Transcript The Formula of Hijab

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Don’t let your era pass you by!
Love and Compassion
The Miracle of Hijab
The Formula of Hijab
“Say to the believing men that they cast down their
looks and guard their private parts; that is purer for
them; surely Allah is Aware of what they do. And say to
the believing women that they cast down their looks and
guard their private parts and do not display their
ornaments except what appears thereof, and let them
wear their head-coverings over their bosoms, and not
display their ornaments except to…”…The Holy Qur’an 24:30-31
This is the formula of Hijab, and the most
noticeable aspect of it is its reciprocal
nature. It gives responsibilities firstly to
men and then to women.
The System of Hijab
• Even though the formula of Hijab deals with how men
and women interact outside marriage, its effect is not
limited to that.
• Its first effect is that men and women know what limits
to set when dealing with one another in general society,
but its second, and perhaps greater effect is that it
creates a dignified and respectful environment which
means that men and women have a more positive image
of one another, resulting ultimately in marriages that
work better.
The System of Tranquillity
“And of His signs is that He created for you
partners from among yourselves so that you may
find tranquillity in them, and He put between you
love and compassion; most surely there are signs
in this for a people who reflect.”…The Holy Qur’an 30:21
So the ultimate effect of the system of Hijab is that relationships
between men and women will be formed on the basis of
marriage, and that this marriage will be characterised by:
• Tranquillity
• Love
• Compassion
So what happens when Hijab goes missing?
‘Mall Culture’- The
Objectification of Women
"When one person objectifies another, it is
difficult, perhaps even impossible, to treat that
person with empathy...If girls and women are
seen exclusively as sexual beings rather than
as complicated people with interests, talents,
and identities, boys and men may have
difficulty relating to them on any level other
than the sexual”...
The Sexualisation Of Girls, American Psychological Association report released in February 2007.
‘Mall Culture’- The
Objectification of Women
“The APA suggests sexualisation of girls may
contribute to a societal tolerance of sexual
violence and an acceptance of the belief that
women invite rape by engaging in ‘certain
behaviours’. In the toxic environment we have
created for our children, the APA highlights
music videos full of sexual imagery and lyrics
of popular songs that refer to women in
‘highly degrading ways’.”
Devine, SMH, Feb 07
‘A Woman’s Value Should not
be Measured by the Pound’
The Pornification of Society
The attitude described above has led to two major problems:
1) The 'Pornification' of Society:
• A recent study showed that 1 in 3 Australian
internet users view explicit websites, this is a record
number and it seems only to be rising.
• “Australian psychologists and relationship
counsellors say internet pornography is a new and
growing cause of relationship strife and breakdown as
increasing numbers of men become compulsive
users...
The Pornification of Society
• ”An investigation by the Herald has uncovered the
destructive impact obsessive pornography use can
have on couple's sex lives, women's self-esteem, and
sense of trust.”
SMH, Adele Horin, May 2007
• Towards the end of May 2007, there was a lively
debate about the effect of pornography on society in
the media, and it was frightening how many voices
spoke up in defence of this vile practice.
Refer to articles in SMH in 22-29May 07)
The Pornification of Society
2) Increase in assault:
• This second effect, in the opinion of many, results
from the first
Cheetham Feb 05, SMH
• The Rape Crisis Centre receives two or three reports
each week of group assaults against women. They
report that: “most of the gang rapes that women talk
to us about are at parties or other environments where
they know the perpetrators. The perpetrators might be
friends, work colleagues or part of their social group.
About 70 per cent of perpetrators in gang rapes are
well-known to the women, and gang rapes by
strangers are uncommon.”
Kennedy, SMH, Aug 06)
The Pornification of Society
And the recent trend is not only to commit the
act, but to record it and brag about it:
“Confirming a trend was the news
yesterday that police have evidence of a
third sexual assault in which images of
a woman's ordeal have been taken and
then traded between acquaintances.”
Deborah Cameron, SMH, April 07
The Pornification of Society
• Why? “Why make a video? Why has it now
happened in three sexual attacks? How did we get to
this new threshold in humiliation?”
• The Answer: ‘The seeds of that answer might lie
in television…Videoing and then broadcasting a
sexual assault is a step, though not a very big one,
from the…scenes on Big Brother or "turkey
slapping“…For example, in Big Brother, in internet
porn and in Funniest Home Videos. In all of these
there is humiliation. And there are no boundaries.’
Lorraine Corne, Clinical Psychologist.
Anorexia
• This is the 3rd most common disease in Australian girls
under the age of 18.
• The average age of anorexia is decreasing, it went
down from 16 to 13 in the past five years.
• Since 2001 there has been a 20 per cent rise in the
number of children being admitted to hospitals with
anorexia
• Hospitals are now treating children aged between 7-11.
Marcus, SMH, Dec 06
“…teenage depression has doubled in the past
decade, eating disorders affect one girl in eight,
self-harm, binge drinking and unhappy sexual
experiences stalk even the average teenage girl.”
Biddulph, June 2nd 07, SMH
Who’s making the Models?
Who’s making the models?
As always, there are people who gain wealth and power
by pressuring people into certain ways of behaviour:
“Yet here is one of the curiosities of our age: the thinner
the models get, the fatter the rest of us become. Obesity
and anorexia are, of course, two sides of the one coin.
They are the product of an obsession with food. By
setting an unattainable model of beauty, all women are
encouraged to feel inadequate. The sense of self is sent
out of whack, leading to a dance of reward and denial
that can last a lifetime.
Who’s making the models?
Which brings us back to capitalism. Why does the fashion
industry spend so much time making ordinary people feel
so bad about themselves?... Maybe the fashion floggers
are smarter than we think. In the absence of some
serious self-loathing, why would anyone spend that sort
of money on clothes?”
Richard Glover, The Sydney Morning Herald, Dec. 2006
Always Remember that its
Reciprocal
“But there is no point in simply demanding that men
change their attitudes. It is no coincidence that the rise
in misogyny seems to coincide with some women's
rejection of any self-respect or modesty. Underweareschewing paparazzi favourites such as Hilton, Spears
and Lohan have become role models for young girls all
over the world...Why would a man respect a woman
who doesn't respect herself, when most of society's
traditional protections for women have been torn down,
often by women themselves, in the name of freedom?”
Miranda Devine, SMH, 3rd Dec 06
The results of this are even more disturbing.
I love you…but…
• Men and women will always have the desire to form
relationships with one another. However, in a society
with the problems discussed above, men no longer
value women enough to make a commitment to them,
and women no longer trust men enough or have the
confidence to make the sacrifices and commitments
needed for marriage.
• So the relationships of today are illegitimate, and a
society based on such relationships can only be
heading towards destruction.
I love you…but…
• In 2001, the number of marriages was 11000 less than
it was in 1981, a 10% decrease.
• There is also a trend of increasing divorces. In
2001,there were 55,300 divorces granted in Australia in
2001, the highest number granted in the last 20 years.
This has only decreased slightly in the last two years.
• The median age of marriage for men rose from 28 to
31, and for women it rose from 26 to 29 between 1993
and 2003.
I love you…but…
• Marriage data for 2003 confirms the thirty year trend
for more Australian couples to cohabit prior to entering a
registered marriage. In 1975, only 16% of couples
cohabited prior to marriage, increasing to 27% in 1983,
while 75% of couples cohabited prior to marriage in
2003.
(Australian Bureau of Statistics:
http://www.abs.gov.au/Ausstats/[email protected]/0/7F31BF47DCE50135CA256FCE000007E6?Open)
• In the USA, the illegitimacy rate has increased 66%
since 1980 and is still growing.
(Larry L. Bumpass, "What's Happening to the Family: Interaction Between Demographic and Institutional Change,"
Demography 27 (1990): 483-498)
Corporate Paedophilia
• The sexualisation and pornification of society is not
only destroying adult relationships and adolescent
maturity, but is now hurting children as young as six.
• Recently, Emma Rush, a member of the Australian
Institute of Research, published a discussion paper titled
'Corporate Paedophilia' in which she pointed out that
children were being targeted in a sexual way by
advertisers and that this was extremely dangerous to
the well-being of any child.
‘Sad Beyond Belief’
• Sexual themes were found in one-third of teen-rated
video games in one study cited by the APA. Even Disney
characters such as the Little Mermaid and Pochahontas
"have more cleavage, fewer clothes, and are depicted as
'sexier' than those of yesteryear".
• “75 % of the content of 'Barbie' magazine, aimed at 512 year olds, is sexualising material, as is 50% of 'Total
Girls (8-11 yr olds) and 50% of 'Disney Girl' (6-13 yr
olds)”
The Australian Institute of research
‘Sad Beyond Belief’
• ”The production of "hot" clothing in children's sizes is a
new phenomenon, with G-strings, padded bras and sexy
lingerie marketed to girls seven to 13.
The effect on children of all this premature sex
saturation is long-lasting psychological harm, says
the APA - resulting in depression, low self-esteem
and eating disorders in children as young as six.
It's sad beyond belief.”
Miranda Devine, 15 April 07, SMH
Where will this take us?
• With so many frightening problems in our society, one
hardly dares think where all this is taking us?
• Rather than compassion and mercy, relationships today
are based on physical benefit, domination and vulgar
lust. Men are becoming more violent and imposing, and
women are becoming less chaste and more open to
abuse.
• In this post-feminist era, women have not been
liberated nor have they found equality and status, rather
they are still oppressed, but this time they are active
participants in their own oppression.
The Miracle of Hijab
• We can clearly see that, in fact, it is not covering the
body, but showing it to strangers that leads to a woman
losing her freedom and becoming oppressed. The system
of Hijab, if applied correctly and islamically rather than
culturally, is the most perfect way of giving a woman her
rightful place in society without forcing her to compromise
he dignity and chastity.
• It is also very important to remember that Islam places
obligations on men also, and so Hijab must be seen as a
whole system, and if that system was applied, many of the
problems, as we saw, would be solved before they started.
The Miracle of Hijab
It is truly a miracle, that by following the simple formula
of Hijab outlined in the Qur'an, the disasters society faces
today would be cut off at their roots, and the slide down
the slippery slope of sexual perversion would be firmly
checked, and the relationship between man and woman
would again find its balance in mutual respect a tranquil
marriage.
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