The Response to Those Who Say That Religions Conflict with Reason and to the Admiration of the West?

The questioner:
How do we respond to those who say that religions conflict with reason and that we should be content with mere quotations, including Islam? And there are those who glorify the West and say that their scientific progress is due to their victory over the Church. How do we respond to these people?

The Shaykh:
The end of the question.

The questioner:
There are those who glorify the West and say that their scientific progress is the result of their victory over the Church. How do we respond to these people?

The Shaykh:
Yes, the one who belittles the heavenly religions— the heavenly religions— this person disbelieves in Allah. The one who belittles the Shari'ah of Musa, or the Shari'ah of 'Isa, or the Shari'ah of any of the Prophets, this person apostatizes from the religion of Islam, and may Allah protect us from that. And a fortiori, the one who belittles the Shari'ah of Islam apostatizes from the religion of Islam. This is a matter that is not easy. The heavenly religions are respected because they are from Allah the Exalted. Even if distortion and alteration have entered them, their foundations— their foundations are from Allah the Exalted. So it is not permissible to belittle them; rather, one belittles the distorted parts of them. This is not from the religion of Allah the Exalted. The distortion is not from the religion of Allah, but the original foundation is from Allah the Exalted. As for the rest of the question.

The presenter:
The admiration of the West.

The Shaykh:
The admiration of the West is not permissible. The West are disbelievers, and Allah has given them the adornment of this world. So we should not be impressed by what the disbelievers are upon, because it is a means of misguidance. When they forgot what they were reminded of, We opened for them the doors of everything. So when they rejoiced in what was given to them, We seized them suddenly, and then they were despondent. As for what the disbelievers have reached in terms of inventions and manufactures, they say that it is due to their rebellion against the Church. Yes, the Church is invalid. They rebelled against the falsehood because the Church is not from Allah the Exalted, and what is in it is from the fabrication of humans and the work of humans. So their rebellion against it is what granted them freedom and granted them [progress], because it prevented them from that. And this is false. Our religion does not prevent— our religion does not prevent taking what is beneficial, does not prevent invention, does not prevent industry, does not prevent trade, does not prevent anything that is in the interest of Islam and Muslims, and in the interest of the community and the individuals.