by the way, I found this on
Load Islam..
of all places =)
Misconceptions
Islam and the Independent Thinker
By : Al-Jumuah
Islam encourages ijtihad, which is translated as "independent opinion or judgment." Its purpose is to update, amend, and review matters of religion. It is especially needed whenever new situations are encountered, particularly when they have not been addressed in a timely manner.
Ijtihad not only insures that Islam keeps abreast with current trends, but it also protects society from stagnation and prevents cultural imitation from shaping and defining society. The Prophet [peace and blessings of Allah be upon him] said, "Allah sends to this Ummah every hundred years, someone who will amend the matters of its religion." (Abu Dawud)
This hadeeth gives a guarantee of renewal and sets a specific period of time during which the trust and responsibility for this religion must be upheld. The trust includes preserving religious texts (i.e., Qur'an and Sunnah), continuing to propagate Islam, and ensuring that Islam has a positive influence on people's lives. It also includes ensuring ijtihad continues. Ijtihad is needed to solve the problems of each time or age, because a judgment that is correct for a particular age will not necessarily by correct for all ages.
Ijtihad, and the updating of religion, does not mean the abrogation of religious texts - it means new understandings in line with existing religious texts. It guides Muslims to solve their problems, especially problems specific to their time and location, and provides solutions in accordance with revelation.
This understanding of ijtihad explains how it is able to immortalize the Islamic message and incorporate Islam into every aspect of life. It provides the means of forming a common understanding of Islam, and helps people's attention to remain focused on an Islamic life, so that they can achieve personal growth and social development.
It is said in a hadeeth, "If a Hakim makes a ruling using his own judgment (ijtihad) and is correct, then he will receive two rewards; and if he makes a ruling and uses his own judgment, and makes a mistake, then he will receive one reward." The Hakim here means anyone who is authorized to give rulings, to look into a matter, or to make an independent judgment (ijtihad) in a case.
No matter what the condition or concerns of a Muslim population, it is a community obligation (fard kifayah) for someone to make the effort to learn the rulings pertaining to different problems and emergency situations. If no one devotes himself to the study of Islamic Law, so that ijtihad can be used to determine ruling concerning recent problems, then all Muslims are in the wrong.
Perhaps it is this condition that prompted a past Imam to say that it is not permissible for any period of time to be devoid of ijtihad in the Qur'an and Sunnah of Allah's Prophet (PBUH.) Another understanding is that one role of a new age, time, or generation, is to expose people to new problems, customs, and situations.
There must always be scholars to perform ijtihad and deduce rulings appropriate to new customs and situations. People's lives are filled with complicated questions, and in some situations it is impossible for them to find satisfactory answers. However, this does not mean that we should surrender to this fact as if it were unsurpassable. The human intellect can take one of two courses when faced with this problem: The first is to assume that the solution does in fact lie within the existing body of law and that it must therefore be possible to rule or govern according to it.
The second is to assume that existing laws do not cover the problem and to seek to deduce laws to deal with it. Between these two assumptions are numerous other possibilities, each lying somewhere between the two extremes. Each assumption has practical implications, but how they manifest themselves will depend on circumstances and human nature, and how closely the problem falls within the scope of the two assumptions.
In summary: The need to open the door of ijtihad has become a pressing one and, therefore, is an obligatory religious duty. This is because we live in a time of continuous, yet permanent changes: A time of confusion in which the specific, the general, the unrestrained, and the limited have become mixed. We have become rich in understanding acts of worship and religious rites, but this has been accompanied by poverty in understanding how to treat people. We lack modern ways of thinking to accompany modern times, and we are out of harmony with the new ways of doing things that surround us.
This reveals the need for an endeavor that will unite the Ummah (Muslim Nation). Together, we must formulate the essential characteristics of a method for dealing with current problems and crises, using as our guidelines the methodology that Allah ordained for His creation.
In encouraging this, we support the opinion of the majority of the scholars who proposed the institution of collective ijtihad for the Ummah. They laid the foundations for a system of consultancy in ijtihad. This was the gathering of scholars that came together for collective ijtihad in the early days of Islam. The scholars were the Companions of the Prophet and the system was called 'ijmaa' or consensus.
There is a need to have a centralized ijmaa' on some basic issues for the entire Muslim Ummah. These issues include: cases that are fundamentally different from any previously known cases for which there were clear rulings; cases whose rulings were given in a different time or place; recent developments especially in areas of rapid change such as science, technology, medicine, war, and agriculture; determining the strongest of sometimes conflicting sayings of past scholars; and determining which opinions are the most suitable for the state of the Ummah in the present time.
Modern civilization suffers from many complicated problems, many of which have arisen due to rapid progress, unbridled development, and unbalanced growth.
The solutions offered by Islam open before all humanity opportunities to overcome present day crises, and heal the rift between spiritual and material values, for the benefit of humankind, the environment, and all other life on earth.
http://www.load-islam.com/artical_det.php?artical_id=235§ion=wel_islam&subsection=Misconceptions
