Submitted by: Esha Binte Ghazali FA19-BSM-048

Submitted to: Maam Shafia Jamil

Date: 4th November 2019
Subject: Islamic Studies
Topic: Secularism VS Islam
Contents

ABSTRACT....................................................................................................................................................3
INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................................4
RESEARCH AND FINDINGS...........................................................................................................................4
CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS..................................................................................................7
REFERENCES................................................................................................................................................8
ABSTRACT

This qualitative research study is carried out to find out the relationship between secularism and
Islam and then discuss how they oppose each other. The purpose of this study is to discuss how
secularism has proven to be disastrous for the Muslim community in todays era and what
Muslims can do to improve their conditions.
From the past few decades, different countries have passed laws keeping secularism as their
bases and this has proved to be unhealthy for the Muslim minorities. This in return has led to an
increase in issues within the Muslim society. This report contains several examples of these
issues and their solutions. Historical method of research will be used in this report with APA as
the referencing style.
INTRODUCTION
Secularism is basically deciphering life with the help of current theories and without the
involvement of religion. Nature, logical thinking, science and evolution are some of the aspects
that secularism focuses on. If looked upon from a different point of view, it also means
maintaining a neutral ground on the matters of religion or that practicing freedom should be
entirely one’s own personal choice (Contributors, Wikipedia Corportaion, 2019).
However, for a Muslim, not practicing religion is considered as disobedience of God and no one
wishes to do that. We Muslims have a strong believe in our God and we know that He is our only
creator and master. We know that he has set specific boundaries and limits for us. We’re clearly
told what to practice and what not to practice and we also know that if we fail to follow His
commands, we have committed a sin.
This is where the main conflict arises between secularism and Islam. We’re told to follow Quran
and the Prophet’s (SAW) Sunnah whenever we are facing a difficulty whereas secularism
demands that the matter be sorted out entirely from one’s own thinking rather than taking help
from any sort of religion.
Not obeying Allah is a sin which leads us to the following conclusion that practicing secularism
might be a sin.
This is a very serious problem for the entire Muslim Ummah as many of the countries are
practicing secularism. In the next few paragraphs of this report, we will further talk about these
issues, where they are being faced and how they are impacting both the Muslim majority and
minority countries.

RESEARCH AND FINDINGS

There are numerous examples in the history which can be classified as secularism.
For example, if we talk about India, the Charvakha 1 system is one of the earliest examples of
secularism which stated that direct interpretation of knowledge should be considered more
accurate and that all religious practices should be dismissed. However, if we talk about the west,
secularism originated basically from the ancient Greece. Religious reliance was sidelined, and
personal reasoning was favored (Contributors, Wikipedia Corportaion, 2019).
One of the major conflicts between science and Islam since decades has been the creation of the
universe/the big bang theory.
If we look at it from a scientific point of view, astronomers and scientists believe that the
universe was at first nothing but a big mass. Then there was a big explosion (the big bang) which
transformed this big mass into galaxies, stars, planets and moon. This phenomenon demonstrated

1
Charvakha, also known as Lokāyata, is an ancient school of Indian materialism.
that the universe was formed from nothing and it originated from a single point because there
was no such thing as matter before that. Setting religion apart, this is what science believes in.
But if look at this theory from Islamic point of view, the Quran 21:30 (Translated by Yusuf Ali)
says,
"Do not the Unbelievers see that the heavens and the earth were joined together, before We clove
them asunder? "
This is all in accordance with the scientific facts that the universe, indeed, was created out of
nothing by the command of Allah SWT (Murtaza, 2014).
The reason why this is sometimes seen as an example of secularism is that even though Quran is
a proof of this entire phenomena, some countries and scientists still refuse to believe that there is
someone out there, God, who created this rather they believe that the universe created itself. This
is a hindrance in the way of the development of Islamic scholars/education nationwide as they
have different beliefs from the rest of the world.
Over the period, the world has evolved and so has the concept of secularism.
Secularism is impacting Muslims all over the world, especially the Muslim minorities in non-
Muslim countries.
Another one of the latest and common issue faced by Muslim women(community) is the
veil/covering of their heads. Quran 33:59 (Translated by Yusuf Ali) says,
“O Prophet! Enjoin your wives, your daughters, and the wives of true believers that they should
cast their outer garments over their persons (when abroad): That is most convenient, that they
may be distinguished and not be harassed.
Here, Allah is asking Prophet SAW to guide the Muslim women towards covering their body and
head but in today’s world, secular countries like France and Demark are prohibiting the use of
veil which is turning out to be disastrous for the Muslim community.
France, being secular country, has several bans on the face covering/niqab and women who do so
are fined 150 euros ( Müller, 2019).
In Denmark, since October 2018, women found to be wearing burqa or niqab are fined with 1000
kroners ( Müller, 2019).
If they refuse to do so, they’re considered as inconsiderate and labelled as terrorists but if they do
so, they’re disobeying Allah SWT.
The main two reasons why headcover is being prohibited is that it is believed to be an obstacle in
the path of development of the Muslim community and it is considered as a maltreatment of
Muslim women. This is the reason why this is seen as an example of secularism. Non-Muslim
and secular countries fail to acknowledge that for Muslim women, covering their heads is a good
deed and an improvement in their life according to Islam. Rather they are imposing different
bans connecting it to their development and harassment. This creates issues in the daily life of
the Muslims living in such secular countries.
Another common issue Muslims in non-Muslim majority areas are facing is the halal/haram
food.
Countries like Philippines and Singapore are known for the high usage of pork 2. It is known for
its high fat content and smooth texture (Contributors, Wikipedia corporations, 2019).
But pork is prohibited in Islam as Quran 2:173 (Translated by Yusuf Ali) says,
“He hath only forbidden you dead meat, and blood, and the flesh of swine, and that on which any
other name hath been invoked besides that of Allah. But if one is forced by necessity, without
willful disobedience, nor transgressing due limits,- then is he guiltless. For Allah is Oft-forgiving
Most Merciful.”
All the above-mentioned issues and many others are contributing to the grave condition of the
Muslim Ummah in this era.
One of the issues that I mentioned above was the ban on veils and headscarves.
Many of the Muslim kids are bullied in European countries because of their religious beliefs.
As narrated by a mother, her 9-year-old daughter was constantly bullied for wearing a headscarf
and her class fellows even threw rocks at her (Rivera, 2016).
It must have been difficult for her to continue her education in such an environment but most
importantly, these bans being imposed on Muslims from an early age are brainwashing them into
believing that being a Muslim is a punishment for them. They start moving towards secularism
which is not always a positive shift. Practicing religion becomes a burden to them. This shifts
them away from Islam and as a result, the new generation of Muslims is slowly forgetting the
true message of God and Prophet(SAW).Lack of knowledge about their own religion creates
issues for Muslims worldwide as they’re already backward in many aspects for example
scientific research, political areas, economic growth(import/export) etc.
Another main consequence is the secular Muslim population and the non-secular Muslim
population.
Secularism has become an imprecision for Muslims. Rather than being considered as a neutral
ground for the religion, some Muslims consider it to be non-religious (Bokhari, 2017)
Some of the Muslim population, mostly in rural areas of countries like Pakistan and Afghanistan,
have taken this extremely.
They refuse to agree with science and its facts because they believe that science doesn’t believe
in God, so they won’t believe in science either. They refuse to let their children receive education
because they think educating them will drift them away from their religion. This is leading to a
much lower literacy rate in Islamic countries.
2
Pork is the culinary name for the flesh of a domestic pig.
Yes, secularism is against religion but not in all cases.
That said, the process of presentation of medieval religious texts in accordance with different
secular and profane settings is part of of Ijtihad. Ijtihad is basically finding the solution of a
problem faced by Muslim ummah in accordance with Quran and Sunnah using one’s own logical
thinking (Bokhari, 2017). Rejecting secularism is right but not agreeing with it no matter what is
not the solution.
This is the reason why secular Muslims are targeted from within the Muslim community.
They’re labelled as non-practicing Muslims or Muslims who have forgotten their religion. This
all has led to lack of unity within the Muslim ummah.

CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS

 Muslims should stick to their religion no matter what. Life throws a lot of hurdles at us
but those are just tests of patience from Allah SWT.This is just His way of testing our
faith. Muslims should have a positive mindset about their issues because only then will
they be able to face those problems and practice their religion wholeheartedly. Especially
the Muslims who are facing problems in non-Muslim countries, they should think about
how Prophet SAW was tortured by the pagans, yet he remained steadfast and didn’t
neglect Islam just because he was being targeted. They should be patient and always
remember Allah SWT.Quran 94:5-6(Translated by Yusuf Ali) says,
“Verily, with every difficulty there is relief.
Verily, with every difficulty there is relief.”
 We should be understanding that people who do not practice religion that often are not
non-Muslims. We should support one another in times of need and stick together as one
community because this is what our religion teaches us. Muslims now a days are divided
because of sects, social status or due to political indifferences. We need to realize that we
will only be able to fight off non-Muslim allegations and issues like secularism if we’re
united amongst ourselves.
The Quran 3:103(Translated by Yusuf Ali) tells us,
“And hold fast, all together, by the rope which Allah (stretches out for you) and be not
divided among yourselves.”
And the Quran 6:159(Translated by Yusuf Ali) says,
“As for those who divide Their religion and break up into sects, thou hast no part in them
in the least: Their affair is with Allah: He will in the end tell them the truth of all that they
did.”

REFERENCES

 Müller, M. (2019, 08 01). Deutsche Welle Corporation. Retrieved from Deutsche Welle
website: https://www.dw.com/en/where-are-burqa-bans-in-europe/a-49843292

 Bokhari, K. (2017, 04 18). Geopolitical futures corporations. Retrieved from

Geopolitical futures website: https://geopoliticalfutures.com/islamic-states-muslim-
secularism/

 Contributors, W. (2019, 10 30). Wikipedia corporations. Retrieved from Wikipedia web

site: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pork

 Contributors, W. (2019, 10 14). Wikipedia Corportaion. Retrieved from Wikipedia

website: http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Secularism

 Murtaza, A. (2014). The Enterprise of Science in Islam. Brimingham: Koros Press

Limited.

 Rivera, T. (2016, 08 19). Grantmakers for Girls of Colors corporation. Retrieved from
Grantmakers for Girls of Colors web site:
https://www.grantmakersforgirlsofcolor.org/resources-item/9-year-old-muslim-girl-
bullied-wearing-hijab/