Islamic Laws, Muslim Praxis and American Culture:
Islamic laws come from Quran and Sunna, later to the understanding of Companions(r.a), then, it goes to the consensus of the community(ijma) and lastly to analogical reasoning. On these bases, the Sharia is built and from here as well, it came out several differences among the major religious schools. This is my thoughts on Chapter 4 from a comparative study which is done by Yvonne Yazbeck Haddad and Adair T. Lummis. The research can be found in the book entitled “Islamic Values In the United States”.
I don’t know what does “praxis” means, so I opened online dictionary and it is similar to custom or habits. In this chapter, it mentions and discusses writers finding on how, what and when American Muslims (immigrant or none) deals with above topics. At certain points, I give a deep sigh reflecting on my ummah, assimilating into some non Islamic culture that to me is a very obvious unaccepted because there are certain things mentioned that is clearly prohibited and not permissible for example, selling liquor to earn for living. Their arguments are shallow, for example:
“Sometimes you have to do whatever it is to feed your family. I don’t think there should be any restriction. Some people say, “Well, you can’t sell alcohol.” But it was me and it was the difference between feeding my family and selling alcohol, well I would. I wouldn’t let my family or friends starve because I couldn’t raise some kind of money somehow. In the world we live in you have to do anything you can to earn a living. Even bartending.”(pg.105)
Even this is ridiculous:
“Myself, I know as a Muslim you are not supposed to serve or drinks or be in the bar business. A Muslim shouldn’t do those thing. But I never stopped to think I shouldn’t do that when I was working” (pg.105)
This is even insane:
“I used to have a bar. The work was satisfying. The money was good, the hours short. You are your own boss; you don’t have to answer to anyone else. I was happy at that time. … It is haram in Islam they say to have liquor in your store, and selling it is worse that having it and drinking it, but it is a living.. I only sold out because I was offered about one thousand dollars more than I had paid for it.”(pg. 106).
This is disheartening:
“We were in business so we had to have liquor in our house. I never learned to mix a drink in my life and I never touched a drink in my life, and neither did my husband. We had friends that came in and business acquaintances who we entertained in our home. We had friends that came in and business acquaintances who we entertained in our home. We would put the liquor and mixes out and say, “There it is. Do you what you want with it.” That is as far as it went. (pg.106)
ALLLAH opens their heart through their daughter words:
“In our family ten years ago, we used to serve liquor to or American guests. We would just put it on the table and leave it there for them to help themselves. But we stopped doing this as a result of comments made by my older daughter once-that when we don’t drink, why do we serve drinks?.. Since that time we have totally stopped serving drinks in our household. (pg. 107)