Quote:
Originally Posted by Evangelical
Separation of church and state in Islam is a yes and no answer.
Firstly, there is no concept of "church" in Islam, so in that sense there is no separation of religion from the state. Ideologically there is not, but in practice there often is. This is evident by 50% of nations with majority Islamic population being democracies (or close enough to it). Indonesia, the largest Muslim nation, is evident of that - a secular democratic government with a large muslim population. Actually it is incorrect to say Indonesia is a Muslim nation. It is a secular multi-faith nation with a large number of Muslims.
Karen Armstrong, Instructor at Leo Baeck College for the Study of Judaism, in a Oct. 22, 2001 Salon.com interview titled "Fundamental Problems," stated the following:
"Even though ideologically [in Islam] there can be no separation between church and state, both Sunnis and Shiites developed a separation very early on. In the Sunni world, the separation was de facto; Islamic law developed as kind of a counterculture to the aristocratic courts. In the Shiite world, there was a separation of church and state on principle. It was held that since every state was corrupt, clerics should take no part in them, that the religious should withdraw until the messiah came and established a proper Muslim state."
Can read the 'yes' and 'no' side here:
http://israelipalestinian.procon.org...stionID=000603
The First Amendment states that "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof."
The Quran also teaches freedom of religion:
“There is no compulsion in religion — the right way is indeed clearly distinct from error.”— 2:256
Many Muslim clerics believe like Witness Lee did - they should stay out of government so they don't "defile" themselves.
Most Muslims have no interest in seeing Sharia Law replace the existing Constitution. They live their lives in peace according to their beliefs and believe that one day the secular governments will be overthrown when the Messiah comes. This is not unlike most Christians who also have no interest in seeing "Christian law" (e.g. the 10 commandments) replace existing laws of government, but believe that things will change when the Messiah comes. |
You said it was "against the Koran to mix church and state". The verse that you provide from the Koran to support that is 2:256 "There is no compulsion in religion -- the right way is indeed clearly distinct from error".
I'm sorry, I don't see how this supports the claim that it is "against the Koran to mix church and state". Even if some Muslims have practiced their faith with this as a practice there are just as many who justify their actions of "Mixing church and state" generally referred to as "Sharia Law" with the Koran.
Sharia, Sharia law, or Islamic law (Arabic: شريعة (IPA: [ʃaˈriːʕa])) is the religious law forming part of the Islamic tradition. It is derived from the religious precepts of Islam, particularly the Quran and the Hadith.
Also what a shining example of separation of church and state is Indonesia. This is a report from Amnesty International a few months ago:
The Indonesian police should immediately drop the criminal investigation into Jakarta’s governor for alleged blasphemy, Amnesty International said today.
The organization’s call came as the Indonesian police named Basuki Tjahaja Purnama, the Governor of Jakarta better known as ‘Ahok’, as a suspect in a blasphemy complaint filed by some religious groups. Ahok, a Christian, is the first member of Indonesia’s ethnic Chinese community to be elected Governor of Jakarta.
“By carrying out a criminal investigation and naming Ahok as a suspect, the authorities have shown they are more worried about hard-line religious groups than respecting and protecting human rights for all,” said Rafendi Djamin, Amnesty International’s Director for Southeast Asia and the Pacific.
“Among the police, opinion is divided on whether the case should proceed, showing that the decision to open an investigation against Ahok is a controversial step.”
At a press conference on Wednesday, the Head of the Criminal Investigation Department of the National Police Headquarters, Comr. General Ari Dono said, “Although there are different opinions among police investigators most agreed that the case should be settled in an open trial.”
Yes, a Christian is elected governor of a province in Indonesia and so is accused of blasphemy by "religious groups" and then arrested by the Indonesian police and investigated for criminal prosecution. If this is how a governor is treated, one can only wonder how the average Christian is treated. Are there any religious groups other than Muslims that accuse others of blasphemy as a criminal offense? Don't know, but feel it is a very safe bet that there aren't any others in Indonesia.