Islam and Christianity

translated into English, and his book Usturlâb (Astrolabe) was
translated into Latin. He passed away in 233 [847 C.E.].
“Proving that the earth has a spherical shape, the Muslim
astronomers wiped out the European superstition that ‘the earth is
flat like a tray. If you go on a long sea voyage you will fall down.’
They managed to measure correctly the circumference of the
earth. Sad to say, the Abbasid Empire, who taught many facts to
Europeans and who prepared the conditions that would give birth
to Renaissance, began to suffer a gradual decline, which reached
its nadir with the Mongols’ invasion of Baghdâd in 656 [1258 C.E.].
Burning and devastating the city, the Mongols put an end to a
civilization established by the Muslims. How are the situations
now? Should we expect another renaissance in the Islamic
civilization?
“In the Middle Ages, Muslims looked for gold, valuable spices,
odorous-scented wood [such as aloe wood, etc.], and exported
some of them to Europe. Today, black gold has superseded these
things, [as was the case in the time of Suleymân (Solomon)
‘alaihis-salâm’.] I wonder if Muslims will manage to establish once
again a state as enormous as the empires established by
Alexander [d. 323 B.C.] and Napoleon [1769-1821 C.E.]? The
present Arab welfare is due to petroleum. They are trying to
become powerful by utilizing this rich treasure in their hands. The
strategy conceived by Prof. Muhammad al Shamalî, Director of
Quwait Research center, is as follows: First of all, we have to
make progress in knowledge and science. This, in its turn, requires
increasing our efforts in scientific research and educating men of
knowledge.”
This is the end of the passage translated from the article by the
French writer Ferrera.
Islamic scholars state that Islamic knowledge consists of two
parts: Religious knowledge, and Scientific knowledge. For being
an Islamic scholar it is necessary to learn both these parts. Every
Muslim has to learn and practice the religious knowledge, (the first
part). In other words, it is farz-i-’ayn. As for the scientific
knowledge, (i.e. the second part;) it is to be learned, as much as
necessary, only by those Muslims whose professions necessitate to
do so. In other words, it is farz-i-kifâya. A nation which carries out
these two precepts will certainly make progress and attain
civilization. Allâhu ta’âlâ purports in the twentieth âyat of the
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