THE ROLE OF THE ULEMA — Guidance and Reformation

religion belonged to those who had political power. It was the western colonial powers that brought about the new age of freedom that was in conformance with God’s creation plan. Muslims had their historical glory in political power. On the other hand, the secret of their religious glory was hidden in scientific knowledge. There is another verse in the Quran that says that the divine revelation was sent to the Prophet so that mankind should be made aware of the creation plan of God (THE QURAN 25: 1). In ancient times due to traditional methods and the limitations of human knowledge, the global realisation of this verse was not possible. The famous tabeée, Uqabah bin Nafae stood on the African shore of the Atlantic Ocean and said: ‘Oh Lord, if I knew that there were people on the other side of this sea, then I would enter into this sea to cross it’. At that time, knowledge was limited and most people were unaware that lands existed on the other side of the Atlantic. Due to these limitations, the global communication of the message of God was not possible. Now, western powers have made this possible through the advent of modern methods of communication. The print and electronic media have realised the potential that was mentioned in this verse of the Quran. However, the Muslim ulema of the modern times have been unable to appreciate this contribution of the western world. Instead of developing a positive global humanitarian perspective, they have become consumed in hatred towards the western powers who had taken away their political and historic glory. The Muslim ulema did not appreciate the hidden reality that the western powers had a supporting role towards the benefit of Islam and therefore could not avail of the potential opportunities that these powers had presented them. o