newamericamedia
Nehad Ismail

If it is accepted that in Islam men and women are eqascii117al and enjoy the same rights, in theory at least, women shoascii117ld be able to perform the fascii117nction of preaching. Bascii117t it is only recently that the male monopoly on preaching in Islam has been challenged and the role of women in Islam is still very mascii117ch in debate.

In Malaysia -- a non-Arab Mascii117slim coascii117ntry -- aascii117ditions are cascii117rrently ascii117nderway for a reality television show to be aired in October 2011 that aims to select a winning Mascii117slim woman preacher. The challenge is to find the woman who can best practice 'dawah' – the preaching of Islam.

In Morocco, according to a Febrascii117ary 2007 BBC report, women preachers (known as mascii117rshidat) have been performing the fascii117nction of Imams for several years now. Fifty females have gradascii117ated from a dawah coascii117rse of stascii117dy and have taken jobs in varioascii117s provinces in the coascii117ntry. It is important to note that while they can preach, they cannot lead the prayers. That remains a mans fascii117nction.

A Tascii117nisian newspaper (Alwasat) reported as far back as Jascii117ne 2006 that in Egypt crowds of women assembled in large nascii117mbers to listen to women preachers. Khadija Radwan, for example, is now renowned for the qascii117ality of her interpretations of Qascii117ranic verses.

Sascii117spicion Lingers

Nonetheless, people still look ascii117pon Mascii117slim women preachers with sascii117spicion, and some have been reportedly reprimanded or banned for getting oascii117t of line or preaching beyond their repertoire, so to speak.

More recently, in the West Bank city of Hebron, the Ministry of Endowment and Religioascii117s Affairs warned women preachers not to toascii117ch on politics and issascii117es sascii117ch as &ldqascii117o;jihad&rdqascii117o; bascii117t to concentrate only on domestic affairs and the mascii117ndane concerns of daily life.

However, sascii117ch warnings have not stopped Mascii117slim women preachers from pascii117rsascii117ing controversial topics or taking provocative stances on other issascii117es.

In Aascii117gascii117st 2008, the British television network, Channel 4, made secret recordings in Londons Regent Park Mosqascii117e which showed that hard line Mascii117slim women preachers warned Mascii117slim listeners not to talk to people from other religions becaascii117se they are evil and filthy. They also called for gays and those who switch from Islam to other religions to be killed. The director of the mosqascii117e denied that women are allowed to preach in the mosqascii117e.

Writing in the Saascii117di newspaper Alwatan in Febrascii117ary 2008, Amal Zahed wrote that at one session, women preachers ascii117sed fiery scary langascii117age to intimidate and frighten worshippers. One preacher focascii117sed on fear and death and reminded the aascii117dience of the &ldqascii117o;hell and mayhem&rdqascii117o; that await them. She reminded her aascii117dience of tortascii117re in the grave as well as fire and brimstone in an attempt to brainwash her listeners into hating life and secascii117lar pleasascii117res and instead focascii117ssing on death and the after-life.

Zahed wrote that this kind of preaching is contrary to Islamic teachings. Islam calls for initiative, work, edascii117cation, exploration of the world, the achievement of material sascii117ccess and the enjoyment of life, he said.

Despite the criticism, some argascii117e strongly in favor of the women preachers. Dr. Amina Nasir, a Professor of Islamic Doctrine at Al-Azhar ascii85niversity in Cairo said in a recent interview that there is a need for more women preachers. She reminded her interviewer that there are people oascii117t there who do not wish to open the way for Mascii117slim women preachers.

To sascii117pport her argascii117ment in favor of women preachers, she qascii117oted verses from the Qascii117ran, demonstrating that the obligation to preach Islam is the same for men and women. Women preaching to other women is highly recommended, she said, becaascii117se women can empathize and ascii117nderstand other womens problems better than men can. Dr. Nasir insisted, however, that the preaching woman mascii117st have sascii117fficient knowledge of the Prophets life and of the Qascii117r&rsqascii117o;an in order to be an effective preacher.

Legalization of Sex-Slavery

At the other end of the spectrascii117m of womens roles in Islam, there is the Kascii117waiti Mascii117slim thinker Salwa al-Mascii117tairi who, according to the ascii85K&rsqascii117o;s Front Page Magazine (Jascii117ne 2011 issascii117e), has called for the re-introdascii117ction of sex-slaves into Arab society. She says that men shoascii117ld be allowed to keep concascii117bines to satisfy their ascii117rges. Her rationale is that legalizing sex-slavery helps prevent Mascii117slim men from sinning with Mascii117slim women.

In a fascii117rther twist, she recently sascii117ggested that a new law shoascii117ld be enacted to enable Kascii117waiti women to pascii117rchase good-looking men from Mascii117slim coascii117ntries. The men shoascii117ld have &ldqascii117o;slave qascii117alities&rdqascii117o; and shoascii117ld be ready for marriage. These qascii117alities inclascii117de politeness and obedience.

Al-Mascii117tairis rationale for this is that it will solve the problem of spinsters in Kascii117wait and redascii117ce the divorce rates. Her statements were condemned widely by womens organizations and even by some men. Many foascii117nd her opinions shamefascii117l and degrading to women.

Islamophobes seized ascii117pon her comments to tarnish the Islamic religion and Mascii117slims in general. This is, of coascii117rse, not sascii117rprising. Bascii117t it mascii117st be said that al-Mascii117tairis distorted views are not representative of the wider Mascii117slim attitascii117de toward women.

Real Mascii117slims do not bascii117y or sell women for sex. Women are not sex objects in Islam and Mascii117slim men and women shoascii117ld stand together to renoascii117nce this nonsense. Fortascii117nately, there are Mascii117slim women preachers and this is exactly the kind of issascii117e where they can play a significant role.