Misquoting God!

I wasn't sure what to expect when I attended the talk given by Vanessa Jill DeGifis titled Scripture and Pious Rhetoric in Abbasid Politics. Like most, I have my preconceived notions before entering any situation. Being of Arab descent and also having what I consider to be a reasonably good understanding of the Islamic faith as well as an understanding of both the history of the region and its politics, I was definitely interested and at the same time curious. To be completely honest, my initial reaction was that the person giving the talk does not have a name that sounds Arabic or Islamic. Naturally, I next wondered about the credentials of the speaker and under what authority other than that of an academic one (as if that wasn't enough) was she speaking. In the past, when hearing talks dealing with religion, they were normally given by members of the clergy of that particular religion or guest speakers who were either of that particular faith, other faiths, or people that converted religions. I have even heard debates between members of different faiths as well as atheists and agnostics. Needless to say, the speakers were not always very objective when presenting their views so I was really looking forward to hearing a fresh perspective from an academic stance and I wasn't disappointed.

Having said that, I would like to add a few points about historical perspectives. Those reporting about history, particularly the history of the other, have a Western notion of thinking about that history. There exists a cultural difference between the two societies where common practices as well as ways of thinking about those practices are inherently different. This undoubtedly contributes to the legitimacy of the argument as well as the authenticity of the historical perspective. This doesn't necessarily make the argument right or wrong, it just makes it different. Having the privilege of being familiar with both cultures and in turn both ways of thought, I feel my life is evidence enough that there exists a difference between how information is processed and interpreted between the two cultures.

DeGifis's premise for her argument was the use of scripture by political figures for the purposes of political gain. She discussed the Abbasid Caliph al-Ma'mun use of quranic rhetoric in a letter (833 CE) to his governor. In this letter, al-Ma'mun seems to be drawing parallels between himself and the prophets. As suggested by DeGifis, he uses the Quran as a demonstrative method to justify his authority and his political stance, ostracize his opponents, and implement the mihna (which means occupation as in "work" but she uses a different definition of the word that I'm not aware of and that is "inquisition"). His prose does not appear in the Quran but it gives the impression that it does. By adopting or borrowing quranic prose, he is able to bolster the potency of his voice and blur the lines between his words and the Quran. Invoking the Quran in his letter enables him to demonstrate his competency of deciphering the text and gives the impression that the Quran is steering his policies. This is a classic example of politics using accepted rhetoric to establish its' authority. We see this being done by extremists and fanatical groups today as justification for their policies.

What needs to be understood here is that for Muslims Islam is not simply a religion, it is a way of life. The Quran is widely accepted as the true and final word of God. In the Quran, one can find examples of ethical and moral values, scientific knowledge, historical accounts, and common everyday practices like physical hygiene. There is even a whole chapter devoted to the rights of women. However, like any other text this information is interpreted differently by scholars and individuals alike. There exists textual evidence that clearly states one is not permitted to interpret and use the Quran for personal gain or convenience. But like I stated before, Islam is a way of life for Muslims and the religion intersects and intertwines with every aspect of society and culture, even politics.

Invoking religious rhetoric or the "God is on our side" argument is a common practice even in our political arena here in the West. From a personal perspective, I have come to an understanding that religion is a personal relationship between a person and the object of their worship, whoever or whatever that may be or even if such an object exists. There is very minimal room for religion in politics and vice versa. However, the political spheres of the world can learn and adopt some ethical and moral values from all the religions in the world. It is my belief that there exists a common ground we as a human race can stand on when it comes to personal beliefs no matter how different we think we are. We only seem to highlight minor and at times insignificant differences to justify our beliefs and objectives. Our values may differ from culture to culture but we should be able to find common beliefs as a human race. Arab and Islamic politicians are no different than any other politician in the world. They are just as susceptible to abusing the privilege of their positions as any one else in the same situation no matter how "democratic" their political process may be.

Aside...

I also wanted to add that I took notice of a sermon like tone of voice demonstrated by the speaker at certain points during her speech. Her body language and hand gestures were reminiscent of a religious figure standing at a pulpit delivering a sermon. I was wondering if anyone who attended caught that as well. I don't know what to make of that. It could be because she felt it was appropriate considering the subject matter or maybe that it gave a certain authority to her argument. Or it could be simply her style of speech making.

These are supplemental handouts that were passed out illustrating examples from the al-Ma'mun's letter and how closely it resembled actual text from the Quran.

The following is somewhat related. It is an example of politics trying to impose on the religious beliefs of the people.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20091102/lf_nm_life/us_egypt_niqab