Download A claimed caliphate, in name only

A claimed caliphate, in name only
AZIM NANJI AND JOHN MCNEE
Contributed to The Globe and Mail
Published Wednesday, Dec. 30, 2015 10:00AM EST
Last updated Tuesday, Dec. 29, 2015 6:15PM EST
Azim Nanji is director, and John McNee is secretary-general, of the Global Centre for Pluralism
in Ottawa.
------------------The claims by the self-styled Islamic State to represent the idea of the caliphate is a gross misuse
and misrepresentation of this institution in Islamic history.
The reign of terror being perpetrated by the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria, and by its proxies
elsewhere, has many victims. History itself is among these victims. It is being twisted in multiple
false ways to misrepresent the past and propagandize a perverse ideology.
Historically, Syria and Iraq have been among the most pluralistic societies in the region, a
characteristic that the Islamic State is intent on destroying. Besides the diversity of Muslim
groups – Sunnis and Shiites – here can be found Arab and Greek Christians of various
denominations; Jews, who have for the most part left for Israel; and Yazidis, an ancient religious
minority. Arabs, Armenians, Assyrians, Kurds, Mandaeans, Turkmens and Druze further
represent the region’s ethnic diversity.
From ancient times, both Syria and Iraq have been significant crossroads of civilizations and
empires. Sites now threatened or being ruined by the Islamic State because of their cultural
significance, such as Palmyra, Nimrud and Hatra, are reminders of the region’s rich layers of
history.
When Muslims came to rule in this region in the seventh century, dynastic caliphates came to be
established, of which Iraq and Syria were major centres. These caliphates were very different
from what extremist groups invoke in the region today.
The Arabic word khalifah, from which the term caliphate derives, is found in the Koran. It
occurs in various contexts, but most notably in the narrative of human creation. There the
caliphate signifies, most specially, the stewardship and moral responsibility assigned to Adam.
Those referred to as the rightly guided caliphs were the leaders who assumed authority after the
death of the Prophet Mohammed. They took on the moral and social responsibility for the
growing and diverse communities of Muslims and non-Muslims under their authority.
The caliphate was grounded in justice, law, tolerance and morality. The many legal, theological
and philosophical works by Muslim thinkers underline this moral grounding and responsibility.
The idea and history of the caliphate has evolved over time with different schools of
interpretation. However, the core ethical value associated with authority in Islam remained
constant.
The false ideal of the caliphate that groups such as the Islamic State claim to represent has
caused their representatives to assume fictitious names – al-Baghdadi, meaning “from Baghdad,”
being a particularly egregious case. Baghdad, in its heyday under the Abbasid Caliphate, was a
city known for its centres of learning, scholars, poets and architecture. Muslims, Christians and
Jews contributed to its intellectual, economic and cultural vitality.
The Abbasid Caliph, Abdallah al-Mamun, founded Baghdad’s Bayt al-Hikmah (“House of
Wisdom”), an intellectual centre that became a significant hub for sharing knowledge. Classical
Greek, Aramaic and ancient Persian and Sanskrit works on philosophy, mathematics, the
sciences, medicine and music were translated into Arabic. This heritage was further developed
under different caliphates throughout the Muslim world. It became part of a global reservoir of
knowledge and learning, fostered by educational networks in much of Asia, Africa and the
Mediterranean. In time, it contributed to the Renaissance in the West. Much of the vocabulary
and terminology of this cosmopolitan heritage still influences our world today.
Whether it is the brutal killing of Muslims and non-Muslims, the incitement of religious strife,
the destruction of historic sites, the intransigent behaviour and cruel practices they impose, or
their stance on knowledge – the actions of Islamic State militants are the antithesis to the
pluralism and ethics represented by past caliphates.
Throughout history, people of many different faiths and ethnicities have lived together
harmoniously under a variety of political systems in the lands that are now Iraq and Syria. This
history teaches us that the world has and will benefit from genuine pluralism. Let us hope that in
the case of Iraq and Syria, it is not too late.