The Clergy That Finds No Listening Ear

The extremist and traditional conservatives have long stirred controversy by claiming that Rouhani's government requested wealthy classes to voluntarily refrain from receiving subsidies, but the response it received was very minimal. This request and the response reflect the government's credibility, social base, and the people's trust in it. Scientifically, it is clear that a single indicator cannot determine the popularity and social base of the president, especially when asking a few million wealthy individuals who do not need oil money to voluntarily abstain from receiving it. However, there was a hidden truth in the destructive attacks of the conservatives that must be noted: what is the relationship of the people with the Islamic Republic? To what extent has the regime succeeded in accepting its desired value and ideal system? Have Muslim (Shia and Sunni) people conformed to the values and ideals that the regime deems Islamic? First, consider the statements of four key figures of the regime and conservatives, all made on October 15, 2015: a- Ayatollah Naser Makarem Shirazi stated: "Today, corruption in society is greater than ever. Satellites are one of the factors of corruption in society that enemies use to try to distance Muslims from Islamic thoughts. Today, enemies are trying to eliminate Islam; they are no longer only focused on destroying Shia but aim to destroy both Shia and Sunni." b- Ayatollah Yazdi, head of the Society of Teachers of Qom Seminary and Chairman of the Assembly of Experts, said: "Today, the enemy uses all communication, information, and propaganda tools to alienate our youth from religion and religious culture, and we have a duty to use all modern means and tools to counter these attacks so that these conspiracies are thwarted." c- Safar Harandi, a member of the Expediency Discernment Council, stated that Ayatollah Khamenei considers the post-JCPOA period more important than the JCPOA itself because some intend to normalize everything. He said: "Changing lifestyle is a precursor to infiltration. Changing the environment in which children are raised and living conditions is also a ground and precursor for infiltration." d- Gholamali Haddad Adel, a member of the Expediency Discernment Council and head of the conservative faction in parliament, also announced on the same day that Khamenei considers the post-JCPOA period more important than the JCPOA period because the Americans intend to infiltrate everywhere. He then said: "Dignity is more important than progress, and we do not want progress that does not begin with dignity; wherever the Americans are, they take dignity from nations, and in every society they enter, they lead it to corruption... Cultural infiltration is the most extensive form of infiltration. They have established 170 Persian-language satellite networks. In fact, they are pouring polluted water into the sea of the Iranian nation, and this is one of the designed implementations of cultural infiltration." Acknowledgment of Failure Ayatollah Khamenei and his followers admit that the Islamic Republic has failed in accepting its value and ideal system. After 37 years since the victory of the revolution and the implementation of "Islamic jurisprudence," Ayatollah Makarem Shirazi admits that corruption in Iran is now greater than ever. Ayatollah Mohammad Yazdi is concerned about Islam and religious culture that the "enemy" is distancing the youth from. Safar Harandi has raised the issue of changing lifestyle and says the "enemy" is infiltrating through this route. Haddad Adel is also worried about the achievements of the communication revolution that have led America to corrupt the country. Ayatollah Khamenei has spoken more than anyone about the very dangerous and important infiltration of the "enemy"—that is, cultural invasion, cultural blitz, cultural NATO—and has long been talking about the enemy's attack on religious beliefs. Khamenei dedicated a speech on October 12, 2015, to the head and managers of the Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting Organization to this matter. His claim is that the goal of the "soft war of the enemies" is to manipulate "religious, political, and cultural beliefs," and its main audience is "the people, especially elites, academics, students, youth, and active elements." He said: "Our people have beliefs regarding religion, family, the issue of 'men and women,' independence, confrontation with the foreigner, Islamic democracy, and various cultural issues, and the opposing side is trying to manipulate or change these beliefs." The Authoritarian Clergy Lacking an Audience In analyzing this reality, many points can be made, of which we will mention a few: First, liberals separate two important concepts of right and good from each other, considering the government/political system as the realm of right, not good. The government is obliged to respect the rights of the people, including religious, ethnic, and sexual minorities, and each individual must independently decide about a good and prosperous life. The political regime has no right to impose a specific type of prosperous life or a specific lifestyle on citizens in the name of good. Cultural diversity and plurality is not only a reality but a reality that must be accepted and welcomed. Second, let’s assume that liberals are wrong and the government has moral responsibilities regarding a good life and religious values. The Islamic Republic is built on this basis, and the regime's leaders not only consider moral duties for the system but also implement jurisprudence and Sharia in the name of ethics and a good life. What has been the result of this approach? Everyone admits in various languages to failure. We have not forgotten that Ayatollah Mesbah Yazdi introduced the Islamic Republic as the most usurious regime in the world. Usury in the Quranic value system is considered a war against God and the Prophet. Third, why do people not listen to the words of the clergy? Wasn't it claimed that Islam is a complete and comprehensive religion, a rational and logical religion, a religion of mercy and compassion, etc.? If the clergy did not have the opportunity from the early days of Islam until the victory of the revolution, why have they been unable to attract Muslim people to the value system and Islamic lifestyle with logic and reasoning in these 37 years? Fourth, where does the problem lie? Is Islam lacking the moral and rational backing that attracts people? Have the clergy and propagandists lacked the scientific strength to properly introduce Islam to the people and the younger generation so that they are attracted to it? Does "Islamic jurisprudence" charm anyone in the current era? Fifth, the Islamic Republic has not only propagated Islam but has imposed a specific interpretation of Islam—Islamic jurisprudence—through the "expansion of the clergy's authority" by force. They have turned jurisprudence and Sharia into law and backed it with military, police, and judicial forces. The more they exerted force, the less they achieved results. Islam before the revolution expanded not through the backing of governmental force but through the backing of victimhood and modernization. Sixth, more importantly, Westerners, with their culture, which the clergy see as nothing but corruption, misery, and hell, have managed to seize the real field through the communication revolution, with films, music, clothing, books, and magazines. When the clergy's narrative of Islam fails against Western culture, instead of revisiting the reasons for their failure, they increase coercive power and see the solution in filtering, sending interference, censorship, compulsory hijab, arrests, and long-term imprisonments. Seventh, why, after 37 years of having the government in the hands of the clergy, are their audiences decreasing day by day? Why do people not listen to their calls? Now that hijab is mandatory, the cries of all clerics about the hijab situation of women and girls have deafened everyone. If hijab were to be liberated now, what would the state of society be? Hijab is the best symbol of the failure of the clergy and the Islamic Republic. Iran is the second-largest importer of cosmetics in the Middle East. According to statistics, 17 million Iranian women spend 10 trillion and 200 billion tomans annually on cosmetics. Every year, 850 million dollars worth of smuggled cosmetics enter the country, while the share of legal imports of cosmetics is only 150 million dollars! The makeup of Iranian women is unparalleled in the Western world. The clergy have opposed these types of makeup but have also failed in this regard. Eighth, nearly the absolute majority of people are born into a religion and die with that religion. However, religiousness and faith, by definition, are voluntary and loving acts. Coercion and violence fundamentally conflict with love and charm. The clergy have adorned religion and faith with coercion and violence as much as they could. Their naked violence and the Islamic jurisprudence that institutionalizes violence and discrimination have led to the result that the clergy are now even incapable of maintaining appearances. Ninth, yes, Makarem Shirazi is right that corruption has taken over everywhere and is greater than ever. Did not the clergy, with the help of the Mahdi, make Ahmadinejad the president? Did they not keep the Mahdi awake until dawn on the Night of Destiny to pray for Ahmadinejad's victory? Ahmadinejad, too, further corrupted everyone. He spent tens of thousands of billions of tomans on the Mahdi. Add up the budgets allocated to the clergy and religious institutions during Ahmadinejad's era and then add the secret budgets to them. How much was spent solely on Jamkaran Mosque? When they bought the majority of the clergy, they transferred the public treasury of the poor people abroad through people like Babak Zanjani. Ayatollah Makarem Shirazi does not address how the IRGC became an economic giant. This giant emerged from the glass of corruption. Tenth, generational change has caused the youth to make up the majority of Iran's 78 million population. The clergy wonder why about 22% of marriages now end in divorce? Why do some girls and boys live together without marriage? Why do some married women proudly walk with their boyfriends? The central power that is still standing and suppressing does not allow the true extent of social issues and problems to be revealed. However, the main surprise and question is: why is divorce so low in a society that has experienced tremendous social shocks—namely, the 1979 revolution, the eight-year Iran-Iraq war, the suppressions of the 1980s, the mass executions of summer 1988, the reformist era, the chain murders, Ahmadinejad's presidency, the suppression of the Green Movement, etc.? Why do the complex social issues of this society remain hidden and not show themselves? The central power that is still standing and suppressing does not allow the true extent of social issues and problems to be revealed. Social capital/trust has been constantly declining in this process, but unfortunately, the depth of this tragedy is not well perceived. If one day the Islamic Republic collapses, then everyone will witness the hidden catastrophe. The people's distrust of religious authorities is just a drop in this seemingly calm ocean.