By : Mohammad Ulil Rosyad – Inkafa Gresik
Information technology has undergone a rapid development in the past several years. Technology has penetrated into our everyday lives, whereby people can pay bills, shop, and purchase groceries with only one click. This development is incredibly beneficial and allows people to save considerable time. The emergence of technology has led to a growth of approaches that are designed to persuade or motivate people to change their thinking, behaviour and attitudes. In recent years, media technologies are performing substantial roles in facilitating the sending of persuasive messages to donate, purchase, elect, etc. Technology has developed into an effective tool by enabling persuasive methods to be interactive instead of one-way. Technology can modify and adjust the pattern of interaction depending on the features or activities of the persuaded party, such as user. But some problems happen surround us.[1]
The ability of humans to “create” new things that only God could do previously presents a problem to religion. The successful cloning of a number of animals has been realized. And in the coming years, the outcomes will be even better. While some scientists may still see man’s creation as an untouched area, others have a tendency for breaking the law. It could be for personal popularity or as part of a corporation or country’s competition. If one side succeeds in producing a superhuman that makes him superior, the other will compete to direct their resources on collecting data in order to reach perfection. Is there a limit at which scientists can build something that is no longer considered human?
Individuals, organizations, and even governments compete for the latest inventions in order to achieve high performance. Corporations are established with the goal of producing money. This causes the executives to implement numerous innovations, which are not always in harmony with religion or social norms. The people elect the country’s leaders to fight for the best interests of the nation. Religion can serve as a guide in setting the state’s purposes, but these purposes may be quite materialistic in meaning. Religious ideals do not become the norm when the purpose is materialism.
In Muslim countries, there are a variety of ways. First, there’s the secularist approach to the development of the West. However, these efforts were unsuccessful. Turkey is a clear example.[2] Some who attempted to utilize the same formula failed due to strong opposition from groups that opposed the separation of religion and the public sphere.
Other groups, in addition to the secularization method, offer an alternative by attempting to imitate the salafusalih, or the first generation of Muslims who have demonstrated to be capable of restoring Islam to its glory. They attempt to perform numerous examples of the Prophet’s and his companions’ behavior based on the history of hadith or atsar. But do this can overcome the progress of science and technology? It looks that such a strategy is likewise unsuccessful. It appears that a different strategy is required, such as designating a chunk as a religious zone and another as a scientific space.[3]
Technology, like an operational knife, can be used to cut onions for delicious fried rice meals or to kill people and cause environmental destruction. Nuclear bombs can immediately demolish Hiroshima and Nagasaki as a result of technology, but nuclear power plants (Nuclear Power Plants) become a source of electricity that comes from nuclear power, allowing lights to be turned on and sent to remote locations.
In conclusion, technology can be good and bad depending on the user. Let us use technology to make the world a better place by making it easier to carry out the Islamic law (Shari’a). Compass phones make finding the Qibla direction, Smart Prayer Mats assist generations of youngsters learn prayers correctly, and the Braille Quran helps blind muslims in memorizing the Quran. There are numerous other benefits of technology for Islamic law. As a result, stop evaluating technology negatively and start appreciating and working with the technology that Allah swt has provided.
[1] Bawazir, Mohammed Abdullah, Murni Mahmud, and Nurul Nuha Abdul Molok. “Persuasive technology from Islamic perspective.” (2018 International Conference on Information and
Communication Technology for the Muslim World (ICT4M). IEEE, 2018),260
[2] Niyazi Berkes, The Development of Secularism in Turkey (New York: Routledge, 1998).
On October 29, 1923, the Islamic World attained its peak in terms of understanding secularism. When Mustafa Kemal Ataturk became President of Turkey, he began a mission to secularize the country. This trend was established by Ataturk, who placed his government in charge of all religious concerns, including Islamic education. Then, in 1924, he ordered the army and civilians to stop wearing the traditional Turkish hat, the fez, and instead wear Western-style headwear. A rule prohibiting the wearing of fez was implemented shortly after, mandating all Turkish males to wear Western-style caps. On February 17, 1926, shari’ah law was replaced by Swiss law that was verbatim translated.
[3] Ahmad Mukafi Niam, “Ketika Agama Menghadapi Tantangan Sains dan Teknologi” https://www.nu.or.id/post/read/110473/ketika-agama-menghadapi-tantangan-sains-dan-teknologi/1 September 2019, Acssesed at 19-October-2021
