Islam and Modern Life — Page 20
20 Reason, Faith, and the Absence of a Church Hierarchy in Islam Everybody, according to his capacity and the strength of his inclination and his opportunities, must look into these things for himself and try to resolve them either with himself, or in consultation with those who are better versed in these matters than h e is. We have these expressions, ulama, that merely means learned people. We have the expression mufti , that means what you would call in English a jurist. We have the word qazin , which only means a judge or a magistrate. In certain places the word mullah has also been used, but that again does not signify either priesthood or ordination or a hierarchy. It means a man who has devoted some time and attention to the study of religious matters. But we have no such authorization. That’s number one. Number two, Islam does not seek to rule by authority. Now that’s a fundamental distinction. Of course it invites belief. Of course it invites faith. And faith does mean, it predicates faith in something which cannot be demonstrated 100% like the rising of the sun. Nobody is asked to believe in the rising of the sun. It’s a phenomenon that we experience every day. It’s a tremendous phenomenon. It is, if you like, a daily miracle. But it’s not a question o f faith. Faith has certain aspects where from certain premises you arrive at certain conclusions, and that arriving at certain conclusions must also be reinforced by a certain amount