Sunday 20th July 2008, saw the fourth annual seminar of the Islamic Shari'a Council focusing on "shari'a ‘a way of life'".

A much debated topic in the British judicial system and with subsequent media hype of a Shari'a Britain, the Shari'a council invited noted guest speakers to deliberate over Shari'a as a way of life for British Muslims and the positive impact embedding elements of Shari'a could have on a secular legal system.

Dispelling myths, unfounded doubts and suspicions which have resulted from a lack of information, respected Muslim, Christian, and Jewish Speakers, delivered a seminar from their individual perspectives providing a balanced context of religion as a way of life, highlighting the positive and constructive role of Shari'a in the family and social life of Muslims living in this multicultural and multi faith society that is known otherwise as ‘good ol' blighty', Britain.

The morning began with an introduction to the Shari'a delivered by a prominent, well known and well respected pillar of the Muslim community, Dr Suhaib Hasan.

Dr Suhaib Hasan is the secretary of the Islamic Shari'a Council, UK and Eire since 1988. From 1996 to date he has been an active member of The European Council of Research and Fatwa, Dublin, Ireland. He also chairs the Masjid & Madrassa Al-Tawhid Trust in Leyton, London, and is a member of Assembly of Muslim Jurists in the USA.

Dr Suhaib opened his presentation with an introduction to the linguistic definition of the term shari'a; defining the root of shari'a as shir'a' which is the source of water in the land. Thus shari'a stands as a source of life spiritually for human souls, analogically as water is a life source for every living organism in this planet, for a Muslim this means the way they should live their life in this world embedding shari'a within.

Shari'a constitutes of three main aspects of life:
Faith and beliefs
Ethics and morality
Sayings and deeds of a person

With a primary focus on the third main aspect, sayings and deeds of a person, Dr Hasan dispelled myths aligning to a Muslim's accountability according to their deeds, with an emphasis on the penal code system as in accordance to the shari'a. Dr Hasan addressed the wide misunderstanding of the penal code and highlighted and stressed the importance for the conditions necessary for the law to be implemented.

Relating to Islamic history and the Islamic methodology of learning and understanding, Dr Hasan quoted the following historic event of the second Caliph Umar bin Khattab, when during the year of the famine the Caliph suspended the punishment of theft by saying ‘as long as I cannot provide food to the hungry, how could I cut their hands if they steal out of hunger' this reiterates an important lesson emphasising that even an Islamic state cannot implement certain harsh punitive methods, except after eradicating all the means which lead to the crime.

Dr Hasan stated "the penal code comes under the General Law, only the state is allowed to implement it. For an Islamic state it is a duty and an obligation. However others could benefit from it if they find it to be useful and constructive, with a great reminder that throughout the ages, people have benefited from one another in all fields of life.

A widely misunderstood and media favourite controversial issue surrounding equality of Muslim women was addressed with the following quote from the Qur'aan echoing the equality between a man and a woman in the sight of Allaah:

"whoever works righteousness, a man or woman, and has faith, verily, to him will We give a new life, a life that is good and pure and We will bestow on such their reward according to the best of their actions" [16:97]

The difference of privileges in some cases between a ruler and the subject, between a man and a woman is due to the difference in duties and responsibilities, far from the misunderstood notion of a lesser being, rather the woman's status in Islam is revered.

In summation shari'a unequivocally stands good for all times and ages as it has been made perfect by Allah with no scope of a change or abrogation at all, shari'a covers all aspects of a Muslims life, from the birth of a child till the death of that person, he is guided by shari'a.

The second highly respected presenter of the day, Ahmad Thomson, a Barrister specialising in Charities, Employment, Discrimination and Islamic law, is also head of Wynne Chambers and deputy chairman of the association of Muslim Lawyers (UK), delivered a thought provoking presentation on how some elements of shari'a can be accommodated in the British legal system.

Ahmad Thomson highlighted society's transition in the last one hundred years to beyond recognition within the judicial system, from a religious to secular democratic state, allying the imposing image of the bank in replacement of the cathedral in the city, similarly emphasising the parallel within the Muslim world, from a political realm to an economic realm, thus creating a ‘modernised' state.

Mr. Thomson recognised that although it is impossible to codify Islam as it is to codify life itself, shari'a nevertheless provides the reader with a reliable checklist, providing invaluable guidance through the fundamental milestones of life from birth to death and beyond.

Touching upon 2008 as a historic year, Mr. Thomson duly referred to the admirable comments made by two dignitaries, the Archbishop of Canterbury and the Lord Chief Justice of England and Wales publicly recognising that Muslim Personal Law has a place in English Law and not as a parallel Shari'a jurisdiction in competition with the English Legal System, neither as complete subversion of the former with the latter, rather, the acceptance of shari'a as a supplementary role.

Mr. Thomson provided delegates with a well written, conscience arousing perspective, aptly titled ‘thinking outside the Box: the shari'a of Islam', in this paper he highlights the necessity as well as the sanctity of the rule of law, the acknowledgment of progress and the future steps to further accommodate within the British Judicial system elements that are fundamental to the way of life for a Muslim, by way of their secular right.

In line with their interfaith co-operative working policies the ISC invited notable speakers of Judaic and Christian faith to comment on the embedment of religious law within British law.

First to speak was Father John Conneely, JCL, who is the Judicial Vicar for the Archdiocese of Westminster and is a past president of the Canon Law Society of Great Britain and Ireland. Father Conneely began by stating that although described as a Christian he is also a Catholic and therefore the views that he presents are those of a Catholic and would not necessarily be shared by other Christians.

Fr. Conneely continued by introducing the distinguishing feature of Catholicism from Christian churches as the Papacy, which defines the understanding of and approach to the bible and implementation of such by Catholic constituents.

Fr. Conneely highlighted that a Catholic turns to the church primarily for instruction in matters of faith and morals as it is the interpreter not only of scripture, but of tradition as well. He stated that the laws required of the Catholic to observe can of divine or natural origin or they may be Church laws made through authority given to St Peter and his successors. In conclusion of his presentation he used the great words of St Thomas More "that we are the Crown's good servants, but God's first".

Following Fr. Conneely's presentation, respected presenter Geoffrey Alderman, Dlitt MA Dphil (Oxon), FRHistS, FRSA, FICPD, MCQI, MCMI, Michael Gross Professor of Politics and Contemporary History University of Buckingham delivered an inspiring speech regarding Judaic law and its successful incorporation within the English Legal System.

Mr. Alderman, commenced with a chronological history of the establishment of Jewish self governing communities within the UK from the late 17th century. Matters of personal status, birth, marriage, divorce were entirely determined by them, as were other important elements of their way of living.

Mr. Alderman highlighted how the self governing communities had a profound effect on the British legal system, so much so that many features apparent in British Law today are aligned to those of Judaic law. The accommodation of Judaic law is apparent in many laws, notably the Sunday trading act 1936. When this act was passed Jews conscientiously objected on religious grounds to trading on the Jewish Sabbath, Saturday, were permitted to trade on Sunday, even in non-exempted goods. Mr. Alderman provided several examples of the implementation of the laws of another religion in this predominantly Christian country. Emphasising that Jewish Religious courts are used day- in, day-out for the settlement of financial and commercial disputes and not only by the Jews.

In closing of his speech Mr. Alderman echoed the views of the Archbishop of Canterbury in stating that the law should be a little more accommodating towards British Muslims, as it has been towards the British Jews, he declared this to be a worthy aspiration in deserve of our support which certainly has his support.

As the day progressed another controversial and much media hyped topic of interest, polygamy, was dialogued by notable and respected Sheikh Abu Sayeed.

From 1978 to 1990 Sheikh Abu Sayeed served as the chief Imam and Khatib at East London Mosque. He was also Principal of Islamic College London up till 1997. He has been Muslim chaplain in hospitals and is currently the President of the Islamic Shari'a Council, UK and Eire since 1997.

Sheikh Abu Sayeed dispelled myths that Polygamy was restricted to Muslims and historically only practised by Muslims, he highlighted that polygamy existed in all religions, Hindus, Jews, Christians and many others, and irrespective of its legalisation, still exists across the world today. He duly highlighted that albeit the woman is perceived to be the burdened soul, this is far from actuality, as in many instances the woman is the instigator to her husband taking more wives. This said, polygamy is not a practise that is enforced upon Muslims; rather it is a choice that is undertaken by those willing to bear the great responsibility that it brings forthwith. Abu Sayeed highlighted that Polygamy is strictly regulated and infinitely less degrading to women than promiscuous polyandry which is the curse of the western cities and to great extent polygamy saves the innocent women from being thrown to the vultures and is in fact a remedy not a malady.

In conclusion and appeal of his thought provoking presentation Abu Sayeed appealed to the thoughtful individuals in this society and the legislators and intelligentsia in particular, to give the matter a serious thought and to reflect upon the topic positively to see if such law could be taken as a way forward to deal with the social ills of society today. In short advocating and emphasising the need for an institution of marriage to rid society of social ills prevalent today.

The final keynote presenter for the day was the respected and notable Sheikh Haithum al-Haddad. He is currently pursuing his PhD at the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS) London. His PhD Thesis is on ‘Fiqh of the Muslim Minority in the UK'. He is the director of the Muslim Research and Development Foundation, London and also member of many Islamic organisations including the Islamic Shari'a Council, UK.

Sheikh Haithum primarily focused on the financial dealings of a Muslim, with emphasis on Islamic mortgages in the UK. He highlighted the preventative and reactive measures that are applied within shari'a in dealing with financial activities. Which include, as a reactive measure, for example, the prohibition of usury, which he rightly emphasised as the source of all debt, and the preventative/proactive measures of the obligation of zakat, an annual 2.5% tax payable by all Muslims who fulfil the pre-requisites and the encouragement of charity.

Sheikh Haithum presented the three main models of Islamic mortgages that are currently available in the UK, aligning them to Shari'a principles, highlighting that these models in the wider economic context are not shari'a compliant, however highlighted that shari'a compliancy concerns raised can be addressed provided that interest-based institutions be willing to become human(Islamic) based institutions.

In addition to our keynote speakers, were the following respected colleagues, Caroline Bates discussing ‘Religion and belief- best left unregulated' raising thought rendering issues around the implementation of religious law in a secular state and the consequences that may arise, she also posed thought provoking questions to those that seek to change the law, as to the responsibility and accountability that would inevitably result with a change in legislation. Other commentators and respected speakers include Dr. Abdul Aziz Sajid and Dr. Khurram Bashir.

In conclusion of a media controversial, well debated and thought provoking subject, arises the need for a wider acknowledgement of shari'a in a secular state that is constituted of a notably large community of British Muslims in what is a Multi racial, multi faith and multi cultural society that is Britain. As eloquently put by Ahmad Thomson, ‘As far as Muslims living in the UK today are concerned, it is their secular legal right to be able to follow the way of Islam provided this does not interfere with the interests of public safety, the protection of public order, health or morals and the rights and the freedoms of others. The government of the day is under a legal duty to secure this right and to provide a remedy if this right is violated, while the courts of the land must have particular regard to the importance of this right in determining any question arising under the Human Rights Act 1998 which might affect the exercise by a religious organisation (itself or its members collectively) of this right.'