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| Critiquing Orientalist Perceptions |
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Who or what is to blame?
Put simply, the Orientalists consider the Islamic culture to be fundamentally responsible for the political, economic and social failure of the Middle East, in the past and in the contemporary era. In his aforementioned book What Went Wrong? Western impact and Middle Eastern response, Bernard Lewis identifies the Islamic culture as a key cause of the malaise that pervades the Middle East today. He argues that the absence of clearly defined secular parameters are an instrumental factor in the region's modernity deficit. According to Lewis secularism, recognising the separation of church and state "is, in a profound sense, Christian", as the Christian injunction to give God and Caesar each their due laid the framework for the evolution and development of modern western societies. Western secularism is therefore inherently Christian due to the presence of this religious precept in Christian theology. Prior to the enlightenment era the Church had transgressed against Christianity and imposed itself upon society. Progressively increasing its power, it used the state to eliminate or marginalise competing religions; it gained the right to define all religious dogma and rituals; it acquired properties, privileges and exclusive control over education; it expanded its legislative control over different spheres of society (Alam, 2002). This was the predicament of Europe during Medievalism and a crucial factor, according to Lewis, in the failings of Europe until the separation of Church and state, first seen in the French revolution, heralded a new era of progress and modernisation. Consequently Lewis identifies the role of Islam in the political domain as a key source of backwardness.
The Orientalists fail to understand the deterioration of the Middle East when they view the region through the lens of European history. A number of factors formed the environment within which Europe underwent political change, heralding the emergence of secular political systems. Abuses such as simony, nepotism and financial excess were frequent, leading to much popular discontent. The theocratic nature of government, which prohibited criticism of both Church and state, distancing the Church from the masses. Finally the periodic antipathy of the church towards scientific progress and modernity further incensed the burgeoning intellectual classes. These factors collectively provided the backdrop for the emergence of new ideas that began to challenge the undisputed authority of the Church and led to the birth of the secular political order.
In contrast to the situation in Medieval Europe, a study of Islamic culture and Islamic history would indicate the great extent to which they are adverse to the problems that necessitated transition to a new model of political governance in Europe. With all Muslims bound by Islamic law to the same degree and with no exceptions, Islam has not developed a clergy. The existence of scholars well-versed in the Islamic disciplines has never translated into a religious hierarchical structure with monopoly over religion. In addition, history is testament to the absence of institution equivalent to the Church in the Islamic world, which owned or owns thousands of properties, serfs and acres of land. The mosque has an important role in Islamic society but is has never been bound by feudalism, the way archbishops, bishops and abbots in Germany 'gave their loyalty to the king and became no different than great nobles, managing agriculture and owing military services' (Durant, 1950). Therefore the religious elite and exploitive religious institutions that plagued Europe prior to the reformation have no place within Islamic culture and never developed in Islamic societies in the past.
The Islamic model of government is not theocratic, as the ruler is not divinely appointed, nor is he beyond the law. A just society is further enhanced by the presence of accountability mechanisms such as political parties, a council of representatives and an independent judiciary that curtail the emergence of oppressive government. The Orientalist caricature of authoritarianism being inherent in Islamic culture seems rather one-dimensional after inspection of the Islamic political system. A clearer outline of that system can be found in the article 'New Caliphate New Era' in this edition of New Civilisation.
Islamic history bears testimony to the progress that was made in the various sciences led to a highly developed civilisation. The fear of a society based upon religion being an anathema to science and technology was not realised in Islam, therefore the dichotomy between religion and science does not exist in its culture. While a framework existed to ensure law and order, the excesses of state intrusion upon society did not manifest in the Islamic world to the extent to which they were found in Europe. It is clear that the analogy between Western and Islamic historical development is weak, so it is unfortunate that Lewis and others have failed to provide a proper insight into the nature of Islamic culture, but have instead continued to purport the traditional Orientalist party line. I am not trying to put an Elysian sheen on Islamic history, because there is no doubt that serious failings on various fronts did occur. However such failings need to be analysed through a constructive prism rather than projecting Europe's experiences into a dissimilar environment.
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