Islam's Response to Contemporary Issues — Page 37
Inter-Religious Peace 37 And: Or have you a clear authority? Then provide your Book if you are truthful. 43 Liberty and Emancipation in the Context of the Contemporary World Liberty and emancipation are the two important slogans, which are influencing the entire world with varying intensity and different connotations in different parts of the world. There is no doubt, whatsoever, that man is gaining greater awareness and consciousness in the importance and value of liberty. There is a pressing need felt everywhere in the world for emancipation, but from what? Is it from the yoke of foreign rule; dictatorship; fascism; theocratic or other regimes with totalitarian philosophies; oppressive democracies and corrupt bureaucracies; the economic stranglehold of the poor countries by the rich; ignorance; superstition; or fetishism? Islam champions the cause of liberty from all these maladies but not in a manner as to cause disorder, chaos and indiscriminate vengeance causing suffering to the innocent. ‘And God does not like disorder’ ( )is the message of Islam. 44 Islam like every other religion emphasises the role of balanced freedom in a spirit of give and take. The concept of absolute freedom is hollow, weird, and unreal in the context of society. Sometimes, the concept of freedom is so misconceived and misapplied that the beauty