The Church of Saudi?

There have been a number of interesting stories about Saudi in the news this week. I'll begin with two disturbing stories. The Saudi religious police - the mutawa'een - are being quizzed over the deaths of a man and woman who were burnt to death in a car crash. Apparently the mutawa'ah spied a man and woman in a car together who were not related and gave chase. The couple, fearing arrest and punishment took flight but were killed when their car crashed into a lorry. From my own experience, the mutawa'een are deeply loathed by many people in Saudi. I remember talking to a Christian Filipino man who worked as a taxi driver in Jeddah. I asked him whether he preferred Jeddah or Riyadh. "Jeddah" he replied, "In Riyadh I have to pray five times a day". But you are not Muslim, I said. "Yes" he replied, "I am not Muslim. But in Riyadh the mutawa'ah beat me with their sticks and chase me into the mosques at prayer time"!!!!!

In another story, it was reported that the first women-only hotel has opened in Riyadh. The hotel will cater for female business women, and will be staffed entirely by women. This means that strict dress restrictions will not apply within the hotel. While some may see this as progress - providing women with facilities that were previously only available to men - I see it as further reinforcement of gender segregation. It is interesting to note that this is the first women-only hotel in the Middle East. But there are plans to invest in similar hotels across the Kingdom. Personally, I think this is a step in the wrong direction. Instead of increasing segregation in Saudi society its time to break down the barriers that already exist.

On a more positive note, there are plans to retrain 40,000 Saudi Imams in an effort to counter extremism and disseminate a moderate interpretation of traditional Islam. While I wholeheartedly support such efforts, I am skeptical about how successful state sponsored ijtihad will be. The ruling families support base traditionally lies with the conservative tribes and clerics of the central Najd region, and without their support, the Kingdom may begin to fragment. In recent years, faced with rebellion from Jihadis, the ruling family have attempted to appease their support base by giving in to the social demands of a group of ultra-conservative traditionalists - known as the Sahwis (The Awakened). They are concerned with inkar al-munkar alanan - disavowing the abominable in public. In exchange for political support, the ruling family have agreed to support the Sahwis campaign to rid the public sphere of immoral practices and innovations. Liberal reformers have traditionally been given a hard time in Saudi. In this context, any new reforms which aim to moderate Saudi Islam will inevitably alienate a large group of the population with potentially dangerous social implications. For those interested in the current religious and political debates in Saudi (it is impossible to separate the two) there is a great book by Madawi Al-Rasheed called Contesting The Saudi State: Islamic Voices From A New Generation.

On a quick side note, many people in the West - partly as a result of simplistic media representations - view Saudi Arabia as a homogenous country. This couldn't be further from the truth. The diverse and contrasting regions which make up the modern kingdom of Saudi Arabia were forced together by the sword of the al-Sauds and the puritanical zeal of the al-Wahhabs. What is seen as 'Saudi' culture by many in the West is really Najdi culture. The other regions of the Kingdom all have their own unique cultural identities. For example, in the west, the Hijaz - home to Mecca, Medina, and Jeddah - is the most historically interesting, diverse and liberal region of Saudi. Mai Yamani has written a great book called Cradle Of Islam: The Hijaz and the Quest for an Arabian Identity. It explores traditional Hijazi culture, and explains how Nadji cultural imperialism has attempted to wipe out regional diversity in Saudi Arabia. The Eastern Province of Saudi Arabia is home to a significant Shi'a population. However, the Eastern Province is also the source of the Kingdom's immense oil wealth. The Shi'a residents have traditionally been persecuted and abused by a Saudi-Wahhabi regime which views them as non-Muslims infidels, and a potentially dangerous political threat. Fouad Ibrahim has written an interesting book on The Shi'is of Saudi Arabia which details the evolution of the Shi'i opposition movement in the Eastern Province, and their attempts to fight Najdi imperialism and gain political representation.

The most interesting story this week was the talks have commenced between the Vatican and the Saudi authorities to discuss the construction of a new church to cater for the millions of expatriate Christians resident in the Kingdom. This follows the inauguration of the first church in Qatar last Friday. Now, personally, I don't have anytime for the Vatican or the Saudi authorities. Both institutions are probably using the idea of church construction as a smokescreen to hide the the true purpose of their talks -  the final eradication of all women and free-thinking men.

However, the Saudi-Vatican talks do raise a very interesting question - is it legal to build a church in the Arabian peninsula? This is an issue that has caused a great deal of debate on Islamic online forums. Traditionally, opponents of church building - including the Saudi government and senior clerics - have quoted the following hadith: "No two religions (deens) will come together in the Arabian peninsula..." (Malik's Muwatta) to justify their opposition to any churches being built in the Arabian peninsula. Reflecting this position, Lahdan bin Issa al-Muhanadi - columnist with the Doha daily al-Arab - wrote "The cross should not be raised in the sky of Qatar, nor should bells toll in Doha." (This reminds me of an amusing story. When the construction of the Burj al-Arab hotel was completed in Dubai, the locals were annoyed to discover that while the hotel may look like a sail from the mainland, from out at sea it looks like a giant crucifix!). Classical legal scholars - like Ahmad ibn Naqib al-Misri - argued that non-Muslim subjects of Muslim lands are forbidden from building new churches [Reliance of the Traveller: o11.5(7)]. Opposition to church building also reflects wider opposition to the presence of non-Muslims in the Arabian peninsula - often based on problematic hadith like the following: "O I indeed will exile the Jews and the Christians from the Arabian Peninsula until I leave no one but a Muslim." (Sahih Muslim) 

It is essential that hadith are seen in their proper historical context, and are not used to justify the persecution and expulsion of non-Muslims from the Arabian peninsula. Wide and simplistic interpretations of the above mentioned hadith are not supported by all scholars. Abdul Hamid al-Ansari - former Dean of the Shari'ah School at Qatar University - in a local article argues that:

"This does not mean that churches should be banned in Qatar because religious scholars believe it applies to the Hijaz - specifically Mecca and Medina. Let's all welcome the presence of churches in Qatar... as a demonstration of Islamic tolerance and human brotherhood. When the spiritual needs of people are met, they will be more happy at work. This new building is a delight for our hearts."

This position is supported by a number of fatwas which advocate freedom of religion and protecting non-Islamic places of worship. Therefore, the majority position is that building churches in Saudi is perfectly legal - as long as they are not built within the confines of the cities of Mecca and Medina. This still leaves two important questions to be answered. 

Firstly, in the absence of churches, can non-Muslims pray in a mosque? There is an interesting report that tells of a Christian delegation of Najraan calling on the Prophet. After 'Asr prayer, the Christians performed their prayers at the Prophet's mosque. As the Ka'bah was declared the Muslims' qiblah, the delegation prayed facing southwards. In other words the Prophet allowed Christians to pray in his mosque facing their own qiblah. 

Secondly, can Muslims pray in a church? The conditions under which a Muslim can pray in a church are set out in the following fatwa. Essentially, if there is an alternative mosque to pray in then a Muslim is not allowed to pray in the church. But, if he is traveling and there is no alternative he may pray in a church. However, he must take care not to be distracted by the idols and Christian symbols within the church, or to upset those Christians worshipping in the church.

Anyway, enough for now.