Islam and the challenges of the world

Islam and the challenges of the world

1992 6 June 22-23 Islam and the challenges of the world (693) By Maulana Wahiduddin Khan Dear Brothers and Sisters,

I am grateful to the organizers of this international conference for giving us the opportunity to be here this morning to discuss a very important and interesting subject: “Islam and the Challenges of the World:”

It is a fact that Islam is facing some kind of challenges in the present world. Political challenges, economic challenges, and so on. But in my opinion, these particular challenges are not so very important.

The most important challenge is that which is intellectual in nature, while other challenges are mini-challenges, it is the intellectual challenge which is the super-challenge.

To be precise, what I mean by ‘intellectual challenge’ is scientific atheism. This challenge has always been the greatest, because it seeks to prove that Islam, or, for that matter, any kind of religion, is baseless.

It was scientific atheism which proclaimed in the 19th century that “God is dead”. It said that there was no divine revelation, no heaven or hell; religion was nothing but the “opium of the people.”

Let me explain in brief what scientific atheism is, and why it succeeded in persuading so many people to accept it as a proven fact.

For example, when scientists studied nature, they found that behind every event there was a cause. When an apple fell from a tree, it fell because of the gravitational pull of the earth. So scientific atheism proclaimed that if events followed on from natural causes, they were not supernatural in origin.

Under the shadow of the philosophy, there flourished several anti-religious ideologies, such as logical positivism, Marxian materialism, the theory of evolution, etc. They jointly claimed that religion was now out of date and that modern scientific enquiry had destroyed it at its very roots.

But, by the grace of God, there came an intellectual counter-revolution in the scientific world. This occurred after the second world war. Now, as you know, microcosmic studies of nature have destroyed those notions which were hastily supposed to be facts in the course of previous studies of nature at the macrocosmic level.

Marxism, the most dreadful enemy of religion, is being demolished even in the U.S.S.R. The present generation of the communist society is saying that it was Marxism, not religion, which was the “opium of the people.”

Truth, ultimately, has prevailed, and God is back again at the top of the agenda. But what has been achieved to date is only the first half; the second half is yet to be achieved. I mean that scientific atheism has been theoretically destroyed, but has not in practice been eliminated. Now the task ahead is to turn the potential into actual.

I may add that it is men of considerable distinction who have started this intellectual jihad (crusades). They have done much to avail of the present opportunity and to make full use of scientific materials in favour of religion. It is heartening to note that the modern religious community has produced so many able scientists who are working towards this end such as Sir James Jeans, Arthur Eddington, Alexis Carrel, Gessy Morison, Alfred Hoyle, Stephen Hawking, etc. They have done a great deal in this field, showing how to avail of this opportunity to re-establish through the field of science.

In this perspective, this kind of religious gathering here in Malta has great importance. Here we can decide to work jointly and, I hope, successfully in this field of common interest.

It is true that there are some differences in the various religious beliefs and practices, at the same time; it is also true that scientific atheism is our common enemy. We have to unite and work in harmony so that this common enemy may be buried for ever.

In conclusion, I venture to propose that an inter-religious conference be held on this very subject. And may I say that it would be good if such a conference could be held in some Muslim country.

I thank you all, May God bless Us and help Us to serve His cause. Amen.

This paper was presented at the conference entitled: “Religion for a Sea of Peace” held at Malta on October 8, 1991.