Sisters take on scholars for Islam

In looking to discern signs of hope and change in the Islamic world I was heartened by this: "Ms Anwar said the group's principal aim remained an enlarged 'public space' within Islam where women could 'challenge, criticise and change' social norms that were dictated not by the divine teachings of the Prophet but by infinitely fallible male mullahs.
Their other main concern was to ensure women's access to the rights so painstakingly attained. As elsewhere, enforcing maintenance, compensation, and protection orders was problematic and community pressures, especially in rape cases, meant women were often reluctant to come forward, she said.'We are claiming a right for ordinary Muslims like us to speak and engage publicly on Islam, to say that Islam is not the monopoly of the mullahs or the Islamic activists,' Ms Anwar said. 'We as citizens of a democratic country and we as believers have a right to speak on Islamic matters.'"
This looks quite significant; not least because, I suspect it draws on something within Islam already to do with equality before God, analogous to the evangelical and protestant priesthood of all believers idea which even the RC's now accept in theory. It also seems powerful because it revolves round the questions that empowered women bring to the religious forums. This is an issue that is not going to go away either, particularly as Muslim women seem to be increasingly of the opinion that Islam favours equality for women [though a few difficulties remain on this: legal testimony for example]. Watch this space.
Islam :: Sisters take on scholars in battle for Islam: [:Islam:]