As Shaikh Yusuf al Qaradawi took the stage, well over a million Egyptians roared their welcome. Egyptians returned en masse to Tahrir square in central Cairo this Friday for a day of prayer, celebration, and something more.

 

Friday is the day of communal prayer.  The coalition of youthful organizers of Egypt’s revolution had extended an invitation to Shaikh Yusuf al Qaradwi to lead the prayers.  Qaradwi is perhaps the most renowned Islamic scholar of our time. His face and ideas are familiar to millions due to his long running program on al Jazeera.

 

Qaradawi immediately announced, with all humility and gratitude, that he wished to kiss the hand of every young person who had taken part in these glorious events. With these words, Qaradawi reversed this traditional way of the young honoring their elders. He signaled that honor was not predicated on age or stature. It was reserved for those who best served their community.  

 

Qaradawi returned from exile to address his people publicly for the first time in decades.  He spoke to them as a man grateful to be reunited with the Egyptian community he believed in and fought for. 

 

Qaradawi understood in ways that his critics and detractors did not that the revolution had not merely ended tyranny.  It had also restored an Egyptian community that embodied the best of Egyptian traditions and customs.  This true Egyptian community, like Tahrir Square itself, had room for Egyptians of all faiths, generations, and political persuasions. 

 

Far from trying to “hijack the revolution for Islam,” Qaradawii announced that although it was customary in Friday sermons to address Muslims, he was addressing all Egyptians, both Christian and Muslim. Egyptians, he pronounced, had buried sectarianism in their battles together for freedom.

 

The American press quite uniformly promoted a contrary image of Qaradawi.  Some spoke of “the ominous return of the cleric.” The Muslim Brotherhood, out of which Qaradawi emerged, was demonized to a degree that approached sheer lunacy. Even mainstream scholars and analysts ignored the record of decades of non-violent participation in public life by the Brothers. They expressed grave misgivings about their role in a democratic Egypt. The Israel-firsters spoke as one to describe Qaradawi as Egypt’s Khomeiny or, more luridly still, as Egypt’s new Hitler. A right-wing TV sensation with an audience of millions announced that the Brothers were behind not only events in Tahrir Square but also the strikes of teachers and public workers in Wisconsin!

 

Qaradawi’s voice carried deep emotion and pride as he reminded his “children and grandchildren”, that he had always believed in their success. He spoke literally as well as figuratively.  His son is an active supporter of another prominent, though entirely secular, Egyptian figure in the ranks of this revolution, Mohamed el Baradie. One of his granddaughters was among the young people who undertook the cleanup of the square and surrounding areas.

 

Yet, for all the sentiment and celebration there was also a hard political edge to Qaradawi’s remarks. He understood and explicitly endorsed the political message intended by the youth who called for the massive assemblage on Friday in yet another vigorous display of people power.   To the young people Qaradawi said plainly: “Do not let anyone steal your revolution.” While many in the square wondered if the military would honor promises made, Qaradawi clearly perceived it as an integral part of the Egyptian community.  He expressed his trust that the military would perform its duty to serve and protect this community.  He exhorted military leaders to speedily release all political prisoners and remove all vestiges of the old regime.  

 

Qaradawi spoke as an Egyptian in these moments of joy.  But he did not forget that a community’s obligations extend to its neighbors.  He asked Egyptians to alleviate the unacceptable conditions in Gaza. He also called on Arab rulers throughout the region to heed the demands of their peoples for freedom and human rights.  He prayed for a future when peoples throughout the region would enjoy the exhilarating freedoms that Egyptians, inspired by their youth, had won. 

 

 

Raymond William Baker is College Professor of International Politics at Trinity College, Hartford, CT. His most recent books are Islam Without Fear (Harvard, 2006 and Dar al Sharouq, 2010) and [coedited with Shereem T. Ismael and Tareq Y. Ismael], Cultural Cleansing in Iraq (Pluto, 2010 and Dar al Sharouq, 2010).

 

Karen Aboul Kheir is Managing Editor of al Siyasa al Dawliya, Cairo, Egypt. She has written on Arab foreign and domestic politics, including " Foreign Policy as a Strategic National Asset: The Case of Jordan”.

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