Page 82 - The Religion Of The Ignorant

THE RELIGION OF THE IGNORANT

another in good actions, calling out to Us in yearning and in awe,
and humbling themselves to Us" (Surat al-Anbiya', 90). In Surat al-
Muminun, believers are described as "those who stand in reverent
awe of their Lord" (Surat al-Muminun, 57). In other verses, respect
is employed as a component of the sincere awe felt towards Allah.
The source of believers' feelings of respect, therefore, is the re-
spect they feel for Allah. Respect shown for other human beings is a
reflection of that fundamental respect. Since believers feel respect
for Allah, they respect everyone who obeys Him and seeks to earn
His approval—in other words, all believers. A believer never feels
sincere respect for those who are unworthy of it—for those who
deny Allah, who behave in a manner that contravenes His approval
and who refuse to recognize Him. He treats them gently and speaks
the best of words, but it is never possible for him to feel an inner re-
spect for them.
The conception of respect in Ignorantism is of course totally dif-
ferent from the true concept of respect described in the Qur'an. The
respect in believers, as already stated, is a genuine and sincere one
stemming from respect for Allah. In the Religion of the Ignorant, on
the other hand, it manifests itself in hypocritical forms of behavior
founded on superficial models and formalistic relationships of mu-
tual interest.
According to Ignorantism, showing respect implies courteous
behavior and adopting regular models of speech. Respect is re-
garded as an attitude that helps a person obtain a place in society,
whose duration and form are always changing according to the cir-
cumstances and person involved.
Since the philosophy of the Religion of the Ignorant is based
upon hypocrisy and falsehood, respect is shown under compulsion
and unwillingly. People merely endure the times when they are

80