Muslim Brotherhood & Women’s Rights (3)

In this section, we present the fatwas of the Brotherhood and their philosophy on several aspects related to women and their rights.

Third: Physical & Psychological Health:

Women are not an outlet of giving birth to children. In fact, women’s physical and psychological health requires birth control so that she would preserve her physical and moral entity on the one hand, and cope with the economic pressures and living burdens, on the other. Islam seeks the happiness of its followers, and cannot be the stumbling block to their interests. It seeks to strike balance and stability between their temporal and spiritual needs.
Q: Does family planning contradict with Islamic teachings? Is it defiance to the will of God, the Creator?
Is it possible to boast about large numbers of Muslims who are ignoramus, starving, sick and unproductive, or should we take pride in the quality rather than the quantity?

Finally, is it true that the call for birth control is a grand, global conspiracy concocted by forces of evil?
In issue No. 14, released in July 1977, a question about birth control was asked; and the answer comes as the best expression of the Brotherhood’s position on the issue.

“Birth control is one of the new innovations that some nations have resorted to and seen it as a solution for the surge of low living standards facing their respective societies. From an Islamic perspective, the texts of the Quran and and Sunnah clearly speak of the prohibition of this practice in multiple places. In the Quran: “And there is no creature that moves in the earth but it is for Allah to provide it with sustenance. Moreover, He knows its lodging and its home.

All this is recorded in a clear Book.” This verse guarantees sustenance for all sentient beings, be they human beings or otherwise.

The Holy Quran criminalizes the act of ‘filicide ’, that is, the killing of children for fear of poverty in two places; the first verse is: [… and that you kill not your children for fear of poverty — it is we who provide for you and for them….]. The second verse reads: [… and that you kill not your children for fear of poverty, it is We Who provide for you and for them.] In addition to another verse that explained that filicide is inspired by the devil: God says: [And in like manner have their associate-gods made the killing of their children appear beautiful to many of the idolaters that they may ruin them and cause them confusion in their religion.]
The Quran made it clear that God has made the earth, what has been stored in it and what is being sent down from heaven to it, as a permanent shelter and adequate provision for needs of all its inhabitants. The Qur’an reads: “Have We not made the earth a container so as to hold the living and the dead “.

In the Hadith anthology, many narrations spell out the prohibition of this practice. One of the companions once asked the Prophet (Peace be upon him) saying: “I asked the Prophet, “What is the greatest sin in the Sight of God?” He said, “That you set up a rival unto Allah though He alone created you.” I said, “That is indeed a great sin.” Then asked, “What is next?” He said, “To kill your son lest he should share your food with you.”

The Mufti then continues: “What we are witnessing nowadays of the difficulty of raising and educating children is due to the misgovernance of some incumbent regimes. Those regimes would better to rectify their shortcomings before they blame it on procreation.” He then wonders: “Have we utilized all our resources, and sapped all our energies, then found no recourse but to reduce reproduction?” Much of our land is still barren; much of our wealth is being wasted in frivolities; and much of our human energy has gone awry, in the wrong directions. We have to consider such crises. Have we forgotten that many Egyptians are scattered throughout Arab countries providing them with the best services in various fields? They yield immense revenues to their homeland. Had been we controlled birth a long time ago, Egypt would have never been able to provide its neighbors with that excellent manpower of educated and professional cadres? ”

Critique:
Is there a conflict between the divine providence and the pursuit of creatures to manage their affairs according to what they have of available resources and capabilities? Indeed, this is related to the sound understanding of the idea of “trust in God” instead of full dependency on Him. There is no contradiction between reposing trust in God and seeking family planning. It is as such a kind of flawed reasoning to speak of ‘filicide’ in the context of modern family planning. The analogy is impossible and implausible. However, it allows the Brotherhood to prove that the Quran forbids family planning, while, in fact, it forbids the wrongful killing of children without just cause.
Family planning is by no means a murder of a living human being. It is a legitimatized, preventive and pre-emptive measure that protects the unexpected. The sustainable development process, whatever its successes are, cannot accommodate the population growth at the collective level. Similarly, income increase will not achieve optimal family prosperity at the individual level, as expenses outweigh revenues. So, what then make family planning, individually and socially, a bad idea?
As for Egyptians in Arab countries and elsewhere, it is a thin and flimsy argument to make. The future practical outlook confirms that the demand of the Arab labor market to Egyptians will be declining in the foreseeable future. Only a few decades from now, very small numbers of Egyptians will be working abroad. How are we going to adopt a policy that essentially encourages uncalculated population growth underpinned on short-lived economic factor?
The Brotherhood’s rejection of family planning does not stop at this point. In issue No. 64, released August 1981, Alaa Ahmad from Manzala / Dakahkya asks:
“There has been a difference of opinion among us over the issue of family planning. Some of us allow it, while others disallow it, what do you think?”
Al-Dawah Magazine answers as follows:
Al-Dawah Magazine has previously tackled this subject [i.e. family planning] on many occasions, revealed all its aspects and exposed ulterior motives behind it. I just confirm what we have repeatedly said that the call for ‘birth control’ or ‘family planning’ is suspicious and malicious call. We must expose the moving spirit behind it since we are watching the whole world cares for encouraging procreation and allocate thousands of prizes for this purpose. Likewise, many heads of churches and monasteries forbid the family planning, and recommend unrestricted procreation of children. Is the end objective to reduce the numbers of Muslims in preparation for a racial cleansing? This intention must be exposed before people. Those testifying that there is no God but Allah are the most worthy people on earth of care and attention, because without them all creatures on the earth would have never been created,” Say to the disbelievers: ‘But for your prayer to Him my Lord would not care for you. You have indeed rejected the truth, and the punishment of your rejection will now cleave to you.’”
To put this matter into its right perspective, Islam sees ‘family planning’ through the prism of ‘urgent necessity’. If pregnancy is harmful to the wife, such as being seriously ill or suffering from obstructed labor , in such cases birth control is allowed through coitus interruptus. This is contingent upon the recommendation and counsel of a reliable, competent Muslim doctors for the Juristial maxim or Islam’s “Law of Necessity” states that: “Necessity Removes Restriction”. However, except for such necessities, the call for ‘family planning’ is a corrupt call that a Muslim should never listen to.
In reality, family planning is an alien, ‘imported trend’, and its ulterior motives are crusade-linked, besides it is malicious and suspicious, to say the least.”

Critique:
As we can see, the whole matter is a complete grand conspiracy whose two main goals, in the Brotherhood’s view, are 1) to undermine the Islamic world in terms of its numbers, 2) to eliminate it completely.
In fact, the Brotherhood fail to see that any nation’s strength is not measured against how many people it has or how much land it occupies; but rather, there are other standards that they are unaware or heedless of. In fact, the Islamic community suffers from a crisis related to the number, size and type of its material and scientific production, the nature of its culture and the conduct, as well as the mode of its political and economic systems.
The only urgent necessity for contraception does not address the impact of economic conditions, as if Muslim women suffering from a disease are actually required to give birth every year without considering the ability of her family supporting and sustaining her in various aspects of living, such as food, housing, clothing, education, medicine and care.

Such pedantry prevents the Brotherhood from looking around and pondering over the circumstances and requirement of the modern time. They only choose to stick to false notions of conspiracies and plots that are deliberately contrived by enemies of Islam!