Religions converge through our shared humanity, and from this shared humanity, the concept of citizenship emerges. Citizenship honours a person's right to choose their faith and practice their rituals. Simultaneously, it ensures that everyone enjoys equal rights and responsibilities.
This principle applies not only to diverse religions but also to various sects within a single religion, such as Islam. Islam encompasses numerous sects with differing beliefs, practices, and interpretations. Despite these differences, these sects concur on the fundamental principles of Islam. This diversity enriches and variegates the Islamic community.
A national state, with its unified vision, perceives religious or sectarian diversity not as a problem but as a source of richness and diversity. It safeguards the individual's right to their beliefs, freedom of religion, and rituals, along with their freedom of thought and criticism. The state regards each person as a citizen with an independent identity. Citizenship fosters a sense of belonging if it values individuals and ensures equality for all, upheld by laws that protect everyone without discrimination.
Within the national state, there is ample room for scientific criticism, which stimulates inquiry, questioning, and correction while respecting others' rights to their beliefs and rituals. However, this space contracts for those who seek to foment conflicts to exclude others, imposing guardianship and relegating them to a lower class of citizenship. Such discrimination breeds tension and negative effects when the state's authority wanes.
Citizenship values individuals and contributes to the group's worth without allowing the group to dominate the individual. This means it does not exclude or erase others. Citizenship begins with the individual's humanity and extends to their religious, sectarian, cultural, and social affiliations. In this way, every person in the state feels a true sense of belonging, finds protection, and works for the state's prosperity and stability, rather than merely being a statistic. Discrimination based on identity and affiliation undermines the stability of nations, leading to conflict and division.
Thus, contemporary religious discourse must be refined to embrace diversity, accept, and respect others. It should distinguish between personal beliefs and practices and the freedom of others to hold their own beliefs and practices. Religious discourse should start from a broad perspective, encompassing lower affiliations, and thereby refining its message.
This does not preclude the practice of criticism and the elucidation of one's own beliefs and rituals. However, inciting hostility against those who are different, and relying on central authority to exclude them, implants the notion that excluding others is necessary. This can lead to real exclusions, such as administrative exclusions, verbal violence, and even physical violence, all in the name of religion.
At the close of the 20th century, many Arab countries were torn apart by sectarianism, resulting in disintegration and ruin. Gradually, the intellectual community began to realise the dangers of sectarian discourse and its detrimental impact on social peace and national unity. Today, some individuals seek to resurrect those dark times through social media by promoting sectarianism and insulting others for political gain. This is perilous if not addressed by wise individuals before it spreads. The sectarian war in Lebanon, over three decades ago, left the country devastated to this day.
I had hoped that these experiences would lead to moderation and acceptance within religious and sectarian groups. However, the exclusionary mindset remains widespread within many Islamic sects. Were it not for some political leaders who champion others' rights and freedoms of belief and practice, we would witness even more sectarian conflicts. The situation deteriorates if the state supports exclusionary fundamentalist ideas while suppressing moderate voices within Islamic sects.
Another grave threat to social peace and sectarian stability is the organised proselytising of sectarian beliefs and the misuse of public funds for this purpose. I do not see the benefit of such efforts when most people share common beliefs and practices. The greatest danger is external support for sectarian proselytising, creating loyalties outside the state. Religious discourse should focus on human rights from a citizenship perspective, shared values, and ethics, rather than proselytising and excluding others based on minor interpretive differences.
The original version of this article was published in Arabic in the print edition of Oman newspaper on July 16.
Translated by: Badr al Dhafari
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