Shunday qilib, modernistik qarashga ko'ra, insoniyatning dinga haqiqiy ehtiyoji yo'q, chunki din sezilarli qadriyat qo'shmaydi. Bu fikrga ko'ra, odam faqat qandaydir aqlga sig'maydigan madaniy moyillik yoki, ehtimol, odat kuchi tufayligina dindor bo'lishi mumkin.
In this way, according to the modernist mentality, humanity has no real need for religion, as religion adds no substantive value. According to this mindset, the only reason someone would be religious is out of some a-rational cultural bias or, maybe, force of habit.
Zamonaviylik nuqtai nazaridan, taraqqiyotga "yopiq fikrli" imonlilarning "ko'r-ko'rona" o'n ming yillik matnlarni o'qishi va qonunlashtirilgan diniy huquqni saqlab qolishidan ko'ra ko'proq zid narsa bo'lishi mumkin emas. Shuning uchun zamonaviylik taraqqiyotning bu diniy to'sig'ini ommaviy axborot vositalari, ta'lim, huquq va global siyosatni o'z ichiga olgan ko'p qirrali hujum orqali yo'q qilishni maqsad qiladi. Bu hujum ko'lami jihatidan qanchalik keng qamrovli bo'lsa, shafqatsizligi jihatidan shunchalik battoldir.
In the light of modernity, nothing could be more contrary to progress than “closed-minded” believers “blindly” reading one-thousand-year-old texts and maintaining canonized religious law. Modernity, therefore, aims to destroy this religious impediment to progress with a multi-faceted assault involving media, education, law, and global politics. This assault is as comprehensive in scope as it is brutal.
Islom zamonaviylikning antitezisi deb to'g'ri aytish mumkin. Buning qisman sababi shundaki, zamonaviylikning asosida yotgan asosiy nazariy falsafani ishlab chiqqan XVIII–XIX asr Yevropa Ma'rifatparvarlari Islomni ular shu qadar batamom zararsizlantirgan xuddi shu turg'un cherkovning yanada vahshiy, kam oldinga qaraydigan nusxasi sifatida ko'rgan. Masalan, XVIII asrda yashagan mashhur fransuz ateist faylasufi Volter Islomni vahshiy din sifatida karikatura qilgan. U hatto Muhammad ﷺ ni masxara qiluvchi "Mahomet" pyesasini yozib, Payg'ambarni fanatik zolim sifatida tasvirlagan, uning dushmanlari bo'lgan butparast arablarni esa aql-idrokning erkin fikrlovchi avliyolari sifatida ko'rsatgan. Bu achchiq orientalizm ko'plab Yevropa faylasuflarining fikrlashiga rang bergan. Ularning nazarida Islom zulm edi, zamonaviylik esa erkinlik edi. Islom aqlsiz edi, zamonaviylik esa aqlga ustunlik berardi. Eng muhimi, ularga ko'ra Islom turg'unlik va inqirozni anglatardi, ularning zamonaviy qarashi esa uzluksiz o'zgarish va yangilanishni ifodalardi. Bu intellektual tarixdan tashqari, zamonaviylikning o'zi Islom bilan to'qnashadi. Axir, Islom barcha dinlar ichida eng izchil ravishda an'anaviydir. Payg'ambar sunnatini saqlash Islomda eng muhim o'rinda turadi, Islomning butun epistemologiyasi esa o'tmish bilimini saqlash va yetkazish tushunchasiga asoslangan — nafaqat vahiy davridagi bilimni, balki inson mavjudligining eng boshidagi bilimni ham, ya'ni Alloh insonlarni yaratib, ulardan: "Men sizlarning Rabbingiz emasmanmi?" deb so'raganida, barcha insonlar: "Ha, guvohlik beramiz", deb javob berganini — Qur'onning A'raf surasi (17-oyat)da bayon qilinganidek. Yaratuvchi haqidagi, Uning yagonaligi va Uning ibodatga loyiqligi haqidagi bu birlamchi bilim fitrat deb ataladigan inson tabiatida saqlanadi. Bu insonni yaxshilik, poklik va to‘g‘rilikka yetaklaydigan tabiiy moyillikdir, faqat dunyoning o‘zgarishlari tufayli u buzilmasa. Bu moyillik shirk ( shirk), kibrli nafs, shahvat, shaytonning vasvasasi yoki soxta xohish va g‘arazli qarashlar (hawa) orqali buzilishi mumkin. Islomga amal qilish fitratni saqlash vazifasini bajaradi, ya’ni insonning ibodatini faqat Yaratguvchiga, sherigi yo‘q holda, doimiy qilishni ta’minlaydi. Iroda barqarorligi ham xuddi shunday muhimdir: mo‘min o‘z irodasi va istaklarini Ilohiy irodaga mutlaqo muvofiq qilishi kerak, doimo Allohning roziligini (ridvon) niyat qilgan holda.
Islam can rightly be described as the antithesis of modernity. This is partly due to the fact that the European Enlightenment thinkers in the 18th and 19th century, who developed the main theoretical philosophy underlying modernity, viewed Islam as a more brutish, less forward-thinking version of the same stagnant Church they had so thoroughly neutered. Famous 18th century atheist French philosopher Voltaire, for example, caricatured Islam as a barbaric religion. He even wrote a play Mahomet satirizing the Prophet Muhammad صلى الله عليه وسلم, portraying him as a fanatical tyrant and depicting his enemies, the pagan Arabs, as freethinking saints of reason. This bitter Orientalism colored the thinking of many European philosophers. Islam, in their minds, was despotic while modernism meant freedom. Islam was irrational while modernism put a premium on the mind. Above all, to them Islam meant stagnation and decay while their modern outlook represented continuous change and renewal. Beyond that intellectual history, the very nature of modernity clashes with Islam. After all, Islam is the most consistently traditional of all religions. Preservation of the Prophetic Sunnah is paramount in Islam, and Islam’s entire epistemology is built on the notion of preserving and transmitting past knowledge, not only past knowledge from the time of revelation but, indeed, past knowledge from the very beginning of human existence, when Allah created humanity and asked them, “Am I not your Rabb [i.e., Lord and Master]?” And all of humanity responded, “Yes, we testify,” as described in Surat Al-Ar’af (verse 17) in the Quran. This primordial knowledge of the Creator, His Oneness, and His right to be worshipped is preserved in the human instinct known as the fitra. This is the instinct that drives mankind to goodness, purity, and righteousness unless it becomes corrupted due to the vicissitudes of the dunya, corrupted whether due to idolatry (shirk), arrogant egoism (nafs), lust (shahwa), the whispering of satan (shaytan), or false whims and prejudices (hawa). The practice of Islam functionally serves as preservation of the fitra in the sense of ensuring constancy in one’s worship to the Creator alone without partner. Constancy of will is equally paramount, as the believer must ensure that he brings his will and his desires into utmost congruence with the Divine will, always intending Allah’s good pleasure (ridwan).
Ushbu qadriyatlar va butun ekzistensial tizim modernizm hamda unga hamroh bo'lgan barcha -izmlar bilan darhol va murosasiz ziddiyatga kirishadi.
All of these values and this entire existential framework immediately and uncompromisingly conflict with modernism as well as all its concomitant -isms.
Lekin Islom bilan zamonaviylik o'rtasidagi dushmanlik faqat nazariy darajada qolmadi. Musulmonlar bilan zamonaviylik tarafdorlari o'rtasidagi birinchi to'qnashuv XIX asr boshlarida, Yevropaning musulmon dunyosini mustamlaka qilishi boshlangan paytda yuz berdi. Mustamlakachi kuchlar, avvalo, iqtisodiy qudratni va nazoratni kengaytirishni, ikkinchidan, "VII asrda qolib ketgan" musulmon xalqiga zamonaviylik va taraqqiyot nurini olib kirishni maqsad qilgan edi. Islom ikkala maqsadga ham to'siq bo'lib turardi. Javoban mustamlakachilar musulmon ongi ustidagi Islomning ta'sirini zaiflashtirish uchun murakkab strategiya ishlab chiqdilar. Shimoliy Afrikadan Janubiy Osiyogacha va Indoneziyagacha bo'lgan mustamlakachilik loyihasi Islom diniy muassasalari va olimlariga hujum qilib, ularni tizimli ravishda moliyaviy mablag'dan mahrum qildi va o'rniga Yevropaga yo'naltirilgan muqobillarni qo'ydi. Diniy amaliyot jihatidan islomiy tildan (arab tilidan) tortib islomiy libosgacha, islomiy oila tuzilmasigacha bo'lgan hamma narsa mustamlakachi tomonidan nishonga olindi va musulmon dunyosining ko'p joylarida tizimli ravishda barham toptirildi. Xalifalikning o'zi to'liq bekor qilinguniga qadar, 1924 yilgacha zamonaviylashtiruvchi ta'sirdan aziyat chekishda davom etdi. Musulmon jamiyatining bunday tepadan pastgacha qayta qurilishi ko'pincha butunlay yo'q qilish, ba'zan esa ochiq genotsid ma'nosini bildirdi, chunki mustamlakachilik tahdidiga qarshi chiqqan va "taraqqiyot yo'lida to'siq bo'lgan" musulmonlar sudsiz ravishda yo'q qilindi. Yakuniy tahlilda, o'nlab million musulmon g'arbiy taraqqiyot va ma'rifat xudosiga qurbon bo'lib, shafqatsizlik bilan o'ldirildi.
But the hostility between Islam and modernity did not remain theoretical. The first clash between Muslims and the adherents of modernity occured in the early nineteenth century as European colonization of the Muslim world began. The colonial powers first and foremost desired to expand economic power and control and, secondly, to bring the light of modernity and progress to the “savage” Muslim populace “stuck in the seventh century.” Islam stood in the way of both goals. In response, the colonizers developed a sophisticated strategy to weaken the influence of Islam over the Muslim mind. From North Africa to South Asia to Indonesia, the colonial project attacked Islamic religious institutions and scholars by systematically defunding them and replacing them with pro-European alternatives. In terms of religious practice, everything from Islamic language (Arabic) to Islamic dress to Islamic family structure was targeted by the colonizer and systematically dismantled in many parts of the Muslim world. The Caliphate itself continued to suffer from the modernizing influence until it was completely abolished in 1924. This top-to-bottom overhaul of Muslim society often meant nothing short of annihilation and, at times, outright genocide, as those Muslims who resisted the colonial threat and “stood in the way of progress” were summarily exterminated. In the final analysis, tens of millions of Muslims were brutally killed, sacrifices to the Western god of progress and enlightenment.
Omon qolgan musulmonlar va ularning farzandlari vaqt o'tishi bilan zamonaviylikni va uning turli "izm"larini qabul qilishga o'rgatildi. "Zamonaviy = yaxshi" degan tushuncha g'arbiylashtirilgan ta'lim tizimi, shuningdek, ommaviy axborot vositalari, adabiyot va siyosiy ta'sir orqali musulmon ongiga singdirildi. Zamonaviylashgan musulmonlarning kam qismi qarshilik ko'rsata olgan asosiy paradoks shu edi: go'yo zamonaviylik musulmon xalqlarining yo'qolgan ulug'vorligini tiklash kalitiga ega. Musulmonlar tarixan erishgan jahon hukmronligiga qaytish uchun, paradoksal ravishda, zamonaviylashgan G'arbga ergashishi, uning fanini o'rganishi, turmush tarzini qabul qilishi, texnologiyasini o'zlashtirishi, iqtisodiyotiga taqlid qilishi kerak, degan fikr edi. Bu yolg'on bugun ham ikki asr oldingidek kuchli. Albatta, bu yolg'on, chunki zamonaviylikni qabul qilish Islomdan voz kechish demakdir. Shuning uchun, agar musulmonlar zamonaviylik va G'arbga taqlid qilish orqali tsivilizatsiyaviy ustunlikka erishganda ham, oxir-oqibatda ular musulmon bo'lib qolmas edi. Bu, eng yaxshi holda, bo'sh "g'alaba" bo'lardi. Oxir-oqibatda, quyidagi oyatda zikr qilinganidek, Islomdan boshqa hech qanday haqiqiy g'alaba kelmaydi.
Those Muslims who survived and their children were brainwashed over time to adopt modernity and its -isms. The formulation of “modern = good” was branded on the Muslim consciousness through a Westernized educational system as well as media, literature, and political influence. The fundamental paradox which few modernized Muslims could resist was the idea that modernism held the key to reviving the lost glory of the Muslim peoples. To return to the global dominance that Muslims historically enjoyed, they must, paradoxically, follow the modernized West, learn its science, adopt its way of life, embrace its technology, emulate its economy, etc. This lie is as powerful today as it was two centuries ago. It is a lie, of course, because adopting modernism means abandoning Islam. Therefore, even if Muslims were to attain civilizational ascendance by aping modernity and the West, by the end, they would no longer be Muslims. It would be, at best, a hollow “victory.” In the end, no true victory can come from other than Islam as mentioned in the following verse.