The Concept of Politics in Semitic Religions (A Brief Outlook of the Holy Scriptures)

Abstract

This article focuses on introducing the Holy Scriptures as evidence of the political system in religion and argues that politics cannot be separated from religion, nor can the interference of religion in politics be stopped. However, in the present age, religion may be misused for personal interests—a matter of serious concern. The evolutionary theory of government holds that government emerged naturally as an association of families, clans, and tribes, responsible for creating and enforcing the rules of a society. The great prophets were known to have been shepherds at some stage in their lives—a simile is drawn from this fact, wherein shepherding served as a training process to enable the prophets to lead people. Almighty Allah sent His messengers to the people of different regions in different eras with teachings through revelation. Because human intellect is limited, people need a supreme source to distinguish right from wrong, and that source is revelation. As the world suffers the consequences of poor leadership, there is something about power that affects the human condition unlike anything else. We clearly live in a time when the world is demanding better leadership, whether one looks to the East or the West. Due to the poor performance of political leaders, people seem to make different decisions; they often prefer a secular system of government, but in practice such a system creates many defects. In this regard, we need to study religion from every aspect.

Keywords: Relation of Politics with Religion, State, Holy Scriptures, Law and Order