UNITING IN IDEOLOGICAL DEBATE

When humanity's present living conditions are scrutinized, the need for alliances among believers become apparent. Social ills, among them conflicts, wars, genocide, poverty, famine, social injustice, and moral degeneration, pose a serious threat to many countries. Moreover, a great number of innocent people suffering under those conditions are desperately waiting for a helping hand to be extended. Conscientious people around the world are trying to help them. Aid packages are dispatched to areas affected by famine, peace envoys are trying to protect people in war zones, and efforts are being made to curb crime and decadence. But these efforts are regional and limited to finding solutions to the most pressing issues. In fact, it is actually possible to eradicate all kinds of human suffering and to bring happiness, security, and prosperity to the world.

However, achieving this goal depends on identifying the true causes of such ills - the decline of religious morality - and eradicating their ideological basis. The fact that the law of the strong prevails throughout the world is partly responsible for this situation, for this attitude engenders a social model based upon self-interest. Even more seriously, it has replaced acceptance, love, sympathy, compassion, and cooperation with conflict, greed, and dispute. In short, it disregards humanity's obligation to serve God, view this life as a realm of testing designed to win His good pleasure, and strive for the Hereafter.

The ideological changes that took place in the nineteenth century laid the foundations for the spiritual collapse in the next century. Whereas the majority of people believed in God's existence until that time, these changes enabled atheism to become a major influence. In the eighteenth century, such materialists as Denis Diderot (d. 1784) and Baron D'Holbach (d. 1789) asserted that the universe had existed forever and that only matter existed, and this view found an ever-increasing following in Europe. In the nineteenth century, atheism expanded further with the influence of such thinkers as Ludwig Feuerbach (d. 1872), Karl Marx (d. 1883), Friedrich Engels (d. 1894), Friedrich Nietzsche (d. 1900), Emile Durkheim (d. 1917), and Sigmund Freud (d. 1939).

Charles Darwin (d. 1882) did the greatest service to atheism by devising his theory of evolution, which was designed to oppose creation. Darwinism provided a scientific answer to the question of how humanity and other life forms emerged - a question that atheists had never managed to answer until that time. He proposed that nature had a mechanism that could enliven dead matter and give rise to millions of species. Many people, unfortunately, believed this erroneous idea.

At the end of the nineteenth century, atheists had formulated a worldview that, they claimed, explained everything. They postulated that the universe was not created, but had existed since eternity and thus had no beginning. They assumed that its clear order and equilibrium was coincidental and devoid of purpose. Darwinism claimed to answer the question of how humanity and all other beings were created. Marx and Durkheim provided atheistic answers to history and sociology, and Freud did the same for psychology. These theories, however, were shown to be baseless and without merit by the scientific, political, and social developments of the twentieth century. And, moreover, discoveries in astronomy, biology, psychology, and social behavior completely destroyed atheisms' propositions.

During this period, however, movements based on Darwinism and materialism devastated humanity. Such ideologies as communism, fascism, racism, nihilism, and existentialism caused people great sorrow and engendered countless conflicts, wars, and calamities. Their aftereffects continue to be felt today, albeit with a lesser impact, and certain circles persist in defending Darwinism as a scientific fact. We will briefly scrutinize how Darwinism is being imposed on nations and what the consequences are. But first, we want to point out an important fact.

At present, the burden of responsibility rests upon the shoulders of all conscientious believers to do something about the global situation created by all ideologies opposed to religious morality. All Christians, Jews, and Muslims should join in this effort, for they are the target of these atheistic ideologies. Therefore, the sincere People of the Book and sincere Muslims must cooperate, join forces, and tell the world of Darwinism's false worldview, which is based on materialism, not science. All of the other anti-religious ideologies (e.g., communism, fascism, racism) as well as decadence must be fought together on an ideological level so that the world can enjoy peace, tranquility, and justice in the near future. When this great task has been completed, suffering, hardship, killing, calamity, injustice, and destitution will make way for enlightenment, calmness, prosperity, wealth, health, and good fortune.

Darwinism: The Source of Corrupted Values

The theory of evolution proposes that life emerged coincidentally and then developed and evolved as a consequence of the struggle for survival. Consequently, Darwinism's underlying message is that you are not answerable to anyone; that you owe your life to coincidence; and that you must fight and, if necessary, oppress others in order to survive, as you are living in a world of self-interest and conflict. These are the moral implications of such Darwinist slogans as natural selection, struggle for survival, and survival of the fittest. Obviously, this worldview is the exact opposite of the worldview based on religious morality. Moreover, if forms the basis of the anti-religion front.

Studying society's values is enough to expose Darwinism's destructive nature. When we look at present-day societies, we see that most people live for self-preservation, a good job, material wealth, more money, entertainment - in other words, for success in the struggle for survival. Such people naturally seek a good and happy life. However, religious morality also requires people to take care of the needy, cooperate with each other, and avoid selfishness. Darwinism does not concern itself with other people; in fact, it teaches its adherents that if any benefit can be had from the hardship of others, so be it.

Especially among the young people, luxurious houses and cars, unlimited financial means, fame, wealth, and power have become ideals. Not wondering about the purpose of their existence and hardly ever pondering God's existence and might, they consider themselves to be independent beings who have no responsibilities toward our Creator. They would rather not be reminded of death, which is a reality for all beings, resurrection, and the Day of Judgment. But such willful ignorance does not affect the truth. Even if they ignore such questions until death comes for them or turn away from all reminders of truth, they remain nothing more than created and feeble servants who will die one day and be brought to His presence for judgment.

These people often are not even aware of Darwinism's influence on their lives. Worse, great number of them believe that Darwinism is a subject matter of biology and therefore none of their concern. Even if they are not aware of the theory of evolution's influence, their continued exposure to it deeply affects their worldview.

People who consider themselves to be highly evolved animals reflect their corrupted worldview in their behavior and decision-making: They are selfish, greedy, ruthless, and cruel, and oblivious of the need to practice compassion, mercy, devotion, and modesty. This attitude naturally gives rise to social disorder and causes social as well as moral collapse.

Another undesirable side effect is the ensuing belief that one's personal self-interest is the only thing that matters. Within such societies, altruism, love, respect, and compassion have all been forgotten. Such conditions push people into loneliness and despair. Out of these conditions come stress, discontent, unhappiness, and worry, all of which make many people's lives living nightmares. The resulting spiritual void drives some people to alcohol, drugs, gambling, suicide, or other disastrous courses.

Decadence continues to spread rapidly in societies whose people have abandoned spiritual values. The rising levels of homosexuality and prostitution, sexual crimes, rape, and sexually transmitted disease are important indicators of decadence. Prostitution destroys families and people's self-respect. Homosexuality and other sexual practices that all divinely revealed Books have condemned are now considered normal in many parts of the world, and people who oppose such immorality are accused of being out of date. It is certainly no sign of progress that homosexuals can get married officially in some countries, coordinate their efforts at the international level, and display aggressive behavior against religious morality.

Decadence is also widespread in the political realm. The twentieth century was characterized by the most horrific and destructive wars in human history. Countless people were killed, injured, or disabled in terrorist or anarchist attacks. Such cruelty is perpetrated by anti-religion ideologies (e.g., communism, fascism, and racism), all of which are offshoots of Darwinism. Regional wars, conflicts, and bloody acts of terror continue to erupt in many parts of the world.

At present, vast numbers of people live in destitution and hardship. Statistics reveal that famine, destitution, and the gap in wealth distribution have reached alarming levels. These negative developments are the natural consequences of a world order based on selfishness, self-interest, and other materialistic values.

Social degradation is also reflected in the increasing number of crimes committed. Throughout the world, illegal activities are increasing and the scope of criminal activities continues to expand. These are the natural consequences of abandoning spiritual and moral values. People far from religious morality consider all types of crimes (e.g., theft, fraud, robbery, and blackmail) to be normal and do not believe that such practices can ever be eradicated.

This gloomy picture is the result of the increasing penetration of materialist philosophies over the past two centuries. Beginning in Europe, it has now spread around the world. This product of rejecting belief in God, which features such lies as you are not answerable or you are highly evolved animals that struggle for survival in the jungle, has proven to be remarkably resilient.

Two Choices

Having presented and explained the reasons for humanity's current deplorable state, we now must ask the following question: What is the best and most appropriate thing to do about the prevailing conditions?

For anyone who sees the destructiveness of immorality, injustice and degeneration, there are two options: either ignore it or mobilize to fight it. Those who choose the first option remain passive and uninterested in what is happening around them. They fool themselves by asking rhetorically: Am I going to save the world? or What could I do, anyway? In conversations, they express their sorrow over the sad state of affairs and donate some time or money to various charities, but make no effort to eradicate these evils. Such people should remember that those who remain silent in the face of suffering, hardship, and evil, or who do not do their utmost to combat them, share in the responsibility for their continued existence.

The second option, mobilizing all means in an ideological struggle to save the world from its present condition, is the one that all sincere believers choose. They never give up the struggle and continue to contribute as best they can. Sincere, reasonable, conscientious, and responsible people must choose this second option. Since the evil and immoral tyrants present a united front against religious morality, sincere People of the Book and sincere Muslims must unite against this alliance of evil, pool all of their mental and material resources, and then fight this ideological war together. All sincere Jews, Christians, and Muslims are responsible for doing their utmost in this regard. By embarking on this path, they ensure the gradual emergence of honest, respectful, loving, accepting, sensitive, and virtuous people who will live together in an environment of peace, tranquility, security, happiness, and prosperity.

In the present environment of hardship and troubles, sincere Jews, Christians, and Muslims must be even more accepting, conciliatory, complementary, and respectful of each other. They should not forget that unity, togetherness, and cooperation bring success, and that dispute, argument, and conflict bring nothing but weakness. The current situation demands the immediate formation of such an alliance. Besides the ideological warfare against the enemies of religious morality, all believers must prepare for the most celebrated era in human history: the second coming of Jesus (pbuh).