Islam And The Freedom Of Conscience

Prophets and Messengers of God meet with opposition from people who seek to spread confusion and disorder. In the past, Prophets were sent by God for specific periods of time, therefore, opposition to them lasted only so long as the age of their prophethood. However, the Holy Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) was sent for all peoples and all ages. Thus, from the time of his advent until the present day he has faced a consistent storm of antagonism. The most recent manifestation of this has been the film “Innocence of Muslims”. Taking guidance from the Holy Quran and the teachings of the Holy Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) and the Promised Messiah, the Head of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community, Hazrat Mirza Masroor Ahmad, has numerously addressed this issue in his Friday sermons some of which are presented in this booklet. The reaction of the media following his sermon of 21st September, 2012 has been included towards the end of the booklet.

As the geographical diversity of the Muslim world stretches from Europe to Africa, through the Middle East and into Asia, this region mirrors a central finding of this study - that predominantly Muslim countries include an array of constitutional measures addressing the role of Islam and the scope of the right to freedom of thought, conscience, and religion or belief, and other related human rights.THE RIGHT TO FREEDOM OF RELIGION & BELIEF analyzes these constitutional measures currently in place related to the relationship between religion and the state in addition to freedom of religion or belief in predominantly Muslim countries.Issued in March 2005 as The Religion-State Relationship and the Right to Freedom of Religion or Belief: A Comparative Textual Analysis of the Constitutions of Predominantly Muslim Countries, this report was originally prepared by Tad Stahnke, J.D., Deputy Director for Policy; and Robert C. Blitt, M.A., J.D., LL.M., Legal Policy Analyst of the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF).USCIRF is an independent federal commission created the International Religious Freedom Act of 1998 to monitor the status of freedom of thought, conscience, and relation or belief abroad and to give independent recommendations to the Secretary of State and Congress. For additional information about the Commission, please visit www.uscirf.gov.

Based on a symposium held in Istanbul, Turkey.

Debate on freedom of religion as a human right takes place not only in the Western world but also in Muslim communities throughout the world. For Muslims concerned for this freedom, one of the major difficulties is the 'punishment for apostasy' - death for those who desert Islam. This book argues that the law of apostasy and its punishment by death in Islamic law is untenable in the modern period. Apostasy conflicts with a variety of foundation texts of Islam and with the current ethos of human rights, in particular the freedom to choose one's religion. Demonstrating the early development of the law of apostasy as largely a religio-political tool, the authors show the diversity of opinion among early Muslims on the punishment, highlighting the substantial ambiguities about what constitutes apostasy, the problematic nature of some of the key textual evidence on which the punishment of apostasy is based, and the neglect of a vast amount of clear Qur'anic texts in favour of freedom of religion in the construction of the law of apostasy. Examining the significant challenges the punishment of apostasy faces in the modern period inside and outside Muslim communities - exploring in particular how apostasy and its punishment is dealt with in a multi-religious Muslim majority country, Malaysia, and the challenges and difficulties it faces there - the authors discuss arguments by prominent Muslims today for an absolute freedom of religion and for discarding the punishment of apostasy.

The third volume of the series "Key Concepts of Interreligious Discourses" investigates the roots of the concept of freedom in Judaism, Christianity and Islam and its relevance for the present time. The idea of freedom in terms of personal freedoms, which include freedom of conscience, freedom of speech and bodily integrity, is a relatively new one and can in some aspects get into conflict with religious convictions. At the same time, freedom as an emancipatory power from outer oppression as well as from inner dependencies is deeply rooted in Judaism, Christianity and Islam. It is still a vital concept in religious and non-religious communities and movements. The volume presents the concept of freedom in its different aspects as anchored in the traditions of Judaism, Christianity and Islam. It unfolds commonalities and differences between the three monotheistic religions as well as the manifold discourses about freedom within these three traditions. The book offers fundamental knowledge about the specific understanding of freedom in each one of these traditions, their interdependencies and their relationship to secular interpretations.

Since at least the attacks of September 11, 2001, one of the most pressing political questions of the age has been whether Islam is hostile to religious freedom. Daniel Philpott examines conditions on the ground in forty-seven Muslim-majority countries today and offers an honest, clear-eyed answer to this urgent question. It is not, however, a simple answer. From a satellite view, the Muslim world looks unfree. But, Philpott shows, the truth is much more complex. Some one-fourth of Muslim-majority countries are in fact religiously free. Of the other countries, about forty percent are governed not by Islamists but by a hostile secularism imported from the West, while the other sixty percent are Islamist. The picture that emerges is both honest and hopeful. Yes, most Muslim-majority countries are lacking in religious freedom. But, Philpott argues, the Islamic tradition carries within it "seeds of freedom," and he offers guidance for how to cultivate those seeds in order to expand religious freedom in the Muslim world and the world at large. It is an urgent project. Religious freedom promotes goods like democracy and the advancement of women that are lacking in the Muslim-majority world and reduces ills like civil war, terrorism, and violence. Further, religious freedom is simply a matter of justice--not an exclusively Western value, but rather a universal right rooted in human nature. Its realization is critical to the aspirations of religious minorities and dissenters in Muslim countries, to Muslims living in non-Muslim countries or under secular dictatorships, and to relations between the West and the Muslim world. In this thoughtful book, Philpott seeks to establish a constructive middle ground in a fiery and long-lasting debate over Islam.

Islam and religious freedom: are they compatible or on a collision course? Abdullah Saeed examines Islamic teachings in the Quran and in the Hadith regarding the status of religious minorities living in Muslim-majority societies and he surveys the perspectives of major Muslim scholars around the world today on whether or not Islam and religious freedom can coexist. In addition he considers whether Muslim societies stand to benefit or face a threat from religious freedom, not least of all the freedom to explore and debate their own faith. Saeed finds that "[d]espite the many restrictions that have emerged for both Muslims and non-Muslims in the course of the development of Muslim theology and law in the post-prophetic period, the realities of the modern world are forcing Muslim thinkers and scholars to rethink such restrictions and argue for religious freedom for all. In doing so, these Muslims are coming closer to the teachings of the Quran and the actual practice of Prophet Muhammad."