Islam

The Arab-Islamic culture has two main characteristics: constancy with regard to the conclusive sources and all the beliefs, legislations, values and programs which these sources brought along with them, and change with regard to the Moslems' judgements and their innovations, which can be right or wrong, hence the difference in opinion. The conclusive aspect in the Arab-Islamic culture shares the same characteristics with Islam as a religion and as a program of life. These characteristics are: universality, inclusiveness, moderation, realism, objectivity, and diversity in unity(3).

The sources of the Arab-Islamic culture are the Holy Qur'an and the Sunna of the Prophet. The Holy Qur'an is the principal source of Islamic sciences and the Arabic language. It is the reference in which the Moslem seeks guidance in his quest for truths in the fields of knowledge, existence, values, thought, reality, philosophical speculation, and behavior.

The Holy Qur'an is the principal source of the Arab-Islamic culture owing to its religious, moral and social teachings, and to the fact that it is valid for every age and place, and can keep pace with the requirements and the new developments of every age.

The language of the Arab-Islamic culture is Arabic. The roots of this culture strike deep into Islam, and it has humane objectives. Like any other culture, it is made up of fundamental components: intellectual, spiritual - the most important of which is faith, that is Islam - the Arabic language and literature, history, sameness of mentality and temperament. It has been established that no culture can develop unless it is related to a religion, because it is religion that gives meaning to social life and provides it with the framework in which it can chart its course and mold its hopes(7).

One fundamental component of the Arab-Islamic culture is the Arabic language. The latter is not only a vehicle, it is primarily a language of thought and intellect. Even though they have preserved their national languages, all the peoples and nations which embraced Islam have adopted the Arabic language as a means for cultural and intellectual advancement, and have used Arabic alphabet to write their languages.

One potent component of the Arab-Islamic culture is the belief and trust in the Umma. This belief must draw its strength from the belief in Allah, because belief in Allah is the basis upon which faith should rest. One of the aspects of this faith is that one should believe in one's Umma, that the Arab and Moslem should believe that their Umma is "the best of peoples, evolved for mankind." As is the case with divine religions, faith in Islam preaches love and brotherhood. Particularly in Islam, faith teaches equality among people, and giving before taking. This is why religious education must be the basis of the Arab-Islamic culture(8).

The Arab-Islamic culture is not an abstract culture, for it is not enough for us to examine in it the origin of things or their true state of affairs; nor do we carry out abstract research in it, because culture is an integral part of the human. If the mind nourishes culture, the latter does not sprout from the mind alone. It germinates in the human soul, in the heart, taste, and more so in the feelings. Indeed, culture is also intimately linked to conscience, one of the human's most important aspects that distinguishes him from the animal. Conscience is more profound and more marvelous than the mind(9). Islamic conscience is the source of the Arab-Islamic culture; that is why it is the culture of the human feeling.

The Arab culture is the culture of the Arab nation which is the Umma of Islam. It is from Islam that the Umma acquired its character, its peculiarities, and its nature. Before the advent of Islam, this Umma did not exist; it was many tribes and clans disunited in faith and without a shared divine message. However, when Allah sent His messenger, Muhammad - peace be on him - with the message of Islam, this religion became the eternal message of the Arabs.

If the spirit of the Arab culture is Islamic and its message divine, it has, nonetheless, embraced all nations and peoples that have flocked under the banner of the Arab-Islamic Umma, and encompassed all the cultures with which it coexisted. In this way, the Arab-Islamic culture became the culture of the Arabs and the Moslems, the culture of Arab Christians and Jews, and that of the people of other denominations