No, it is not. The noble position of motherhood aside, our general opinion about women is that, while taking into account their specific needs, it should be made possible for them to take on every role, including the jobs of physician, military officer, judge and president of a country. As a matter of fact, in every aspect of life throughout history Muslim women made contributions to their society. In the golden age (referring to the years during Mohammed’s lifetime) starting with Aisha, Hafsa, and Um Salama (the Prophet’s wives), had their places among the jurists and they taught men.

When these examples are taken into consideration, it would be clearly understood that it is out of the question to restrict the lives of women, narrowing down their activities. Unfortunately, the isolation of women from social activities in some places today, a practice that stems from the misinterpretation of Islamic sources, has been a subject of a worldwide propaganda campaign against Islam.

Source:

Excerpted from an interview with Fethullah Gulen on The Atlantic on August 14, 2013

Democracy and Islam: Are They Opponents or Allies?

LEONID R. SYKIAINEN* Fethullah Gülen stressed that when comparing Islam with democracy, we must remember that democracy is a system that is being continually developed and revised, on…

Fethullah Gülen’s view on projects like “Islamic Common Market” or “Union of Muslim Countries”

It is imperative that alliances do not harm other countries and extra precautions must be taken to avoid causing tensions. In this regard, Gülen states: For alliances and…

Ijtihad – Independent Reasoning

One can see several reasons why the spirit of ijtihad was lost and the door was closed. The following are considered some of these reasons: Political oppression,…