WHY ISLAM IS STRONG BUT MUSLIMS ARE WEAK – A QURANIC REMEDY

 

I attended a seminar on Islam and Scholarship some time ago. At one point, the speaker mentioned Shia Muslims. The man sitting behind me immediately whispered harshly: “Shia lak’nat’tul Allah” — “the Shias, may Allah curse them.”

Here was someone who looked decent, educated, and respectable. Yet, his spontaneous reaction to a fellow Muslim from another school of thought was one of hate, not peace. If this is how he reacts to his own brother in faith, how will he see Christians, Hindus, or Buddhists? What will his idea of justice look like if he ever has to decide over others?

This, in a nutshell, is why Islam is strong but Muslims are weak.

Islam is strong because its message is universal, inclusive, and just. Muslims are weak because we have allowed ourselves to become narrow, exclusive, and divided. Islam gives us the right framework. We, however, have set our default settings elsewhere.

Default Settings and Frameworks

Spontaneous reactions say a lot. They are windows into our hearts. They reveal how our minds are wired. They show the habits we have repeated for years until they have hardened into what I call our “default settings.”

But default settings do not appear overnight. They come from a framework. Our worldview, the spectacles we use to see life, the beliefs we hold as truth. With time and repetition, these beliefs form habits. Habits then become our instincts.

The Qur’an warns us of this danger. “No! Rather, their hearts have been rusted by what they used to earn” [83:14]. Repeated wrong actions cover the heart until it can no longer see clearly. Elsewhere Allah says, “When they deviated, Allah caused their hearts to deviate. And Allah does not guide the defiantly disobedient people” [61:5]. Habitual deviation reshapes the heart’s default setting away from guidance.

Islam is strong because its framework is clear: unity, justice, inclusivity. Muslims are weak because our frameworks have shifted. Instead of drawing from the Qur’an, many of us draw from cultural bias, inherited prejudice, or sectarian rivalry. And so when the moment comes, when we react without thinking, our responses reveal weakness, not strength.

If Muslims are serious about becoming strong again, we must start here: reframe our worldview, and reset our default settings.

Approach and Limitations

Guide us to the straight way [Qur’an 1:6].

The way forward is not complicated.

First, we must shift our worldview of God, religion, and the hereafter. From exclusive to inclusive.

Second, we must admit that the weakness is not only about Muslims versus others. Sometimes it is Muslim versus Muslim. Sectarian hostility is often sharper than interfaith conflict.

Third, because this is addressed to Muslims, my arguments must rest on the Qur’an. A Muslim is answerable to the Qur’an [6:19; 16:64; 7:158; 5:44]. It is in the Qur’an that we will find the remedy.

Fourth, change is like in business and organizations. Big speeches don’t change people. Small, consistent acts do. If you buy into the idea, and you practice it in your family and circle of influence, change has already begun.

Finally, this is only a short article. It cannot cover everything about resistance, processes, or leadership. But it can serve as a starting point — a trigger.

The Core Message

Had Allah willed, He would have made you one community. But [He willed otherwise] to test you in what He has given you. So compete with one another in good works. To Allah you will all return, and He will inform you about that over which you differed. [Qur’an 5:48].

Islam is strong because it does not monopolize God. It opens its arms to all who seek Him sincerely.

Verily, this community of yours is one single community, since I am the Sustainer of you all. Worship, then, Me alone! But men have torn their unity wide asunder… [Qur’an 21:92–94].

Muslims are weak because we try to monopolize God. We reduce salvation to group membership. We curse one another – even among Muslims. We draw lines. We harden our hearts.

The Qur’an is clear:

• Righteousness, not labels, is the criteria [2:177].
• Faith and deeds, not affiliation, determine reward [22:67; 7:26].
• Unity under God, not monopoly over Him, is the essence of religion.

The Qur’anic Case for Strength

Mawlana Abul Kalam Azad once wrote:

“The unity of religion forms the primary basis of the Qur’anic call. Everything else rests on it. Yet no truth has been more sidelined than this.”

Islam is strong because the Qur’an insists that messengers were sent to every people [40:78]. Muslims are weak because we act as if Islam began with the Arabs. Islam’s history is world history, not Arab history.

Islam is strong because the Qur’an commands us to accept all messengers equally [4:150–153]. Muslims are weak because we pick and choose, cursing even other Muslims.

Islam is strong because Prophet Muhammad ﷺ was sent as the seal, not the founder [33:40]. Muslims are weak when we forget this, reducing Islam into an ethnic inheritance.

Islam is strong because Allah Himself named us “Muslims” long before Muhammad  [22:78]. Muslims are weak when we place more importance on sectarian labels — Sunni, Shia, Salafi, Sufi, etc — over the name Allah gave us.

Islam is strong because it protects all houses of worship where His name is remembered [22:40]. Muslims are weak when we act as if only our own houses of worship are valid.

Islam is strong because it declares salvation for any who believe in God, the Last Day, and do good [2:62; 5:69]. And only Allah is the Master of the Day of Judgement [1:4]. Muslims are weak when we judge others instead of leaving judgement to Allah.

The Effects of Weak Frameworks

The signs of our weakness are everywhere.

• Sadaqat is denied to non-Muslims even though the Qur’an allows it [9:60].
• Sympathy is measured by community instead of humanity.
• Cursing fellow Muslims from a different school of thought has become second nature.

This is what happens when Muslims abandon the strength of Islam — which is simply to follow the Prophet, who believes in Allah and His words:

“Say, [O Muhammad], ‘O mankind, indeed I am the Messenger of Allah to you all, to Him belongs the dominion of the heavens and the earth. There is no god except Him; He gives life and causes death.’ So believe in Allah and His Messenger, the unlettered Prophet who believes in Allah and His words, and follow him that you may be guided and successful.” [Qur’an 7:158].

The Remedy: Four Steps plus One

If we want to reset our default settings and become strong again, we must follow the path the Qur’an lays before us. I call it the Four Steps plus One.

1. Knowledge
   Ignorance weakens. Knowledge strengthens. Read. Learn. Understand your own tradition and others. Islam began with Iqra’ — Read in the name of your Lord who created [96:1].
2. Attitude
   Weak Muslims are tossed around by events. Strong Muslims anchor themselves in justice and confidence.

“So do not lose heart, nor fall into despair — for you will be superior if you are true believers.” [3:139].

3. Individual Behavior
   Knowledge and good intentions are not enough. Weak Muslims stop at theory. Strong Muslims act. They form habits. They make inclusivity instinctive.

“And say, ‘Do [as you will], for Allah will see your deeds, and [so will] His Messenger and the believers. And you will be returned to the Knower of the unseen and the witnessed, and He will inform you of what you used to do.’” [9:105].

4. Group Behavior
   Groups change when individuals change. Weak groups are only collections of weak individuals.

“Let there arise from among you a community inviting to all that is good, enjoining what is right and forbidding what is wrong, and it is they who will be successful.” [3:104].

Plus One: Awareness
Everything begins with awareness. It sparks knowledge, reshapes attitudes, and transforms behavior. Without awareness, we stay stagnant. With awareness, we awaken.

“God does not change the condition of a people until they change what is in themselves.” [13:11].

Conclusion

“Unto every community We have appointed [different] ways of worship… Do not let this draw you into disputes. Call them all to your Sustainer: for you are indeed on the right way.” [22:67].

Islam is strong. It is inclusive, just, and universal. Muslims are weak because we try to monopolize God, divide ourselves, and ignore the Qur’an’s vision.

The Qur’anic remedy is clear:

• Stop monopolizing God.
• Stop fighting over labels.
• Reset our frameworks towards inclusivity.
• Rewire our default settings through knowledge, attitude, behavior, and awareness.

Change begins with us. Strength begins with us. Not in slogans but in small, instinctive reactions of daily life. When justice and inclusivity become our default, Muslims will again reflect the strength of Islam.

“O you who believe! Be steadfast in upholding equity, bearing witness to truth — even against yourselves or your kin. Do not let hatred lead you astray.” [4:135].

And let us remember:

“Indeed, those who have divided their religion and become sects — you, [O Muhammad], are not associated with them in anything. Their affair is only left to Allah; then He will inform them about what they used to do.” [6:159].

Islam is strong. Muslims can be strong again. The Qur’an is the remedy.

Anas Zubedy

Kuala Lumpur