Faith, Compassion and Human Dignity

FAITH, COMPASSION AND HUMAN DIGNITY Shaykh Abdallah Bin Bayyah President, Forum for Promoting Peace in Muslim Societies Grand Hyatt, Singapore

THE MUIS LECTURE 2017

THE MUIS LECTURE SERIES The Muis Distinguished Visitors Programme (DVP) is an annual series organised by the Islamic Religious Council of Singapore (Muis).

It features eminent statesmen, intellectual leaders and thinkers of international standing who will deliver the Muis Lecture on topics relating to Islam and its relationship with the modern world. The DVP will also focus on the new trends in Muslim thoughts and ideas in dealing with changes and modernity in the context of changing global challenges of 21st century.

“Faith, Compassion and Human Dignity�

The Muis Lecture 2017 Distinguished Visitors Programme Shaykh Abdallah Bin Bayyah President, Forum for Promoting Peace in Muslim Societies Grand Hyatt, Singapore

Other Titles in the Muis Lecture Series: 1. Islam and its Place in the Modern World

by HE Dr. Sheikh Muhammad Sayyid Tantawi 2. The Role of Religion in the New Millennium

by Dr. Karen Armstrong 3. Religious Diversity and Social Unity

by The Most Revd Dr. Rowan Williams 4. Islam’s Enduring Values for Humanity

by Sheikh Dr. Ahmad Bader Eddin Hassoun 5. Forging a Common Humanity

by Iman Feisal Abdul Rauf 6. The Challenge of Diversity in Modern Society

by Sheikh Dr. Mustafa Ceric 7. The Role of History in Islamic Education

by Dr. Ismail Serageldin 8. Building Harmonious Societies in a Pluralistic World

by Sheikh Dr. Shawky Ibrahim ĘżAllam

This publication is a transcription of the Muis Lecture delivered to an audience of 650 on Friday, 17 March 2017 at Grand Hyatt Hotel, Singapore.

Copyright 2017 Majlis Ugama Islam Singapura.

Designed and Printed by HoBee Print.

All rights reserved. No part of this document may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any mean, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying and recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher.

ISBN: 978-981-11-5649-6

Biography

Shaykh Abdallah Bin Bayyah President, Forum for Promoting Peace in Muslim Societies

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haykh Abdallah Bin Bayyah was born in 1935 in the East of Mauritania. He is a scholar who grew up in a house known for its scholarship; his father Sheikh Mahfoudh Ben Bayah, was one of the region’s eminent scholars and the Head of the Conference of Mauritanian Scholars. He studied in his father’s specialist learning centre of the Islamic sacred sciences. He pursued his undergraduate studies at the Faculty of Law in Tunisia and was trained in the Tunisian courts in 1961.

Currently, Shaykh Bin Bayyah is the President of the Forum for Promoting Peace in Muslim Societies, UAE; the Director of the Global Center for Guidance and Renewal, United Kingdom; and Professor of Islamic Studies at King Abdul Aziz University in Saudi Arabia. He is a prominent and established international Muslim scholar with a wide impact and influence.

He is the foremost leading authority on contemporary Muslim legal thought and fatwa development. His distinguished career includes key positions such as the Judge at the Mauritanian High Court, President of Court of Appeal, and Minister for Religious Affairs and Minister of Justice.

As a renowned international resource person on Islamic affairs and fatwas, Shaykh Bin Bayyah sits on different panels of respected international Islamic bodies such as the European Council for Fatwa and Research, and the Islamic Fiqh Council. He has addressed the UN Leaders’ Summit in Oct 2015, and UNESCO in 2016. He is widely recognised as an influential Muslim figure by both governments and international bodies, and plays a prominent leadership role in inter-faith and inter-civilizational dialogue.

Most recently, he steered the Marrakesh Declaration initiative under the patronage of His Majesty King Mohammed VI of Morocco in January 2016.

Among his publications are The Art of Formulating Fatwas (Legal Opinions) and Minority Fiqh (the Jurisprudence Pertaining to Muslim Minorities), The Discourse of Security in Islam and the Culture of Tolerance and Harmony and Fatwas and Reflections.

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Faith, Compassion and Human Dignity

The Muis Lecture 2017

Shaykh Abdallah Bin Bayyah President, Forum for Promoting Peace in Muslim Societies

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Praise

be to the One who created us with our complexities and our diversities so that we may know one another as different; and to enable us to complement one another, as a profound sign among His signs for all the worlds.

This cosmos is a beautiful palette, with all of its diversity. There is a spectrum of colours from black to white and everything in between. We differ in the clothes we wear, our age and our looks. As an elderly Arab man, I look very different from the rest of you.

All this diversity is really beauty. The Qurʾān says, “Indeed, We have made that which is on earth an adornment for it that We may test them human beings which of them is the most beautiful and virtuous in actions.” (Q. 18:7) The Qurʾān says, “Do you not see that Allah sends down rain from the sky, and We produce thereby fruits of varying colours? And in the mountains are tracts, white, and red of varying shades and [some] extremely black.

And among people and moving creatures and grazing livestock are various colors similarly. ” (Q. 35:27 – 28) I hope that we can see all this beauty. Sometimes only the poets and the philosophers see such subtle beauty, however, I hope that, each of us can be poets and philosophers, and see deeply like them, even if to a little degree.

We invoke benedictions and prayers upon our Prophet (Peace and blessings be upon him), the seal of the Prophets and also upon all of the other Messengers to humanity. We believe in all of the Messengers that came and the messages that they brought. We believe in truth, justice and wisdom, regardless of who speaks the truth – as long as they direct us to noble virtues, we accept and we believe them.

Each virtuous person of excellence and dignity has his or her own beauty, regardless of our diverse religious beliefs.

Addressing “Faith, Compassion and Human Dignity,” allow me to earnestly investigate whether we manifest these noble virtues in our interactions with one another, in our conviviality, in the way we practise on a daily basis. For firstly, faith, by necessity, 5

demands that we, in the first instance, love our Creator and that we simultaneously show kindness and compassion towards His creation. Secondly, compassion, by its own nature, demands of us that we love and help one another and consistently stand in solidarity with each other. And finally, the shared humanity that binds us, necessitates that we nurture and cultivate our commonalities – particularly, that we see in each human being, in essence, a microcosm of the universe and acknowledge and respect their inherent human dignity and divine spark. One ought to always remember that aggression towards any human being is in reality an assault on our shared human dignity and divine spark, while similarly, any act of goodness towards that person is in essence directly towards our shared human dignity and divine spark.

Therefore, one ought to see him or herself in the Other. Subsequently, the realisation will dawn upon us gradually that there is no such thing as the Other, for you are the Other and the Other is you.

RESTORING SHARED HUMANITY The challenge of our perception of a separate different ‘Other’ and the seemingly multiplicity of separate and perhaps opposing identities, is the most critical challenge of our time. While, we inhabit a single highly interconnected planet, yet our hearts unfortunately are filled with mutual animosity and are no longer able to embrace the ‘Other.’ It is ironic that as we diminish the great physical distances of our time, the emotional space between us gets further apart. These are the limits of science and technology to heal us. At some point of time, notwithstanding the proximity that technology allows us, ultimately, loving the ‘Other’ is our conscious responsibility.

There is a critical need to restore and return to our shared humanity and to the essence of all faith traditions, which is the call to peace and conviviality. There is a need to acknowledge the shared divine spark in all of creation so that we are able to reach the essence of reality and the purpose of our lives. Achieving these objectives and consciously rejecting mutual destruction and annihilation ought to be the main concern of our scholars, intellectuals, thinkers, and each conscious human being alive today.

Thus, at the Forum for Promoting Peace, we attempt to create possible solutions to stop wars, promote peace and co-create deeper and more meaningful social harmony. We are constantly asking how these can be achieved. We acknowledge that are deep-rooted causes that hinder progress, yet we are not deterred. At this stage, we see our role as firefighters, tasked to put out a raging

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fire. It is not appropriate at this stage to ask who started the fire and what the root cause is. A firefighter’s primary concern is putting the fire out.

It must be emphasised that analysis of root causes and the need for sustainable long term solutions is a matter of justice. While the firefighter approach has been criticised by some intellectuals and other scholars, who perceive this approach as a neglect of justice, we have accepted that justice cannot be achieved when you are facing dire and existential annihilation. There is an immediate need to stop the wars. Someone needs to shoulder this complex responsibility and have courage to attempt to offer creative responses. Simple responses and generalisations are problematic and unsuccessful.

Due to the complexity of humanity’s current existential crisis, we do admit that culture and religion have contributed to the exasperation of the problem. The fact that extremists were able to mobilise religious narratives to encourage ‘Othering,’ separation and destruction is indicative of firstly, the vagueness of the religious concepts used, secondly, people’s lack of religious literacy and thirdly, people’s vulnerability and susceptibility to committing atrocities.

The proposal we are putting forth is a medicinal antidote, from within the matrix of the religion itself. We believe that if administered carefully and consistently, it may help in addressing the challenges we are facing and heal the ills that have caused these problems.

HEALING RELIGIOUS ENERGY There is a firm conviction that religion, every religion, is a form of energy. It can, on the one hand, be constructive, but on the other hand, it is also capable of destruction. Thus, as a form of energy, religion is neutral, but the nature of its mobilisation lies with the end user. As mentioned, this is a two-fold challenge – on the one hand, low religious literacy causes many accidents; while on the other hand, the vague interpretations of religious concepts and their contemporary relevance and applications is also catastrophic.

To address the above-mentioned challenge, top scholars of Islam were invited to Marrakech to co-create an Islamic narrative of peace. Other faith leaders (Buddhists, Hindus, Jews, Christians, Yazidis, Sabians) were invited to witness the launch of this initiative, endorse and support it. This was done in order to bring the positive message of peace from within the tradition of Islam to the world.

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Unfortunately, there are multiple competing narratives about Islam – one that posits Islam as a radical destructive force that legitimizes terrorism; another narrative claims that Islam is a radical political ideology that vies to consolidate power; and another narrative alleges that Islam is an exclusivist social marker, where Muslims and people from other faith traditions cannot co-exist.

Initially, it was clear that these are unsound and misguided narratives of Islam which were conjured up by extremists or tyrants for specific agendas. However, with time, they began to gain currency and other than the ‘extremists’ – i.e., other parties, saw benefit in vilifying Islam and purporting these narratives as legitimate true narratives. As a result, unfortunately, Islamophobia is on the rise. It has become incumbent upon us to put forward a demonstrative proof from within the matrix of the tradition to show that there is a much sounder narrative.

ALLIANCE OF VIRTUE AND VALUES To protect religious and ethnic minorities within plural communities and to assert the concept of equal citizenship, we called upon all faith leaders to seek within their own traditions principles of peace and goodness. As each group began to put forward values and principles of peace, we were able to co-create an alliance of shared values and virtue.

As faith leaders, we concur in the need to debunk the notion of ‘minority.’ There are no such categories of majorities and minorities today. Hans Kung, the Swiss Catholic Priest, theologian and author, was right in pointing out that there can be no peace in the world if we don’t have peace amongst the religious traditions of the world. To live together, we have to have this alliance of virtue.

UNDERSTANDING HUMANITY As mentioned, the susceptibility of human beings to commit atrocities and mobilise religious energy for destruction should not be understated. There is a need to create ambassadors of peace as opposed to armies of war and belligerence.

There are three ways in which we can understand the ties that bind humanity.

While in the past people derived their sense of belonging from tribal or communal

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ties, today some of us continue to adhere to the illusion of an exclusive group identity – be it a religious or a national identity. Another way to understand the ties that bind us is by focusing on shared or common religious beliefs. For instance, the Abrahamic faiths and the spiritual traditions believe that there is an intangible aspect to a human being, which binds them together. Finally, there is a more advanced understanding of the shared essence of humanity. This understanding has its roots in the idea of unity of beings which was advanced by the various spiritual traditions of most religions [as well as by new age spiritual traditions, and various disciplines of psychology.] This understanding is conscious of our shared humanity and that in essence we are all one inter-connected big human family.

Each one of these understandings acknowledges that people have shared values.

However, the third understanding expands our shared humanity and we ought to deepen such understanding where we can incorporate and integrate more of these shared values into an ever-expanding consciousness of our unity. Values such as justice, integrity, truthfulness, fulfilling oaths, loyalty, virtue, love, uplifting the weak and helping the sick. These are human values that are shared by all virtuous people. Everybody would like to embody them, including those who do not practise them. Kant and other philosophers have pointed out these are inherently shared values in all humanity by natural disposition.

PEACE, COOPERATION AND COMMITMENT In a Prophetic tradition, Allah (glory be to Him) addresses His creation and says, “O My servants, I have made oppression unlawful upon Myself and unlawful for you. Do not oppress one another.”1

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Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim.

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If the All-Mighty Creator, who has nothing to fear shares this particular value with humanity, then surely, humanity amongst itself shares it too. There is a need to nurture such positive commonalities and cooperate in feeding the hungry, caring for the poor and treating the sick. This is a healing power of religious energy.

This is a proactive Call to Action – for all conscious, sensible and reasonable people to cooperate, in a united and concerted effort, to realise peace by living and embodying these values on a daily basis. For instance, the Singaporean society is made up of various ethnicities and religions and yet it is clear that you are one united people. Singapore, for many, is like a single garden with many diverse trees, plants, flowers and fruits. There is an immense opportunity for the rest of humanity to begin to exhibit a similar unity that is strengthened by diversity. It is an earnest wish to see the rest of the humanity like this.

We are committed to our consistent promotion of this narrative of healing and unifying religious energy. We are realistic and fully aware that counter radicalism would require sustained efforts, and we will continue to sharpen religious concepts, deepen literacy and criticality, and call people to their higher, better Selves.

Countering extremism, too, requires a concerted effort. In addition to what was stated previously, there is a primary strategy that need implementations – that of rehabilitation. While education and literacy will protect those who are yet to be lured by these radical ideologies, dealing with those who have already fallen prey, in a compassionate and dignified manner, demands that we rehabilitate rather than penalise and punish. Thus, all actors in any single society have a role to play, from the religious leaders, to the educators, to NGOs, to the policy-makers, to student leaders, to youths circles to the laymen. Each one needs to acknowledge, commit to, and embody this message.

All people have the freedom to live and practice their respective belief systems, without denying any part it, no matter how seemingly unmodern or uncivilised by today’s standards. However, that should never be at the expense of another person’s freedom or the common collective good.

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HIGHER OBJECTIVES OF RELIGIOUS IDEALS Universal ideals of all faith traditions have been revealed to humankind to protect critical priorities. In Islam, there are five critical sanctified aspects in a person’s life that require protection, these are: sanctity of life, protection of religion, property, intellect, and family lineage or dignity. There is a need to consider what these critical aspects mean for different communities, cultures and timeframes. The specific methodologies of protecting these five critical aspects change according to the context.

Religious beliefs and practices too are bound by time and context. Aggression against others should be the red line that we should not cross. To better understand concepts like Jihād, Sharīʿah, penal code, the abode of Islam and the abode of nonIslam, these are obfuscations that are confounded and the response depends on the relationships between varying religions. Furthermore, unaddressed grievances, such as poverty, and marginalization, no matter how grave, does not justify war.

Experience has shown that everything that jeopardises security leads to gross destruction, and people’s wellbeing and security needs to be addressed. Therefore, each religion was requested to put forward their own narrative of this truth. The Qurʾān perceives diversity positively, as it is a means of acquiring knowledge about the multiplicity of creation. The Qurʾān reminds us, “O mankind, indeed We have created you from male and female and made you into nations and tribes so that you may know one another.”

(Q. 39:13)

THE PRINCIPLE BEHIND THE GOLDEN RULE Knowing the ‘Other’ is but a first step. The ultimate goal is to be able to acknowledge our essential unity and the ability to see one’s self in the Other – only then can the principle of fellowship be realised; that you love for your brother or sister what you love for yourself. This is a positive and dynamic principle of deeper bonds of humanity, unlike equality and tolerance which in essence perpetuate the idea of absolute division of human being into separate independent people. These latter principles may at most encourage you to acknowledge the other, but they would not go further as to suggest that you do for them as you do for your ownself.

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There is a need to revive the principle of fellowship and the love for the ‘Other’ as oneself. Embody such profound principles by cocreating social projects that demonstrate compassion and empathy for others. [Find out the direct needs of your own society – like elderly care or cleaning the environment or alleviate the suffering of others through the various programmes or humanitarian relief efforts, for instance.] Such projects serve to enculturate these profound shared values into our youth’ psyche. These profound shared values. However, in addition to the youth, all members of society need to fully participate in co-creating the common good and promoting peace within their respective spheres of influence – be they businesses, governments, or women.

CONCLUSION Never deem small acts of goodness or vice as insignificant. Remember that the greatest conflagrations comes from sparks. The smallest of the vices or the lowest of extremists’ voices ought to be addressed before they spiral into something of graver concern. Similarly the smallest of virtues need to be encouraged and promoted so it may take on a life of its own.

Each society needs to determine for itself what aspects of human and social behaviour needs to be encouraged and which needs to be curbed - in accordance with their own context, traditions and historical narratives. For the betterment of the collective society, such engagement, consultation and discussions ought to take place in a safe and a monitored public space to ensure that ethics of participation and ethics of disagreement prevail in spite of the differences in opinions. Effective and good communication is what links the different faiths together, highlights their shared compassion and advances the dignity of each human being.

Thank you.

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QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS

Q:

Today, Muslims face the challenge of countering extremist narratives from the likes of ISIS on the obligation of establishing a Caliphate. What are your thoughts on the concept of the Caliphate and its’ relevance to today’s context and hence what in your opinion constitutes an ideal state; what are the real requirements of an Islamic state from the Islamic perspective?

A:

We convened, three months ago, a conference, in Abu Dhabi, on the topic of “A National State.” Scholars from different parts of the Muslim world, including the Mufti of Singapore, participated. So we explained that there is no such thing as an exclusive concept of an Islamic State.

Instead, all states are legitimate both from the Islamic perspective and as well as from a legal perspective, by virtue of their promotion of values and principles that further human flourishing. The Caliphate existed at one point in history, and each time has its’ own appropriate systems and models. Models changes for every place and time, but values are universal and eternal.

The ultimate purpose of Sharīʿah is the protection of our shared values that ensure the survival of humankind. Thus, every state, regardless of the multiplicity of models, is legitimate in so far as it protects the interest of its citizens and anyone who resides in its boundaries. Caliphate is not a matter of worshiping or ‘Ibadat (that is immutable) like prayers and fasting, but it is about protecting the interest of the people.

Each state can chart its own unique path to achieving its goals of good governance and foreign policy. There is a need to go back to the constitutional requirements that does not encourage or allow belligerence, war and the unjustified killing of people within any particular state. So we have witnessed the outcomes of the caliphate that ISIS sought to establish.

Are these outcomes, what the Sharīʿah wants to establish ? Do they protect the welfare and the goodness in societies?

Q:

This question is about Islam and post-structuralism. As I understand the Shaykh has studied French post-structuralism. My question is: Does the Shaykh think that we can use Islamic applications of post-structuralism to form an alliance with humanism?

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A:

If I understand the question correctly then I would say that is Islam is in harmony with humanism. Islam is not a religion that addresses those who are not rational thinking people. The intellect is one of the four important sources of knowledge in Islam, as Imam Abū Hāmid al-Ghazālī (1058 – 1111) has explained in his works. The first two are the Qurʾān and the Sunnah; followed by the consensus of the scholars and the intellect. So all of humanity shares this importance of intellect. Islam is part of humanity.

And according to the French philosopher, Descartes (1596 – 1650), the mind or the intellect is one of the best gifts that humanity has received.

Because it is found in all of humanity so this is something that is shared by all humanity. Intellect allows for meaning-making and the discovery of what happens around us as human beings. A lot of the Islamic theological schools believe that an active intellect is one of the first requirements for belief. In other words, The Ash’arites, those who adhere to Ash’ari school of thought, believe that one’s belief ought to be based on deep intellectual understanding before one can begin to accept and establish true faith in his or her heart. So in essence, Islam accepts human thinking and intellect which are sound and which produce good results.

In addition, Islam is built upon four values or principles - public welfare and interest, compassion, justice and wisdom. Anything that deviates from these four is not part of the religion, as Ibn Qayyim al-Jawziyyah (1292 – 1350) says. What is the interest in killing another human being? There is no interest in there. Where is the compassion in war and belligerence? The message of Islam is based on these aforementioned four key principles.

Oppression, harm, chaos, anarchy and violence are not part of the Islamic ethics.

Q:

Some of the young people that we work with become very misguided because they seem to think that in matters of religion, they can only ‘listen and obey’ to what scholars say rigidly and narrowly. So one of the questions that we often ask as educators is that especially in matters of religion how do we teach our children and young people to think so that they can make good decisions for themselves in the future?

A:

This is a pedagogical issue. So subsequently we need to educate our children to engage their intellect and to think and to discuss. So if you just impart things without inculcating critical thinking as a foundation, then

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they are not able to fully understand what is being taught. I would like to say here that we are planning to organise a conference most probably in Morocco on the topic of religious education because religious education has now become a real challenge, especially for graduates and teachers.

There is a need to come up with new programmes. Be assured that we will not remove anything; we will just renew.

Q:

In a time where there are a lot of tribulations, how do we identify real scholars who have reached the level of IjtihÄ d Mutlaq meaning those who are able to come up with their own legal interpretations of the religion?

A:

The Commander of the Faithful, Imam Ali Ibn Abi Talib, may Allah be pleased with him, said that only with your understanding of what the truth is, can you know who the real scholars are. So you do not proclaim someone a scholar without really knowing and understanding the knowledge itself. You do not look at what he wears. You do not look at his appearance but you need to understand these areas of knowledge first, then you can identify who these real scholars are.

Q:

The Shaykh likened himself to a fire fighter just now and fire fighters do not ask why. They are just concerned about how to put the fire out. My question is: Is there a worry that by not questioning why the fire is there, we will forever be fighting the fire without putting it out? In fact, more fires will be emerging because we are only treating the symptoms and not the disease?

A:

The condition of today does not allow us to wait to ask the question why things happen. It is necessary. But our immediate duty now is to stop the wars from continuing, then we question why these things happened, in order to seek justice. But the search for justice may take more than twenty years. For example the world wars that we have witnessed, continued for a long time, so if you looked for the meaning of justice at that point we would not be able to stop the wars.

Justice has a very important place. We need to ask the principles as well as realities behind it and that is also an important task for us to perform.

But we must first remove oppression and injustice. And the first form of oppression is the continuity of wars and belligerence in this world. Men,

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women and children keep dying in these wars. We cannot allow this to continue. People who have been removed from their own homes and they do not understand the reasons for this displacement. So therefore it is extremely important that war and belligerence must first stop. That is the first priority for us. And we must stop everyone who has any kind of intention to start and advance these kinds of oppressions and wars.

Q:

It is well-known that people of religion, be they Muslim, Christians or Jews, can easily find common platforms to promote faith, compassion and human dignity. But we have on the other hand people of no religion, those whose core values are extreme material gains and profit to a point that it becomes greed at the expense of compassion and dignity. My question to the honourable Shaykh is, how do we become fire fighters to undo this greed that is against human compassion and dignity?

A:

There will always be differences in the values. We shall find lines that cannot be crossed, whether these lines are spiritual or material.

Human life has to be respected. Every human’s life must be respected as well his privacy. There is a very important philosophical principle used by a lot of philosophers which is “Do unto others what you like to be done onto yourself.� If you do not want anyone to kill you, then you do not think of killing anyone else. I am convinced that this principle in itself, is able to gather different people.

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Shaykh Abdallah Bin Bayyah and Shaykh Hamza Yusuf called upon Singapore’s Prime Minister, Mr Lee Hsien Loong. Participating in the call was Mufti of Singapore, Dr Mohamed Fatris Bakaram. PM Lee said in a Facebook post on the meeting: “Interfaith understanding is crucial to maintaining peace and harmony. We enjoy such peace and harmony but we have to keep learning from others, especially when we see so many countries experiencing religious tensions and conflicts.”

Shaykh Abdallah Bin Bayyah called upon Singapore’s President, Dr Tony Tan. They spoke about the importance of social harmony and reaffirmed multiculturalism as a cornerstone of Singapore’s multi-religious, multi-racial society.

Shaykh Abdallah Bin Bayyah called upon Singapore’s Deputy Prime Minister, Mr Teo Chee Hean. He presented DPM Teo with a copy of the Marrakesh Declaration, an initiative that calls for the peaceful co-existence of Islam with other religions and for everyone to be treated kindly regardless of their beliefs.

Shaykh Abdallah Bin Bayyah also called upon Singapore’s Minister for Culture, Community and Youth, Ms Grace Fu. They shared their experiences in strengthening harmony among religions. Shaykh’s message was that the world has no choice but to have dialogue between the different religions to achieve peace. Shaykh Bin Bayyah presented Minister Fu with a copy of the Marrakesh Declaration.

Mufti of Singapore, Dr Mohamed Fatris Bakaram welcomed Shaykh Bin Bayyah to Singapore.

Shaykh bin Bayyah was introduced to Singaporean Muslim community leaders.

Engaged participants attending the Asatizah Seminar held on 15 March 2017.

Ustaz Mohamad Hasbi Hassan, President of Pergas, Singapore.

Ustazah Kalsom Isa, Religious Rehabilitation Group, Singapore.

Minister for Communications and Information and Minister-in-Charge of Muslim Affairs and Minister-in-charge of Cyber Security, Dr Yaacob Ibrahim welcomes the President of the Forum for Promoting Peace in Muslim Societies at Grand Hyatt Singapore.

Engaged audience at The Muis Lecture by Shaykh Abdallah Bin Bayyah.

Shaykh Abdallah Bin Bayyah delivering The Muis Lecture 2017 entitled “Faith, Compassion and Human Dignity” on 17 March 2017.

Shaykh Abdallah Bin Bayyah mingled with regional socio-religious leaders, local leaders from the interfaith community, public service, and the Muslim community.

Shaykh Abdallah Bin Bayyah was presented with a token of appreciation by Minister Dr Yaacob Ibrahim, President of Islamic Religious Council of Singapore, Haji Alami Musa, Chief Executive of the Islamic Religious Council of Singapore, Haji Abdul Razak Maricar and Mufti of Singapore, Dr Mohamed Fatris Bakaram.

‫إذا مل تكن عىل عمل ودراية واكتفيت فقط بأن هذا فالن وأنه يرتدي عاممة مثيل هكذا‪ ،‬لن تعرف‬ ‫العامل‪ .‬لكن البد أن تكون عىل دراية حىت تعرف من هو العامل ‪ ،‬تعرف من هو اذلي يتلكم ابلعمل‬ ‫كام قال عيل‪« :‬اعرف الرجال ابحلق وال تعرف احلق ابلرجال‪ ،‬اعرف احلق تعرف من يأتيه»‬ ‫يعين ّ‬ ‫تعل حىت تعرف الرجال اذلين يقولون احلق‪ .‬ال تقول هذا قاهل فالن‪ ..‬فالن! من هذا فالن؟‬ ‫هل تعرف شيئًا حىت حتمك عىل فالن؟‬ ‫شكرا جزيال كل عىل وقتك وعىل احملارضة‪ .‬ال�شيخ منذ قليل‬ ‫ ‪:‬‬ ‫س‬ ‫السالم عليمك اي ال�شيخ‪ً .‬‬ ‫�شبه نفسه ابإلطفايئ وأن اإلطفايئ ال يسأل ملاذا‪ ،‬هو هممت فقط أن يطفىء احلريق‪ .‬وسؤايل هو‬ ‫هل هناك أي ختوف لعدم السؤال عن سبب احلريق مبا يعين أننا سنبقى حنارب احلريق أبدً ا دون‬ ‫إطفائه أو ابألحرى ستندلع نريان أخرى ألننا نعاجل األعراض وليس املرض بعينه؟‬ ‫ج‪ :‬الوضع اآلن ال ينتظر سؤال ملاذا ‪ ،‬يه رضورية لكن حنن علينا أن نوقف احلروب لنتلكم‬ ‫فامي بعد عن السؤال ملاذا لنبحث عن العداةل‪ .‬أان لست ضد العداةل‪ ،‬لكن العداةل رمبا تأخذ عرشين‬ ‫أو ثالثني �سنة ل ُي َ‬ ‫حاك اجملرم‪ .‬كام بعد احلرب العاملية الثانية وحىت مبجازر روندا ‪ ،‬حيامك إىل اآلن من‬ ‫ارتكبوها لكن اكن عىل احلرب أن تتوقف أو ًال‪.‬‬ ‫العداةل لها ماكهنا وعلينا أن نبحث احلقائق لكن هذا ليس سه ًال‪ .‬علينا أن نزيل ُ ّغة‪ ،‬أول ظمل هو‬ ‫ُرشد انس من دايرمه ال يعرفون‬ ‫ا�سمترار احلرب‪ .‬ميوت نساء وصبيان ال شأن هلم هبذه احلرب‪ ،‬وي ّ‬ ‫ش ّدوا‪ .‬جيب أن تقف احلرب وجيب أال منكن لك من يريد أن حيركها‪.‬‬ ‫ملاذا ُ ِ‬ ‫بسم هللا‪ .‬معروف جيدا أن أحصاب ادلايانت ليكن املسلمون‪ ،‬امل�سيحيون و الهيود‬ ‫ ‪:‬‬ ‫س‬ ‫ي�ستطيعون بسهوةل إجياد قاعدة مشرتكة لنرش املعتقدات‪ ،‬الرمحة والانسانية وما إىل ذكل‪ ،‬وإىل‬ ‫اجلانب اآلخر هناك الغري متدينني واذلين من مبادهئم األسا�سية حتقيق الرحبية والفوائد املادية ابحلد‬ ‫األقىص اذلي وصل إىل اجلشع عىل حساب الرمحة واإلنسانية‪ .‬سؤايل لسامحة ال�شيخ هو كيف‬ ‫نكون إطفائيني للتخلص من هذا اجلشع؟‬ ‫�سيظل وجود اختالف يف القمي لكن علينا أن نوجد ً‬ ‫مادي‬ ‫ ‪:‬‬ ‫ج‬ ‫خطوطا ال جيوز جتاوزها سواء ً‬ ‫أو روحان ًيا‪ ،‬علينا أن حنرتم احلياة البرشية‪ ،‬حنرتم حياة لك إنسان وخصوصية لك إنسان‪ .‬هناك مبدأ‬ ‫يقوهل بعض الفالسفة أن لك األخالق تقوم عليه و هو «امعل للناس ما تريد أن يعملوه كل»‪ .‬ال‬ ‫تريد أن يقتكل أحد فال تقتل أحدا ‪ ،‬ال تريد أن يؤذيك أحد فال تؤذي أحدا‪ .‬أعتقد أن هذا املبدأ‬ ‫وحده يكفي لنجمع حوهل الناس‪.‬‬ ‫‪31‬‬

‫الاسالم يقبل األفاكر اإلنسانية الصحيحة النافعة‪ .‬أقول كل هنا‪ ،‬اإلسالم يقوم عىل أربعة مبادئ‬ ‫أو قمي يه املصلحة والرمحة والعدل واحلمكة ‪ ،‬لك ما خرج عن هذه األربعة فليس من ادلين كام‬ ‫يقول ابن القمي حىت ولو ن�سبه الناس إىل ادلين‪.‬‬ ‫أيّة مصلحة يف أن تقتل الناس وتزهق نفسك؟ ال مصلحة يف ذكل‪ .‬أيّة رمحة للناس يف احلرب؟ أي‬ ‫عدل يف أن تقتل النفس الربيئة واملذنبة ‪ ،‬أن تقتل امجليع؟ أيّة حمكة يف ذكل؟ أريد أن أقول‪ ،‬إن‬ ‫هذه القمي األربع اليت حتدث ابن القمي بقيام اإلسالم علهيا ‪ ،‬ويه ما تقوم رساةل اإلسالم هبا‪ :‬مصلحة‬ ‫‪ ،‬عدل ‪ ،‬رمحة ‪ ،‬حمكة‪ .‬إذا وجدت شيئًا من اجلور فليس من اإلسالم ألنه ضد العدل‪ ،‬الفساد‬ ‫ضد املصلحة ليس من اإلسالم‪ ،‬العنف ليس من اإلسالم ألنه ضد الرمحة‪ ،‬الفوىض ضد اإلسالم‬ ‫ألهنا ليست من احلمكة‪ ،‬هذه يه املبادئ األربعة‪.‬‬ ‫س‪ :‬السالم عليمك ورمحة هللا‪ ،‬أان مربية سأسأل هذا السؤال نيابة عن العديد من املربني‬ ‫هنا‪ .‬بعض من الزمالء ال�شبان اذلين يعملون معنا ُمضَ لَلون ألهنم يظنون أنه يف ادلين ال ميكننا إال‬ ‫السمع و الطاعة ((مسعنا وأطعنا)) و يمتسكون هبا بشدة وبضيق نظر‪ .‬أحد األ�سئةل اليت لطاملا‬ ‫نطرهحا مكربني‪ ،‬خاصة يف أمور ادلين‪ .‬كيف نعمل أطفالنا وال�شباب كيفية التفكري حىت يمتكنوا من‬ ‫اختاذ القرارات الصائبة ألنفسهم م�ستقبال؟‬ ‫هذه قضية تربوية بيداغوجية‪ .‬وابلتايل علينا يف هذا العرص أن نعمل األوالد أن يُ ْع ِملوا‬ ‫ج‪ :‬‬ ‫عقوهلم وأن حياوروا و أن يتلكموا ‪ ،‬ألن التعلمي تلقينًا فقط يؤدي اىل أن الطالب ال ي�ستوعب شيئًا‬ ‫مما يُلقن به‪ ،‬وال يكون حمصنًا‪.‬‬ ‫ميكننا أن نقول هنا أننا ننوي عقد مؤمتر عاملي ‪ ،‬رمبا يف املغرب‪ ،‬لقضية التعلمي ادليين يف العامل‬ ‫اإلساليم ألنه أصبح ميثل مشلكة للخرجيني‪ ،‬للمتعلمني ‪ ،‬للمعلمني لك هذا حيتاج أن نقدم هلم‬ ‫برانجما جديدا‪ .‬اطمئنوا لن حنذف شيئا لكننا �سنجدد فقط‪.‬‬ ‫س‪ :‬من األقوال‪ :‬كرثة اخلطباء وقةل العلامء‪ .‬فكيف نفرق بني العا ِلم احلقيقي واجملهتد املطلق يف‬ ‫عرص الفنت‪.‬‬ ‫ج‪ :‬هناك مقوةل ألمري املؤمنني عيل بن أيب طالب ريض هللا عنه «اعرف الرجال ابحلق وال‬ ‫تعرف احلق ابلرجال‪ ،‬اعرف احلق تعرف من يأتيه»‪.‬‬

‫‪32‬‬

‫واحلوار‬

‫املناقشة‬

‫س‪ :‬يواجه املسلمون اليوم التحدي املمتثل يف التصدي للرواايت املتطرفة من أمثال داعش‬ ‫عىل وجوب إقامة اخلالفة‪ .‬ما هو مفهومك حول مبدأ اخلالفة ومالءمهتا حلارضان ‪ ،‬وابلتايل ما رأيك‬ ‫يف ما يشلك دوةل مثالية ‪ ،‬وما يه املتطلبات احلقيقية إلنشاء دوةل إسالمية من املنظور اإلساليم؟‬ ‫ج‪ :‬لقد عقدان مؤمترا يف هذه ال�سنة قبل ثالثة أشهر أظن يف أبوظيب حول مفهوم ادلوةل‬ ‫الوطنية‪ .‬دعوان إليه مجيع علامء املسلمني وقد حرضه حرضة مفيت �سنغافورة‪ .‬وأوحضنا فيه أن دعوى‬ ‫داعش ليست حصيحة وأن لك هذه ادلول يه دول رشعية دينيًا وقانون ًيا ‪ ،‬وأن اخلالفة نظام اكن‬ ‫موجودًا يف وقت من األوقات وأن لك زمان هل أنظمة مالمئة هل ‪ ،‬وأن الرشع هيمت مبصاحل العباد‬ ‫وهذا يعين أنه جيب أال ميوت الناس ويقتلوا من أجل فكرة اخلالفة‪.‬‬ ‫إن لك ادلول يه دول رشعية وطنية ‪ ،‬واخلالفة كغريها من أنظمة احلمك ملصاحل العباد‪ .‬اخلالفة‬ ‫ليست مسأةل عبادات اكلصالة والصوم يه تأسست ملصلحة العباد ‪ ،‬وكذكل لك دوةل تقوم يه‬ ‫ملصلحة العباد فال إشاكل يف هذا‪.‬‬ ‫وأول همامت ادلوةل يه السالم وإقامة ادلين واحملافظة عليه واحملافظة عىل األموال واألمن العام‬ ‫حبسب نظاهما و حبسب تكويهنا البرشي‪ .‬فالبحث جيب أن يكون من خالل دل�ستور وليس من‬ ‫خالل احلروب وقتل الناس‪ .‬عىل لك حال حنن نعرف ما اذلي ت�سببت به دعوى اخلالفة اليت‬ ‫قامت هبا داعش من نتاجئ‪ ،‬وعلينا النظر يف ماهية النتاجئ وهل يه نتاجئ رشعية أن تقتل الناس؟‬ ‫س‪ :‬هل يعتقد ال�شيخ أننا ن�ستطيع ا�ستخدام التطبيقات اإلسالمية ملا بعد البنيوية لتشكيل‬ ‫حتالف مع اإلنسانية؟‬ ‫ج‪ :‬إذا كنت قد فهمت السؤال ‪ ،‬فهو يعين هل اإلسالم ينسجم مع األفاكر اإلنسانية؟ ابلطبع‬ ‫اإلسالم ليس مقد ًما إال ذلوي العقول ‪ ،‬اإلسالم هو دين عقل ‪ ،‬والعقل هو من األصول األربعة‬ ‫لإلسالم كام يقول أبو حامد الغزايل‪ ،‬الكتاب وال�سنة والاجامع والعقل‪.‬‬ ‫إ ًذا العقل هو مشرتك بني لك البرش‪ ،‬وهذا يعين أن اإلسالم هو جزء من البرشية‪.‬‬ ‫يقول دياكرت العقل هو أحسن يشء توزي ًعا بني الناس ألن العقل موجود عند لك الناس‪ .‬إ ًذا‬ ‫فاإلسالم يؤمن ابلعقل كدليل منتج للعقائد وكدليل م�ستكشف للفروع‪ .‬ألن الكثري من املذاهب‬ ‫اإلسالمية اكألشاعرة مثال يقولون البُ ّد من النظر العقيل قبل أن تعتقد ‪ ،‬البد أن تعتقد عقل ًيا‪ .‬إذا‬

‫‪33‬‬

‫الهالك‪ .‬وأن مبدأ التعارف القرآين هو لتعارفوا‬ ‫﴿إِنَّ َخلَ ْقنَ ُاك ِّمن َذ َك ٍر َو ُأ َ ٰنث َو َج َعلْنَ ُ ْاك ُش ُع ًوب َوقَبَائِ َل ِلتَ َع َارفُوا﴾ (احلجرات ‪)31 :‬‬ ‫إن هذا التعارف يشمل مبدأ التسامح ومبدأ الاعرتاف أيضا‪ .‬ولكن هناك مبدأ آخر هو مبدأ‬ ‫األخوة‪ ،‬أن حيب ألخيه ما حيبه لنفسه ‪ ،‬واحملبة واألخوة مبادئ إجيابية ‪ ،‬ديناميكية ليست مكبدأ‬ ‫ّ‬ ‫املساواة وليس مكبدأ التسامح اذلي يعين فقط عدم اإلهامتم ابآلخر‪.‬‬ ‫دعوان حنيي مبدأ األخوة واحملبة ‪ ،‬بصورة ب�سيطة نبدأ مبشاريع مشرتكة‪ .‬ممكن مجموعة من ال�شباب‬ ‫تقوم بأي مرشوع مشرتك‪ ،‬ال أعرف الوضع يف �سنغافورة لكن ميكن أن تقوم بكنس الشوارع‬ ‫ميكن أن تقوم بعمل مشرتك‪ .‬رمبا مثال إذا نزلت األمطار تساعد يف إزاةل آاثر ال�سيول‪ .‬املشاريع‬ ‫املشرتكة رضورية‪ .‬تكوين مجموعات من ال�شباب مقتنعة ابلسمل وابلتعايش هذا أفضل يشء ‪،‬‬ ‫تكوين مجموعات من النساء أيضً ا هتمت هبذا اجلانب أمر يف غاية األمهية ألن املرأة لها تأثري كبري‬ ‫يف البيت ‪ ،‬وأن تؤيد احلكومة يف لك مبادرة السالم‪ .‬علينا أن ال حنتقر لك يشء ‪ ،‬ال حنتقر‬ ‫معل خري وال حنتقر أيضً ا معل الرش ألن معظم النار من م�ستصغر الرشر كام يقولون ‪ ،‬ممكن‬ ‫ملتطرف واحد أن ينقل العدوى لآلخرين مجيعا ويفسد العامل‪ .‬ممكن أن نساعد األخوة عىل تقدمي‬ ‫برامج يف مثل هذا ونتعاون مجي ًعا حىت ننرش السالم يف العامل‪.‬‬ ‫لك مجموعة‪ ،‬لك دوةل‪ ،‬لك بدلة تعمل حسب ا�ستطاعهتا وحسب اترخيها وموروهثا احلضاري‬ ‫ال إشاكل فيه‪ .‬لكن برشط أن يكون النقاش حتت قبة الربملان وليس النقاش يف الشارع وأن ال‬ ‫يتحول إىل احلرب‪ .‬جيب أن نتعمل احلوار‪ ،‬هبذا ممكن أن ن�ستفيد‪.‬‬ ‫دلي الكثري مما أحب أن أقوهل وأنمت تعرفون أن الرجل إذا اكن م�سنًا فإنه حيب أن يتلكم كثريًا‪.‬‬ ‫لكن قولوا يل امصت حىت أمصت‪.‬‬ ‫أشكرمك جزيل الشكر والسالم عليمك ورمحة هللا وبراكته‪.‬‬

‫‪34‬‬

‫عىل إطعام الفقراء وعىل مداواة املرىض‪ .‬ادلين ميكن أن يساعد يف ذكل ‪ ،‬إذا مل ن�ستعمهل‬ ‫مصدرا‬ ‫ي�ستعمهل املفرس هل لبناء قنبةل ألنه ابإلماكن أن يكون ادلين قنبةل وابإلماكن أن يكون ً‬ ‫مصدرا للرخاء ولعالج املرىض‪ .‬ابختصار دعوتنا يه لدلاينة ‪ ،‬دعوتنا يه للسالم‬ ‫للطاقة ‪ ،‬يكون ً‬ ‫دعوتنا يه جلعل املشرتاكت بني لك أهل ادلايانت قامئة عىل أسس من احملبة وحتالف العقالء‬ ‫لتفعيل هذه القمي وجلعلها حقيقة موجودة بد ًال من قمي احلرب وادلمار والبغضاء والكراهية‪.‬‬ ‫أنمت هنا مبعتقدات خمتلفة لكنمك وطن واحد‪ .‬إنمك اكلب�ستان الواحد فيه مثار خمتلفة‪ .‬إهنا فرصة يك‬ ‫يكون العامل لكه كذكل ‪ ،‬نريد أن نقول ملن يقومون بقتل الناس ابإلعتداء عىل الناس أن هذا‬ ‫ليس ادلين الصحيح‪ .‬نقدم الربهان تلو الربهان ونقدم التفسري تلو التفسري ذلكل‪.‬‬ ‫إنّ ل�سنا مغرورين ‪ ،‬نعرف أننا لن نزنع مهنم السالح برسعة لكننا نرى أن هذه النظرايت اليت‬ ‫نقدهما إذا أنزلناها يف برامج معلية بإماكهنا أن تساعد يف حتصني أولئك اذلين مل يصابوا ابدلاء‬ ‫وأيضً ا رمبا يف مساعدة أولئك اذلين يريدون أن يرجعوا ّمعا أصبحوا عليه وأن يعودوا‪ .‬إننا حباجة‬ ‫للتعاون مع امجليع ذوي النوااي الطيبة لتقدمي برامج معلية يف اجلامعات ويف جتمعات ال�شباب‬ ‫ويف التجمعات النسوية‪.‬‬ ‫أود أن أجيب هنا عىل ما يقوهل رمبا املتطرفون أننا ال ندعو أحدً ا ليتنازل عن دينه بل عىل لك‬ ‫خشص أن يعيش دينه لكن ليعش دينه دون أن يرض ابلناس‪ .‬فادلين يضمن اللكيات مهنا حامية‬ ‫النفس وحامية العقل وحامية العرض واملال وادلين وهذه ال ميكن أن تكون إال يف جو السالم‪.‬‬ ‫لنقوم بذكل علينا أن نتعامل مع أصول ادلين اليت يه احملبة والسالم ‪ ،‬علينا أن نتعامل مع العقول‬ ‫‪ ،‬علينا أن نعرف الزمن احلارض ألن للك زمان أحاكمه ‪ ،‬الزمن القدمي هل أحاكم والزمن اجلديد‬ ‫هل أحاكم وكام قلت يه من الرايضيات القدمية حصيحة واحلديثة أيضا حصيحة لكهنا يه املنا�سبة‬ ‫‪ ،‬فاإلعتداء عىل الناس ً‬ ‫خطوطا محراء جيب أال نتخطاها‪.‬‬ ‫أعرف أن دليمك الكثري من األ�سئةل تتعلق ابملفاهمي ‪ ،‬ما هو مفهوم اجلهاد ما هو مفهوم دار‬ ‫اإلسالم ودار الكفر وما هو مفهوم بناء املساجد وبناء الكنائس‪ .‬دليمك أ�سئةل كثرية عن‬ ‫العالقات بني خمتلف ادلايانت‪ .‬وبعض الناس عنده مظامل أيضا ‪ ،‬عنده فقر وهتميش‪.‬‬ ‫اذلي أقوهل يف لكمة واحدة من هؤالء أن لك هذا ال يربر احلرب ‪ ،‬ال يربر القتل ‪ ،‬لكن مع‬ ‫ذكل لك هذه املفاهمي حتدثنا عهنا وطالبنا لك ادلايانت أن تقدم روايهتا‪ .‬فهل حنتاج إىل مزيد من‬ ‫التذكري؟ أأحتاج زايدة يف موعظيت هذه؟‬ ‫إخواين أخوايت ‪ ،‬أظهرت التجربة أن لك ما خي ّل ابألمن يف هذا العرص فإنه يؤدي ابألمم إىل‬ ‫‪35‬‬

‫اذلي نعطيه لدلين‪ .‬لهذا قد مجعنا علامء العامل اإلساليم وأيضا ادلايانت األخرى اكمل�سيحية‬ ‫والهيودية والهندو�سية وادلايانت يف العامل العريب اكلزييدية والصابئة وغري ذكل من ادلايانت يف‬ ‫مراكش لنقدم لها رساةل السالم‪ .‬لنقدم لها رساةل السالم ورواية اإلسالم‪ .‬هناك رواايت كثرية‬ ‫عن اإلسالم اآلن ‪ ،‬دين اإلرهاب‪ ،‬إيديولوجية رشيرة ‪ ،‬وال ميكن التعايش معه‪.‬‬ ‫هذه الرواية ليست حصيحة ‪ ،‬هذه رواية املتطرفني‪ .‬قدمنا ابلربهان الرواية الصحيحة يف حامية‬ ‫األقليات ويف املواطنة املتساوية‪ .‬وقلنا إن عىل لك داينة أن تقدم ما عندها من قمي اخلري حىت‬ ‫كون حلفًا للفضيةل‪ .‬عىل لك طائفة أن تقدم ما عندها من اخلري ومن القمي‬ ‫نتعاون مجي ًعا يك ُن ّ‬ ‫لنكون م ًعا حلفًا للفضيةل وحلفًا للقمي‪.‬‬ ‫نعتقد أن العامل لكه أصبح ال أقلية فيه وال أكرثية وابلتايل ال بد للعامل يك يتعايش أن يقدم حلفًا‬ ‫للفضيةل‪ .‬أان أتفق مع هانز كونغ عندما يقول «إنه ال سالم يف العامل دون سالم بني األداين»‪ .‬هذه‬ ‫مقوةل معيقة لكن املشلكة ليست يف األداين ‪ ،‬املشلكة يف اإلنسان‪.‬‬ ‫كيف نكون مجموعات بل ً‬ ‫جيوشا للسالم ‪ ،‬وليس للحرب حبيث يكون حلف القمي ممكنًا؟ أوال‬ ‫لنفهم هذا احللف نقول عندان ثالثة م�ستوايت من م�ستوايت القمي و العالقات‪ .‬امل�ستوى األول‬ ‫امل�ستوى اخلاص للك داينة ‪ ،‬امل�ستوى الثاين هو القمي املشرتكة بني ادلايانت الساموية وحىت‬ ‫ادلايانت اليت تؤمن ابلروحانيات‪ .‬امل�ستوى الثالث م�ستوى اإلنسانية واآلدمية‪ .‬وعىل لك هذه‬ ‫امل�ستوايت يوجد قمي مشرتكة ال �سامي يف م�ستوى اإلنسانية وم�ستوى ادلايانت‪.‬‬ ‫دعوان نقدم هذه القمي ونكثف من هذه القمي ونضخمها‪ .‬فقمية العدل ‪ ،‬قمية الصدق ‪ ،‬قمية الوفاء‪،‬‬ ‫قمية اخلري واحملبة واإلحسان عىل الضعفاء واملرىض هذه قمي إنسانية مشرتكة‪ .‬الصدق مث ًال لك‬ ‫واحد منا حيب أن يكون صادقًا حىت ولو اكن الكذاب حيب أن يسمى صادقا‪.‬‬ ‫أان مع الفالسفة حني يقولون إن البرشية مفطورة عىل قمي مشرتكة كام قال «اكنت» وغريه‪ .‬وهذا‬ ‫اذلي تقوهل ادلايانت الساموية خباصة األداين تكل اليت ختاطب البرشية اكفة‪.‬‬ ‫فعندان يف اإلسالم البارئ جل وعال خياطب الناس يف حديث قديس‪:‬‬ ‫﴿ي ِع َبا ِدي! إ ِِّن َح َّر ْم ُت اَ ُّلظ ْ َل عَ َل ن َ ْف ِس‪َ ,‬و َج َعلْ ُت ُه بَيْنَ ُ ْك ُم َح َّر ًما‪ ,‬فَ َل ت َ​َظال َ ُموا﴾ (أَخ َْر َج ُه م ُْس ِ ٌل)‬ ‫َ‬ ‫اخلالق هو من ال خياف أحداً وال خياف العواقب ومع ذكل يقول أان ال أظمل أحدً ا ويقول للناس‬ ‫ال يظمل أحد منمك أحدً ا‪.‬‬ ‫هذه القمي املشرتكة اليت جيب أن نرفع مهنا ‪ ،‬ملاذا ال هنمت مبثل هذه القمي ونتعاون علهيا؟ نتعاون‬ ‫‪36‬‬

‫أن نرى يف لك إنسان متثي ًال لهذا الكون ولهذه اإلنسانية ‪ ،‬لك اعتداء عليه فهو اعتداء عىل‬ ‫اإلنسانية لكها‪ .‬ولك إحسان إليه فهو إحسان إىل اإلنسانية لكها ‪ ،‬كام قال هللا �سبحانه وتعاىل‬ ‫﴿ ‪..‬أن َّ ُه َمن قَتَ َل ن َ ْف ًسا ِبغ ْ َِي ن َ ْف ٍس أَ ْو فَ َسا ٍد ِف ْ َال ْر ِض فَ َك َأن َّ َما قَتَ َل النَّ َاس َ ِجي ًعا َو َم ْن أَ ْحيَاهَا فَ َك َأن َّ َما‬ ‫أَ ْحيَا النَّ َاس َ ِجي ًعا‪( ﴾..‬املائدة ‪)23 :‬‬ ‫جيب أن ترى نفسك يف اآلخر وابلتايل لن يكون هناك آخر ألنك أنت هو وهو أنت‪.‬‬ ‫إن مشلكة اآلخر ومشلكة الهوايت يه مشلكة العامل يف الوقت احلارض‪ .‬العامل يعيش يف بيت‬ ‫واحد ‪ ،‬لكن القلوب مع األسف تتنافر والهوايت الصغرية تكرب‪ .‬ولكام تقاربت املسافة تباعدت‬ ‫األرواح‪.‬‬ ‫إن ذكل دليل عىل فشل العمل وفشل التكنولوجيا‪.‬‬ ‫كيف نعود إىل اإلنسانية وكيف نعود إىل روح ادلايانت اليت يه روح السالم واحملبة؟ كيف نرجع‬ ‫إىل جوهرها احلقيقي؟ اذلي هو جوهر احلياة وجوهر السعادة وليس الفناء والتدمري‪.‬‬ ‫هذه يه املهمة اليت عىل العلامء والفالسفة أن يقدموها للناس ‪ ،‬ولهذا حنن يف منتدى تعزيز‬ ‫السمل نبحث عن جواب كيف؟ كيف نوقف احلروب‪ ،‬كيف نعيد السكينة إىل القلوب كيف‬ ‫نعيد التآلف بني أبناء البرش؟!‬ ‫إننا ال نسأل عن ماذا وعن ملاذا‪ .‬حنن إطفائيون واإلطفايئ ال يسأل عن «ملاذا» يك يطفىء‬ ‫احلريق‪ .‬لكن هذ ال يعين أن ملاذا غائبة‪« .‬ملاذا» هو سؤال العداةل لكن «كيف» هو سؤال عاجل‬ ‫وهو سؤال اإلطفايئ يك يطفىء احلريق‪.‬‬ ‫ابلطبع تلقينا النقد من بعض املفكرين اذلين قالوا أنمت أمهلمت العداةل‪.‬‬ ‫حنن مل هنمل العداةل لكن ال ميكن للعداةل أن تقوم يف حاةل الفناء‪ .‬جيب أن تتوقف احلروب‪ .‬هذه‬ ‫يه املهمة العاجةل‪ .‬مسؤولية هذا الوضع عىل من تقع؟ إنه أمر معقد وليس ب ً‬ ‫�سيطا‪ .‬التب�سيط‬ ‫والتعممي هام كام يقول بعض الفالسفة عيوب ابحلمك‪ .‬لكن مع ذكل حنن نعرتف أن الثقافة وادلين‬ ‫هلام جزء من املسؤولية أو عىل األقل جزء من ادلعوة اليت يرفعها املتطرفون ‪ ،‬ولهذا حاولنا أن‬ ‫نقدم وصفة نرى أهنا هممة ورضورية ومعيقة من رمح ادلين لنقدهما إلطفاء احلريق ‪ ،‬لقناعتنا أن‬ ‫ادلين ‪ ،‬لك ادلين ‪ ،‬هو اكلطاقة ميكن أن يبين ويعمر كام ميكن أن هيدم ويدمر‪.‬‬ ‫املشلكة ليست يف ادلين‪ ،‬املشلكة فمين يتلكم ابمس ادلين‪ .‬املشلكة يه يف فهم ادلين ويف التأويل‬ ‫‪37‬‬

‫لكمة ال�شيخ ادلكتور عبد هللا بن احملفوظ بن بيه‬ ‫امحلد هلل رب العاملني ‪ ،‬امحلد هلل اذلي خلقنا خمتلفني متنوعني لنتاكمل ولنتعارف وليكون ذكل‬ ‫آية للعاملني‪.‬‬ ‫إن هذا الكون لوحة مجيةل ‪ ،‬لوحة مجيةل بتنوعها‪ ،‬مرسور أن أرامك مجيعا بيضً ا وسودًا وبني‬ ‫ذكل‪ .‬ختتلفون يف مالبسمك وأيضً ا يف شلك املالبس ‪ ،‬مثيل أان يل حلية ورجل كبري مسن أيضً ا‬ ‫أختلف عنمك قليال‪ .‬هذا لكه جامل‬ ‫﴿إِنَّ َج َعلْنَا َما عَ َل ْ َال ْر ِض ِزينَ ًة لَهَا ِلنَ ْبلُ َو ُ ْه أَيُّ ُ ْم أَ ْح َس ُن َ َع ًال﴾ (الكهف ‪)7 :‬‬ ‫وهللا �سبحانه وتعاىل يقول‬ ‫﴿‪...‬فَ َأخ َْر ْجنَا ِب ِه ث َ َم َر ٍات ُّم ْختَ ِلفًا أَلْ َو ُانَا ۚ َو ِم َن الْجِ َبالِ ُجدَ ٌد ب ٌ‬ ‫ِيب‬ ‫ِيض َو ُ ْح ٌر ُّم ْختَ ِل ٌف أَلْ َو ُانَا َوغَ َراب ُ‬ ‫اب َو ْ َالن ْ َعا ِم ُم ْختَ ِل ٌف أَلْ َوان ُ ُه َك ٰ َذ ِ َل‪( ﴾...‬فاطر ‪)82 – 72 :‬‬ ‫ُسو ٌد َو ِم َن النَّ ِاس َوادلَّ َو ِّ‬ ‫هل ترون لك هذا امجلال؟ أرجو ذكل‪ .‬رمبا يراه الشعراء و الفالسفة ‪ ،‬فلنحاول الليةل أن نكون‬ ‫فالسفة قليال‪.‬‬ ‫ونصيل ونسمل عىل �سيدان محمد خامت األنبياء وعىل إخوانه من النبيني واملرسلني‪ .‬نؤمن بلك‬ ‫األنبياء وبلك الرساالت ‪ ،‬نؤمن ابحلق وابلعدل وابحلمكة همام اكن مصدرها ومن أية هجة اكنت‪.‬‬ ‫معايل الوزير ادلكتور يعقوب إبراهمي وزير الاتصاالت واملعلومات والوزير املسؤول عن شؤون‬ ‫املسلمني‪ ،‬أحصاب املعايل ‪ ،‬أحصاب السعادة والفضيةل‪ ،‬لك ابمسه ومجيل ومسه‪ .‬نرحب بأحصاب‬ ‫ادلايانت اخملتلفة يف هذا البدل ‪ ،‬نرحب ابلرجال وابلنساء أيضً ا ‪ ،‬ونرحب ابل�شباب وابل�شيوخ‪.‬‬ ‫هذا ترشيف يل وتكرمي أن أتلكم أمام هؤالء مجي ًعا‪.‬‬ ‫لقد كنت أميل إىل أن أسكت أو ًال ألمسعمك ‪ ،‬لكنمك أردمت أن أتلكم أو ًال‪ .‬ولهذا أقول أهيا األخوة‬ ‫العنوان هنا هو اإلميان والرمحة والكرامة اإلنسانية أليس كذكل؟ هذا عنوان مجيل لكن هل حنن‬ ‫البرش ن ُط ّبق هذا العنوان يف حياتنا ويف عالقاتنا لنكون سعداء حقا؟‬ ‫إن اإلميان يقتيض بنا أن حنب اخلالق وأن حنسن عىل اخمللوق‪ .‬إن الرمحة تقتيض بنا أن نتضامن‬ ‫وأن حيب بعضنا بعضً ا وأن خيدمه‪.‬‬ ‫إن اإلنسانية تقتيض منا أن نمني املشرتاكت اإلنسانية بيننا ويه كثرية متنوعة‪ .‬وأن حنيي اإلنسانية‪،‬‬ ‫‪38‬‬

‫«اإلميان والرمحة‬ ‫والكرامة اإلنسانية»‬

‫حمارضة اجمللس اإلساليم‬ ‫ال�سنغافوري ‪2017‬‬

‫فضيةل ال�شيخ ‪ /‬عبد هللا بن ال�شيخ احملفوظ بن بيه‬ ‫برانمج إ�ستضافة كبار العلامء واملفكرين‬ ‫رئيس ُمنتَدى ت َعزيز السمل يف اجملمتعات املسلمة‬ ‫‪39‬‬

ISLAMIC RELIGIOUS COUNCIL OF SINGAPORE (MUIS) The Islamic Religious Council of Singapore (Muis) is a statutory board under the Ministry of Culture, Community and Youth (MCCY) and comes under the direct purview of the Minister-in-Charge of Muslim Affairs. Muis’ main role is to advise the Singapore Government on all matters pertaining to Islamic affairs in Singapore and to manage all aspects of religious life of the Singapore Muslim Community.

Its aim is to establish a Muslim community of excellence that is religiously profound and socially progressive, and that thrives in a multi-religious society, secular state and globalised world. Its priority is to set the Islamic Agenda, shape Religious Life and forge a Singapore Muslim Identity, is progressive, inclusive, adaptive and contributive. It champions forward-looking discourse in Islam and promotes interfaith understanding through community engagement initiatives to enhance the social cohesion and well-being of the nation.

MUIS ACADEMY Muis Academy is the research and education arm of the Islamic Religious Council of Singapore (Muis). The Academy aims to develop the leadership capabilities of the socio-religious community in order to nurture a progressive, inclusive and compassionate Muslim religious life. The Academy promotes a deeper understanding and progressive discourse on Islam and Muslim societies that supports Muis’ vision of establishing a Muslim Community of Excellence in Singapore. This is realised through multi-disciplinary courses, workshops, roundtable discussions, seminars and conferences. In addition, the Academy conducts research and publishes commentaries on contemporary issues relating to Islam in the Modern World.

Muis Academy also actively engages different sectors of the society, such as religious leaders of all faiths, community and youth leaders as well as government officers. It also establishes partnerships with reputable institutions of higher learning both locally and internationally.

OUR VISION

A Muslim Community of Excellence that is religiously profound and socially progressive, which thrives in a multi-religious society, secular state and globalised world.

OUR MISSION

To broaden and deepen the Singapore Muslim Community’s understanding and practice of Islam, while enhancing the well-being of the nation.

OUR PRIORITY To set the Islamic Agenda, shape Religious Life and forge the Singapore Muslim Identity.