The aftermath of the bombings and related activities
and arrests in London has raised all sorts of issues
about the society in which we live, including civil
rights, the criminal justice system, multicultural
tolerance and the actions of our Government abroad.
However the danger is that these discussions will
not always appreciate the variety, complexities
and subtleties of the Muslim communities in Britain
where there are 56 nationalities of Muslims who
speak over 100 different languages.
This paper is an attempt to sketch out a background
to the complexities of the Muslim Communities in
Britain with particular reference to the communities
resident in Northern England. It is based partly
on a seminar given by Dr Philip Lewis to local
ministers in Bradford on 28th July 2005 and also
partly on my own reflections and readings based
on serving in Bradford over recent years. I hope
this is a contribution to understanding the faith
and context of our Muslim neighbours and will encourage
Churches to continue to reach out to the Muslims
around them.
Some Statistics About The Muslim Communities In
Britain
•
In Northern Ireland there are approx 4,000 Muslims,
mainly of Pakistani, Bangladeshi and Arab origin
and they make up 0.2% of the population
•
In Bradford there are approx 82,750 Muslims mainly
from Pakistan and Bangladesh and they make up 17%
of the population
•
In Oldham there are approx 25,000 Muslims mainly
from Pakistan and Bangladesh and they make up 11%
of the population
•
In Leeds there are approx 30,000 Muslims mainly
from Pakistan, India and Bangladesh and many small
communities from Bosnia, Kosova etc and they make
up 4.5% of the population
•
In Leicester there are approx 35,000 Muslims mainly
from Pakistani, Bengali and Somali backgrounds
and they make up 12% of the population
•
In Birmingham there are approx 150,000 Muslims
mainly from Pakistan and Kashmir. The world’s
biggest expatriate Kashmiri population is in Birmingham.
Muslims in Birmingham make up 15% of the population.
•
In London there are approx 1 million Muslims, 250,000
of whom are of Pakistani or Bangladeshi origin,
150,000 are Turkish and others hail from Saudi
Arabia and other Gulf States, North Africa, Cyprus,
Somalia and Nigeria. They make up 14% of the population.
•
Bangladeshi and Pakistanis are two and a half times
more likely to be unemployed and the average earnings
for Muslim men are 68% that of non-Muslim men.
Three quarters of Bangladeshi and Pakistani children
live in households earning less than half the national
average income
Christian Diversity
It is very tempting to regard Islam as a monoculture
existing outside national boundaries and ethnic
groupings, with a uniform theology. Yet Islam is
as diverse as its sister Abramic faiths of Judaism
and Christianity. Jews can be Hassidic with eastern
European roots, or Reform, orthodox, ultra orthodox
or Zionist or even just secular!
This diversity comes even more into context when
looking at Christianity, with the historic separation
of Eastern and Western branches developing into
Orthodox and Catholic; then the Reformation and
the proliferation of Protestant Churches, ranging
in no particular order from Particular Baptist,
Charismatic, Scottish Presbyterian, Vineyard Churches
and even Moravian and Anglican. Each branch has
its own particular theologies associated with it
and its own traditions. Some venerate saints and
go on pilgrimages to holy places (Walsingham or
Herrnhut) others regard no place as particularly
holy and hate the idea of religious imagery. Some
people understand their Christian faith as shaped
by 2000 years of Christian history whilst others
take the words of Scripture literally almost discounting
the culture it was written in and the 2000 years
that have passed since. Further the Pope may make
a pronouncement on faith but that may not be seen
as authoritative for other branches of the Christian
faith. Thankfully in the midst of all this variety
we also have an ecumenical movement that draws
together the mainstream Churches so that we can
increasingly speak with one voice.
With a bit more honesty about our own faith background
we can perhaps understand more objectively the
difficulties that the Muslim communities here in
Britain face in interacting with the wider society.
Islamic Diversity
Sunni and Shi’ite
Many people are aware of the major split in Islam
between Sunni and Shi’ite Muslims. Sunni’s
are the majority grouping worldwide whilst Shi’ites
are mainly found in Iran and Iraq, though there
are significant Shi’ite communities in other
areas. One of the major causes of tension in Iraq
is the differences between the Sunni and Shi’ite
Muslims there. However this paper concentrates
on Sunni Islam, and the groupings and theological
trends that can be seen here in Britain.
Barelwi
The Barelwis are the majority theological grouping
of Muslims in Northern England. Their version of
Islam is coloured by the culture of South Asia.
In brief, it is a popular form of Sufism, which
includes holy teachers and a veneration of shrines
and a deep personal devotion to the Prophet Mohammad.
Barelwi’s dependence upon South Asian culture
means that it is difficult to relate its Islam
to an alien culture (e.g., English culture) - its
faith is upheld by living in South Asian sub-cultures.
Typically the Imams at Barelwi mosques will be
brought in from Pakistan or Bangladesh and will
have little or no English and understanding of
English culture. So they serve the older generation
- but the young Muslims can feel alienated and
disaffected from their faith when they do not even
share a common language.
Deobandism
These young alienated Muslims may then go on to
find their theological home in Deobandi Islam.
This is an increasingly influential strand of Islam
in Northern England. It is reformist in nature
and is named after an Islamic Seminary in Northern
India. They disregard the shrines and what they
see as the other cultural accretions of the Barelwi’s
and see themselves as the followers of a pure Islam.
They can have the effect of making other Muslims
more observant of the their faith by implying that
if they don’t do X, Y or Z then they are
denying their faith. This can be seen in dress
codes. Barelwi women will usually wear salwar kameez
and the men will often wear western clothes. Deobandi
women will wear a hijab (head covering) and a black
outer coat when outside. They may be totally veiled
or even live in Purduh (i.e., be restricted to
living in the home). Deobandi men will often be
seen in a loose fitting white garment and a hat.
However even within Deobandism there are two streams.
One is an apolitical missionary activity movement
working for the international revival of Islam
called Tablighi Jama’at. The other, called
Taliban, is a more political stream influenced
by wahhabism. Deobandi teaching sees Islam as existing
outside cultural boundaries and so will use English
as a medium of teaching. They have established
their European base in Dewsbury where they also
maintain several Seminaries so that British-born
Imams can be trained who can engage with British
Muslims.
Wahhabi
The most radical stream of theology in Islam is
Wahhabi, which has developed in Saudi Arabia. Some
have suggested that these Muslims are the Cromwell
puritans of the Islamic world! They are literalists
who are anti-Sufi and anti-Shi’ite. They
are so opposed to the idea of historical context
or shrines that nearly all of the historic sites
in Mecca – apart from the great places of
pilgrimage – have been demolished . The Qur’an
is only interpreted within their very strict literalist
understanding and there are no concessions to the
traditions of Islam, the Hadith, or to the history
and culture of Islam over 1400 years. They are
very opposed to celebrations of the Prophet’s
birthday, which is an important day in Barelwi
Islam. It is ‘unbelief’ to employ any
allegorical or non-literal interpretations to statements
in the Qur’an. They are opposed to tobacco,
cinemas and what they regard as other non-Islamic
forms of entertainment. Any Muslim who opposes
Wahhabi rulings are seen as betraying Islam.
The Wahhabi version of Islam has been exported
across the world by the Saudi Government for years,
through the supplying of free books to bookshops
and the giving of vast amounts of aid to poor Muslim
communities. Thousands of young Muslims from all
over the world have pursued Islamic education in
Mecca and Medina and they have returned to their
homes strongly influenced by Wahhabi doctrine.
The meeting of the Deobandi and Wahhabi streams
in the North West of Pakistan has created the Taliban.
There is no love lost between the Barelwis and
the Wahhabis on theological or cultural grounds.
Barelwi Muslims are very conscious of the poor
treatment that many South Asian guest workers have
received in the Gulf States and Wahhabis see the
Barelwi as a very inferior form of Islam compared
to their austere faith.
Islamists
A further grouping is the Islamists, in this context
meaning an organisation or individual who has the
aim of creating an Islamic state. The oldest of
these is Jimahi Islami, the Muslim Brotherhood.
They emerged in Egypt in 1923 and were opposed
to Imperialism and worked for an Islamic state
in Egypt. A similar society began in Pakistan in
1941 called the Islamic Association, Jama ‘at–I–Islami.
It was opposed to the idea of a secular state for
Muslims and pursued the idea of an Islamic state
in Pakistan governed in accordance with traditional
Islamic law. In Britain ‘Islamists’ are
largely made up of lay professionals and form a
loose-knit network which includes such groups as
the Islamic Society of Britain and the UK Islamic
Mission. Their intellectual centre is at Markfield,
near Liecester.
Ahmadiyya
The last group to be considered here is the Ahmadiyya
Movement founded in 1889. They do not see the Prophet
Muhammad as the final revelation of God and consequently
they are subject to persecution by other Muslim
groups.
No Single Voice
All these various strands of Islamic belief and
practise have roots in Islamic history and the
politics of different parts of the Muslim world
and are, of course, also conditioned by the societies
in which they exist. It should also be noted that
this is a very thin sketch of Islam and most British
Muslims would not necessarily define themselves
within in any one particular strand.
It can be seen that because of this variety of
traditions there is no one grouping or person that
speaks for Islam worldwide or even nationwide.
In Bradford, with around 40 mosques in a small
area there is a Council of Mosques that brings
together Barelwi and Deobandi mosques but it does
not speak for all Muslims. One of the most well
known umbrella organisations in Britain is the
Muslim Council of Britain with its General Secretary
Sir Iqbal Sacranie. However it is heavily influenced
by the Muslim Brotherhood and only counts about
one third
of the Muslim institutions in this country as members
and has failed to reach into the Barelwi communities
. Nationally or internationally there is no grouping
that brings together Muslims across ethnic, religious
or gender divides in Sunni Islam. This is in contrast
to Shi’ite Islam which is much more organised
and hierarchal in nature.
Ummah
A concept often referred to by young Muslims is
the Ummah, the sense of one-ness of all Muslims,
the universal brotherhood of Islam. Although as
has been seen this is more of a theological construct
than a practical reality, it still has a powerful
impact on the young. Across the world they see
Muslims in poverty and suffering in various ways
and their faith being slighted. This ranges from
the presence of American bases in Saudi Arabia,
the war against Afghanistan, the slaughter of Muslim
men in Bosnia, the war against and occupation of
Iraq; and the deep grievance over the treatment
of the Palestinians in Israel and the occupied
territories and the West Bank and Gaza. In this
atmosphere it is easy for real concern to be fanned
into flames by insensitive acts by Western Governments
and a swirl of rumour, conspiracy theories and
extremist preaching.
Many Muslims feel a sense of humiliation. They
know of the glorious past of Islam, with Empires
and the development of the arts, science and medicine
long before these things emerged in the Christian
West. Now the situation is seen to be reversed
and the Islamic states are the poor countries whilst
the rich states of the West control the world.
This feeling of humiliation is difficult to cope
with for a religion that believes itself to be
God’s supreme revelation. Christianity, while
historically a protected religious community –dhimma-
within the Muslim world, was regarded as superceeded
by Islam, and for some, trinitarian belief put
Christians outside the monotheistic stream.
This wider humiliation can of course be sharpened
by personal experience of racism in British society.
Young people of Muslim background who have grown
up in British cities, attending British schools
and speaking English can be devastated when they
realise that they are regarded and treated by many
as ‘Asian’ or ‘Pakistani’ not
British.
Interfaith Dialogue
Taking this idea further, because of this belief
of Islamic superiority many Muslims and Mosque
Committees feel that there is no need for dialogue
with other faiths as they have nothing to gain
from it. This can lead to real frustration for
those involved in interfaith work since Christians
are often keen to make links and may be hurt that
there is no reciprocal response from the Muslim
Community. Equally, some Christian groups are not
interested in interfaith dialogue for the same
reasons! Islam is the dominant faith in the countries
where most Muslims come from. In many of these
places Christianity is barely tolerated or even
forbidden. It can come as a real eye opener for
South Asian Muslims to realise that there are South
Asian Christians! Often this means that these Muslims
find it difficult to live in a plural society and
even harder to live as a minority faith within
a plural society.
There are some extreme Islamists, who believe that
it is their role to create an Islamic state with
Sharia law where ever they live. This would include
separate Islamic schooling for girls and an introduction
of Sharia marriage law between Muslims in this
country.
Barelwi groupings find it easier that the Deobandi
and Wahhabi to live in multicultural Britain and
to relate to Christianity. However Barelwis are
generally most comfortable when they can rely on
their South Asian cultural roots.
Fundamentalist or Islamic Extremists?
It has become common to call Muslim groups expressing
views judged to be anti-Western or anti-modern,
fundamentalist. This phrase is used in a way that
implies that the fundamentalists have a fanatical
dedication to political violence, yet most people
who would regard themselves as fundamentalist are
entirely peaceful in their lives and political
methods. However there are groups that support
the use of violence for Islamic ends. In writing
this I have become more aware of the flaws in the
Christian movement – over the summer Pat
Robinson, the evangelistic preacher and past Presidential
candidate in the United States called for the elimination
of the President of Venezuela!
•
The Jihadi Salafis have emerged from within Saudi
wahhabism. They regard the House of Saud as completely
compromised over their dealings with the Americans
and their strategic alliances with the West and
the presence of US bases in Saudi Arabia. It is
this group that is involved in terrorism in Saudi
Arabia and across the world; Osama Bin Laden and
al-Qaeda comes from this grouping.
•
Hizb-ut-Tahrir – a hardline Islamic group,
behind the Islamic Society which preaches segregation
from non Muslims. However in 2002 it stated that
it has no relationship with any violent, terrorist
or sectarian organisation nor does the party engage
in violence or sectarian actions
•
Al Muhajiroun (the Emigrants) – led by the
self-styled Sheikh Omar Bakir Mohammed – this
organisation is a breakaway from Hizb-ut-Tahrir
and is banned from the campuses of many British
universities. It has been known to recruit people
for jihad (holy war)
•
Supporters of Sharia – an extremist group
with the self styled Sheikh Abu Hamza as it’s
leader – he worked in Afghanistan as an engineer
and then came to be the preacher at the Finsbury
Park Mosque until he was removed from this post
in 2004
Maddrassah
The world of the Maddrassahs has also attracted
much attention recently. These Islamic schools
in Britain are usually run as Supplementary Schools
where the Qur’an is taught by rote in Arabic
and where the Hadith (tradition) is passed on.
These Supplementary Schools are usually run from
4-6pm on weeknights for children as young as 4
years old. Girls are excused from this upon reaching
puberty, and they continue their Islamic education
in private homes run by women. It is widely felt
in educational circles that these schools have
had the effect of depressing the educational attainment
of young Muslim men.
Women
Few women attend mosque prayers. Men and women
cannot wash or worship together in public because
of modesty requirements and often there are no
facilities for women at the local mosques. Moreover,
they are not welcomed by the men. A few of the
larger mosques now have separate facilities for
women worshippers. Some explanation of clothing
worn by women may be helpful here:
•
Salwar kameez is the traditional Pakistani/Bangladeshi
clothing for women (and men) consisting of a loose
fitting tunic and trousers.
•
A hijab is a head covering and may simply be a
headscarf over the hair, knotted in a variety of
ways. This head covering is often a symbol of pride
in being a Muslim woman and many are pleased to
wear it. The hijab can be supplemented by a niqab
which covers the nose and mouth and is tied at
the back of the head over the hijab.
•
A burqa is a long veil worn over the hijab which
covers most of the body except for the eyes.
•
The chador, worn in Iran and Iraq is a large back
cloak and veil which covers the woman’s entire
body.
•
A jilbad is a baggy black coat/dress which is worn
outside the home over other clothes.
Speaking out
Generally speaking it has been very difficult for
the Muslim leaders to speak critically of their
own constituencies, there is little tradition of
self-criticism and such a thing would be unthinkable
for groups like the Wahhabis. Within closed Islamic
culture there has been a tendency to blame every
problem on the West and George Bush has become
a symbol of everything that is wrong. There has
also been a generation of anti-Western rhetoric
from some mosques, preachers and bookshops. There
is no space for young Muslims to discuss issues
and they often feel that they are not listened
to within the culture of the mosque. Many Muslim
leaders are only just beginning to appreciate the
damage that these attitudes have caused.
The leaders face problems because if they are seen
to be to close to the Christians or British structures
they can be seen as selling out and as letting
down the Muslim world. However the London bombings
have shaken the British Muslim world and they are
beginning to realise the need for open discussion
and a positive engagement in British society. Many
now realise that the closed communities cannot
continue to exist as they did and are beginning
to speak openly about the problems.
A Christian Response?
The Churches can help by reaching out with understanding
and love to the Muslim communities around them.
In the words of Dominic Mughal , a Christian from
Pakistan now serving in Bradford “The Christian
mission in Muslim communities is building together
the Kingdom of God so that all the people in these
societies live with dignity and honour and in the
image which God has given them”.
“
Christian mission …. is dialogue. This has
three dimensions. It is dialogue of mind, life
and heart. Dialogue of mind requires discussion
and analysis. Helping each other get out of the
baggage of history and finding ways of making our
faith relevant to the realities of present time.
Regaining confidence which has been lost and working
on laws and political systems which are based on
equality and respect. Dialogue of life means working
together for the betterment of all, that all people
have the basic needs of food, clothing shelter
and education. Finally dialogue of heart means
building on the resources of our spirituality so
that through our spiritual resources we work together
to build the kingdom of God.”
In our own different Church contexts it will mean
more understanding of our Muslim neighbours and
of their faith, marking their festivals and inviting
them to ours. It may mean participation in interfaith
forums and projects however hard and slow that
may be at times. It may involve working together
for projects that benefit all people in an area
or group. It means reaching out to the women and
young people as well as making links with the community
leaders. It surely will also mean that we are called
to speak against Islamophobia and challenge lazy
or uninformed attitudes wherever and whenever we
come across them. It is about being good neighbours
wherever we are and realising that our Christian
mission is to be salt, light and yeast, bringing
savour, healing, light and transformation where
ever we can.
Bibliography
1. Islamic Britain – Religion, Politics and
Identity among British Muslims by Dr Philip Lewis
ISBN 1-85043-861-7
2. A Popular Dictionary of Islam by Ian Richard
Netton ISBN 0 7007 0233 4
3. A New Handbook of Living Religions ed John R
Hinnells – Penguin Books
4. An Introduction to Islam – David Waines
ISBN 0-521-42929-3
Thanks to Philip Lewis, Dominic Mughal, Awais Dominic,
Elisabeth Hollindrake and Dominic Rivron for their
help and suggestionsSarah Groves – September
2005
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