Islamic scholars against militancy

The success in the battle against extremism depends to a great degree on the support of the religious scholars who have strong influence on the common people

We have said time and again that it is imperative for religious scholars to come forward and play their part in countering extremism. The religious scholars have the responsibility to preach their fellow Muslims that Islam is a religion of peace and not violence. We must accept the fact that Bangladesh is going through a critical phase in its history and the role of ulema is an extremely vital one. We also want the religious scholars to show unity in their ranks.
Naturally we believe that the edict issued and signed by over one hundred thousand Islamic academics and scholars declaring militancy and extremism to be forbidden in Islam is a welcome one. The timing for issuing Islam’s stance on militancy comes in the wake of a series of killings of non-Muslims. The most positive part of this edict is that the top brass of our Islamic academic establishment have united to deter the outbreak of radicalism. Bangladesh is a modern nation state and a theocracy based polity has no role here. The religious scholars have to make the people understand that faith is a matter of personal choice and can’t be used as a weapon to brutalise the ‘other’. The success in the battle against extremism depends to a great degree on the support of the religious scholars who have strong influence on the common people.
In addition to verbal condemnation and carrying out signature campaign there are actually more what our Islamic academics, scholars and imams can do. They can help fight extremism by speaking and teaching against it, incorporate the ills of militancy in the pre-Jummah Friday sermons and even launch local campaigns to hold back the spreading of militancy in the name of religion.
The Bangladeshi scholars or Islam experts must do their bit to combat militancy and campaign to separate spirituality from extremism. Many eminent scholars believe that a Muslim’s proper religious teachings and spiritual growth is enough to prevent them from taking up extreme acts of violence.
Our Islamic scholars’ collective will to unite in time of a dire need to battle fanaticism must be seen much more than a ‘token of goodwill ’. In order to prove the will to be sincere, they will have to play a key role in eliminating extreme indoctrinations. They also should set examples to live in harmony with people of all faiths.    

Islamic scholars against militancy

The success in the battle against extremism depends to a great degree on the support of the religious scholars who have strong influence on the common people

We have said time and again that it is imperative for religious scholars to come forward and play their part in countering extremism. The religious scholars have the responsibility to preach their fellow Muslims that Islam is a religion of peace and not violence. We must accept the fact that Bangladesh is going through a critical phase in its history and the role of ulema is an extremely vital one. We also want the religious scholars to show unity in their ranks. Naturally we believe that the edict issued and signed by over one hundred thousand Islamic academics and scholars declaring militancy and extremism to be forbidden in Islam is a welcome one. The timing for issuing Islams stance on militancy comes in the wake of a series of killings of non-Muslims. The most positive part of this edict is that the top brass of our Islamic academic establishment have united to deter the outbreak of radicalism. Bangladesh is a modern nation state and a theocracy based polity has no role here. The religious scholars have to make the people understand that faith is a matter of personal choice and cant be used as a weapon to brutalise the other. The success in the battle against extremism depends to a great degree on the support of the religious scholars who have strong influence on the common people. In addition to verbal condemnation and carrying out signature campaign there are actually more what our Islamic academics, scholars and imams can do. They can help fight extremism by speaking and teaching against it, incorporate the ills of militancy in the pre-Jummah Friday sermons and even launch local campaigns to hold back the spreading of militancy in the name of religion. The Bangladeshi scholars or Islam experts must do their bit to combat militancy and campaign to separate spirituality from extremism. Many eminent scholars believe that a Muslims proper religious teachings and spiritual growth is enough to prevent them from taking up extreme acts of violence. Our Islamic scholars collective will to unite in time of a dire need to battle fanaticism must be seen much more than a token of goodwill . In order to prove the will to be sincere, they will have to play a key role in eliminating extreme indoctrinations. They also should set examples to live in harmony with people of all faiths.