The call of Islamic revival revolves around a central idea: “the vicegerent human.” It was the will of God to make humanity His vicegerent on Earth. In a religion like Islam, which emphasizes monotheism rigorously, this is the greatest honor achievable. It’s noted that Allah commanded the angels to prostrate to Adam, while in Islam, prostration is exclusively for Allah.

Therefore, God created humans, much like He created the Earth, in a distinctive manner to manifest His will in the universe. Adam was created from clay, symbolizing his connection to the Earth. Then God breathed into him his spirit, endowing him with consciousness, awareness, and will. He taught him all the names, signifying human ownership of the keys to knowledge.

Just as God created the Earth as a unique planet among millions, with a conducive climate, oceans, rivers, plains, mountains, minerals, animals, forests, and plants to provide for human needs of sustenance, shelter, and clothing.

He selected a spot on it, which was the most suitable for receiving the call of Islam: the Arabian Peninsula. There, the desert stretches like an endless sea, winds blow like storms, and among peoples who had not toiled the land or borne the burden of civilization. Their lives were not ruled by kings or emperors, nor were they bound by the constraints of systems and regulations. They lived as free nomads, governed by instinct or tradition, dwelling in tents or simple houses, enduring scorching heat by day and chilling cold by night, worshipping gods of their own making.

They had no prohibitions, taboos, or sacred laws of any kind, nor did they have a mythology like Greek or Hebrew mythology that burdened their minds. They were akin to Vikings, characterized by their boldness, courage, self-assurance, and daring.

The vast expanse of the desert and the unrestrained winds, unobstructed by towering mountains, epitomize two characteristics of this society: equality and freedom. The ancient Arab society did not know of caste systems or hereditary titles, nor did it have barriers between the upper and lower classes, which were common in Roman and Persian empires. This egalitarianism persisted even after the French Revolution, with remnants still present in societies that retain their aristocratic titles. Arabs did not know codified aristocracy even when they reached imperial stages, as ancient civilizations couldn’t penetrate the foundation of equality established by the nomadic lifestyle and reinforced by Islam.

Allah revealed Islam to guide this vicegerent human. Man is the goal, and Islam is the means. Ancient writings couldn’t grasp the full meaning of human stewardship, as their old traditions and autocratic systems didn’t allow it. They viewed stewardship as a form of servitude to God, a notion perpetuated by writers like Ibn Taymiyyah and later adopted by some modern thinkers like Maududi. They likened human stewardship to that of a servant fulfilling his master’s command without question or understanding. This anthropomorphization of God contradicts His teaching that “there is nothing like unto Him” (Quran 16:74) since these are mere human analogies that cannot equate to the reality of God.

It’s sufficient to demonstrate the fallacy of Maududi’s idea that if Allah wanted a submissive servant, He wouldn’t have endowed him with intellect, will, or freedom. The Quranic term “abd” refers to a creature, not a servant in the hierarchical sense prevalent in feudal societies. It’s impossible for such a concept to apply to the divine will, which established freedom and wisdom. The Quran aims to highlight that man is created, excluding the notion of him being a creator or god, which could lead to polytheism, deviating from the purpose Allah intended when appointing humanity as vicegerents on Earth.

Allah created a unique being, humans, endowed them with His spirit, taught them all the names, and subjected everything on Earth to them. Hence, it’s absurd to claim that the authority of this vicegerent is no more than that of a servant sent by his master to carry out a task mechanically, without thought or understanding.

In the Quran, the term “abd” solely refers to a created being and holds no other meaning. The notion of a servant prevalent in slave societies is a product of a hierarchical class-based human thought that prevailed in a certain era. Such an idea can’t be attributed to the divine will, which established freedom and wisdom. The Quran repeatedly emphasizes that Allah’s gifts are extended to all, regardless of their worldly desires. Accountability awaits in the hereafter, where justice will prevail, and mercy will be abundant.

Allah, though knowledgeable of all hidden and apparent matters, established systems for the universe to operate by and prescribed laws for human society to follow. He declared that He won’t change the condition of a people unless they change themselves. The Quran underscores the importance of understanding divine will within the framework of these systems and laws, rather than projecting human societal concepts onto divine will.

This understanding radically changes the perception of Islam. Islam is a system that establishes the vicegerent human on Earth, making humanity the goal and religion the means. Is there any other law that reaches such heights of humanity, let alone surpasses it? Clearly, the fulfillment of the duties of the human vicegerent necessitates a society built on the primary value of equality, where there is no discrimination, and everyone is subject to the rule of law. Such a society can only exist when founded on freedom of thought and justice in action.

The Prophet Muhammad established such a society in Medina, where human dignity and honor were upheld, and values conducive to these were laid down, with equality being paramount. All Muslims were equals, with the least among them able to seek recourse against the most powerful. Nobody was above the law, not even the Prophet himself before his subjects. Men and women, rich and poor, had equal rights and obligations. He established a system that ensured security and removed the fear of need, with no police or prisons in Medina. Economic security was guaranteed through the obligation of Zakat and economic solidarity.

Islam achieved the dignity of humanity.

Yes, we don’t find signs of human rights in this society for a simple reason: the entire system was originally established for humans. Mentioning human rights was unnecessary curiosity. Anyway, each era has its own language, terminology, values, and slogans it focuses on. What matters is that the content of Islam regarding humans as stewards and the organization of society to achieve that through the determination of equality, security, and sufficiency was already achieved for everything modern human rights activists call for. If we were to compare between the democracy of the market in Athens and the democracy of the community in the city, the latter would be favored. This is because Athenian market democracy excluded slaves and women from participation, who were the majority of Athens’ population, while the community democracy included slaves and women, allowing a woman to stand up to reject the Caliph’s opinion, and the Caliph would listen, take her opinion, and say his historical statement: “A woman was right and Umar was wrong.” The implications of this are obvious, as women wouldn’t dare to do this unless there was a deep belief in freedom of opinion, human dignity, and the firm principle of equality.

The community of the city and the Islamic era of humanity lasted only about a quarter of a century: ten years of the Prophet’s rule, two and a half years of Abu Bakr’s rule, and ten years of Umar’s rule. When Umar ibn al-Khattab was stabbed, this community was attacked, and turmoil and unrest began with Uthman’s deviation from the Sunnah of the two sheikhs and the intensification of discord. Uthman was killed while reciting the Quran, and his wife was pushed aside until her fingers were cut off. A fierce war erupted around the hood of Lady Aisha between those targeting her and those defending her. Then half of the Muslims fought the other half in two camps. Ali ibn Abi Talib, who sought to restore the community of the city, was killed. The era ended in 40 AH when Muawiyah ibn Abi Sufyan transformed the Caliphate into a hereditary monarchy no different from any Kisraic or Caesaric kingdom. It became an autocratic hereditary tyranny, and from that point on, this corrupt authoritarian rule persisted until Mustafa Kemal abolished the caliphate in 1924.

This regression has many reasons. One of the most prominent is that the Islamic knowledge system in hadith, interpretation, and jurisprudence developed by the prominent scholars grew during the period when the Islamic state reached the level of an empire. Imam Ahmad ibn Hanbal lived during the reign of Caliph al-Ma’mun. Although these scholars were indeed brilliant and genuinely desired closeness to God, service to Islam, and the promotion of Islamic knowledge, they were not infallible angels. Their method of education was the handwritten book. More importantly, the requirements of the imperial state imposed themselves on them, and they had no alternative. The four Imams were persecuted, meaning the atmosphere allowed for nothing else, and their followers had to align with the state. Thus, their judgments contradicted the Quran and served the sultan. Additionally, the swift victory of Islam over decaying feudal kingdoms brought millions of individuals from these kingdoms into the Islamic society. They embraced Islam for its simplicity and tolerance. Because this entry opened the way for them to positions, they managed, with their cunning, to take over interpretation, hadith, jurisprudence, language, etc. But being recent converts to Islam, they introduced their own cultural concepts and legacies that they hadn’t completely rid themselves of onto Islam, diverting it from its original, free, and simple spirit. The Islamic society was teeming with factions and schools of thought, and the translation of Greek philosophy, which influenced Islamic jurisprudence in its middle stages, was added to this mix.

There was no shortage of covert hostility to Islam. Over the centuries, “Islam” and “Sultan” crystallized in Salafi thought, which dominated the Islamic knowledge system, becoming the standard. Its leaders and guides acquired sanctity. This remained the case until the brink of the modern age when the Islamic awakening began.

The Islamic awakening that began with Jamal al-Din al-Afghani and his contemporaries couldn’t eliminate Salafi thought because a new force had imposed itself on the Islamic world: European colonization, attempting to erase Islam and Arabic in many regions. Reformers’ efforts focused on this, becoming their main concern. They were occupied with it to the exclusion of the issue of Islamic reformation, allowing religious institutions, which began to emerge and monopolize the representation of Islam, to flourish. The intelligentsia in Islamic countries didn’t contribute much in this field because some of them believed in theories contradictory to Islam like socialism and nationalism, and most of them lacked technical expertise. Moreover, governments entrusted them with positions, especially in the media, so they sang its praises.

Developments occurred in Islamic societies. Saudi Arabia became a power after the Ramadan War and the rise of oil prices from four dollars to forty. It formed the Organization of Islamic Cooperation, which provided minorities in Europe and poor Islamic countries with imams, books, and built mosques. Moreover, the large numbers of workers and professionals who migrated to Saudi Arabia and the Gulf, then returned after being influenced by the understanding and customs there, influenced their countries.

Thus, the call for revival had the task of radical Islamic renewal and the reestablishment of the Islamic knowledge system. It was prepared for this. In 1946, its caller, Jamal al-Banna, issued his book “A New Democracy,” dedicating a chapter to “A New Understanding of Religion,” addressing the Muslim Brotherhood, who had reached their peak, saying, “Don’t believe in faith, but believe in humanity.” The idea of “humanistic Islam” fermented and evolved for fifty years and was not announced until 2000, coinciding with the release of the third part of a book like “Towards a New Jurisprudence.” The first step was to highlight the central principle of the “successor human” and prove it with evidence from the Quran. The caller demonstrated how this principle was already applied by the Prophet during the short period he ruled and was succeeded by Abu Bakr and Umar, where the society of Medina was truly a humane society in every sense of the word, characterized by equality and guaranteeing individual security and safety.

The call for revival explained how this society ended completely in 40 AH when Muawiyah ibn Abi Sufyan turned the caliphate into a hereditary monarchy. What was called the caliphate, which lasted until Mustafa Kemal abolished it in Turkey, was not a caliphate but rather an autocratic, hereditary rule, as we previously mentioned.