Net-savvy need enlightened Islamic teachers
By Nazry Bahrawi , TODAY | Posted: 16 July 2007 1353 hrs

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In his quest to learn more about his religion, 28-year-old lawyer Abdul Basheer turned to the Internet instead of Islamic teachers. This could have been one of his first steps down the path to militancy.

But choosing between the unregulated Web and Singapore asatizah (Islamic religious teachers) for advice may not be a simple thing. A divide appears to have emerged within the Muslim community on the role of religious teachers.

Many young Muslims, especially the students from madrasah (Islamic schools), believe approved asatizah are the best source for a proper grounding in Islam, especially for those from secular schools.

Nineteen-year-old madrasah student Siti Aisyah Mohd Amirruddin, who attended the first Madrasah Convention held here over the weekend, said her peers were surprised to learn that young Muslims here were seeking Islamic knowledge without guidance from recognised asatizah.

She told Today: "They can easily get the wrong view about Islam." To get around that, she suggests better interaction between secular and madrasah students.

But other young Muslims — those with a secular education — told Today they turn to other sources because some teachers do not satisfy their intellectual craving.

Herein lies the divide.

But is this divide real or perceived?

While admitting that some asatizah may give answers that are considered simplistic, Ustaz Azmi Abdul Samad of the Singapore Islamic Scholars and Religious Teachers Association, said the onus is on those seeking answers to find a teacher who can engage them on the more complex issues.

Still, some argue that such teachers are rare in Singapore.

Secondary school student Bashirah Akhtar, 16, said: "Religious teachers may be well-versed in traditional Islamic knowledge but they're not educated sufficiently in modern knowledge such as stem-cell research and economics."

Others believe that some asatizah here have a focus that is too narrow.

Instead of raising awareness of contemporary issues such as media literacy, the asatizah are entrenched in discussions of what is halal (permissible) and haram (non-permissible) for Muslims, said media trainer Muhammed Shahril Abdullah, 29, who also chairs a loose grouping of young Muslims known as The Reading Group.

If such views are to be considered, a "back-to-class" approach in weeding out extremist tendencies may not produce the silver bullet. Instead, what may do so is a multi-prong approach that does not ignore the views of Muslims who have undergone secular education.

This approach should include facing and accepting the fact that the asatizah here may put off some young Muslims.

While it is commendable that the Islamic Religious Council of Singapore maintains a register of the asatizah, it is time this is made compulsory rather than voluntary.

Otherwise, in a worst-case scenario, we may see another Ibrahim Maidin, a self-professed ustaz (male religious teacher) and ringleader of the first wave of Jemaah Islamiyah (JI) followers here.

It is important that the asatizah be well-equipped with knowledge and skills, such as critical thinking, to help them connect with today's Net-savvy and informed Muslims. Such is the hope of the Religious Rehabilitation Group, a group of religious teachers counselling detained JI members, who will launch their website within a month.

In the words of media trainer Shahril: "Religious educators need to create an environment where students are free to ask questions, to argue, to be critical of what is written in the books; educators need to initiate discussion in the class, engage the students and make them engage one another constructively and openly." - TODAY/ra