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Dr Mona Siddiqui |
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As Muslims this week return from the annual pilgrimage to Mecca, many will return spiritually anew, with vivid memories of the sounds and smells of the desert landscape. As they remember their pilgrimage, one image might stand out; the tall elegant minarets of the Kaaba mosque in Mecca. These shining structures, gleaming against the blackness of the sky, are quite entrancing. The mesmeric sounds of the call to prayer from these minarets encapsulates what for many Muslims is the heart and soul of their faith, "God is great, come to prayer."
But of course that's in a Muslim country where mosques are part of the landscape. They pose no threat, no inconvenience to the masses for whom these images are part of their identity. So while it wasn't a total surprise, it still sent a tiny shock to many Muslims that, earlier this week, Swiss voters approved a constitutional ban on the building of minarets. Whether this has been in reaction to the perceived political aspirations of a religious community or the growing displeasure felt by many with the visibility of minority religions, once again the issue of faith in society has really become an issue of Islam and the West.
I have always recoiled from using the phrase "Islam and the West" because it conjures up a false polarity of two distinct cultures which have nothing to say to each other. Anyone with any knowledge of history knows that Islam has been part of the west for centuries and western thought and culture permeates Muslim cultures globally. And for those who see this debate as between Islam and Christianity, it's true that the two faiths have at times struggled through a history of hate but have also shared the hope of keeping God alive in the societies they share.
This whole saga raises once more the difficult question of identity, Muslim, Christian and perhaps more pertinently European. Europe is no monolith but neither is Islam. There is good and bad in every faith community, there are closed minds, there are open minds, but without open debates people live in fear and as fear grows, whole communities are tarnished. Accepting difference is not easy, it comes with its own challenges, but in our globalised world, can we afford to be intolerant of difference? Living in silence or fear never leads to meaningful coexistence.
For most Muslims living in Europe, Europe is the only home they know, the freedoms and rights they enjoy here makes this the only home they want. And Muslims who feel victimised in such situations must also be wary that their expectations are realistic, to understand that pluralism is a process, an ideal which must always be negotiated and nurtured, never taken for granted. Diversity may be God's will but it is also God's biggest challenge.
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