Jonathan Russell is Quilliam’s Head of Policy. Today I read a disturbing message of his on Twitter. In the context of the sentencing of Tareena Shakil for membership of ‘Islamic State’ he suggested the following strategies to ‘debunk’ its appeal:
Countering the appeal of IS is a laudable aim, the question is how is it to be done? Russell suggests four strategies:
1 Expose ISIS propaganda. You just need to read the Daily Mail for a daily dose of anti-IS rhetoric and horrific pictures of executions, crucifixions, and gays being thrown off tall buildings. The British media seems to have this one in hand.
2 Stop people wanting to live under sharia. Excuse me?!
As Seyyed Hossein Nasr, the great Islamic theologian and philosopher eloquently puts it,
To be a Muslim is to accept the validity of the Shari’ah, even if one is too weak to practice all of its injunctions…The greatest philosophers of Islam from Avicenna to Averroës practiced the Shari’ah; so did the greatest saints and mystics, such as Ibn ‘Arabi….The Divine Law embraces every aspect of life and removes the distinction between sacred and profane or religious and secular. Since God is the creator of all things, there is no legitimate domain of life to which His Will or His Laws do not apply.
Even the most ordinary acts of life carried out according to the Shari’ah are sanctified, and persons of faith who live life according to the Divine Law live a life immersed in grace, or what in Arabic is called barakah. Their life gains meaning, and they move through the journey of life certain that they are following a road (shar’) designated by God, a road that leads to salvation and felicity in the ultimate encounter with Him. To live according to the Shari’ah in both form and inner meaning is to live an ethical life in the fullest sense.
Seyyed Hossein Nasr, The Heart of Islam, Enduring Values for Humanity, pp. 118-119.
In my view too the aspiration to live according to the Divine Law is noble, beautiful and spiritually authentic. One of the most difficult aspects of Islam to understand for modern Westerners like Russell is the classical foundation of the Shari’ah and the central role it plays in the life of a Muslim. We must not permit IS to occupy our entire horizon. Remember this: in the great scheme of things, historically, these modern-day Karijites and their barbaric state will seem like a mere footnote. Islam will remain.
So my message to Russell is:
Don’t put yourself (unwittingly) in opposition to Muslims and Islam. We are not the enemy that must be strategised against and reformed into an ideology pleasing to our liberal secular rulers. You will not succeed.
Categories: History, Islam, Life in the West, Quilliam
Blogging Theology 
Paul, is sharia compatible with UK law?
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Most of it yes of course. Is charity compatible? Is prayer and fasting? Is concern for ones neighbour? Is speaking the truth? Is concern for justice and the oppressed?
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“Most of it…” so which bits aren’t?
Yes, yes, yes, yes, yes.
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Why the yeses? Do you have a digital stutter?
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Is charity compatible? – yes
Is prayer and fasting? – yes
Is concern for ones neighbour? – yes
Is speaking the truth? – yes
Is concern for justice and the oppressed? – yes
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Ah that’s much clearer.
Obviously the UK rulers do not rule by what God has revealed in the Quran and Sunnah.
They believe that mere men can legislate to change God given norms and make what is haram halal, such as ‘gay marriage’. There are many such examples, abortion on demand, extreme materialism, a total preoccupation with the dunya, and so on.
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I see.
I think that in all the examples you give, a UK citizen is free to choose. Nobody is forcing gay marriage on anyone, nor abortion, and if you disagree with laws permitting these you can participate in the democratic process to change them.
You don’t have to engage in extreme materialism (I certainly don’t!), nor be totally preoccupied with earthly concerns.
Are there any specific requirements of sharia that would bring one into conflict with UK law?
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Not sure I totally agree. The alleged legitimacy of gay marriage is forced on everyone now. To publicly criticise this is taboo, and people have suffered severe sanctions for their dissent.
In abortion on demand of course, the child itself is killed – that is a pretty extreme example of force being used against the vulnerable and innocent!
For Muslims the Divine Law is not up for vote in parliament. We cannot legitimately tell God our Creator and Lord that he is wrong and needs to change his mind!!
To that extent secular democracy conflicts with Shariah. But it is very important to stress that Shariah teaches that we must respect the rulers of this country and not revolt against them. Islam can be freely practiced here. It is our home.
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Paul, great analysis in the article and excellent points in your comments as well. And thanks for tweeting back to the influential who are making great errors such as Russell.
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“secular democracy conflicts with Shariah”
Practically, what does this mean for Muslims in those areas of public policy where conflicts occur (e.g. your examples above)?
Do you engage in the democratic process to persuade others to support your views and elect politicians who will enact changes to the law?
Or do you only practice those elements of sharia that are not in conflict with the laws of the UK?
If the former, you contradict your maxim that “Divine Law is not up for vote in parliament”
If the latter you contradict “Islam can be freely practiced here”
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So many complex questions! I’m not a policy expert or someone with access to research concerning Muslim attitudes and concerns.
You seem to have a polemical agenda in your questions. And your questions are too abstract and generalised to give simple answers to.
In principle you could direct your questions to Orthodox Jews and other traditional people of faith who face similar dilemmas. But only Muslims get cross examined today for some reason.
All I can say is that living as a Muslim in the UK today is complicated, messy and extremely challenging at times. But for most people of faith it was ever so in the dunya.
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Thanks Paul.
I’m pleased you say “living as a Muslim in the UK today is complicated, messy and extremely challenging at times” – secular democracy is too!
My agenda is simply to try and understand better how people of faith balance the demands of their religion with living in a multicultural and secular democracy.
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As I say it can be very challenging. But life is difficult for everyone. That is normal in the dunya.
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So are you an atheist?
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I wouldn’t claim the certainty that the atheist position implies as one cannot prove a negative beyond all doubt. So I’m technically agnostic.
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An intelligent answer! But on further reflection do you think we are created by nothingness? Nothingness cannot create anything. And the marvels of creation surely could not have come about except by way of a brilliant and wise designer.
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I guess we’ll have to wait until the cosmologists either give an answer, or declare there is no way of knowing. Until then there is no way of resolving the question – there may never be.
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Cosmologists investigate what actually exists or existed. They cannot pronounce on why the universe exists in the first place. Nothing comes from nothing. Ergo there must have began a creator to bring matter into being.
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And now I’m off to see a cosmologist:
http://www.gresham.ac.uk/lectures-and-events/the-formation-of-our-galaxy
I’ll let you know if there is an answer.
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No, astronomers investigate what actually exists or existed. Cosmologists are theorists. At this point in time we don’t know whether cosmology and physics will eventually produce testable theories that explain the origin of the universe. As I said above they may eventually agree that there will always be explanatory gaps in our understanding. This is where God might fit – or one may simply be content with not knowing.
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I think you’re too quick to misinterpret him. He didn’t say to stop people wanting to live under sharia law (as if that is possible) he said to debunk the idea that ISIS provides Islamic utopia and sharia law. In fact this is a good policy to have, because Shariaw is freely practiced here in the UK and that is what should be presented to British Muslims and converts.
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In fact he DID suggest that Quilliam stop people from wanting to live ‘under shariah’ – look at the screen prints. He also wants to change the Divine law to make it conform to his liberal secular values, he admitted as much.
Nothing new here. Western attempts to interfere with the faith of Muslims has a long history.
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