Salaam
Does anyone else get really annoyed when they hear muslims make statements that are based clearly on modernist interpretations of society and history?
Like take for example you always hear muslims nowadays saying that Islam is a religion of Tolerance. I could go in depth about the background and nature of the concept of Tolerance in recent in history but I'd be here all night. To the point how is Islam a religion of Tolerance?
It's certainly tolerant of some things and intolerant of others but so is every culture and religion in the world. This is a clear example of modernism effecting muslims. I never hear muslims say that Islam is a religion of Tawhid even though this is the founding concept of the deen.
They say its a religion of Tolerance becoz Islam was the first to give rights to the non-believers as well as themselves. Its not really something that new.
Back in BLACK
Wouldn’t you say that the main reason why Muslims have to describe their religion as the religion of peace and tolerance because of all the negative stereotypes propagated by the media which try to portray Islam as an intolerant, strict and rigid religion?
Thats not neccessarily true. Zoroastrians were tolerant of jews and christians even though they didn't meet the same from them. Also remember there were jews and pagans living together in makkah in the jahil days.
They may have tolerated each other and lived in the same city but they would never have given others the same rights that they ask for themselves.
Back in BLACK
It isn't just that. There were muslims trying to place islam within the dialectic of modernism way before the media had any interest in islam.
Maybe people talk about Islam being a religion of 'Tolerance' inorder to communicate Islam to a Western non-Muslim audience.
Which non-Muslim would understand if they were told that Islam is a religion of tawhid?
You could say monotheism. Besides like I said Tolerance is evoked by muslims to other muslims as well not just to non-muslims.
Maybe thats cos some Muslim's are beginning to practise a strict, ridgid, intolerant understanding of Islam.
But then what is monotheism?
Christianity is a monotheistic religion. But it has the trinity - the one god into the three. If there was one god why would he be split into three?
Back to tolerance. Maybe people want to express that Islam is not intolerant, or that Islam incorporates tolerance.
By modern standards Islam has always been those things. Why should we feel the need to change because of others perceptions of us. Isn't that shirk?
Salaf, Islam is misunderstood and always in the spotlight...of course we should highlight what it really is...this isnt changing what Islam is ...its just changing others people's incorrect perception of us.
Islam doesn't incorporate Tolerance though if you're talking about Tolerance as a concept not as an action. Tolerance as an action is doing nothing about a someone elses crying baby and just dealing with the noise. Tolerance as a concept means tolerating everything accept that which violates "Natural Law".
When people talk about tolerance they do not, usually, mean it in high-minded intellectual terms.
They see it as more a spiritual or emotional idea.
Building understanding between people, maybe bring them closer to Islam.
It doesn’t mean changing Islam to accommodate modern fads.