BAHRAIN: Bahraini Liberal Shi'ite scholar Dhiyaa al-Musawi says that Muslims should look to the future and not sit in the past in order to develop forgiveness and integration

Record ID: 751370

  • Title: BAHRAIN: Bahraini Liberal Shi'ite scholar Dhiyaa al-Musawi says that Muslims should look to the future and not sit in the past in order to develop forgiveness and integration
  • Date: 20th February 2007
  • Summary: (MER1) MANAMA, BAHRAIN (FEBRUARY 17, 2007) (REUTERS) (SOUNDBITE) (Arabic) BAHRAINI LIBERAL SHI'ITE SCHOLAR DHIYAA AL-MUSAWI, SAYING: "The Umma (Islamic nation) needs to revise its reading of history, and to rid heritage of the booby-trapped narratives that have become attached to it. Part of some historic narratives have booby trapped the mind of the Muslim individual, res
  • Embargoed: 7th March 2007 12:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: Bahrain
  • Country: Bahrain
  • Topics: Religion
  • Reuters ID: LVA8PBA8SZJZPC9J0SX8S1M1C78J
  • Story Text: A Bahraini Shi'ite scholar says some Muslims need to revise their reading of history and concentrate on the tolerance that Islam preaches. He says that some forms of Muslim thought are infected by sectarianism, and that Muslims need to break free of being trapped in the past and that Muslim thinking needs to be modernised.
    A Shi'ite scholar from Bahrain who enjoys listening to Beethoven and displays pictures of Jesus Christ and Martin Luther King in his Manama home, says that some Muslims need to embrace tolerance and coexistence, and abandon sectarianism and conspiracy theories which cause conflicts and impede progress.
    Dhiyaa al-Musawi, the Bahraini liberal scholar who is known for his progressive ideas and outspoken criticism of the more conservative elements of religion, says that one of the problems in Muslim societies is that they have become entrapped by explosive historical narratives and elements of heritage that have created sectarian divisions and intolerance in society.
    "The problem with some Muslims is that they have anaemic levels of tolerance and coexistence, and this has caused many crises --the process of claiming to have a monopoly on truth. Each contender has claimed the title deeds to heaven, and not recognised the others. That does not lead to a bright future," al-Musawi told Reuters.
    Speaking at his home with a copy of the portrait of Leonardo da Vinci's Mona Lisa in the background, al-Musawi said that Muslims must abandon "conspiracy theories" and searching for "the devil" in western civilisation, which he said "does not only consist of negative things" but also includes values that are in harmony with Islamic teachings.
    "In the West there are beautiful elements such as civilisation, human rights, democracy and these elements are also compatible with our Islamic society," he added.
    Al-Musawi warned that while many societies are progressing politically, socially, economically and intellectually, Muslim societies are falling behind. He expressed the opinion that some Muslim texts must be "modernised", and that Muslims must look to the future to become active participants in moving human civilisation forward. Muslims must also engage in self-criticism and not overlook their responsibility for their current situation, he said.
    "We must be part of this era, we must speak its language, its economic numbers, we must enable ourselves to create an economic power, and distance ourselves from conspiracy theories and from exonerating ourselves from responsibility for our situation. We are part of the crisis, some of our thinking and our discourse are part of the crisis. So we need a surgical operation (that will alter our) way of thinking and of interpreting this era and the future," he said.
    Abandoning tolerance and remaining entrapped in "the cages of the past" would cause sectarianism between Sunnis and Shi'ites and between Muslims and the West, he warned.
    "We are suffering from a sectarian bacterium that has begun to spread through our circulation, causing this pent up sectarian tension in Lebanon, Iraq and other parts of the world," he said.
    Al-Musawi said that Muslims need to revise their historical narratives and to highlight Islamic religious teachings that focus on tolerance and inclusiveness.
    "The Umma (Islamic nation) needs to revise its reading of history, and to rid heritage of the booby-trapped narratives that have become attached to it. Part of some historic narratives have booby-trapped the mind of the Muslim individual, resulting in the real crisis that we are experiencing in Islamic society today," he said.
    Shi'ites in Bahrain complain of second-class treatment by Sunni authorities and clerics, who sometimes look on them as virtual heretics. More than 90% of Bahrain's 700,000 citizens are Muslims, 75% of whom are Shi'ite, while the other 25% are Sunnis.
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