[Sthjrderfida]

Asalam Alaykum
Does anyone study Religious Studies at college and how are you finding it?

[buchmausar]

To achieve good marks in RS/Philosophy, etc, you need to be able to critically analyse concepts, arguments, ideas... This is sufficient reason for me to tell people not to bother with it, as they WANT you to show positives and negatives of whatever the particular question is about... what if the question is in regards to an aspect of Islam? Are you going to sit there and criticise in order to get a decent grade?

[Sthjrderfida]

To achieve good marks in RS/Philosophy, etc, you need to be able to critically analyse concepts, arguments, ideas... This is sufficient reason for me to tell people not to bother with it, as they WANT you to show positives and negatives of whatever the particular question is about... what if the question is in regards to an aspect of Islam? Are you going to sit there and criticise in order to get a decent grade?

I totally agree whilst studying RS we have to questions and create a for and against argument of a given statement. For example the recent question we covered in class was " The world has changed since the Quran was revealed so the laws in the Quran also need to change" and in order to answer this question we have to create an argument with points covering the statement that the Quran should change because the world has changed, however this is wrong and I have difficulty in answering these questions. Is it right in Islam to answer questions which involve criticizing or arguing against Islam?

Jzk

[TerriLS]

Is it right in Islam to answer questions which involve criticizing or arguing against Islam?

No. how can a muslim criticize islaam just to get good marks!

[treawittelf]

I for one think it is very useful to hone in one's critical thinking abilities. If you want to serve Islam, it is very useful to know about other religions and what non-Muslims believe in their philosophy so that we can do better da'wa and show people the faults of these ideologies.

It is possible to do Religious Studies where one doesn't study Islam, my brother studied philosophy of religion, ethics and buddhism. However if one is required to write analytically about Islam, it is possible to be analytical without criticising Islam. Stating that "Islam says such and such... however another theory says such and such" is simply stating facts about something without criticising. I studied Middle Eastern History, literature and politics as part of my degree and whilst I did not go about criticising Islam, it was very useful to read what Orientalist scholars say about Islam, so that we know their mindset and can address the issues that they raise for ourselves.

I think someone needs to be confident in his/her own deen first before starting to study philosophy or orientalist literature, but if one's iman is solid it can actually help to strengthen one's belief and understanding and we can then do better da'wa.

[xtrslots]

Those who are firm in their belief, are doing it for da'wah etc etc can keep that to themselves, and quietly persue such routes (and even then, it's risky). The general advice would be not to study it -- at all costs.

was-salam

[xtrslots]

Is [ash'ari] scholars were weary of people unnecessarily delving into Islamic, Sunni Kalam, what do you think the advice would be regardying studying philosophy?

[treawittelf]

Is [ash'ari] scholars were weary of people unnecessarily delving into Islamic, Sunni Kalam, what do you think the advice would be regardying studying philosophy?

Allahu A'lam, maybe my stance is wrong on this, it is always best to consult the shuyukh on these matters. Obviously it is not for every layman to study philosophy but I thought it was one of those 'fard kifaya' issues where if nobody is able to refute the nonsense being propagated by the kuffaar then where does that leave us?

[xtrslots]

Allahu A'lam, maybe my stance is wrong on this, it is always best to consult the shuyukh on these matters. Obviously it is not for every layman to study philosophy but I thought it was one of those 'fard kifaya' issues where if nobody is able to refute the nonsense being propagated by the kuffaar then where does that leave us?

yes it is, but it's not for everyone to pursue, as you say. thus, the general advice will be different to specific advice for people with an aptitude to study these things, with noble objectives in mind.

[buchmausar]

I studied Philosophy at A Level (hence speaking from experience). If you want to do dawah to the kuffar and develop your critical thinking skills in order to do so, then study logic as Islamic scholars have written widely on the subject. Learn that from the Muslims and that will get your skills developed as much as they ever could be; then perhaps you can study from the kuffar, otherwise, my personal advice is don't bother