Portrait of the Islamic Scholar

Abstract

With the growth in the number of departments, institutions, publications
and scholarships dating to Islam and Muslims, concerns are
increasing over bias and misrepresentation of the Islamic faith and its
subscribers. Muslims tend to attribute this to two factors: American
institutions rely mostly on non-Muslims to provide crucial information
pertaining to Islam; and most institutions are secular, so it is against
their policies and regulations to advocate that any religion holds the
absolute truth.
Although these factors pose a real threat to the spread of correct
Islamic knowledge, they by no means stand alone. While it is natural
for Muslims to object to the idea of non-Muslims teaching Islam
because they lack familiarity with it, one is emmusly led to believe
that the resolution of the. problem is in Muslims taking the task of teaching
theii religion into theii own bands. Two myths must be dispelled:
first, that all Muslims a~ qualified to teach their religion; and second,
proficiency in Islamic knowledge sufficiently qualifies a Muslim for
the challenging role of accurately transferring this knowledge to those
whose perception is so different from hidher own.
This article shows the diversity of the fields of study in which Islam
and Muslims may be involved. either directly or indirectly. It then
examines the. criteria set forth by many educational institutions for
determining the qualifications for teaching in these fields. Because
higher degrees awarded in pehent departments in American institutions
are not sufficiently educating theii recipients in Islamic knowledge,
the majority of non-Muslim candidates are unqualified to tackle
the issues that involve Islam and Muslims. In an ever-changing world,
the qualifications required to teach about Islam and Muslims must not
be merely based on Islamic knowledge. but must also encompass a proficiency
in global affairs. This immediately disqualifies the typical
Muslim scholar. A presenter of Islam must be capable of responding to the challenges of the time, place, and people, without violating the policies
and secular nature of the institution and without distorting or altering
the religion.
Since a real lasting solution is not presently in sight, some Islamic
communities, in an attempt to put an end to bias and misrepresentation,
have come up with quick fixes. This article describes how Muslim
communities in Youngstown, Ohio, and Syracuse, New York, have
become involved in educating their non-Muslim neighbors by responsibly
cooperating with various local academic institutions. The author
hopes that this study will prove helpful to other communities of
Muslims and non-Muslims in their attempt to reach out to each other.