There is a well-known phrase, ‘the one who pays the piper calls the tune’. This refers to the well-known fact that the behavior of individuals and institutions is affected by who they depend on financially. This basic fact is deeply understood by Muslims. Many of us rightly complain about government scholars in the Muslim lands, clerics that emerge from institutions that are funded by the government and are often on the payroll of the government. Their fatwas and public preaching tend to line up with the demands of the oppressive governments that fund them.

Yet there is a perception that Islam in the West is free from this. Muslims in Europe, North America or Australia have a sense that our practice of religion is independent, and that the fatwa councils, community organizations we depend upon for guidance are independent in their Islamic reasoning. Is this the case? 

The Proof is in the Pudding

To begin to answer this question, we should first notice that, much like in the Muslim lands, the fatwas and public preaching of the major Islamic councils and institutions in the West often line up with the interests of the government.  

To understand this, it is important to understand what the interests of the Western governments are in relation to their Muslims minorities. It is not, as some believe, to round us up in concentrations camps, or to criminalize personal acts of worship (though the government may end up supporting such practices if it becomes politically convenient, as we can see in Quebec’s hijab ban, or in the rendition of Canadian citizens such as Omar Khadr, Maher Arar, and Abdullah al-Malki)

Rather, the more general approach agreed upon by the Canadian elite is to accept Islam being practiced as a personal religion, but not tolerate Islamic religious values to form too strong an opposition to the sociopolitical values of Liberal Democracy. They want an Islam that can be integrated into the dominant culture. 

Here is where the Islamic institutions enter. If they can provide fatawa that encourage Muslim political participation in secular politics, or encourage Muslims to become lenient on jobs and investments that involve interest (riba) or speculation, or weaken the concept of gender roles in the Islamic family, then the Capitalist elite have achieved their goal.

Seen from this perspective, are these not the kind of fatwas we see being issued from these institutions? Is the message of voting for, campaigning on behalf of, or even joining and running as candidates for secular political parties not something we have heard in a variety of khutbahs, Islamic lectures and statements from Imam and fatwa councils? Have we not seen our masajid be more eager to open up their boards and mimbars to opportunistic politicians and police officers than they are to opening them up towards the young in our community? Have we not heard the fatwas permitting getting a mortgage on a house, or buying stock in companies that earn a part of their income from interest? And how rare is it to hear one of these scholars addressing Islamic gender roles especially in the context of a Muslim household?

Paying the Piper

As it happens, there is considerable funding from a variety of government programs and Western NGOs for masajid and fiqh councils in the US and Canada. Government programs such as Canada’s Multiculturalism program, NGO’s such as the Soros backed Open Societies Foundation and the Ford Foundation have also donated sums of money to Muslim legal and religious organizations.

It is important to note here that Muslim organizations do not receive direct cash payments from these sources to issue fatawa or deliver khutbahs that are in line with the interests of their donors. Rather, as Muslims we are aware that the grants, funding and charitable status of our organizations is under threat if we do not make fatawa seem friendly to the interests of official institutions such as the CRA or CSIS.

It is under this pressure that some Muslims institutions begin self-policing what they are willing to publicly discuss, and what kind of ideas they are willing to openly associate with. 

This constant pressure affects how even issues that Muslims are passionately and vocally united in are discussed. We can all see the horrors unfolding in Gaza. We have all lost sleep thinking of the families bombed, shredded, buried alive and starved in the Blessed Land. But how often do we hear the leaders of our community addressing this issue with a comprehensive Islamic solution? Yes, they will ask us to give in charity, join protests, write to our MP’s and vote for candidates who have a relatively friendlier stance on Palestine. But are they willing to clearly say that the leadership of the Muslim lands must be replaced with a unified righteous Islamic leadership which will use its economic and military strength to confront the Zionist entity? Only a few Muslim leaders will say this clearly.

A Shift in Paradigm

As Muslims living in Canada, we are dependent on the government to fulfill many of our rights, such as providing safety and funding public services. We can and should use the media, the courts, and appeal to public opinion to secure these rights. What we cannot do is let our understanding, practice and conveying of our deen be influenced by the Capitalist elite. This means we cannot accept Islamic institutions that cater their messaging according to their fears of losing government support. This means having khutbahs that are willing to address the pressing social and political issues of our time, without concern for repercussion.

Ultimately this means we need to rethink our relationship with the political institutions and think-tanks of the Capitalist elite. Our role in Canada is not to integrate with the political values and social norms of larger society, nor is it to establish comfortable relationships with the Capitalist elite. On the contrary, we have an obligation to intellectually challenge the ideology of Capitalism aka Liberal Democracy, and to retain our unique Islamic perspective.  

This intellectual challenge, and the friction that comes with it, is part of the legacy of the dawah of Islam. Our Beloved Prophet (saw), the best of examples, and the early Companions (ra) were also a minority in Quraysh’s Makkah. They did not isolate themselves from society, RasulAllah (saw) engaged in commercial activity and even sought out tribal protection from kuffar in Quraysh. But he never stopped intellectually challenging the ideas and concepts of the Qurayshi elite. He was clear, concise and consistent in his critique of their worshiping of idols, their mistreatment of women and girls, and their unjust economic and social practices.

Moreover, we need to stop and reflect on the life of RasulAllah (saw) in Makkah and realize that he and his sahabah (ra) paid a heavy price for being independent of the Quraishi system. RasulAllah (saw) refused to take their wealth and would not compromise in the slightest matter. Instead, he and the sahabah were the ones who were boycotted economically – being effectively put in a concentration camp for three years. We must follow this example and pursue a path where we are self-funded, completely independent from the elites and the system more broadly.

It is only when we internalize this activist role, modeled after RasulAllah (saw) in Makkah, that we are supposed to embody in Canada that we will be able to form the correct attitude towards funding sources within Canada. We will not take their money and will not fear their censure in conveying this deen within our community and with the wider society.

It is time for us to recognize that we are not just some ethnic or racial minority in Canada. Rather, we are part of an Ummah who has been entrusted with the final revelation of the Creator of the Universe. Our top concern has to be whether we are carefully following and conveying this revealed guidance. There is no communal interest that is more important, and there is no safety if we abandon this purpose.

May Allah (swt) make us of those who raised His banner, and make our time in these lands a witness for us on the Last Day, and not a witness against us. 

“They want to extinguish the light of Allah with their mouths, but Allah will perfect His light, although the disbelievers dislike it” [TMQ 61:8]