Amid chaos of everyday life; good and bad things, talking
over modernizing Da’wa discourse, known as religious discourse, became less and
even no longer discussed. In my opinion, it is better to describe it as Da’wa discourse,
since religious discourse is what God said in his divine books and messages,
while Da’wa means the human interpretation of religion subject to being right
or wrong. Being also subject to expire, it may turn into poisoning the minds
and souls instead of nourishing them. Moreover, Da’wa discourse is subject to
progress and modernization, for human life develops and changes.
I stopped long before what Saudi crown
prince Muhammed bin Salman said during the conference in which he unveiled his
new development-targeted project “Neom”, as his words were decisive in
declaring that his country seeks an enlightened moderate version of religion
interpretation and practices; a version that is open to the rest of religions
without prejudice. He also added that his country will fight hardline
ideologies and terrorism.
I believe all those interested in the
issue of religion and religiosity – that is never inseparable of the cultural
and civilization context of the social composition of our region – realized
that such a qualitative shift in the Saudi society is considered an important
and essential contribution to achieving the modernization we look for.
In other words, I mean by “those
interested” all who belong to several orientations. The first of them is the
one that have always imputed rigidity, extremism and terrorism to the deep
roots that grew and spread all over the Arabian Peninsula like Madhhab or school of thought of
Ahmed Ibn Hanbal, interpretations of Ahmed Ibn Taymmieya, Muhammed Abdel-Wahhab
and those who followed them and were committed to their strict interpretations.
The second is the orientation connecting
politics with the necessity to have an ethical and religious cover believing
that the boom and predominance of such terrorist and extremist ideology in the
region is not only due to those roots of Ibn Hanbal, Ibn Taymmieya and Ibn
Abdel-Wahhab, but actually it gained its power from adopting its ideas as an
ethical cover for the practices of some parties involved in the political
conflict in the region, such parties that dispraise the Arabs, Persians, Turks,
and also Zionists.
As to the third orientation, it is the
one that cares, on the cultural and intellectual levels, to tackle the problem
of conflict between the religious heritage component in the Egyptian social
composition in specific, and the other cultural and civilization components
extending from geography to history.
These three orientations will find
support in what the royal Saudi official said in facing the fourth orientation
which some call Salafi while others call it salafist… as this fourth
orientation did not deny that its main support comes from its connection to
Saudi Da’wa figures, and other figures having the financial capacity and who
give some of its surplus to spend over “Da’wa in the name of God”.
I add nothing new when I confirm that
what is happening in a certain Arab country, especially of those having influence
and significance, cannot be considered an internal affair isolated from the
regional area. Actually, it is an important factor affecting the reality and
future of the whole region. Evidences confirming such fact are many and extend
back in time to the ancient history; meaning before the divine religions and
until now. Such fact really helps us understand what the domestic developments
in the Saudi kingdom will lead to regarding qualitative shifts in the region
which I do hope they turn to be progressing positive ones.
Back to the issue of Da’wa discourse in
Egypt that is no longer discussed like before, I would like to say that people’s
relation to religion and its institutions is the main carrier of “genes” –if
one can use such term here –hindering the cultural and civilization
development. In the same manner, such relation could carry the genes of
progress if certain conditions were met.
In such regard, I know that recalling
the Christian western and European model is wrong, as the historical evolution
there is different to ours. However, what happened there still can be used as a
general human indicator – as interpreted within its context – to understand how
to achieve the progress we hope for, since we haven’t yet defined the relation connecting
the religious doctrinal component with the rest of components constituting our
cultural and civilization composition, and consequently, the relation connecting
all those components with meeting the demands of our contemporary human
existence now, tomorrow and after tomorrow; such demands that exceeded long
time ago most of our inheritance on all
levels.
Furthermore, events, facts and
historical contexts in our region proved that if the cultural, intellectual and
hence the political consistency primarily between Egypt and the Saudi kingdom was
achieved, in addition to, in a way or
another, the demographic and civilization significance of the rest of the Arab
orient in Syria and Iraq, there is a great hope in accomplishing the required
progress on many levels. On the other hand, if such consistency is missed, conflict
and disagreement will prevail.
Modernizing Da’wa discourse and practices
in the Saudi kingdom and fighting the deviation in Da’wa, economic, financial
and behavioral levels is a backing support to modernization and fighting
corruption in Egypt. This is not wishful thinking, but an interpretation of the
recent history of the two countries’ interaction.
Translated into English by: Dalia
Elnaggar
This article was
published in Al Ahram newspaper on November 9, 2017.
To see the
original article, go to:
#alahram
#ahmed_elgammal #Egypt #saudi_arabia #middle_east
