In the Name
of Allah, the Entirely Merciful, the Especially Merciful.
(Following is a paper I wrote for Islamic Management course, and like to share.)
Organization: Islamic
Center of Windermere
Vision: Establish
a practicing Muslim community in Windermere inviting Non-Muslims to Islam.
Mission: Provide
a platform for Muslims, and Non-Muslims to learn, share, and socialize to bring
them closer to the path to success in this life and success in hereafter.
Objectives: 1)
Establish Islamic, fair, and inclusive administrative system.
2)
Make the facilities accessible to all, regardless of age, gender, religion,
language, and ethnicity, without breaking any laws established by Quran and
Sunnah.
3)
Encourage Muslims to practice Islam (in worship, and in other matters), and
introduce Non-Muslims to Islam with accuracy, sincerity, and wisdom.
“And those who have
responded to their lord and established prayer and whose affair is [determined
by] consultation among themselves, and from what We have provided them, they
spend.” ( Quran 42:38)
Every
action of our lives should seek guidance from the message and the life of Prophet
Muhammad (PBUH), and building the local Masjid or establishing an Islamic
Organization shouldn’t be different. In addition, building a Masjid in a non-Muslim
country has been proven to be a very difficult task, because it takes a lot of
effort to bring Muslims from different background together, and because it
takes wisdom to get approval from the local community and government where non-Muslim
residents are usually cynical about the prospect of Islamic Organization in
their area.
Islam
provides a solution for this in a form of the practice of shura (consultation).
In any organization, there is always one person who leads the organization
named as Ameer, President, or CEO. However, the Prophet (PBUH) taught us that the
leader should not make major decisions without consulting with a group of individuals
who represent different opinion that may exist in the community or organization,
which he is leading. In this light, let us look at how this method can be
practiced in an Islamic organization existing in a non-Islamic country.
Prophet (PBUH) reported to
have said “It is I who invited you to this discussion, and you have insisted on
going out. So be fearful to Allah and patient at misfortune. And look at what
Allah has commanded you and do it.” (Muhammad Al-Ghazali, Fiqh-us-Seerah, p 280,
who quoted from ibn Kathir as a narration from Mursi ibn ‘Aqabah as Mu’addal)
One
of the most important reason and advantage of shura is to bring different group
and philosophies together and support the decision that would be made. This
aspect of shura cannot be emphasized enough. If the matter is discussed openly,
and all opinions have heard, it removes any possibility of descent on the basis
of minority opinion not being considered. Moreover, it provides the manager or
leader to gauge the level of support from a specific group. Prophet (PBUH) used
this method very wisely to unite Muhajireen and Ansaar during the time of big
decisions. He also showed them that he is willing to accept their opinion even
if he didn’t agree with them. During the battle of Uhud, Makkan army was on their
way to attack Medina, and the Prophet (PBUH) took consultation, where Ansaar
wanted to meet the forces outside the city, and the better option was to stay
and fight them inside the city due to low numbers of Muslims. Many leading
companions supported his opinion of staying within the city. However, he chose
the advice of young masses from Ansaar because he saw that they will be more motivated
to fight in open. So, one of the most important aspect of making consultation
is the unity that comes out of it because everyone feels inclusive and valued.
As a word of caution that the leader should accept the opinions of minority
sometimes, when it doesn’t go against Islamic principles to keep the integrity
of the process of consultation.
Practice
of shura, before making decisions, ensures that due diligence is done, and
decision was made after being informed from all perspectives. Usually, the
Islamic shura is setup to represent each group from the community, as was the
practice of the Prophet (PBUH) and the Caliphs after him. A representative from
each tribe was chosen, and ranking companions were chosen who were wise and
provided different way of thinking. One such incident is recorded in the seerah
of the Prophet (PBUH). When the overwhelming enemy force surrounded Medina to
finish off Islam, a shura was done, where Salam Al-Farsi shared a unique technique
from Persia where a ditch is dug to prevent the army to cross a certain area,
and the Prophet (PBUH) accepted his suggestion, which lead to Islam survive
until today (According to Muhammad Al-Ghazali Fiqh-us-Seerah p 324). So, Allah
allowed this to happen to teach us the correct method of management, where a
consultation is done before major decision by the leader is made, and where the
leader accept the better suggestion even if it is from a minority group.
It
is reported that Umar (RA) also consulted with, women, such as Layla aka
AshShifa bint Abdullah on many
occasions, and gave preference to her opinion due to her level of knowledge and
wisdom, which shows us that women can be part of this process. In fact, nowadays,
women have shown to go toe to toe with men on seeking knowledge and skills, and
it becomes compulsory to have a women representative, in the case of building
an Islamic Organization in non-Islamic countries, where women converts are
high, and women rights issues are in forefront. (Economy Conference, Jeddah Feb
8, 2008). This practice will provide the perspective from women to the board
and to the leader of the community, which is the most common short fall in the
Islamic organization in non-Muslims countries leading to frustration and alienation.
Umar reported to have said
"O people, whoever among you sees any crookedness in me, let him
straighten it." A man stood up and said: "By Allah, if we see any
crookedness in you we will straighten it with our swords." Umar said:
"Praise be to Allah Who has put in this ummah people who will straighten
the crookedness of Umar with their swords." [Dr Muhammad as-Sallabi, 'Umar
ibn al-Khattab, His life and Times,' vol. 1, p. 213]
Another
big advantage of shura is to make the leader of the community humble and more aware
of the will of the people. Most often, an Imam becomes disconnected from issues
within the community, or attain aloft attitude, and his decision may be
according to Islam, but not appropriate for the populous he serve and manage.
Having shura with others bring him to humility and show him that he is not
above reproach from the people. We can see this from an event during the Caliphate
of Umar, when he announced that if anyone finds him crooked in his affair, they
should correct him with their hands, and a person told him that he will use
sword to correct Umar if necessary. After hearing that, Umar became happy and
said that it is a blessing to have people who don’t hesitate to correct their
leaders if they deviate. So, if the shura is done properly, the leader or Imam
will get the feedback on how his decisions are perceived within the community,
and it will provide him opportunity to correct any deviations within his
administration. Although this is not the direct purpose of the shura, it is
nevertheless an important advantage.
In
essence, Islamic organizations like other organizations are led by a single
person and not by a shura council, but it is imperative for that leader to
establish a shura council or board who can advise him on major decisions. This
practice will make the decisions more informed, increase the unity within the
organization, and keep the leader connected and grounded. In western countries,
this practice of shura also becomes critical as Muslims from different part of
the world are present, and there are differences that exist among them. If the
decisions are made after discussion and consultation, the outcome is agreed
upon or at the least understood. So, it is an obligation of Islamic
organization in west to setup shura for the Imam or the President to prevent
any disunity, ill-informed decision, or bias administration. May Allah bless
any decision that is done with consultation.
JazakAllahuKhairin
A Student of Knowledge
AbuArman Jumani
References
·
Al-Quran
·
Dr
Muhammad as-Sallabi, 'Umar ibn al-Khattab, His life and Times,' vol. 1, p. 213
·
Muhammad
Al-Ghazali, Fiqh-us-Seerah, p 280, International Islamic Publishing House
·
"Muslim
Heritage in the Knowledge-Economy Conference in Jeddah". http://muslimheritage.com/topics/default.cfm?ArticleID=854. MuslimHeritage.com. 8 February 2008.
Retrieved 2013-09-08.
