Therefore, the absence of complete understanding of the religious doctrine would develop weak Muslims regardless of their conservatism. Weak Muslims with an incomplete understanding of the religion are subject to corruption or extremism, which constitute a major deterrence for changes toward democracy. This is evident in the Taliban groups in Afghanistan, who claim their own conservative views of Islam, yet they failed to develop a civilized society, in contrast to the Islamic civilization that was developed by conservative scholars at early years of the religion inception. However, younger generations in Egypt are eager to change themselves and their country. This is evident by the strong popularity of untraditional missionaries (not scholars) such as Amr Khalid and Moustafa Hosni. Those preachers have better abilities to preach Islam, not because of their scholarly knowledge, but because of their better ability to correlate between Islamic teachings and its impacts on community development.
So what went wrong in a country that has Al Azhar Mosque (The most highly regarded place for Muslims Sunnis after Mecca and El Madina) and that is the birth place of the Muslim Brotherhood? The bizarre and even reversed relationship between increasing religious conservatism and declining moral values tainted the Islamic religion around the world. Normally, people of other faiths do not go out of their way and read about Islam from the source books to learn about its teachings. Â However, people’s views of Islam and its values usually get estimated from the behaviors of its followers. Muslim extremists became the concern of every country around the world, including Muslim majority countries.
Understanding the causes behind declining moral values despite increasing conservatism in Egypt is important to find innovative and comprehensive solution while expediting democratic transformation of Egypt. It is important to start by realizing that the problem does not lie in the religion, but in the incomplete understanding of its followers, to find solutions.
If agreeing that the declining moral values in the Egyptian society is mainly related to incomplete preaching of the religion and its teachings at early stages of life, then religious institutions should play an important role to rectify this problem. Al Azhar always represents the moderate views of Islam, which is estimated from deep understanding and scholarly studies of the religion. Al Azhar is considered a very prestigious religious authority among Muslim Sunnis; however, its role and credibility was hampered in the last four decade because of the control and intervention of previous governments. The weakening of Al Azhar resulted in the development of many other conservative Islamic groups that have different ideologies and interpretation of the religion. Therefore, any future government in Egypt should empower El-Azhar and grant it the autonomous status to resume its function and role as a respected religious authority in the Middle East and among all Muslims. Al Azhar would play essential role in restoring the moral values in the Egyptian society through proper preaching of the religion and highlighting the importance of building strong, healthy, and successful society.
A comprehensive solution should include many facets most importantly empowering Al Azhar as a religious authority in Egypt. It is crucial to find creative means for Al Azhar to connect with the younger generations, which represent around 60% of the entire population, through the internet, TV, and any other viable media. It is equally important to ensure the autonomous status of Al Azhar with complete control over its budget and decisions. The Egyptian government should increase Al Azhar’s budget to allow for domestic and international outreach as well as to enhance the financial well-being of its preachers. Al Azhar should increase the number of scholarships for students to receive higher degrees in theological studies. Al Azhar should go through internal reforms to increase the standards of its education, graduates and affiliates. The west should engage Al Azhar in visiting scholars programs to receive specialized language training and facilitate its ability to train Muslim missionary groups in the western countries. Al Azhar should organize annual or semiannual international conferences to discuss important issues related to the Muslim affairs. Al Azhar should initiate special programs directed to the youth such as outdoor camping programs and community centers. The University of Al Azhar should be transformed and internationally accredited to compete domestically and internationally to attract students in all disciplines with moderate understanding of the religion. It should develop international campuses outside Egypt in Muslim majority countries. These are some examples of the proposed means to empower Al Azhar to assume its role as a religion authority of moderate views in the Muslim world.
Another facet of the comprehensive solution includes K-12 education reform. A successful Muslim should have free and critical minds and anxious for knowledge. Good education guides people to seek the information and knowledge from its sources rather than receiving it from unqualified scholars. Education reforms should include the teaching material, students, parents and teachers. Religion teachings at school are part of the extra curricula in Egypt and should be reviewed and updated continuously to reflect a balanced approach between the ceremonial teachings and the impact of the religion on community development. Teaching materials should include creative means to deliver the information such as scenario exercises, self studies and research, distinctions between religion and traditions, and community services.
Volunteering is an absent culture in the Egyptian society due to the lack of team work skills, despite Islamic teachings that emphasize the social activities and team work. Community services would include visits and volunteers to orphanages, hospitals, assistance housing for elders, etc. Islamic teachings would be best reflected and represented in practical applications for students. Schools should encourage parents to volunteer and sometimes mandate participation in the Parent-Teachers Organizations (PTO). The PTO would be instrumental to elevate the level of education in the public schools, besides changing toward the team work culture in the country.
Islamic media reforms should also be considered as one facet in the comprehensive solution. It will be a difficult dilemma to keep the balance between freedom of press and restricting access to satellite TV channels with religion programming hosted by less than qualified scholars. There is no doubt that there is a lot of chaos and confusion created by contradicting Islamic rulings (Fatwas) from tens of these channels. There is no easy solution for this problem; however, it is important to acknowledge it and start a national debate in Egypt to find plausible solutions. Al Azhar has developed dedicated online web service and provided hot phone lines to answer the public’ questions; however, apparently, this is not sufficient and still considered a partial solution.
Another facet of the comprehensive solution should include a social awareness campaign. Egypt, like many countries in the region, has a long history of previous occupations by foreign powers before and after the Islamic dynasty. Therefore, Egyptians inherited a culture that is a rich mixture of various traditions, which made it difficult for many people to separate between the traditions and the Islamic teachings. The mix between traditions and religion created very weak society in constant conflicts and dissolving morals. Traditions proved to be much stronger than religion in Egypt, as seen in the common traditions of Muslims and Coptics in their celebrations and daily activities. The Muslim Brotherhood succeeded to some extend to teach their members to distinguish between traditions and Islamic teachings; and hence, they managed to distinguish themselves from the rest of the society. However, the Muslim Brotherhood failed to spread these teachings in the society and formed their own association to distinguish themselves from the rest of the society based on religious claims. Therefore, they became part of the problem and not the solution, creating additional reasons for conflicts and division in the society. The Egyptian government through its Social Ministry should lead the public awareness education in collaboration with Al Azhar and other young and popular preachers. This is not a call to cancel the cultural values of the society, there are many traditions that elevate the code of moral values and fit within the Islamic teachings, on the other hand, there are many others that conflicts with the religion and the moral values.
