Volume 3 Issue 2 May-June 2003

How Should I Act as a Muslim on Campus?
Waleed Kadous*

Personal Responsibilities

As a Muslim student at your university campus, you have certain responsibilities to yourself and to the Muslim community in general, for which, no doubt, Allah will reward you. These are very simple things to do, and they do not take much time. More than anything else, they are really about an Islamic attitude, rather than a prescriptive list of dos and don'ts.

First of all, it is important to be proud of being Muslim. Many Muslims I know hide their Islam, as if it is something to be embarrassed about. This is understandable to a certain extent, given the bad rap that Muslims get in the media today, but it does not make it right. There is a lot to be proud of about being Muslim: historically, the activities of the Muslims as scientists and scholars formed the basis for the European Renaissance (a debt which many historians 'forget' about), as well as creating a stable, just society for more than 800 years; and morally, being Muslims means that you adhere to a set of beliefs and forms of behaviour that elevate you.

Put it this way: If homosexuals can go on about 'gay pride', and the thing that they are proud of is something that Islam considers an abomination; then how proud should we be knowing that we are on the right path?

What does this imply practically? It means that I should not be ashamed to let people know of my Islamic heritage, be it through what I say, what I wear, what I eat, what I spend my time on, or whatever. If you are going to pray, say, 'Excuse me for a moment, I need to go pray to my God,' instead of some made-up excuse, like 'Excuse me - I need to meet someone', or the like. Be up front about it when doing your Islamic duties!

Amazingly, this is not as difficult as it sounds. People usually approach universities with an open mind; and it is likely that they will not mind at all. It may even evoke some curiosity in some people. When I told one person the above, he said, 'Gee, do you mind if I watch?' If people see you doing things diligently and sincerely, they develop a respect for you and your religion, even if they do not believe in it.

The effects of Muslim pride are beneficial in a number of ways. Firstly, it 'backs up' other Muslims on campus, who no longer feel as isolated about being Muslims. Seeing someone else who is proud to be Muslim lifts another Muslim's spirit incredibly - when I see someone wearing an Islamic T-shirt, or a sister wearing Hijaab, it still has this effect on me, and I feel like going up to them and congratulating them. Secondly, when people see Muslims being so proud, it invokes curiosity and interest in them, which may be the door for Allah guiding them to the correct path. You will be surprised how many times you will be asked questions about Islam, without having to do anything 'active'.

When the opportunities do arise, inform them about Islam; in this way you will be fulfilling your obligation for Da'wah. Do not be too forceful in this, as it says in the Qur'an [16:125] 'Invite to the Way of your Lord with wisdom, and good, well behaved teaching, and discuss with them in the best way possible.' In this way, you may affect their perception of Islam. While they may not become Muslim (although these things are in the hands of Allah, and Allah guides whom He wills to the straight path), they will at least know a little more about Islam, from an authentic source, rather than from some misinformed (or even worse, deliberately misinforming) journalist.

But there is a caveat to all of this, which is: what is the point of being proud of Islam if its effects are not perceived in your actions? Muslim pride should be backed up in every step of the way by the corresponding actions. There is no point talking to people about the importance of good manners in Islam if you do not follow it up with your own actions. As clichéd as it is, 'actions speak louder than words' applies particularly in this situation.

Remember that you are a walking example of Islam, and that almost everything you do in public will not only reflect on you, but also to some extent on Islam itself. You should reflect all the attributes that make you proud to be Muslim: honesty, sincerity, trustworthiness, cleanliness, politeness and so on. When people see these characteristics in you, they will not only like you as a person (which they inevitably will, unless it is a group of people the likes of whom you should not be associating with in the first place), they will also be curious as to its origin; and seeing you are Muslim will now have a somewhat more positive image of Islam than they may have had before. This also means that you should fulfill your Islamic obligations in other ways as well. For example, there is no excuse for you not to pray on campus. There are prayer rooms at most universities, and even if there are not there are many quiet places to be found that can serve as a place to pray. There is no reason not to dress Islamically, since there are no rules about dress (other than those of the general community).

Communal Responsibilities

As well as your responsibilities at a personal level, it is always good to participate in communal activities. There are Muslim student associations or Islamic societies at almost all the western universities. These should be an important component of your student life.

These associations or societies have a set of goals they try to achieve. These, though vary from university to university, basically are:
* Spreading the Message of Islam throughout campus and the wider
community.
* Making it easier for Muslims to be Muslims on campus by
providing facilities for Muslims and lobbying the university administration
on Muslims' behalf.
* Educating Muslims about their own religion.
* Defending Islam when it is attacked.

Muslim student associations or societies are special in that they are very multicultural, with Muslims from different parts of the world. Also, most of the members are educated, which makes it a unique Islamic environment in many ways, since these are two of the problems, which seem to plague the wider Muslim community. These are run by volunteers who probably do not have much more free time than you, so do not expect a 'professional service'. They put a lot of energy just into keeping their associations or societies running, and even more effort is involved when special events are held.

The very least you can do to support the Islamic society or association of your university is to show up at different programmes and occasions they organise. They are probably free, and you might just learn something useful. Showing up indicates to the organisers that there are people out there interested in Islam and its message. There are few things more disheartening than putting hours and hours of effort into an event (that may even have been requested by the members) and then to see not many people show up (not even the people who suggested it!!) - it creates a feeling like 'why do we bother' in the minds of those who put the effort in.

But that is the bare minimum that Muslims should do. There is so much more that they can help with. Most associations or societies are involved in the following to a lesser or greater extent: Da'wah, education, social events, sports, cleaning and maintenance, student tutoring, special committees for sisters, student politics, publications and many others. I am sure you will be able to find a niche in any Islamic association or society where you will apply your skills! People running those Islamic societies or associations will be more than happy to help you find some way you can contribute.

Feel free to speak your mind and make suggestions; but please do not use 'hit and run [away]' technique. By this I mean that you go up to someone working for the Islamic society or association and hit them with an idea saying: 'This should be done,' naming something that you feel is important and then run away expecting it to be done. What you should say is: 'We should do this' or 'I want to do this for the sake of Islam, how can you support me?' so that you not only make a suggestion but is a critical part of following up on it.

Remember that in any association or society with more than one person in it, you are going to get differences of opinion about anything, and Muslim student organisations or societies are no exceptions. Perhaps this is slightly more so because of the wide variety of cultures their members come from. But it is important to remember that these differences are about how we do things, not about the underlying reasons for doing them. We have to keep the differences above personal level remembering that we are Muslims and that one of the defining characteristics of Muslims is that they love their brothers and sisters (the Prophet said: 'One of you does not truly believe until s/he likes for themselves what they like for their fellow Muslims.'). If we can remember this, differences of opinion may come healthy.

May Allah help you adjust to university life, and not to squander the opportunities present there. University, like many other things, is not in itself good or bad; it is what you do there that makes all the difference. May Allah guide us all to using us for what He sees best, and may He guide us all to the correct path of action!