Religion Versus Religion

I love this writer, he is the man.

This is definately one of the most interesting of Ali Shariati's works. More than any other work I have read this book shows the melding of Western philosophy with Islamic thought, even more than On the Sociology of Islam: Lectures. I believe it shows a very sophisticated look at religion. The author explains the failings of religion, and explains why these failures continue to plague mankind and religion. The problem I have with this book is that he doesn't follow his own logical conclusions further down the path that could potentially produce more problematic questions, but I will discuss that later.The main theme is that human fallibility and corruptibility is the cause of regression or failure of religion. The fact that man and power is corruptible means that God's word becomes manipulated by men of power, and due to this prophets are necessary to show people the true path. This is the reason for the cyclical nature of religion in that a prophet appears and sets the followers on the true path, but in the absence of the prophet men begin to corrupt religion and use it to serve their secular purposes.What this does is create a duality in religion. There is a true religion deliverd down by God and the prophets, and then there is the religion practiced by those in power who use religion to increase their own power and position. What this does is allow Shariati to emphasize the nobel and charitable aspects of religion. He asserts that this is the true path of God. The regressive and repressive aspects of the religious establishment is thus seen as heresy or corruption. This is where the beauty of his philosophy lays. Islam, Christianity and Judiasm (as well as other religions) have their positive aspects emphasized, and are in constant conflict with the negative aspects of human nature which corrupts the religious message.The problem with Shariati's ideas is that they fail to lead to logical conclusions or that they simply stop before more difficult questions arise. The ideas in this book have a decidedly Marxist bent, and the influence of Marxism and Western ideas are readily apparent, but the author pulls back before he has to answer the most difficult of questions. One such question is that Islam and the Prophet are supposed to be culmination and perfection of God's message. He is the last of the prophets, but Shariati's own idea, put forth here, assume this is not true. It also suggests the idea of a continual revolution in the cyclical nature of religion he describes. The problem is that if the Prophet's religion has been corrupted then doesn't that require another prophet to correct the message? In his theory it doesn't make sense that religion has been perfected and the end of the prophets has come. He doesn't tackle these problems though.In the end I like how the author emphasizes the beauty and humanity of religion, and I like he adds the revolutionary message of Marx to the humanity and positive aspects of religion. The religion of Shariati is a river that is continually being replenished, whereas those who apposed his view are like a pond that simply stagnates and never changes. Shariati is refreshing and fun to read. He emphasizes the positive and motivates the reader to challange the negative. While I have problems with his refusal to follow his own logical path and tackle the difficult questions his Western philosophy and Islamic religion pose, but his positive message and his revolutionary way of thinking is important without the deeper questions.This is an important thinker and an important person to read if you want to know Iran. I highly recommend this book.

Super short and to the point. What a wonderful author Ali Shariati was, and what a shame that he passed at such a young age. I recommend his books to everyone who likes to learn more about Islam and is curious about things that are beyond this world.