There is an apparent dissonance between the message in Islam and the structure and function of these societies that needs to be fully understood in the research. For example, Kalantari (1998) noted that “Islamic society builds a comprehensive system of social justice, economics, legislation, jurisprudence, administration, and international relations within its domain which are closely related and support each other through the meta-values of Islam” (1827). It can, however, be confidently stated that most Muslim countries have failed to embrace these ideas. This paper explores the critical factors to explain why these values have failed to effect these changes and the research thinking on the same.
The meta-values of Islam have failed to effect the changes due to several reasons. First, the encounter between Islam and the West has effected these values to a greater extent. Both Muslims and non-Muslims have been affected as the Islamic community interacts with the diaspora. The diaspora has been a major point of reference over the decades as the chief impediment and the facilitator of this widening dissonance. Currently, the Islam community is being perceived as an immense threat to many nations particularly the West. There has been increasing hostile reactions due to growing presence of Islamic culture in Europe leading antagonistic relations.
There is a growing dissonance between both non-Muslim and Muslims perceive each other in various contexts. The Islam women are therefore described based on their subordinate status, lack of progress and socio-economic inequalities. The virtue of Islam guarantees gender equality and secures religious identity with many calls for women freedom, liberation and equality in Islamic societies but this faces obstacles. Another factor is the globalization which is also a major subject contributing to this dissonance. It has led to new opportunities and challenges for the shaping of a shared future inevitably emerge. The globalization has led to erosion of the Islamic culture and practices amongst many Muslims. This acculturation is a leading contributor towards the impossibility of the Islam meta-values to effect the changes. It leads to increased cross-cultural interactions which has made other Muslims to start moving away from their tradition, customs and cultural values. This shift makes it increasingly hard for the universal application of the meta-values of Islam since they currently contradict and oppose one another on the implementation of some values.
The education is also a major contributor towards this widening dissonance. The Muslims attend same schools with the other religious orientations. The attend similar classes and even form same group discussions from where they can learn from other non-Muslims and start to see some sense outside the box. These elites tend to oppose some irrational cultural practices amongst the societies and hence impeding the capability of the meta-values to effect the changes. The religious rivalry is another contributor towards this dissonance. Many Muslim communities and people live alongside others who are non-Muslims. They interact with each other in a number of occasions and contexts and this leads to exchange of ideas that may seem to contradict the mainstream culture. The repetition of such interactions have impeded the ability of the meta-values to effect the changes.
In conclusion, the growing dissonance between conflict between the message in Islam and the structure and function of these societies is a growing concern that needs to be understood. The approach that one should give this exploration need to circumvents the globalization, diaspora and education effects on the ability of the Muslim culture remain a resilient culture. The globalization has speeded the acculturalization alongside the education institutions and diasporic impacts. This approach will help explore these factors and relate them to how best the meta-values can effect these changes.
- Kalantari, B. In search of a Public Administration Paradigm: Is there anything to be learned from Islamic Public Administration. University of Wyoming Libraries. 1988. Print.
