Identity at Risk

Famous Norwegian playwright Henrik Ibsen compared the identity of any people with that of an onion composed of multiple layers. Based on this concept, coming from one of the greatest literary European minds in modern times, the Egyptian identity is similarly constructed from many different layers.  Some of these layers originated in Ancient Egypt and its civilization of 30 centuries. Other layers come from its Coptic era, when Egypt was an entirely Eastern Christian society. Countless layers also come from the Islamic and Arabic speaking Egypt.  Several more layers stem from the modern Egypt established by Mohamed Ali, who ruled Egypt between 1805 and 1848, a state which lasted for a bit more than a century after his death. And finally come the multiple layers produced by Egypt's geographical location as a generally Mediterranean society, and more specifically as an Eastern Mediterranean society.

This complex configuration is based upon undeniable historical and geographical fact. It contains no contradictions. Only simplistic thinking would find contradiction in such complex phenomena.  

This rich and wonderful Egyptian identity, loaded with the fruits of cross- fertilization between varied cultures and civilizations, is presently the subject of a systematic destruction of its constituent elements. Its unique richness and plurality poses a threat to other surrounding societies suffering from a severe lack of such variety.

While the Islamist movement, which is now thrilled to harvest the seeds it has sown in Egypt, is among the realities of the Egyptian society, it represents a grave threat to the complexity and plurality of the Egyptian identity.

The prevalence of conservative schools of thought among most present day Muslim minds (as seen in the thinking of Ibn Hanbal, Ibn Taymiyya, the Wahabi movement, and the rest of the Salafi trends) is ominous. It makes the possibility of spreading a wave of animosity towards the non-Islamic dimensions of the Egyptian identity imminent. It is enough to note what some say of the monuments of Ancient Egypt, which are one of the greatest ever among all human civilizations. (Salafi leaders such as Abdel-Moneim El-Shahat, who was narrowly defeated by a Muslim Brotherhood candidate in Alexandria, repeatedly suggested that Egypt's Pharaonic treasures should be either destroyed or covered with wax because they were "statues banned by Islam.”) Parallel to that, the existence of “anti-other” values, no matter who this “other” might be, is very possible and very dangerous for an Egyptian identity which is based on plurality.

What I fear the most is that the political movement will change school curricula in a way that highlights the Arab Islamic dimension alone, while destroying all others. This destructive scenario is not that farfetched with the existence of a parliamentary majority of this school of thought now taking over the education committee. As expected from all theocratic entities, they will mostly focus on the Arab Islamic component of the Egyptian identity.

It is sad to note that this trend of aiming to serve a single dimension has already started many years ago with the religious (Islamic) thought taking over those in charge of education in our society. For example, the Arabic language and literature curricula, instead of offering brilliant literary texts of great minds such as Ahmed Lotfy Elsayed, Taha Hussein, Al Aqqad, Al Mazni, Salama Moussa, Tawfiq Al Hakim, Naguib Mahfouz, Youssef Edris, Nezar Qabbani, Al Sayab, Michael Naema, and many others excluded them. That transformed the curricula into religious texts to a point where it becomes hard to distinguish whether they are dealing with Arabic language and literature or Islamic texts.

Lebanese intellectual Amin Maalouf describes any single dimensional identity as a fatal one. His is an accurate and precise description; such a single dimensional identity in our time will very like collide with the values of pluralism and the acceptance of the “other” and the critical mind, let alone its contrast with the idea of our common humanity. I would say to those who repeat “this is the will of the people,” that it was also the will of the German people that brought Hitler to power in Germany eight decades ago, which took a devastating toll on humanity, destroying the lives of more than 50 million people. This example allows us to criticize the current state of the Egyptian culture which threatens the non-Islamic components of the Egyptian identity, and could easily transform us into a single dimensional society (just like the societies of sand around us), even if we’ve come to where we are because of the popular will.  Wrong (as Voltaire said) remains wrong, even if repeated a million times.

* This article was translated from Arabic into English by Mohamed Shedou and revised and edited by Sharon Bussell. The Arabic version was published by the Egyptian daily al-WAFD on 18th April, 2012.

أسئلة تبحث عن إجابات ...

* من سماتِ التحضرِ والتقدمِ الإنسانيين ان تشيع في المجتمع ثقافةٌ تقبل وتحترم بل وتقدر التعدديةَ كأحدِ أهم معالم الحياة . فهل يتسم فكرُ وسلوكُ الأغلبية فى البرلمان المصري اليوم بتلك السمة ؟

* من سماتِ التحضرِ والتقدمِ الإنسانيين ان تشـــــــــــيع في المجتمع ثقافةُ " قبول الآخر" قبولاً موضوعياً كاملاً ، أيا كان نوع "الآخر". فهل يتسم فكرُ وسلوكُ الأغلبيةِ فى البرلمان المصري اليوم بتلك السمة ؟

 * من سمـــاتِ التحضـــــرِ والتـــقـــدمِ الإنســـــانيين أن تشيع فى المجتمعِ ثقافةٌ تقوم على "نسبيةِ" كل الآراءِ ووجهاتِ النظرِ والنظرياتِ والأفكارِ. فهل يتسم فكُر وســـلوكُ الأغلبيةِ فى البرلمان المصــــري اليوم بتلك السمة؟

* من سماتِ التحضرِ والتقدمِ الإنسانيين التحمسُ الشديد لحقوق المرأة والإيمان بأنها أكثر بكثير من كونها (عدديا) "نصف المجتمع" ، فهي مربية ومنشئة "كل المجتمع" ، وأن من صالح المجتمع (أي مجتمع) تحقيق المساواة المطلقة بين المرأة والرجال ، وهجر الأفكار القرو-أوسطية البدائية التى تنظر للمرأةِ كزوجةٍ وأم في الأساس. فهل يتسم فكرُ وسلوكُ الأغلبية فى البرلمان المصري اليوم بتلك السمة ؟

* من سماتِ التحضرِ والتقدمِ الإنسانيين أن يؤَسَسَ التعليم فى المجتمع على "الإبتكار والإبداع" وليس على "التلقين وإختبارات الذاكرة". فهل يتسم فكرُ وسلوكُ الأغلبيةِ فى البرلمان المصري اليوم بتلك السمة ؟

 * من سماتِ التحضرِ والتقدمِ الإنسانيين أن تكبر (بضم الحرف الأول) ثقافةُ المجتمعِ وفلسفةُ التعليمِ دورَ العقلِ الإنساني ، وعلى إعتبار "العقل النقدي" هو أهم (أو أحد أهم) أدوات وآليات التقدم. وهو نقيض ثقافة الطاعة والإتباع والتقليد التى هيمنت على المجتمعات الإسلامية منذ إنتصر حكامُ وشيوخُ هذه المجتمعاتِ لأنصار "النقل" فى مواجهة أنصار "العقل" ، ومنذ أصبح "ابن تيمية" وليس "ابن رشد" هو "شيخ الإسلام" . فهل يؤمن أعضاءُ الأغلبية فى البرلمان المصري اليوم بإكبارِ "العقل الإنساني" و تشجيع تفعيل دور "العقل النقدي" والعمل على تقليص دور ونفوذ ثقافة الطاعة والإتباع والتقليد ... هل يتسم فكرُ وسلوكُ الأغلبية فى البرلمان المصري اليوم بتلك السمة ؟

 * من سماتِ التحضرِ والتقدمِ الإنسانيين شيوع مناخ عام متسم بالسماحة الثقافية والدينية. فهل يتسم فكرُ وسلوكُ الأغلبيةِ فى البرلمان المصري اليوم بتلك السمة ؟

 * من سماتِ التحضرِ والتقدمِ الإنسانيين تأصيل مفهوم المواطنة ، بمعني المساواة المطلقة بين أبناء وبنات المجتمع بدون إيلاء أية أهمية لدين ومعتقدات وآراء وعرق وجنس أبناء وبنات المجتمع. فهل يتسم فكر وسلوك الأغلبية فى البرلمان المصري اليوم بتلك السمة؟

* من سماتِ التحضرِ والتقدمِ الإنسانيين شيوع إيمان واسع بكونية أو إنسانية أو عالمية العلم والمعرفة. فهل يتسم فكرُ وسلوكُ الأغلبيةِ فى البرلمان المصري اليوم بتلك السمة ؟

 * من سماتِ التحضرِ والتقدمِ الإنسانيين شيوع ثقافة عامة تكبر وتحترم وتحمي الحريات العامة وأهمها حرية الإعتقاد وحرية نقد كل شيء ( في حدود القانون ). فهل يتسم فكرُ وسلوكُ الأغلبيةِ فى البرلمان المصري اليوم بتلك السمة ؟

* من سماتِ التحضرِ والتقدمِ الإنسانيين إختفاء ظاهرة محاكمة أي انسان على افكاره أو كتاباته أو ابداعاته الفنية ونهاية مرحلة مصادرة الكتب ، ونهاية مرحلة السقوف المنخفضة لحرية التفكير والتعبير والابداع . فهل يتسم فكرُ وسلوكُ الأغلبية في البرلمان المصري اليوم بتلك السمة ؟

* من سماتِ التحضرِ والتقدمِ الإنسانيين تعظيم وإكبار "قيمة الحياة الإنسانية" . وهو ما يعني رفض وإدانة أي عدوان على حياة المدنيين في أي مجتمع مهما كانت المبررات . في مجتمعنا بعض " بسطاء العقول " الذين تثلج صدورهم العمليات الإنتحارية ضد بعض المدنيين وعمليات إجرامية مثل تفجيرات جزيرة بالي في اندونسيا وعملية 11 سبتمبر 2001 في الولايات المتحدة. فهل يتسم فكرُ وسلوكُ الأغلبية في البرلمان المصري بإستهجان ثقافة الموت وإكبار وتعظيم شأن الحياة الإنسانية ؟

* من سماتِ التحضر والتقدمِ الإنسانيين التفرقة بين " الحقائق الدينية " و " الحقائق العلمية " . ومع احترام كل منهما ، فإن المجتمعات التي بلغت درجة كبيرة من التقدم لا يمكن ان تخلط. بين مجالات الحقائق الدينية ومجالات الحقائق العلمية . فهل يتسم فكرُ وسلوكُ الأغلبيةِ في البرلمان المصري بالتمييز بين مجالات الحقائق الدينية ومجالات الحقائق العلمية؟ 

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The Basis of Religious Tolerance...or its Lack

درست الفرق الإسلامية (المذاهب السنية والشيعية ومذاهب الخوارج الأربعة وأهمها الإباضية والدروز والعلويين - وبالذات النصيرية - والقرامطة والحشاشين) وكل المذاهب المسيحية (بما فيها ما يعده مسيحيو العالم اليوم "هرطقة" مثل المسيحية الأريوسية والنسطورية) وكل الأديان والمعتقدات الأخري (البرهمية ... البوذية ... الطاوية ... إلخ) ... كما درست اليهودية بتعمق وعندي ولع باليهود القرائين (اليهود الربانيون يؤمنون بكل أسفار ما يسميه المسيحيون بكتاب العهد القديم وكذلك بكتابي "المشنة والجمارة" اللذين يطلق عليهما معا "التلمود" ... أما اليهود القراؤن ، فلا يؤمنون بالتلمود ولا يؤمنون إلا بالأسفار الخمسة الأولي من العهد القديم .... وأنا كذلك أحب لغة "المزامير" وطبيعتها الشعرية ... وهذه الرحلة مع المعرفة هي ما جعلتني أتعجب من "التعالي" على الآخر الديني ... فالقبطي "قبطي" لأنه ولد لوالدين قبطيين ... وأنا مسلم ، لأنني ولدت فى أسرة مسلمة ... وهكذا ، فليس لأحد منا أي حق فى التعالي على "الآخر" الديني .... سيما أن معظم الناس يعرفون عن دينهم وعن المعتقدات الأخري "أقل القليل" !! أليس كذلك ؟ طارق حجي ...

Why Do I Write?

I have been writing for more than three decades in order to instill in the Egyptian mind that we are, first and foremost, Egyptians. Our identity is shaped by our geographical location on the southern shores of the Mediterranean. We have Muslim, Christian, Arab and African ties, but none of them can replace our only identity as Egyptians.

I write in order to instill in the Egyptian mind the fact that although the outside world will harbour animosities towards us at times, and will work to further its own interests most of the time, our problems, in their entirety, originate inside our country and can only be solved internally. We alone are responsible for those problems and for the fact that they remain unsolved. The excessive belief in the conspiracy theory is a confession of our impotence and an admission of the supremacy of others in the face of our ineffectiveness.

I write in order to instill in the Egyptian mind the values of liberalism, democracy, general freedoms and human rights as the most noble, sublime and civilized achievements of mankind.

I write in order to instill in the Egyptian mind the value of civil society, as the most effective mechanism for public participation in public life.

I write in order to instill in the Egyptian mind that the negative perception of women in some cultures is disgraceful. Not only do women constitute half the population but, far more important, they are the mothers who rear future generations. As such, they are a valuable societal asset, and a society that does not grant its women full rights in all fields cannot hope to realize its full potential.

I write in order to instill in the Egyptian mind that effective and creative modern management is the only way to achieve progress. The sad reality, though, is that there is a dearth of human resources trained in the techniques of modern management.

I write in order to instill in the Egyptian mind that our educational system is in need of an overall revolution. As it now stands, the system only produces citizens who are totally incapable of facing the challenges of the age. Repeated claims by some that a process of reforming Egypt’s educational system is currently underway are grossly exaggerated, as borne out by the quality of graduates produced by the system.

I write in order to instill in the Egyptian mind that Egypt’s Copts are not second class citizens, that they are as entitled to full citizenship rights as its Muslim population and that all the problems they are facing can and must be solved.

I write in order to instill in the Egyptian mind that there are shortcomings in Western culture, but it is an essential rung on the ladder of human civilization. To oppose Western culture is to oppose science, development and civilization.

I write in order to instill in the Egyptian mind that we have to curb our tendency to indulge in excessive self-praise and to glorify our past achievements. We have to learn to criticize ourselves and to accept criticism from others. We have to try to break out of our subjective culture into a more objective one. And I write in order to instill in the Egyptian mind that the deification of officials is one of the major sources of our problem-filled reality… and the responsibility here lies with us as individuals.

I write in order to instill in the Egyptian mind that our media institutions need to be radically reformed in line with the requirements of the age. The changes required are not in the formal aspects or the number of television channels operated by our state television, but in the substance of the media message. If education is the reform tool in the long-term, the media is the ideal tool by which awareness can be raised in the short-term.

I write in order to instill in the Egyptian mind (especially in the minds of the young) that where there is a will there is a way and that, armed with a solid formation and determination, they can achieve anything. The future does not exist as such; it is the product of what we create today.

These are the messages I have tried to convey in the hundreds of articles and the twenty eight books I published over the past three decades. Skeptics may consider that my voice, like that of John the Baptist, is a cry in the wilderness. They would do well to remember that the words of John the Baptist were far more than a cry in the wilderness, that they were, in fact, stepping stones towards a noble and glorious path.

Society in Transition -- Educational Reform

A consensus of opinions, vociferously expressed in articles, lectures, talk shows and informal conversations, holds that educational reform is the key to society’s salvation, the lifeboat that can take us from our dismal present towards a brighter future. Without educational reform we are doomed to sink into further decline, decadence and, ultimately, chaos, to be plucked like a rotten fruit by the forces of darkness watching and waiting for just such an opportunity. In any gathering, whether between people on the highest rung of the social ladder or among ordinary citizens, talk invariably turns to the urgent need for educational reform and the disastrous consequences of not putting it into effect without further delay.

Conversations abound with nostalgic references to education as it was in the past and lament the standard of education on offer today, occasionally touching on the reasons our educational institutions have sunk to such abysmal depths, with their lack of quality, low standard of educational output and the yawning gap separating them from the realities and innovations of the age. But rarely, if ever, is the reader, viewer or listener of these plaintive symphonies apprised of what alternative model of education the lamenters are proposing in its stead. This article shall try to sum up, very briefly, the main guidelines we should follow when embarking on educational reform. I believe the first requirement is to formulate a clear vision, a declaration of intent, as it were, that would be based on the following simple formula:

The educational institutions aim to imbue the sons and daughters of the society of the future with the values of the age and with the qualifications that would enable them to make effective, creative and positive contributions towards achieving progress, social peace and quality of life at all levels. The most important values of the age that our educational institutions must plant in the minds of society’s children are:

- A love of pluralism in all its material, intellectual, sectarian, religious, political and cultural aspects as one of the most noble and beautiful realities of life, and a respect for its results, the most important being otherness and cultural and religious tolerance;

- A recognition of the universality of science and knowledge and an awareness that they are the cumulative legacy of humanity as a whole;

- The extirpation of all the seeds of fanaticism;

- A respect for human rights and the rights of minorities, and an acceptance of the imperative need to elevate the status of women, who make up half of the human race not only numerically but in terms of their role and contributions;

- An appreciation of progress and a deep respect for science and knowledge;

- A sense of the common humanity shared by all peoples and a love of art in all its forms;

- A recognition of the sanctity of human life and a respect for work.

Task forces composed of men and women experienced in all related fields, drawn from both inside and outside the educational establishment, must be formed to translate that vision into educational programmes. It is also necessary to study and address the reasons why the majority of those enrolled in the educational process are bent on completing the journey from primary to preparatory to secondary school to university. On the one hand, society does not need so many university graduates; on the other, it is in dire need of skills in many domains that are not acquired through a university education.

On a recent visit to Finland, a country experts consider to have the best educational system in the world today, I met one of the leading personalities in the field of education. She told me that in her opinion the problem is not whether education is free or paid - in Finland education is free from elementary school through post-graduate studies, even for non-citizens. Rather, it is the failure of many educational systems to attract society’s young people towards vocational schools where the training they receive can serve society in ways that university graduates cannot.

Speaking as one of the architects of this highly developed Scandinavian country’s educational policies, she added that no society could possibly need more than one quarter of those enrolled in the educational process to graduate from university; it needed the remainder to train as skilled workers in various areas of specialization. If the educational policy succeeds in directing a quarter, or, at most, a third of its young people towards a university education and three quarters or two thirds towards modern vocational training, society would not only receive all the contributions required for its advancement, it would also be able to provide free university education to its most brilliant students. 

Although the prescription set out in this article appears simple on its face, its application is far from easy. To begin with, it needs a large number of qualified people to lay the groundwork for the required radical reforms. Theirs will not be an easy task, for they will face ferocious resistance from those forces within the society whose vested interests are safe and sound only if things remain as they are.  

There is no doubt that the political will to effect these changes in order to provide the only lifeboat that can rescue society from its present predicament is of paramount importance.

Religious Reform: Cornerstone of Reform in the Arab Societies

I. Overview:

Islam has played an important role in the making of history and culture of the Arabic speaking peoples. While the “Muslim mind” has known periods of prosperity (according to the norms of the Middle-Ages) until the twelfth century A.D., it has also known, since that time, a course of decline, stagnation, and isolation, of which one cannot hide the features. Since the interaction of the peoples of this region with the West (from the first day of the French Campaign in Egypt in 1798), the problematic has materialized in two trends: the first trend asserts that the backwardness of our societies is due to the fact that we do not hold the set of religious doctrines as the way of life and work of individuals and societies. The holders of the second trend believe that it is inevitable to follow the mechanisms of the Western civilization in order to accomplish progress in their societies. It may be said (with some generalization) that the political, cultural, intellectual, and educational atmosphere of the Arabic speaking societies is witnessing a conflict between these two tendencies: the tendency of returning to Islamic sources and origins, and the tendency to use the mechanisms and values of the Western civilization which have gone beyond the frontiers of the West in the geographic sense, as they have been adopted by several societies outside the West. 

I suggest that the preachers of the return to the sources and origins have little to offer besides big promises to the masses, while the intellectuals know that Islamic history is a purely human history which has known an era of relative prosperity (the reality and extent of which are often exaggerated), which has then diminished and fallen after adopting a mentality of copying, opposed to reason and innovation, and when it set a low ceiling to the work of the human mind. 

A big dilemma in this debate (which, in my opinion, is futile) is the mistake of looking upon the engines, mechanisms, dynamics and incentives of the Western civilization as being “Western”. I have proven in many of my books that the progress which Europe has witnessed occurred due to human factors and not European or Western factors. The first of these factors is the strict limitation imposed on the authority and power of clergymen, followed by raising the ceiling on freedom of thought, and the encouragement of the critical mind. These are the two factors which have helped the evolution of the values of progress, which are all “purely human”, not Western, Christian, or European. 

One of the most obvious proofs that the values and characteristics of human progress are human and universal is what has taken place on a big scale in the Asian continent, when non-European societies employed the mechanisms and values of progress to accomplish development, and were able to achieve the required progress. This is what the world has witnessed in Japan, South Korea, Singapore and Taiwan, and then in other societies such as the Malaysian society which one may consider as the biggest proof that the values and mechanisms of progress are universal and human. 

Coming back to Arabic speaking societies, analyzing their present political, economic, social, cultural, educational and media phenomena shows that their environments are devoid of the values of progress which are, as previously stated, clearly human and universal. The biggest challenge this approach will have to face will always come from religious institutions, not for a purely religious motive (or even any religious motive as such), but to defend the unlimited authority and power to rule and direct life in their societies. 

The reform of general education and with equal importance, of religious education is the cornerstone of the project of progress and development, which no one in our (Arabic speaking) societies can achieve before the educational reform, and particularly the reform of religious education, inculcates in the minds and consciences the values of progress as values that are first and foremost human and universal.

II. The Values of Progress:

An overview of the advanced societies, with a parallel knowledge of their history and march, shows that the progress of the societies which have advanced in their course towards development and progress is the result of a set of values which have been made fundamental to the society, by making them fundamental to the religious question.  It is on the basis of these values that our Arabic speaking societies need to rebuild their educational institutions, among which  the institutions of religious teaching. 

The first value of progress is reason, criticism, and a wide space for the “critical mind”. This first value of progress will always be the most attacked by theocracy and those theocrats who know the implications of making this value fundamental to the educational institution of any society.

The second value is the one of “plurality” as being one of the most important characteristics of life in general, and of knowledge, science and culture in particular. 

The third value is “otherness”, the essence of which is accepting the other, regardless of the aspect or the race of that other. Otherness is a natural consequence of the implantation of plurality. 

The fourth of these values is the “universality of science and knowledge”. This value has a strong dialectical link with the three values previously mentioned. 

The fifth value is the value of religious and cultural “tolerance”, as the natural consequence of the belief in the diversity of the different aspects of life. 

The sixth value concerns “women and their place in the society”, starting with the idea that women are totally equal to men, have equal rights and duties, and have an equal human value. The link between progress and the status of women is a double dialectical link: on one hand, women represent half of the society in number; immobilizing half of the society can only have negative effects.  On the other hand, women raise the other half of the society; if they are not free people, they will bring up the other half with a mixture of the defects and disadvantages resulting from being brought up at the hands of an inferior person. 

The seventh value is the one of “human rights” according to the concept which was developed during the past two centuries. 

The eighth value is that of “citizenship”, as being the basis of the relationship between citizens, and their relationship with the state. 

The ninth value is the modern concept of the state and “the rule of law” which differs from the concept of the tribe, the village, and the family. 

The tenth value is that of “democracy”, the noblest human invention of the last two centuries.

The eleventh value is the value of “work”, including the modern notions surrounding work, such as team work, competence, the techniques of modern management, and the culture of enterprise as opposed to the culture of individuals. 

The twelfth value is the “interest in the future” more than the excessive interest in the past, which is a characteristic of the Arab culture. 

The thirteenth value is the value of “objectivity” which, even if it is relative, differs from the subjectivity that reigns in certain ancient cultures, the Arab culture being one of the most important. The sociology of the tribe which has widely governed the Arab culture favors subjectivity, and is far from the notion of objectivity. 

The fourteenth value is the “relativity of science, knowledge and human governance”. The course of the human mind during these last three centuries has led it far from the culture of absolute governance, and driven it closer to the culture of relative governance. 

The fifteenth value is that of “participation” and not following. Participation is a value which strongly opposes the importance of following and the scantiness of participating which the Arab cultures have secreted.

 

III. What is to be done?

During the last two centuries, the partisans of science, reason, and modernity slightly advanced in our societies. Then, they fell back to second place, far behind the school of returning to the roots and origins. In my opinion, there are several reasons for this, the major one being that the debate remains at a global (macro) level, without focusing on the radical change of the mentality through learning. Dialogue on a global level is generally based on slogans which are more attractive to the public. The majority of the supporters of the return to origins hold slogans that attract masses, even if they are half educated or half cultured (which is the case of most of them). When the opportunity presented itself in the form of leadership which was capable of undertaking the crossing from the darkness of reality to the light of progress (like in Turkey from 1923 to 1938, and in Tunisia from 1956 to 1987), the work on the educational institutions remained incomplete, along with the size of religious teaching (totally divorced from the mentality of progress and modernity) reaching, in chief countries like Turkey and Egypt, between 15% and 20% of the number of children of the society enrolled in the educational operation. 

I think that despite the rise of the wave of the return to origins and roots, the world situation and the flow of history favor political authorities, authorities of the civil society, a selection of intellectuals, and authorities of education and media who believe in progress.  These will be able, in the shadow of the general conditions, to sow the seed of reform in the land of education in general, and religious teaching in particular.

 

IV.  Reforming religious institutions, not ignoring them:

Having observed the cultural conditions of Arabic speaking societies for almost forty years, I am almost certain that ignoring religion (let alone wound it with pens and tongues of people motivated by anger rather than knowledge) is a fact which will yield no positive fruit. Religion is an essential element of the air which the peoples of our Arabic speaking region breathe. It is better to work on the reformation of religious institutions, religious culture, religious education and education in general, than to wage a Don Quixotic style duel which will only result in losing of the peoples and distancing them. Here lies the danger of some groups of Arab intellectuals who have set as their primary mission the insolent attack on religion, instead of working on the way people understand religion.

Edited by Sharon Bussell