Article on Muslim Brotherhood Website: Implement Shari'a in Phases

July 5, 2011 Special Dispatch No.3969

Article on Muslim Brotherhood Website: Implement Shari'a in Phases

In a June 11, 2011 article on the website of the Egyptian Muslim Brotherhood, veteran movement member Sheikh Ahmad Gad argued that the implementation of shari'a in Egypt must be achieved gradually, by preparing the peoples' hearts and minds for it and introducing it in stages. He proposed learning from the methods of the early Muslim Brotherhood, which worked in a step-by-step fashion, and called on Al-Azhar to focus on promoting the implementation of shari'a. The following are excerpts from the article:[1] "There Is No Hope for Reform Without a Return to Divine Rule" "Following the blessed popular revolution on January 25, 2011, there was a debate between the majority, which hopes and yearns for the implementation of Allah's shari'a, and the minority, which uses Islam as a tool of intimidation and fears the Islamists and a return to the Middle Ages. "This minority, which denies the results of the referendum while calling for democracy,[2] is made up of those who oppose a religious state or a caliphate state, and advocate a return to the tyrannical secular regime that corrupted the land and the people – a  minority [that receives] prominent media coverage... "Islamic shari'a ruled for centuries, but became distant and absent for centuries more. The various forms of imperialism were a burden on the [Muslim] nation in various ways, and caused people to change... In that dark period, the state alternately mimicked Eastern and Western regimes. Corruption developed, grew, and accumulated... [Nowadays], there is no hope for reform without a return to divine rule, which the Creator chose for man. This nation will have no chance of success, [except] by that which caused it to succeed in its beginning. "[However,] we must not impose Islamic shari'a, forcing the people to adopt something about which they are ignorant and with which they are unfamiliar... If we do this, [various] ploys will be used to circumvent it, and there will be hypocrisy. [People] will exhibit Islamic [behavior] only outwardly... "Noah, peace be upon him, received a clear sign, a stark vision, a prophecy, and mercy that his people did not understand... Noah could not force or impose [his faith upon the people]. He determined the principle of choosing [one's] faith [as a result of] persuasion and reflection, [instead of] oppression, authority, condescension, and coercion. [The Koran] says: 'O my people! Tell me, if I have with me clear proof from my Lord, and He has granted me mercy from Himself, and it has been made obscure to you; shall we force you to (accept) it while you are averse to it?' [Koran 11:28] Read the rest on: Memri