Originally posted by siam
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It is not enough to have theories that give meaning and purpose in the abstract---these need to be transformed into lived actions if they are to become meaningful and purposeful.....this then leads to eudaimonic happiness---because that is how our nature is constructed. That is why all of the major religions emphasize charity---it is one way to encourage towards a deeper spiritual maturity that leads to deeper happiness and peace.
Here is a Jewish perspective from a Rabbi that expresses some of my thoughts...
http://www.islamicity.org/13145/are-...dinary-people/
Here is a Jewish perspective from a Rabbi that expresses some of my thoughts...
http://www.islamicity.org/13145/are-...dinary-people/
In the USA I can practice my my faith, Baha'i Faith, openly and freely, and I cannot do that in most Islamic countries.
This true, but it is the reason your idealistic unreal view of Islam fails. Islam does not embrace the minorities and diversity in Islamic countries and they are leaving. In fact persecution, isolation and forcing minorities to follow Islamic customs is dominant in most Islamic countries.
Muslim-Majority countries---Yes , it is troubling the trajectory that some Muslim-majority countries are following---In an election, a Quranic verse was mistranslated and abused by Muslims for political gain---the same ugly populism that is occurring in the West is also creeping into the East. Recently a Muslim scholar was arrested by police in a Muslim-majority country---apparently they were "protecting Islam".....these and other abuses are troubling...We Muslims will destroy Islam ourselves if this continues...
The persecuting of religious minorities in Islamic countries far exceeds anything in Western countries. The religious minorities that are leaving and being forced out are going to Western countries where their conditions greatly improve.
Hypocrisy---Yes, it is a human problem and will always exist---but the degree is different from a culture/society that demands hypocrisy as a default norm for public discourse---the way Modern Secularism does.
Modernity/Islamic history---Modernity has not been all bad---it has had its problems which have become more apparent as circumstances have changed (globalization) and perhaps it is time to re-adjust to a post-Modern era?...and it is also the case that Islamic history has not been without its problems now and then...but the "Islamic Empire" did have a vast geographical reach from Spain and North Africa to the borders of China and India---it was partially "global" and we can learn from this history to take the best practices for our tomorrow.....Global trade and economics, Plural legal traditions, full freedom of religions, free and safe movement of goods and people over land and sea...etc....
Exclusive identity-constructs---Identity/identity-constructs are necessary for humanity to function in society as we are inherently social beings. It is in our nature. If identity-constructs are to be meaningful and purposeful---they need to have some degrees of exclusivity. The problem is not that---it is an excessive attachment to a particular identity-construct--nationalism, religion, ethnicity...etc. This is what causes an imbalance. Our identity constructs must be framed in a context that includes/allows for multiple identity-constructs/group affiliations with all of them culminating in the Unifying identity of the brotherhood of humanity. This can help balance and frame our multiple identity-constructs and group allegiances.
Qadr (to measure) is the Islamic principle that can be used to frame our construction of "systems"--economics, ethico-moral, political, legal,...etc...in order to create balance and harmony that leads to peace---our "systems" need to be constructed with balance and harmony among its various component parts....for example---Justice must be balanced with compassion and mercy....our instincts of self-preservation (selfish/individual) must be balanced with our nature of service to those we care about (community/altruistic)
Here a Muslim scholar, S.H. Nasr speaks about the Islamic principle of Balance.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z_vnd_N0_Ho
Exclusive identity-constructs---Identity/identity-constructs are necessary for humanity to function in society as we are inherently social beings. It is in our nature. If identity-constructs are to be meaningful and purposeful---they need to have some degrees of exclusivity. The problem is not that---it is an excessive attachment to a particular identity-construct--nationalism, religion, ethnicity...etc. This is what causes an imbalance. Our identity constructs must be framed in a context that includes/allows for multiple identity-constructs/group affiliations with all of them culminating in the Unifying identity of the brotherhood of humanity. This can help balance and frame our multiple identity-constructs and group allegiances.
Qadr (to measure) is the Islamic principle that can be used to frame our construction of "systems"--economics, ethico-moral, political, legal,...etc...in order to create balance and harmony that leads to peace---our "systems" need to be constructed with balance and harmony among its various component parts....for example---Justice must be balanced with compassion and mercy....our instincts of self-preservation (selfish/individual) must be balanced with our nature of service to those we care about (community/altruistic)
Here a Muslim scholar, S.H. Nasr speaks about the Islamic principle of Balance.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z_vnd_N0_Ho
I do not believe you responded coherently to the post, and overwhelming problems and crisis in the Islamic world today. You still scapegoat the West for the problems of Islam, that Islamic countries and Islam must take responsibility for their own problems, which far exceed the problems in western countries as cited.
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