Living The Quran
Women's Status
Al Ahzab (The Confederates) - Chapter 33: Verse 35
 "For
Muslim men and women, for believing men and women, for devout men
and women, for true men and women, for men and women who are patient
and constant, for men and women who humble themselves, for men and
women who give in charity, for men and women who fast, for men and
women who guard their chastity, and for men and women who engage much
in Allah's praise, for them has Allah prepared forgiveness and great
reward."
Initially, Quranic verses used only the masculine plural form to
refer to the women and men in the new faith community. For years,
"believers" (al-muminun), and "the truthful" (as-sadiqun),
either referred specifically to men or to the men and women who
constituted the Prophet's first Companions. Once, a woman (or several,
according to the different traditions) asked the Prophet why women were
not explicitly mentioned in the revealed message. The Book - which,
while revealing a universal message, also included responses to the
questions asked by the Men around the Prophet - was later to mention
women and men distinctively, as in the above verse.
This evolution of the message is part of divine teaching in the process of revelation carried out over twenty-three years: the
faithful are thus led to evolve in their understanding of things and
critically reconsider some of their cultural or social practices.
The status of women, who were sometimes killed at birth because of
the shame they might bring, was to be reformed in stages, as verses
were revealed.
It thus appeared more and more clearly that the Quran's message
and the Prophet's attitude were apt to free women from the cultural
shackles of Arab tribes and clans and from the practices of the time.
The Creator addresses women as being on an equal footing with men,
their status as beings and believers is the same as men's, and the
requirements of worship are absolutely identical. The Medina period
helped sort out the religious principles from Meccan Arab customs and
bring about changes in women's status: the reform movement was thus
started and accompanied by the Revelations, by social experiments, and,
of course, by the Prophet's attitude as the example the Companions were
to follow.
The different verses were therefore to be read and interpreted in the
light of that movement, and early readings and interpretations of
revealed texts were to be viewed in the ideal mirror of the Prophet's
behaviour. The inner reform movement was perceived, understood, and
commented on from the first centuries, during which the text sciences
was established, but it remains true that early readers were
mainly men who read the Revelation through the double prism of their
gender and of the culture in which they necessarily lived.
The Companions and early ulama could not but read the text
in the light of their own situation, viewpoint, and context. While the
Book spoke about women, their being and their heart, fuqaha set
out to determine duties and their rights according to the various
functions society imparted them. Women were therefore "daughters,"
"sisters," "wives," or "mothers"; the legal and religious discourse
about women was built on those categories. It is indeed difficult for a
man, and what is more a jurist, to approach the issue of women primarily
as beings in their integrity and autonomy: whatever the internal
process initiated by the different revelations or historical
experiences, such an approach inevitably orients and restricts the
reading and interpretation of texts. Their concern was to impart a
function to women, to draw up a list of
rights and duties. A closer reading of the texts, however, shows
that the purpose of the inner evolution just mentioned, revisiting
women's status step by step, is in fact to bring the believing
conscience to perceive women through their being, beyond their different
social functions. This inductive movement toward the primacy
of being naturally involves an effect on the issue of social status;
this, however, implies allowing full scope to the interpretation process
and accepting all its consequences.
Compiled From:
"Radical Reform: Islamic Ethics and Liberation" - Tariq Ramadan, pp. 209-211 |
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Blindspot!
Cowardice Vs. Courage
Whenever the Quran encourages Jihad and expresses approval of
it, while rebuking those who flinch from it and shirk it, cowardice is always the culprit. For the
well-being of mankind, be it religious or worldly, cannot
be complete without courage and generosity. The
All-Glorious has explained that when someone turns his
back on Jihad, God puts another in his place to perform it
(Quran 9: 38-39, 47:38).
In courage and generosity for God's sake the greater merit belongs to those who take the lead (Quran 57:10). Courage does not reside in physical strength. A man may be physically strong yet faint at heart. Real courage is stoutness of heart and constancy.
For fighting requires a body strong and fit for the task,
but also a heart that is stout and skilful in battle. The
commendable way to fight is with knowledge and
understanding, not with the rash impetuosity or one who
takes no thought and does not distinguish the laudable from the
blameworthy. Therefore, the strong and valiant is he who controls himself when provoked to anger, and so does the right thing, whereas
he who is carried away under provocation is neither courageous nor valiant.
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