(part 1 of 3)
The Islamic veil or hijab refers to the wide, long and opaque outer clothing that covers the body of the Muslim woman. While it is fundamentally similar to the traditional Christian clothing of the woman Maria (peace be upon her and her son) and every nun since then, the hijab is seen as a sign of extremism and of the supposedly subordinate position of Muslim women. Those who see little more than the sex object in Muslim women are surprised by the phenomenon of educated, working or, in all respects, „free“ Western women who turn to Islam. The claim that female converts are either blinded by their veils, brainwashed fanatics, or oppressed victims waiting to To be liberated has long been outdated and is no longer accepted. However, sensationalist and often politically motivated reports of oppressed Muslim women in some backward societies of our time reinforce these negative ideas. What follows is a brief look at the position of women in Islam by comparing the role of the veil in Islam and in Christianity.
“We will surely grant a good life to those who act correctly – whether man or woman – and who are believers; and we will certainly measure such wages according to the best of their deeds. ” (Quran 16:97)
In what is part of the „New Testament“, Paul made the veil compulsory for all women:
‚But a woman who prays or prophesies there with her head uncovered, disgraces her head; because it is as much as if it were shorn. If she does not want to cover herself, you cut her hair too. Now that a woman feels bad that she has cut her hair or has been shorn, let her head be covered. But the man should not cover his head, because he is God’s image and reflection; but the woman is a reflection of the man. Because the man is not from the woman, but the woman is from the man. And the man is not created for the woman’s sake, but the woman for the man’s sake. Therefore the woman should have a power (veil) on her head for the sake of the angels. ‚ (I Corinthians 11: 4-10)
St. Tertullian (the first man to formulate the Trinity), in his essay, asked: On the Veiling of Virgins, to wear the veil even at home: ‚You young women, you put on your veil the streets, you should also wear them in the church; you carry them among strangers, so carry them among your brothers. ‚
So Islam didn’t introduce the veil, it just brought it back in memory. However, while Paul viewed the veil as a sign of the man’s authority, Islam makes it clear that it is simply a sign of faith, modesty and chastity that serves to protect the pious from harassment.
“O Prophet! Speak to your wives and your daughters and to the wives of the faithful, that they should pull their overcoats abundantly over them (when they go out). This is the best way to ensure that they are recognized (then as chaste believers) and not harassed … ”(Quran 33:59)
Sir Richard Burton, a 19th-century orientalist, observed:
‚The women who enjoy the restrictions that keep their honor voluntarily accepted it (the veil) and still enjoy it; they do not lust for freedom or even lawlessness, which they have learned to regard as incompatible with their time-honored concepts of female decency and frailty. You would very little appreciate a husband who allowed them to show off their public eyes. ‚
In fact, the veil of Muslims is only one aspect of their honorable status, a status that is part of a tremendous responsibility that is on them. In short, the woman is the first teacher in the building of a righteous society. For this reason the most important duties of the individual are to show gratitude, kindness and good company to his mother. The Prophet Muhammad, God’s blessings and peace be upon him, was once asked:
“O Messenger of God! Who is my best company? ´ The Prophet replied: ‚Your mother.‘ The man asked, ‚Who then?‘ The Prophet said: ‚Your mother.‘ The man asked, ‚Who then?‘ The Prophet repeated: ‚Your mother.‘ Again the man asked, ‚Who then?‘ The Prophet finally said, ‚(Then) to your father.‘ (Sahieh Al-Bukhari, Sahieh Muslim)
While the mother was given preference over the father in terms of kindness and good treatment, Islam, like Christianity, teaches that God intended the man to be the natural head of the household.
“… And the (women) have the same rights (over their husbands) as they (the men) have to exercise them kindly. But men stand one level (in responsibility) above them … ”(Quran 2: 228)
In Islam, man’s authority is related to his socio-economic responsibility, [1] responsibility that reflects the psychological and physiological differences with which God created the sexes.
„… the boy is not like the girl …“ (Quran 3:36) [2]
Marriage is the means by which both sexes can fulfill their different but complementary and mutually beneficial roles.
Footnotes:
Therefore, the Muslim man is entitled to a larger share of an inheritance than the woman. He is legally obliged to take care of and maintain all the women in his household from his personal assets, while the woman’s assets are due to her alone; she can use it, donate or save as she wants.
[2] Dr. Alexis Carrel, the noble French court poet, emphasized this point when he wrote: „The difference that exists between men and women does not come from the special shape of the sexual organs, the presence of the uterus, pregnancy or the type of education. It comes from a fundamental structure of the whole organism … Ignoring these fundamental facts has led the pioneers of feminism to believe that both sexes should have the same powers and the same responsibilities, but in reality women are fundamentally different from men their body cells contain the sign of their gender, the same applies to their organs and especially to their nervous system.Physiological laws… cannot be replaced by human desires. We are obliged to accept them exactly as they are. Women should develop their characteristics in a way that suits their own nature without trying to imitate men. ‚ (Carrel, Man and the Unknown, 1949: 91)
(part 2 of 3)
“And among His signs is this that He created wives for you out of yourself so that you may find peace with them; and He put affection and mercy between you. Here are signs for a people who think. ” (Quran 30:21)
‚The attraction of Islam, wherever it triumphed, was its simplicity. He demands submission to some basic, direct rules that are easy to follow, and in return he offers the most wonderful and rare thing, peace of mind … his discipline, security, and certainty have an appeal to girls who are lost in the foaming seas of permission whose own families are weakened by the crumbling of the families with two parents, by the lack of fatherhood and the instability of husbands, if they are primarily such and not friends and „baby-fathers“. And in most societies, it is the woman who maintains religions in her home and among her children. ‚ (Peter Hitchens,
“… You (your women, o you men) security for yourself and you (men) are security for them…” (Quran 2: 187)
Sex is by no means a taboo subject in Islam. On the contrary, allowed sexual relationships are considered alms! The respected scholar and former nun Karen Armstrong writes:
‚Mohammed certainly didn’t think women were a disgusting gender. When his wife had her rule, he leaned against her lap, took his prayer mat from her hand, and said in favor of his followers: „Your menstruation is not in your hand.“ He drank from the same mug and said, „Your menstruation is not on your lips.“ ….. In some Islamic countries, very severe punishments are used for sex criminals because sexuality has value and the ideal has been dishonored, and not like in the past in the West because sexuality is repulsive. ‚ (The Gospel According to Woman, 1986: 2)
The Church’s traditional justification for man’s authority is an inheritance from Judaism: the innate sin of women! According to the Bible, Satan tempted Eve to disobey God and eat from the forbidden tree; and Eve again seduced Adam to eat with her. When God rebuked Adam for his disobedience, Eve blamed it and therefore God cursed her.
“I (God) want to create a lot of trouble for you when you get pregnant; with difficulty you should give birth to children. And your desire should be for your husband, but he should be your master. ” (Genesis 3:16)
It was this image of Eva as a deceitful seducer that left a negative legacy for women throughout Judaism and Christianity. Paul, who had previously been a Jew who persecuted Christians, wrote in the Bible: „A woman learns in silence with all submission. I do not allow a woman to rise above the man, but to be silent, because Adam is made first, then Eve. And Adam was not seduced, but the woman was seduced and fell into transgression. But she is saved by giving birth to children … „(I Tim. 2: 11-5) [1]
Again, the Islamic concept of women is completely different. The Quran makes it clear that Satan was the only seducer in the garden’s story, while Adam and Eve were equally guilty of their disobedience. There is not the slightest indication that Eve was the first to eat the forbidden fruit, or that she tempted Adam to do so. Both Adam and Eve committed a sin, asked God for His forgiveness and He granted it accordingly.
„They said:“ Our Lord, we have sinned against ourselves; and if you do not forgive us and have pity on us, we will certainly be among the losers. “ (Quran 7: 22-23)
Linguistically speaking, the Quran expressions for „uterus“ and „mercy“ are synonyms. This is because childbearing in Islam is not seen as a punishment, but as one of His innumerable blessings. In passing, the idea that God curses innocent people is a blasphemy! And while Christianity regards every newborn baby as a sinner – the fruit of his mother’s punishment – Islam teaches that all children are born innocent and sinless on Fitra: with a monotheistic and righteous disposition. Therefore, someone who converts to Islam is said to return to their natural religion. Only through his immoral upbringing does a child become a rebellious sinner.
“Whoever does evil should only be rewarded with the same; but whoever does good – be it a man or a woman and believes in doing so – will enter paradise; it will provide them with maintenance without being billed. ” (Quran 40:40)
Paul’s words also show how Eve’s sin was used to suppress women’s efforts in education. In Islam, however, women and men alike are asked to acquire knowledge. The Prophet said:
“The effort to acquire knowledge is mandatory for every Muslim (male or female).” (Ibn Maja)
Furthermore, the most revered rank that can be achieved in any Muslim society is that of a scholar [there is no priesthood in Islam]. Aisha, the Prophet’s wife, of whom the leading companions took knowledge, is just one example of an educated woman who has had a great influence on Islamic society. There were various female teachers of the famous, wise warrior and master of Islamic science, Ibn Taymiyya (d. 1328).
“… Are those who know equal to those who do not know? Only those who are sensible can be warned. ” (Quran 39: 9)
Footnotes:
[1] The founding fathers of the Church, men who formulated the Christian faith and canonized the Bible, support this view: „Don’t you know that you are each an Eve?“ God’s word about your gender lives until this time: the guilt must necessarily live as well. You are the gate of the devil: you are the one who broke the seal of the forbidden tree: you are the first violators of the divine law: you were the one who led the way, for whom the devil himself did not have the courage to attack him. So lightly did you destroy God’s image, man. (St. Tertullian)
“The woman is the daughter of falseness, a guard of hell, an enemy of peace; through them Adam lost paradise. ” (St. Johannes, the Damascene)
‚God created Adam, the Lord of all living creatures, but Eve spoiled everything. Women should stay silent at home, take care of the household and have children. And if they (the women) get tired or even die (from giving birth), that’s not a problem. Let them die at birth, because that’s what they’re there for. ‚ (Martin Luther).
(part 3 of 3)
Many of the recurring pre-Islamic cultural practices have been sadly associated with Islam, such as forced marriage, female circumcision, dowry (the opposite of Mahr), dowry, honor killings, and accusations of rape victims only emerged as a result of the fragmentation colonialism and the resulting separation between ordinary Muslims and their sources of knowledge. It is always the scholars of Islam, men and women, who are victims of the imperialist persecutions. Nevertheless, the veil that covers the true position of women in Islam can be easily removed with the light of Quran and Sunnah. Furthermore, Islam continues to grow faster than any other way of life,
‚Westerners, disappointed with their own societies – with increasing crime, broken families, drugs and alcohol – have started to appreciate the discipline and security of Islam. Many converts are former Christians, disappointed by the vagueness of the Church, dissatisfied with the concept of the Trinity and the deification of Jesus. ‚ (Lucy Berrington, „Why British women are turning to Islam“, Times, 9/11/93)
These women experienced the same truth that led the Negus Christ of Abbessia to adopt Islam when the companions of the Prophet told him about it : ‚The Messenger of God forbade us to speak badly of women.‘ (Ibn Hisham)
“Those who accuse respectable, thoughtless, believing women (chastity) are cursed in this world and in the hereafter. You will be severely punished. ” (Quran 24:23)
Even today, many humble women from the Orthodox, Catholic, Middle Eastern and African churches wear the Christian veil. The Muslim woman also wears her hijab, explains her humble faith and serves God. Only those who have divine permission – their closest family and other believing women – can see their physical beauty. In fact, she says, „Judge me for my faith, not for my body – I won’t give you any other choice.“ When practiced with full faith, as by its earliest followers, Islam offers women freedom, dignity, justice and protection that have long been beyond their reach. The Prophet made humanity a great legacy when he said :.
‚The best of you (men) are the ones who treat your women best.‘
Christian women have inherited a tradition of misogyny from both the Jewish rabbis and the Greeks. It was the reaction of Western women to their inferior position and to their exploitation as a sex object that brought the women’s movement to the ascent.
“And the believing men and the believing women are one of the other protectors: they command the good and forbid the evil and do the prayer and give alms and obey God and His Messenger. It is you whom God will have mercy on. Verily, God is sublime, wise. ” (Quran 9:71)
Islam gave women the right to contract, to inherit, to request a divorce, to independently acquire property and wealth and to do business, receive equal earnings, keep their maiden names, and so on over 1400 years ago, while the democratic West granted them similar rights only in the last 50 years of the twentieth century. In fact, besides abortion, much of what feminists are fighting for has already been legally regulated by Islam. Not to mention that Western-style emancipation – especially because women are forced to imitate men – makes impossible demands on the weak sex, but also leaves women without any of their innate values.
“Truly, the Muslim men and the Muslim women, the believing men and the believing women, the obedient men and the obedient women, the truthful men and the truthful women, the patient men and the patient women, the humble men and the humble women , the men who give alms and the women who give alms, the men who fast and the women who fast, the men who keep their chastity, and the women who keep their chastity, the men who God often commemorate, and the women who commemorate (God often) – God has given them forgiveness and great reward. ” (Quran 33:35)
Source: https://www.islamland.com/deu/articles/der-schleier-unverschleiert-die-wahre-stellung-der-frau-im-islam