Glasgow, UK - AN ISLAMIC revolution is brewing in Scotland as young reformers push for mosque services to be delivered in English. In a sign that the new generation of Scottish Muslims are as much a part of native culture as they are Islamic, they have called for the nation's mosques to lead the way in Britain by preaching in the country's native tongue.
The move is a huge step forward for the liberalisation of Islam in the UK. Some have said it could be the start of a European-wide reformation of the Muslim faith, and a step as radical as the translation of the Christian Bible from Latin into English by John Wycliffe in the 14th century.
The Sunday Herald reported in March that young reformers were moving into positions of power in Glasgow's Central Mosque, and now the modernising spirit appears to be gaining ground.
Although Muslim teaching prohibits the recital of "jummuah khutbas", or Friday sermons, in any language other than the original Arabic, a new poll has come out overwhelmingly in favour of imams teaching in English.
More than three-quarters of those who responded to the Scottish Islamic Foundation's (SIF) online survey favoured breaking with tradition and modernising services to reflect the needs and beliefs of a younger generation. Leading Islamic scholar Shayke Amer Jamil this month toured Scotland to suggest lessons preceding the main sermon should be delivered in English because most young Muslims speak no other languages.
A question posted on the government-backed SIF website, however, asked whether this should go further so the khutba itself is delivered in English. Of those who responded 78% said it should, with 22% voting for the status quo.
Although a similar debate rocked the Catholic Church when reformers pressed to replace Latin services and texts with English, Imam Muhammad Mustaqeem Shah, who preaches at the Al-Furqan Mosque in Glasgow's west end, said such a move now would be in direct contravention of Islamic teaching.
"There are principles in Islam that are not changeable," he said. "One is the Koran is the exact true words of Allah, so it would not be correct in any sect in Islam to read the Koran in English. The word of God is in Arabic, not English. In khutba, we recite verses from the Koran."
Instead, he suggested, it was more acceptable to deliver parts of the sermon in English while keeping the sacred core of the teaching in Arabic. More than half of Scotland's Muslims are under the age of 25, and few speak Arabic at any level.
Intelligence services have warned in the past that radicalisation of elements within the Islamic community often comes from Pakistani teachers who do not fully understand Arabic themselves. A post on the Islam Online Network recently complained about the problems non-Arabic speaking imams could cause.
It said: "Unfortunately, in most mosques in the UK, and other places as well, the sermon is given in Arabic, when only a small percentage of the audience understands it. It is often the case the imam himself does not understand Arabic. He reads the sermon from a book, and makes it very short. In most cases, it is given in less than four minutes - 95% of the audience could not understand a word."
Osama Saeed, chief executive of the SIF, wrote on the foundation's blog the new poll could indicate a growing support for teaching in English in mosques. He told the Sunday Herald that Strathclyde University was already delivering khutbas in English, and Edinburgh Central Mosque has also offered them in the past.
Mona Siddiqui, Professor of Islamic Studies and Public Understanding at Glasgow University, said a move towards English was not necessarily "revolutionary" but rather "common sense".
"It's a practical thing," she said. "The delivery in English would be a bit more meaningful to a younger generation.
"The bigger question for me is who you could get to preach with that kind of English. Unless you had imams who were trained to preach in English, it might be difficult. Most mosques have imams who come from abroad, and if not their training might be in Arabic."