist tenets that inform Russian or Chinese exceptionalism exemplified in Communist doctrine, is the opposite of Christianity. Paganisms elevate the leader, the cult, the universality of the program, and the destruction of individuality, responsibility and the meaning of life. Paganisms prefer death; a violent reordering of reality and the imposition of slavery to the ideology, in place of the world of the six senses, freedom and the celebration of life. In the Christian world, Caesar can take what is his; and you shall keep what is yours including your own personal system of faith. Charity, aid, recognition that slavery is wrong, females are equal, that good acts transcend this world, and that character and honor matter – all this and more comes from Christianity. Many parts of Christian history can be criticized and many acts of bloody violence emanated from religious hatred. But the underlying reality is that the faith and mental code that informs Christianity helped shape, and is a vital part of, civilization. What does Islam teach? The Koran is full of hate and bile against Jews and Christians. The Koran supported by the Hadiths loudly proclaims that all of mankind must be Muslim. The leaders of Islam for the past 1400 years have stated, with unrelenting fanaticism, that their ideology will dominate the world. A wide swathe of Islamic populations, perhaps 25 % or more, has no regard for other ideas, cultures, or even life itself. This is evidenced by the daily butchering in Iraq and elsewhere as Muslims kill other Muslim innocents for various reasons including revenge killings; murdering those who help the infidel; lusting for power; or destroying those who are less fundamentalist. What you see in Baghdad is the clear expression of a paganism with no regard for life, for innocents or for civilization. Why then is Islam still declared a religion? Because it screams in your face that it is. Because it builds temples on top of buildings and sites from other more advanced cultures. Because Muslims threaten you if you dare question their religiosity. Because they strut with ignorant pride in collective self-madness assured that they will dominate lesser beings. Because like Tom Cruise and the Scientologists they assault you if you dare question their sanity. Culture is King. If you want to understand the culture of an ideology, or the culture of society at large look at its leadership, review the personality of its founders and analyze their ‘great men and women’. The American Constitution was premised on ideas from John Locke and the ancient Stoics. Jefferson’s holy trinity [life liberty and the pursuit of happiness], is rooted in Christianity, the Western Enlightenment and the English liberal tradition. This is one reason why the United States is great, moral and powerful. Now look at Islam. Mohammad was the exact converse of Christ. Mohammad was an illiterate who killed; murdered; raped; engaged in concubinal and lascivious sex; stole; plundered; and engaged in war to spread his political control. Christ did none of these things. Mohammed took a 3000 year old moon-cult, added some monotheistic inventions he took from the Jews and Christians and proclaimed it holy and good. He in effect invented a political ideology and said it was the natural successor to the Christian state and only he could interpret Ali-ilah’s [moon cult deity] word. Read about the 1400 year jihad against any and all cultures. Arabs, Turks, and Muslims have warred and destroyed civilizations ranging from black Africa, to white Europe, to the Buddhists and Hindus in India. 30 million blacks were sold into slavery [vs. 10 million shipped to the ‘new world’]; 25 million or more whites were used as chattel in Muslim empires; and about 30 million Hindus and Buddhists were killed by marauding Muslim armies. This perpetual war, hate, acrimony and pagan fanaticism has never been equaled in the history of man. Yet Islam is revered as a ‘religion’. I would like the media, the politicians and the Islamic elite to explain why we should take seriously this idea that Islam is a religion. Was Hitlerism a religion too? It is not enough to scream and spit in my face and threaten me for asking this question. Maybe outlining why others should respect an obscenely violent and pagan cult from Arabia as a religion, would be a good starting point at dialogue to help defuse Islamic violence. Then again Muslims have historically never proven themselves adept at rational discourse. Neither were the Nazis or the Communists – those two other favorites of our media elite. I look forward to hailing Bishop Cruise at the Church of Scientology sometime soon. I just hope Cruise and his followers are praying to the moon cult.

Main Beliefs and Principles

The five pillars of Islam are

Tawheed - Belief in one god and associating no partners in the worship of god.

Salat - The five daily prayers Fajr, Zuhr, Asr, Maghrib and Isha.

Fasting - Fasting during the holy month of Ramadhan.

Zakat - Donation of 2.5% of a Muslim’s wealth towards charity and good causes.

Hajj - Performing a once in a lifetime obligation of making pilgrimage to the holy city of Mecca.

Islamic Finances

If you’re Muslim and are concerned about financial products that comply with Sharia Law, there are more and more options available to you today. The first Islamic bank in the UK, the Islamic Bank of Britain, opened its headquarters in Birmingham in 2004, offering a range of products and services such as pensions, mortgages and loans.

The main requirement for financial products and services under Sharia Law is that they neither charge interest nor pay it out, as making money from money is considered usury, and that they do not invest in companies that are deemed unethical, such as those connected with alcohol, tobacco, pornography or gambling.

What often happens when providing loans is that the bank will purchase an item for the customer at a set price and rent it or sell it to them, with repayments made in instalments. The bank makes its money by levying a charge on the customer’s payments.

With investments, Islamic finance works on the basis of sharing the risk as well as the reward. Both the customer and the bank agree on terms for sharing the risk of any investment and split any profits equally between them.

The four main modes of Islamic banking are known as murabaha, where a purchase is made by the bank and re-sold to the customer without any interest payments; musharaka, a partnership in which the rewards and risks – i.e. the profits and losses – are shared by both the bank and the customer in an investment; mudaraba, where someone places their investment in the hands of an expert who invests for them and shares the profit but doesn’t bear the risk of any losses; and ijarah, a rental agreement made in order for the customer to obtain goods, in which rental payments are made over a specified period and the bank reclaims the goods at the end of it.

Many of the high street banks offer Islamic products, and there are some Middle Eastern banks with branches in the UK that provide financial products and services suitable for muslims.

Trust funds

The government introduced child trust funds in 2005 to help new parents to start saving for their child’s future. Upon the birth of a child, they are given £250 in vouchers to invest on their behalf, and an additional £250 on the child’s seventh birthday. Additional contributions of up to £1,200 can be made annually, and the money can be invested in savings accounts or in stocks and shares, or a combination of both (a stakeholder account).

A Sharia-compliant child trust fund is also available for the children of Muslim families, and is provided by the Children’s Mutual. It’s a stakeholder account, which invests in the stock market until the child turns 13 and then transfers the funds into a savings account or lower risk investments such as government bonds. This aims to reduce the impact of any stock market slumps in the run-up to their 18th birthday. All investments are made in funds that don’t compromise Islamic principles, and no interest is paid on the savings.

Mortgages

As mortgages are interest-charging loans, they are not considered acceptable to the Islamic faith. However, as most people can’t afford to pay cash to buy a property outright, there is a demand for Sharia-compliant mortgages among the Muslim community. Many high street banks now offer such products, as does the Islamic Bank of Britain. An Islamic mortgage normally works by means of ijara, a leasing agreement in which the bank purchases the property on behalf of the customer and charges rent to them (including a handling fee) until the purchase price is repaid, at which point the customer owns the property outright. As with other mortgages, the bank retains the rights to the property until this point.

Bank accounts

To comply with the Islamic faith, bank accounts should neither charge nor pay interest. This normally means that there will be no overdraft or credit card facilities on current accounts, and that savings accounts invest money to make a profit rather than receive interest on it.

Pension schemes

A few financial organisations now offer Islamic pension schemes, allowing Muslims to invest for their retirement without having to compromise their beliefs. Such schemes invest only in funds considered to be ethical under Sharia Law – i.e. no investment in companies involved in alcohol, tobacco, betting or pornography, or any companies such as banks that profit from charging interest. If any dividends arise as a result of business involvement in any of these areas, the money is ‘purified’ by giving it to charity rather than awarding it to those investing in the scheme.

Islam

Muslims have always been accustomed to living with people of diverse faiths. Islam is in fact the world's first ecumenical religion, not only accepting but guaranteeing a structural pluralism. Allah instead of promising Muslims to become the dominant religious community on earth wants them to compete with each other in piety and good work [ Quran 5 :48 ]

Islam was meant from the outset to be a universal religion, and today thanks to massive migration in the West and new communication mediums, Islam is a truly global phenomenon. It is the second largest denomination even in places like Sweden. Yet increased contact has not reduced prejudice against Islam and Muslims. This is partially the Muslim' fault. Many 'cultural' assimilated Muslims are an embarrassment for the entire Ummah. Also, many traditionally Islamic scholars are in capable of reaching Western hearts and minds.

There is no better way for Muslims to promote the message of Islam than living Islam and not just performing it. Their neighbors will not know they are Muslim by the number of times they pray or fast but by their honesty, truthfulness, compassion, reliability, cleanliness, sense of justice and civic responsibility. Such an approach is not to lead to a specific "American Islam" but the avoidance of a subculture that would seem alien and remote to the local population. Muslims can avoid such a trend if they become an expert in distinguishing between what is truly Islamic in terms of religion, and what is merely a cultural import from their homes countries.

For Muslims to live in non-Muslim countries is not a new situation. The first such experience was made by those early Muslims who temporarily migrated to Christina Ethiopia. All Muslim legal schools (madahib) developed doctrines for that eventuality. In particular Imam Jaafar as-Saadiq, Imam Shafei' and the Hanafi school considered Muslim minorities a legitimate and even advantageous to Islam. Admitting pockets of dar al-Islam (abode of Islam) could exist wherever Muslim enjoyed justice and religious toleration.

The Message of Islam cannot be transmitted in the West as along as Muslims play hide and seek with the issues of "democracy" and "human rights", including the rights of women. The fact that some of these concepts may not be specifically mentioned in the Quran and that they have been abused by Western imperialist colonizers, it does not mean that they are incompatible with Islam. What counts are the relevant Quranic principles (maqasid), including al-shura and the institutions of amir or khilafa (vicergerency of all human beings) and the early Islamic political history with its record of elections and free speech. One of these foundations is that it is possible to construct the model of an Islamic State - like - Malaysia - is democratic, essentially republican, pluralistic, with division of power, the rule of law, the protection of minorities and a parliament.

There is no doubt that all sovereignty rests with Allah . It is, however, equally true that it takes people to translate that sovereignty into policy. Undoubtedly, Islamic Law is not made but discovered from the Quran and Sunnah and further developed into fiqh. If Muslim lawyers had been more imaginative they would have been quick to point that the core of the Western universal human rights charter are anchored in the Quran - and therefore more secure than rights invented at a conference table. Men and women are biologically not identical [ Quran 3 : 36 ]. In theory only, the West refuses to draw legal conclusions from this reality. The less fictitious Muslim standpoint says that it is not discrimination if Islamic law deals differently with the genders, as far as this is biologically warranted, for instance in the different codes of Islamic dress. The Quran does, however, not confer on men a superior status nor is it justification for reducing Muslimat in practice to second class citizenship.

Muslims should highlight Islam as the most rational, without sacraments, a clergy, a Pope, a church, or a hierarchy and thus the religion for emancipated and pluralistic minded, post-modern people.

Finally, we need to inform the world that the Muslims form a warm-hearted, mutually supportive, worldwide community of committed people-the very thing Western people are craving for. The business community might be particularly impressed if the prohibition of riba is presented to them in its correct form: profit-and-loss sharing being a safeguard for the maintenance of the entrepreneurial spirit on which the capitalist economic system depends.