Majalah Al-Hikmah Edisi ke 16

sole ultimate truth, has been thought of as a mere alternative to other religions. Consequently, many Muslims find embodying Islamic values increasingly foreign. The idea of being truly “religious” becomes alien. Yet, the term ‘non- practicing Muslims’ has been largely normalized. Muslim societies tacitly accept that most Muslims live lives of non- Islamic categories defined by sensuality, worldly indulgence, and hedonistic consumerism. Muslims in general have become the ‘unconscious semi-separatists,’ partially separating Islamic elements from certain aspects of worldly life while being unaware of that. The Islamic unified worldview is slowly eroded and replaced by a fragmented worldview that is shaped by the conditions of secular consciousness. Education regularly mirrors such division. Religious education has been largely contrasted and marginalized as secondary to secular education. Similarly, in medicine, secular treatment frequently overshadows Islamic treatment. There is also a cultural tendency to valorize “godless” motivations over faith-based ones. For instance, philanthropy grounded in humanitarianism is often deemed more admirable than that religiously inspired. The remark, “This is not a religious issue; this is for humanity,” is increasingly common even among Muslims. It seems that the quality of being humane has become separated from Islam. Moreover, the socio-cultural benchmark of progress is chiefly measured by quantitative material attainment. Islamic guidance, on the other hand, is reduced to mere personal spirituality or symbolic ritualism. Islam, which ought to be the MA JA L AH A L - H I KMAH 56