Politicizing Religion…Alienating the People…
In Morocco, religion has been used in many ways by politicians to control people, and it has proved to be a successful tool for controlling since it defines one's existence within a particular community. Politicians hold fast that the only way to control the masses is to control their religion. Failure to do so would undoubtedly threatens their position and status in society.
Source : https://www.marocafrik.com/english/Politicizing-Re...
In Morocco, religion has been used in many ways by politicians to control people, and it has proved to be a successful tool for controlling since it defines one's existence within a particular community. Politicians hold fast that the only way to control the masses is to control their religion. Failure to do so would undoubtedly threatens their position and status in society. One would ask why Religion? I would say 'Religion occupies a big part in our life. Religion is reflected in the way we speak, the way we dress, the way we eat and even when we write letters to our beloved ones. God exists in every word we utter. You sneeze, and you receive a reply 'God Bless You'. To eat something you say 'in the name of God', and when you finish your dish you intuitively say 'Thanks to God'. This is why politicians find religion a successful tool to control and manipulate the masses. Indeed, the politicization of religion is a specter that is haunting us and transforming us into, to borrow from Derrida, hauntological beings.
A good example about the politicization of religion in Morocco can be summed up in the king's speech concerning constitutional reforms. When he delivered his speech as a response to people's demonstrations and demands, politicians and particularly decision makers immediately put his proposal of the new constitution into practice. The king simply said vote for the constitution, of course using a religious register, and the ministry of Islamic affairs took it for granted by obliging preachers all over the country to make out of voting for the constitution a religious act. This means that voting for the constitution represents their loyalty to the king who rules the nation and functions as the Commander of the Faithful. The reaction of decision makers to the king's proposal reveals the relationship between the king, decision makers and the people. This relationship is, to some extent, similar to that of a God who designs the future and the people who should unquestionably accept it as such. Decision makers took it for granted and did not question that proposal probably believing that the new constitution is a perfect model of democracy as if the old constitution did not grant the people democracy. In turn, they officially legalize the act of voting with 'yes' for the constitution and obliged preachers, as is the case for other issues, to inculcate the idea of voting with 'yes' in people's minds. So in this case, the mosque is no longer a place of religion. But rather, it becomes a place for politics and administrative issues which means that the future of Moroccans is usually ready-made and indirectly approved by Moroccans themselves within the setting of the mosque.
The mosque becomes the parliament of the country where laws are usually approved. It ceased to be that place where the preacher plays an important role in illuminating people about their social, political, economic and moral issues. Its role has been changed by the influence of politics. Religion, in turn, has been corrupted not outside the mosque by the people themselves but inside the mosque and under the influence of politics. The role of religion becomes inextricably linked to praying and fasting which is a dangerous fact. People need to understand why they pray and fast to be truly Muslims. A lack of understanding religion would change the role of religion itself within society.
But understanding a religion in itself makes a threat for any regime. Understanding a religion simply means understanding the most important principles and laws on which an Islamic nation should be based. Understanding religion would allow people to bring down totalitarianism and corruption, and this is the main reason why the regime tries to decontextualize religion.
In fact, the influence of politics has changed religion into a mere set of hollow beliefs, rituals and traditions. I refer to the actual state of religion in Morocco by the term tradition because it is no longer a practice that is based on reasoning, understanding and freewill, but rather an imitation of others either to gain a status or simply to compensate for one's spiritual emptiness.
As a result of politicizing religion, a big number of Moroccans find themselves dwelling in a dilemma. Some become stark ignorant about the basic principles of their religion because they allowed themselves to believe whatever said in the mosque by the preacher. Others have been estranged from society because the truth for them exists in the mosque and represented in the Friday sermons. One should understand that the influence of politics on religion has alienated the people and separated them from reality.
It is time to humanize the dehumanized through separating politics from religion. This is not going to happen overnight. There should be a reconsideration of our mode of thinking and seeing things. People should start questioning and reconsidering whatever their fathers took for granted. It is only through the process of questioning the commonsense that people can humanize themselves. As long as there is truth, there is untruth, which means that everything is questionable as Bernard Williams in 'Truth and Truthfulness'(2002) puts it "everything is arbitrary, everything is changeable". So what is man but a reformer, a re-maker of what our fathers took for granted, for a long time, and we the masses conformed to their beliefs.
A good example about the politicization of religion in Morocco can be summed up in the king's speech concerning constitutional reforms. When he delivered his speech as a response to people's demonstrations and demands, politicians and particularly decision makers immediately put his proposal of the new constitution into practice. The king simply said vote for the constitution, of course using a religious register, and the ministry of Islamic affairs took it for granted by obliging preachers all over the country to make out of voting for the constitution a religious act. This means that voting for the constitution represents their loyalty to the king who rules the nation and functions as the Commander of the Faithful. The reaction of decision makers to the king's proposal reveals the relationship between the king, decision makers and the people. This relationship is, to some extent, similar to that of a God who designs the future and the people who should unquestionably accept it as such. Decision makers took it for granted and did not question that proposal probably believing that the new constitution is a perfect model of democracy as if the old constitution did not grant the people democracy. In turn, they officially legalize the act of voting with 'yes' for the constitution and obliged preachers, as is the case for other issues, to inculcate the idea of voting with 'yes' in people's minds. So in this case, the mosque is no longer a place of religion. But rather, it becomes a place for politics and administrative issues which means that the future of Moroccans is usually ready-made and indirectly approved by Moroccans themselves within the setting of the mosque.
The mosque becomes the parliament of the country where laws are usually approved. It ceased to be that place where the preacher plays an important role in illuminating people about their social, political, economic and moral issues. Its role has been changed by the influence of politics. Religion, in turn, has been corrupted not outside the mosque by the people themselves but inside the mosque and under the influence of politics. The role of religion becomes inextricably linked to praying and fasting which is a dangerous fact. People need to understand why they pray and fast to be truly Muslims. A lack of understanding religion would change the role of religion itself within society.
But understanding a religion in itself makes a threat for any regime. Understanding a religion simply means understanding the most important principles and laws on which an Islamic nation should be based. Understanding religion would allow people to bring down totalitarianism and corruption, and this is the main reason why the regime tries to decontextualize religion.
In fact, the influence of politics has changed religion into a mere set of hollow beliefs, rituals and traditions. I refer to the actual state of religion in Morocco by the term tradition because it is no longer a practice that is based on reasoning, understanding and freewill, but rather an imitation of others either to gain a status or simply to compensate for one's spiritual emptiness.
As a result of politicizing religion, a big number of Moroccans find themselves dwelling in a dilemma. Some become stark ignorant about the basic principles of their religion because they allowed themselves to believe whatever said in the mosque by the preacher. Others have been estranged from society because the truth for them exists in the mosque and represented in the Friday sermons. One should understand that the influence of politics on religion has alienated the people and separated them from reality.
It is time to humanize the dehumanized through separating politics from religion. This is not going to happen overnight. There should be a reconsideration of our mode of thinking and seeing things. People should start questioning and reconsidering whatever their fathers took for granted. It is only through the process of questioning the commonsense that people can humanize themselves. As long as there is truth, there is untruth, which means that everything is questionable as Bernard Williams in 'Truth and Truthfulness'(2002) puts it "everything is arbitrary, everything is changeable". So what is man but a reformer, a re-maker of what our fathers took for granted, for a long time, and we the masses conformed to their beliefs.
Source : https://www.marocafrik.com/english/Politicizing-Re...