Religion as a Comprehensive System of Divine Guidance
When religion was reduced from the position of “societal leadership” to the status of “problem-solving,” it fell behind the developments of contemporary society.
Religion, as a constituent of God’s sapiential design for human guidance and salvation, is a constellation of descriptive, preferential, and prescriptive propositions. Comprehensive and non-selective attention and adherence to these propositions culminate in the realization of divine guidance within society.
In simpler terms, human felicity in both individual and social spheres is genuinely and fully realized only when individuals believe in and commit to religion. This commitment applies both to the cognitive realm—understanding oneself and the surrounding world—and to the normative realm of discerning what is beneficial and detrimental in life. (It goes without saying that this assertion does not contradict reliance on human science and intellect).
The Divergence of the Modern Prescriptive Paradigm
However, in our contemporary world, life unfolds differently. We have organized our individual and social lives based on a modern prescriptive paradigm. This paradigm diverges from Islamic theology in its description of humanity and existence, and its system of preferences and prescriptions frequently contradicts the ethos of the Sharia.
The Illusion of Reactive Problem-Solving
Consequently, the order to which we have grown accustomed in today’s world differs fundamentally from a religion-based order. Within such a paradigm, resorting to religion and Sharia merely for “problem-solving” and “addressing intellectual doubts” practically effects no real change in the trajectory of human conduct; rather, it merely provides a religious veneer for a secular order.
