Page 69 - Loyalty Described in the Qur'an

The Faithfulness of Believers
This is the reason why every group that wants to do harm to a
country attacks first the state and its authority. Throughout history,
separatist organizations and individuals who have felt dissatisfied
with the existing authority in a particular state, have engaged in vari-

ous activities designed to diminish or destroy its power.
These individuals and groups have disapproved of the interven-
tion of the state and its operations in various spheres. But, when we ex-
amine their ideologies, we find that they all share a certain point in
common: they want to destroy religion and the true morality it fosters.
These opponents of the state work to destroy the unity of its structure,
and to put in its place a system shaped by their own anti-religious ide-

ology. And, because they have no religion, they resort to belligerence
and violence in the attempt to attain their goals. Their goal is the de-
struction of the peace and order of the country. Surely, this condition
poses a danger and a threat, not only to the state but also to its citizens.
Therefore, in order to prevent the danger, to remove it and maintain
peace in a country, every individual must be a part of the state, and re-
spect it and obey it.
Outside of that though, there is another point we must consider
seriously. Obedience to the state is dependent on the way it enforces

morality. If a state regards profiteering, insubordination, conflict and
other such forms of corruption in public life as legitimate, and rejects
mutual respect, compassion, self-sacrifice, justice, tolerance and other
such virtues, it is inconceivable that its members should feel any sense
of belonging to that state. Therefore, the basis of this sense of belonging
lies in proper morality. Those who practice the moral teachings of the
Qur'an are aware of this truth. They know that devotion to Islamic val-

ues, and living according to the moral teaching of the Qur'an, will

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