{"id":12086,"date":"2022-03-10T18:28:25","date_gmt":"2022-03-10T18:28:25","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/gambia\/uncategorized\/the-men-the-women-the-religions-the-conversation"},"modified":"2022-03-10T19:17:20","modified_gmt":"2022-03-10T19:17:20","slug":"the-men-the-women-the-religions-the-conversation","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/gambia\/all-news\/the-men-the-women-the-religions-the-conversation","title":{"rendered":"The men, the women, the religions, the conversation:"},"content":{"rendered":"

Africa-Press – Gambia. <\/strong><\/span>Aji Kurah: Demba, have you heard about the appointment of the women Cadis? We shall break every patriarchal glass ceiling over us. I am still livid that the women\u2019s representation bill failed in the moribund and chauvinistic parliament.<\/p>\n

Dembo: So women being appointed as Cadis means what exactly? Do you know that the issues that those women Cadis will judge on will mostly not favor women? And that\u2019s because Islam, in its strictest form, recognizes that men and women are not necessarily equal. Isn\u2019t that why you walk behind your husband Aji Kurah and why you sleep behind him on your bed?<\/p>\n

Aji Kurah: The women Cadis will judge according to Islamic law! And it\u2019s my choice to walk behind my husband. It\u2019s not because Islam said I must. I have a role and my husband has his role. The two roles are based on our capabilities as a man and woman.<\/p>\n

Dembo: Well, Firstly, Islamic law does not necessarily recognize that men and women are equal. And secondly Islamic law is not monolithic; it\u2019s open to different schools of thought. In the roles you talk about, the roles assigned to men make them the head of the family. There\u2019s a hierarchy in these roles and wherever you have hierarchy or authority, you\u2019ll have inequality. But back to those female Cadis, have you seen what the two imams said about the issue? I told you that this fight for equality between men and women will not sit well with your dominant religious leaders! You see us Gambians love tolerance but we are hardly ever tolerant ourselves.<\/p>\n

Abibatou: And aren\u2019t those two imams the ones that also supported the killer and thief in Jamus? By the way, you know, Islamic teachings are not necessarily incompatible with equality. It all depends on what you think \u201cequality\u201d means. If you are a fan of the ultra-equality club, then you will not have a problem with women being imams. But if you are of the belief that men and women are physiologically and psychologically different from men, that these differences account for the gendered roles, then perhaps you will insist that everyone function according to the role they are best suited for. And that\u2019s probably a reason why you cannot have women imams. Now you must bear in mind that you will be called misogynistic if ultra-equality is not your inclination.<\/p>\n

Cabral: You know what the main issue is, it is that a lot of what you all hold on to are imposed on you Africans. You see that\u2019s one of the reasons I actually changed my name to Fillijay. Your Islamic ways are not always compatible with your traditional African ways. Your feminist ideals are not always compatible with your traditional African ways or Islamic ways and vice versa. Neither are your traditional ways always compatible with your Christian beliefs and your Christian beliefs are not always in agreement with your Islamic ways even though you all claim to worship one creator. Now who that creator is depends on what religious belief one holds. Group A thinks Group B are going to hell and Group B people think Group A are going to hell. You want to mix and match all these imported or imposed laws, traditions, ideals in one disparate country people when not all of you share the same beliefs, ideals or traditions. Everyone thinks they have a monopoly over the truth. You see the problem?<\/p>\n

Aji Kurah: For me, I know that the Quran sees all human beings as equal. However, men and women have different roles in society and I respect the canonical tradition as well as the African tradition I was born into. It\u2019s true that the two do not always jive but that\u2019s where nuance and milieu comes into play.<\/p>\n

Abibatou: But don\u2019t you think that by introducing nuance or subjectivity or even milieu in religion, you\u2019ll face challenges of interpretation? Are the laws of religion open to interpretation? If so, who decides which interpretation is right? Because there are those people who insist on interpreting religious text exactly as it is written and you have some that say we must consider the context or milieu. If you introduce context in Islam, don\u2019t you think you\u2019ll end up with various variations of the religion? Isn\u2019t that what we see today?<\/p>\n

Dembo: You know, it\u2019s crazy that somehow, we end up where we started from and that is: nowhere. That should tell us we have serious problems. In the end, it all depends on how you see things. Personally, I think we should always consider the context of everything and apply it to our realities. Rather than outrightly condemning or embracing any idea, we should consider it\u2019s utility and application.<\/p>\n

Cabral: The problem with that is; even the prism with which you consider the utility or lack thereof of any imported ideal is in fact tainted by your school of thought. Here is my thing: What\u2019s wrong with knowing that you are a black person and that your ancestors had their own religion and ways and traditions until some people from Arabia or the West came and told them their ways and traditions are backward and evil? They changed everything about you and you own very little that is indigenous to you. Almost everything about you is imposed from outside. And that\u2019s your problem! The more foreign our actions, rituals, mannerisms, recitations, the purer we are. The more African or indigenous, the more unacceptable. Isn\u2019t that an issue?<\/p>\n

Aji Kurah: But just because something was imposed does not make it bad. And in fact, I totally reject and take umbrage at the suggestion that Islam was imposed on me. I chose Islam as my way of life. Yes, you\u2019d say I chose it because I was born into it and that may be so but I learned to accept Islam on my own.<\/p>\n

Abibatou: Well; it\u2019s not like Islam or Christianity are indigenous to Africans. How many people do you know that convert from the religion they were born into? Most of us just accept the religions we were born and raised into. We think questioning religious beliefs means the questioner is hellbound. And our ancestors certainly didn\u2019t go looking for Islam or Christianity. Others brought them both to us.<\/p>\n

Dembo: Folks, I have to leave you all. I have Wednesday Bible studies and I\u2019ll see you next week Insha Allah. Cabral: May the ancestors guide you Dembo!<\/p>\n

Aji Kurah: Astaghfirrullah\u2026 May Allah Subana wa tallah guide you Cabral. Stop with this ancestor stuff already. It\u2019s sacrilegious. Abibatou: Bye guys, I have to go meet my boyfriend for lunch. Aji Kurah: That\u2019s harram and unislamic\u2026 Dating is harram. Cabral: I guess we will all just march ourselves to hell because\u2026. Never mind\u2026 bye<\/p>\n

For More News And Analysis About Gambia<\/a> Follow Africa-Press<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Africa-Press – Gambia. Aji Kurah: Demba, have you heard about the appointment of the women Cadis? We shall break every patriarchal glass ceiling over us. I am still livid that the women\u2019s representation bill failed in the moribund and chauvinistic parliament. Dembo: So women being appointed as Cadis means what exactly? Do you know that […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":84,"featured_media":12085,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2,3,8],"tags":[2355,2361,5187,260,5188],"class_list":["post-12086","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-all-news","category-community","category-homepage-english","tag-africa-press","tag-africa-press-gambia","tag-conversation","tag-gambia","tag-religions"],"yoast_head":"\nThe men, the women, the religions, the conversation: - Gambia<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Aji Kurah: Demba, have you heard about the appointment of the women Cadis? 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