Islam's Response to Contemporary Issues — Page 8
8 islam’s response to contemporary issues soul is fast ebbing out of the body. So, what we observe in religion today, the so-called revival of religion becomes tantamount to resurrecting dead corpses so that they walk about like zombies. In other areas long stagnation and a lack of exciting developments generates boredom among religiously-inclined people. Miraculous things, which they expect to happen, do not take place. The bizarre phenomenon of supernatural intervention in world events to change the world to their liking does not materialise. They want to see strange prophecies fulfilled to give credence to their faith. Yet nothing materialises. Such are the people who provide fodder for new cults, which thrive on the humus of their frustrations. The urge to escape from the past generates a desire to fill the void with something new. Apart from these destructive trends, another extremely disturbing phenomenon, which, perhaps, is related to the revival of dogmas in religion, is threatening the peace of the world. With the rise of such dogmas a toxic atmosphere is generated which proves fatal to the healthy spirit of dialogue and free flow of ideas. As if this were not enough, wilful attempts by unscrupulous politicians, ever ready to exploit volatile situations to their own advantage, are being made to tarnish the image of religion itself. Again, historic inter-religious rivalries and feuds have their part to play. In addition, the so-called ‘free’ media is generally controlled by unseen hands rather than being at liberty to play a completely neutral role in the affairs of the world. Therefore, when the media of a country with a predominant population belonging to one religion joins the battle in maligning the image of a rival religion, the scenario becomes very complex. The first victim of this melee is, undoubtedly, religion itself. I really feel deeply concerned and disturbed at what is happening in the world of religion today. There is a deep urgency for religions to