As I mentioned here, Mohsen Kadivar is one of the top members of the reform movement currently in the United States. NIAC has a great piece about a speech he gave detailing the different views of Islam between the hardliners and reformers currently in Iran:“Black Islam (not to be confused with the Nation of Islam) is the Islam of the current government of Iran,” explained Kadivar. In Black Islam, the people’s obedience and allegiance to the leaders is important and the rulers abuse religion to advance their own agenda. To them, “votes have no meaning because the decisions made by the Velayat Fagih (guardianship of the jurist) are divine.”
"Kadivar pointed out the government’s attention to detail when choosing to use the word, velayat which means jurist. They did not use the word vekalat, which means power of the attorney, because all of their actions would have to be done with the permission of the people. Their careful choice of the word jurist, gives them the power to regulate the affairs of society, because “they know better than anyone else.”
"In Green Islam is the Islam practiced by Mousavi, “The leaders respond and listen to their people, they are the workers, not the people!” He continued, “The Iranian people are the leaders of their own land and it is a waste when a leader stays in power when the people don’t want him!”
I will be writing more in the future about the theological and philosophical differences on Islam between the two camps in Iran, but it is important to remember that their are two versions of Islam in Iran right now. Mousavi and the rest of the opposition believe in a version of Islam that supports freedom and democracy. Ahmadinejad and the hardliners believe in a version of Islam that allows them to do whatever they want.
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