(MENAFN- Alghad Newspaper)
'Islam without Fear: Egypt and the New Islamists is an important book by American researcher and academic, Raymond William Baker, which was translated to Arabic by the Academic Centre for Political Studies (ACPS) — Amman, in 2008.
Since its authoring in 2003, and its translation 9 years ago, the value of this publication and its importance have not in the least receded.
As religious extremism gains foot against the recession of reformism in Islam and popular moderation, which are vastly ignored by the media, the ideas in Baker's book are now more relevant than ever.
The author discusses the rise of a moderate Islamist discipline in Egypt, established by a group of Muslim intellectuals, cumulating their views, knowledge, ideas, and expertise over the years.
Among the founding members of the school are Islamist thinker, Ahmad Kamal Abul Majd, prominent legislators and intellectuals, Tariq Bashri and Mohammad Salim Awwa, the well-renowned jurisprudent, Mohammad Ghazali, famous scientist, Yousef Qardawi, and journalist Fahmi Huweidi.
Back in 1991, they announced themselves with the 'Manifesto, part of 'A New Islamic Vision, a book written by Abul Majd, uncovering their views on a variety of issues.
Actually, the group of diligent thinkers had outlined their vision 10 years before it saw first light. In 1992, Abul Majd introduced it to the public, right in time for the great debate between Sheikh Mohammad Ghazali and Faraj Fodah at the book expo in Egypt.
‘Islam without Fear' starts off with an intelligent narrative of a young extremist who by the end of it announces penance on live national, abandoning all thoughts of violence and terrorism. It draws out his path to extremism and back again.
Along these lines, Baker highlights how the youth —despite having served the official police interest— actually broke the stereotypical depiction the state endeavoured to reinforce of extremists as superficial criminals, uneducated, and devoid of intellect. Contrarily, he came across with a considerably shocking level of charisma and intellect. No less than a brilliant conversationalist and speaker who shocked Egyptians as he raised the issue of the 'Lost Generation of youth, searching for themselves, their identity, hope, and for a horizon to look out for, only to end up in the clutches of expiatory extremism!
The pivoting highlight in the youth's repentance, according to the novel, is in that it was through reading Sheikh Mohammad Ghazali's books, and the publications of moderate Islamist figures, who were dismissed by the state back then, that he has found his way. How the moderate rhetoric shook the core of his belief in violence and extremism and pushed him to go over his thoughts, all the way to completely abandoning his ways and leaving those groups!
With this, Baker sheds light on the views of the new Muslims on violence, terrorism, extremism, and how the moderates invite Muslims to participate in the strife to overcome poverty and ignorance, by reforming public education.
Engagingly, Baker goes through the new Muslim vision on education, society, politics, culture, arts, and law, which is utterly and completely different from the dominant mainstream Islamic thought.
Notably, the new rhetoric features unprecedented openness to liberties, arts, and literature, so much that both Abul Majd and Ghazali actually condemned the assassination of Fodah. Later on, Abul Majd himself wrote the preface for Najib Mahfouth's famous novel, Awlad Haretna, which almost got him assassinated.
This current, with roots in the first enlightenment, reformist Islamist movement, pioneered by Mohammad Abdo, believes foremost in the priority of culture and education over politics, and the importance of reformism and religious, disciplinary rejuvenation.
In reality, till this very day, this current remains one of the most capable and influential school of Islamism, with the real capacity to induce positive socio-cultural change and challenge the spread terrorism and extremism, to help our new generations navigate their lives to the future safely!
This article is an edited translation from the Arabic version, published by AlGhad.
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