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Witnessing Injustice in the Modern Age
Much of modern adult life is about witnessing and making sense of the profound injustice and human suffering in the world.
Hassan Minhaj, a 39-year-old Indian-American comedian, confesses that he has always struggled spiritually when trying to reconcile the suffering one sees in life. He wonders how anyone could possibly do the “Microsoft Excel accounting” of all the suffering and trauma humanity has endured.
The only perspective that has brought him comfort, he relates to his therapist, came from his father. His father told him:
“Hassan, I notice your generation is obsessed with this idea of justice — of absolute justice. But that’s going to be impossible in this visible realm. Absolute justice is only possible in the Hereafter, in the spiritual realm with God.”
“Indeed, Allah never wrongs ˹anyone˺—even by an atom’s weight. And if it is a good deed, He will multiply it many times over and will give a great reward out of His grace.” (Qur’an 4:40)
This belief, his father explained, helps him sleep at night after watching the news filled with reports of horrific injustices.
The Therapist’s Perspective
Hassan then asked his therapist, Dr. Gabor Maté — a Holocaust survivor and trauma expert — for his view.
Dr. Maté replied gently:
“It’s a beautiful statement your father said, except I can’t go there because I don’t have a worldview that includes an afterlife. Let me give you my secular version.
A Jewish sage, who lived about a hundred years before Jesus, said about the task of healing the world: ‘The task is not yours to finish, but neither are you free to not take part in it.’
In other words, the work of righting this world and promoting justice is a sacred calling. It will never be completed in one lifetime, but each of us can contribute to it. That is how I make peace — not by waiting for the afterlife, but by showing up here and now.”
“Cooperate with one another in goodness and righteousness, and do not cooperate in sin and transgression…” (Qur’an 5:2)
Hassan pushed back: “Even if you suffer through it?”
Dr. Maté answered: “Suffering is, as Buddha pointed out, part of life. The question is how we respond to it.”
“We will certainly test you with a touch of fear and famine and loss of property, life, and crops. Give good news to those who patiently endure.” (Qur’an 2:155)
Still unconvinced, Hassan concluded: “Human beings are deeply flawed and our time is short. Only God can really do the true justice spreadsheet. And that is what gives me peace.”
“Surely to Us is their return, then surely with Us is their reckoning.” (Qur’an 88:25-26)
Reflections
From this dialogue, one is left to wonder: is the real question whether we are willing to show up as vessels for the flow of God’s work in the world?
“Say, ‘Surely my prayer, my sacrifice, my life, and my death are all for Allah — Lord of all worlds.’” (Qur’an 6:162)
The Confident Secular Worldview
There is some wisdom in contrasting the worldview of a confident secular non-believer with that of a conflicted believer.
Every optimistic secular mindset, in his own way — whether materialist or spiritual — aims to create a heaven on earth, which includes preventing or correcting what feels hell-like or unjust.
Pragmatically, he soon realizes this requires cooperation with like-minded others, to build a collective ecosystem that sustains the “heavenly” aspects he seeks. So, he equips himself with skills and competence to labor for this massive task. For if he does not, he risks falling into a lived hellish reality until death relieves him.
His everyday choices weigh heavily on him. With no belief in divine relief, luck, or coincidence, he knows he is personally accountable for the life he creates.
“…and that each person will only have what they endeavoured towards.” (Qur’an 53:39)
The Conscious Muslim Worldview
A conscious Muslim, however, guided by the Qur’an and appointed as vicegerent of God on earth, carries a higher calling. His task is not only to secure justice for his family but to uphold it for all. He is a vessel for God’s work, charged with establishing and maintaining a divinely decreed just ecosystem.
“˹Remember˺ when your Lord said to the angels, ‘I am going to place a successive human authority on earth.’” (Qur’an 2:30)
Such a believer trains his competence and skills to be higher, his influence more lasting, his contribution more universal. As living examples, the early Sahaba and Khulafā’ al-Rāshidīn immediately come to mind.
Worldview Decline Under Man-Made Systems
But such examples became few and far between in the later years of Islamic history, until the very ecosystem established by the Sahaba could no longer be maintained. Naturally, it was overpowered by disbelieving and later secular forces, which grew stronger in comparison.
This decline may have been because some rulers deviated from their divine purpose. They gave up the hope of lasting rewards in this world and the Hereafter, in favor of short-term material gains. Perhaps they thought mainly of themselves, disregarding the greater good.
“But you ˹deniers only˺ prefer the life of this world, even though the Hereafter is far better and more lasting.” (Qur’an 87:16-17)
Their gains were short-lived, but the damage endured. Without divine purpose as a guiding force, Muslims lost the dignity and self-esteem that came from their higher calling. Vulnerable and weakened, they accepted the slavery of man, falling away from the liberating servitude of God.
“And do not be inclined to the wrongdoers or you will be touched by the Fire. For then you would have no protectors other than Allah, nor would you be helped.” (Qur’an 11:113)
Injustices and insecurities multiplied. People focused only on survival. Over time, ideology was compromised, promoted in partial or distorted ways. Misinterpretations of the Qur’an gained prominence, producing cascading effects.
These may have been desperate attempts by the oppressed to solve problems created by man-made systems designed to serve despotic rulers.
The present reality of the Ummah is among the most dismal it has ever been. If left unchecked, decline will only accelerate.
“Indeed, Allah would never change a people’s state of favour until they change their own state of faith.” (Qur’an 13:11)
The Call to Renewal
Our Islamic survival now depends on awakened souls who, like the early Sahaba, understand their duty: to unite, to follow the footsteps of RasoolAllah ﷺ, and to seek guidance from the Qur’an. They must build the capability to return to their original role as Khalīfat al-Arḍ, so that divine justice may again be restored on earth.
“And hold firmly together to the rope of Allah and do not be divided…” (Qur’an 3:103)
The first and most urgent task, InshaAllah, is to rid the Ummah of the intellectual and psychological subjugation being maintained through widespread misinterpretation of Allah’s word.
