Dilemma: was it a good decision to register the islamic community?
It has been more than 30 years since I was able to register the Hungarian Islamic Community in August 1988, of which I was the founder and first sheikh president. The community works and is still in good hands today.
I will state my own opinion from then on. I have completely different experience and knowledge today than I had 30 years ago. That time a young titan invested tremendous energies in something he thought a miracle, then he expected that helping hands will support him in his ascension and he will change the way how masses think about Islam. I smiled outward and inward. I thought when people smiled back, the smiles of others were as sincere as mine. I was very wrong.
I didn’t know what the difference was between religion, church, and real faith. It didn't come up to my mind that churches had long since been based not on faith but on a religion, what is the scattering of God into many parts, which resulted the privatization of particular parts of God by some groups. I didn’t know that the meaning of the word religion had completely changed. It is not the same what was in the Holy Books. I did not know that a faith that recognizes hierarchy only in a spiritual sense could be forced into a secular hierarchy and then a secular law has to be formed in order to operate it and be registered as a church. In practice, the framework of a human and errorfilled regulation is forced on something that cannot be subject to such laws, since faith is an Absolute and Eternal Truth above all men. Thus, the hierarchy in the spiritual sense is reversed and those who are practically atheists come to the head of the church.
But I did, I registered a church-organization, and I placed the faith under the rule of a state provision. It was a huge mistake from Sharia aspect! Maybe my reward will be a perpetual punishment that I have to undertake.
At the same time, I have noticed that faith is in a similarly humiliated situation in most Islamic countries! In fact, even more humiliated! At least, there are no provisions in Europe to force Islam, in a value-reduced version, displaced from its original context, under the disposal of an unbelieving gang over others. Scholars, sheikhs propagate teachings and force the infinite within the church-like frameworks that is forbidden by Islam and allow through only the message that justifies the rule of the given state. So, de jure, there is no church, but de facto there is.
I was an idealistic, naive young man who thought that faith had custodians in this earth. Instead, however, I exposed the evolving community of Islam to the wolves of faith.
Since then, I am well aware that situation is different. When authorities made a gesture for Muslims, they didn't do that for us, but it was a political message to demonstrate for others that such a community can work freely in this country because our state is tolerant. Dazzlement and big statements also were made by Islamic countries, but this all was not in order to promote my knowledge and strengthening my position, but because of their own goals. They considered me not a young scholar, but a young asshole to whom their thoughts and political goals could be coded. I was a tool here and there.
Allah (SWT) has shown the right path. He made me sick, I couldn’t do my job, and then went to Bosnia and Africa. I crashed into the deep, then I saw the hell that I should have seen before I started to register a church-organization. I have experienced who uses Islam for what and the religion in practice is how much different than the one that was taught in Al-Azhar. I saw that I lived in an Islamic flask around which the reality is quite different.
I've reevaluated the past. Although the dilemma still exists today. Was it worth registering the Community? In addition to the many no answers, there are already some yes. For sure, it was a mistake from Sharia’s point of view, but if there would not have been registration then won’t start any Islamic activity. There was a legitim place for prayer and practice of faith. Anyone who was interested could go there to get information about Islam, could marry or become divorced, and asked to be buried according to his faith. All of this could not work without a state-recognized church status. And now let's not open the subject that who goes to the mosque and for what? To chatter, spread bad news about others, subordinate unfortunate naive Muslims who still believe that what an Arab says is so. Whatever happens in these places doesn't differ from other ecclesiastical institutions where not the propagation of faith but of religion in the modern sense is going on. I.e., hate everyone who doesn’t come here and doesn’t say what I say. This is not Muslim specific, but is true for all human groupings. Don’t think that this is not the same in other areas of life, even in a political party!
However, this is a process. We hope that Allah (SWT) will remain with us as part of that process, provided that we Muslims don't close our gates before Him.
Eliminating the mistakes of the past, I welcome the work of our organizations working in the name of Islam and I ask for the blessing and guidance of Allah for their leaders. However, reassuring my own conscience, I do not participate in the work of any community, or state-approved religious organization and I don’t take any position in them. I do one thing: I write, I create a database, I make the knowledge that has been planted in me accessible, but I don’t appear anywhere in person. What I have with me, I do not ask for the accreditation of a single university, research institute, state apparatus, because I received that all from Allah and I will not allow to reach you through a human filter. I'm going to prove that in vain the intimidations, misrepresentations around Islam, the legislations and set of values of the peaceful, well-meaning states, do not differ much from the classical Islam, even if one is not forced under state laws, and can freely proclaim them. Amen.