Clergymen
Examining the role of the clergymen during the captivity of Iranian prisoners in Iraqi camps.
Due to their inherent duty in protecting Islam, preaching and explaining the religion of God and its rules, and publishing the teachings of Ahle Beyt ( family members of Mohammad the prophet of Islam) , the clergymen have played a prominent role in history.
God says in the Qur'an:
الَّذِینَ یُبَلِّغُونَ رِسالات اللَّه وَیَخْشَوْنَهُ وَلا یَخْشَوْنَ أَحَداً إِلَّا اللَّهَ وَکَفَى بِاللَّه حَسیبًا
([Yes, this is God's way about] those who always deliver God's messages to the people and fear His [greatness and status] and do not fear anyone but Him, and God will suffice to audit their valuable work.) (Ahzab/ 39) Iran's clerics have played a role in most of the popular movements in the last two hundred years to contend with tyranny, colonialism and exploitation of which one can make mention of the following: Mirza Shirazi's action in issuing a tobacco embargo fatwa as a token of protest against the allocation of Iran`s tobacco consession to the British for fifty years, Mirza Kuchak Khan's role in leading the Jungle Movement in protesting against the violation of Iran's territorial integrity and independence by foreigners, Sheikh Mohammad Khiyabany`s uprising in Tabriz in order to protect the constitutional movement, the role of Seyyed Abulqasem Kashani in the nationalization movement of the oil industry, and the struggle of Martyr Seyed Hassan Modares against Reza Khan Pahlavi.
The effect of the presence of the clergymen
The most important effect of the presence of the clergymen on popular movements was the outstanding role of Imam Khomeini (RIP) in bringing the Islamic Revolution to fruition. Scholars and clerics such as Martyr Seyed Mohammad Reza Saeedi, Hossein Ghafari, Morteza Motahari, Mohammad Muftah, Mohammad Javad Bahonar, Seyed Mohammad Beheshti, Asadullah Madani, Ataullah Ashrafi Isfahani, Mohammad Sadouqi, Seyed Mohammad Ali Qazi Tabatabai and Seyed Abdul Hossein Dastghib. , made their presence felt in the period before and after the victory of the Islamic Revolution. The martyrs Mehdi Shahabadi, Fazlullah Mahalati, Abdullah Meisamy, and Friday preachers including Gholam Hossein Jami, Friday preacher of Abadan, Seyyed Abul Hasan Nouri, Friday preacher of Khorramshahr, Seyed Mohammad Ali Mousavi Jazayeri, Friday preacher of Ahvaz, and et.al. with their presence in the fronts and war-beaten cities strove to play an effective role.
The all-round invasion of Iraq's Baathist army, from the three fronts, north, middle and south, to Iran, required all-round resistance and defense and warding off the intruder. All armed forces, based on their duties, tried to plan, make decisions and take action regarding the methods of dealing with this invasion. In the meantime, in the eight years of holy defense (→ Iraq's imposed war on Iran), the clergymen not only encouraged people to mobilize against Iraqis, but also helped lift the morale of fighters and answered the questions of Iranian fighters regarding the religious aspect of war by going to the fronts, and being there at the side of Iranian soldiers and fighters. In addition to that, a group of them fought wearing the same uniform as other fighters. The continued presence of Islamic theology students and clerics in the war caused a group of them to die martyrs and others to be captured by Iraqi forces. There are no exact statistics of the number of clerical prisoners in Iraqi camps, but according to Azadeh Ali Muhammad Ahad Tojari, a well-known captive cleric,
it can be estimated around 210 people had been taken into captivity [1]
The presence of clerics in the new environment and conditions gave them new roles. These roles which were played during captivity can be divided into two categories general and specific:
General role
Stating the religious and ritual rules & codes
The liability of dealing with the religious and ritual problems of each individual fighter during captivity was the first public role of the clergymen. During the first hours of captivity, the first multi-faceted question of most of the captives who were bound to perform religious duties was: how can we pray when our hands are tied behind us and there is no water to make ablutions or even Tayammomn ( to use dust instead of water for the same purpose), and no way to find out in which direction we must pray, and to cap it all, our clothes are smeared with blood and our bodies are covered with filth?
A call for patience and peace
Clergymen, were so reliable that the captives took all their problems and issues with them, and in a manner of speaking, they took the clergymen into their confidence. They heard the captives out and besought them to show patience and tolerance and to carry on in the face of adversary and opposition; they also tried to spark hope in the hearts of those captives who had surrendered to despair.
Explaining how to face the enemy and interact with fellow prisoners
Captivity brought together people of different Iranian tribes or clans namely, Kurds, Lors, Turks, Arabs, and the rest, civilians and non-civilians specifically army soldiers and officers, IRGC members and the members of the Militia(Basij), and also people with a variety of occupations ranging from teachers, carpenters, drivers, butchers, students, etc.. This variety also implied that the extent of people`s capacity differed and thus, captives could not be expected to adopt the same attitude with enemies as well as friends. The public liability of the clergymen became prominent in these situations and they played a decisive role in settling the disputes that arose.
Helping to maintain the physical, mental and religious health of prisoners
"Due to this diversity, sometimes in the beginning of the captivity in some camps, Iranian captives dealt with the Ba'athists rather defiantly, and the conflicts and brawls that followed led to the injury and even martyrdom of some prisoners. This issue would predispose some of the weak-minded captives to join the enemy forces; Therefore, the clergymen would help keep the prisoners alive and preclude them from getting cold feet, by playing a role in adopting a moderate and gentle approach in proportion to the conditions. [2]
Assessing the spiritual needs of prisoners
During the captivity, the clergymen measured the spiritual needs of the captives and responded to them by delivering lectures on national and religious occasions and which could be festive and happy or sad and sorrowful (→sur and mourning).
Special role
leadership
bycamps. The need to form a secret brotherhood to organize all the activities during the captivity was deeply felt, and the clergymen played a pivotal role to fulfil that need. On an extensive scale throughout all camps, Mr. Seyyed Ali Akbar Abu Toraby Fard directly and indirectly ( see the Red Cross letters, accounts of meeting prisoners in joint hospitals, etc.) and on a smaller scale, other clerics took the lead and managed all affairs. Of course, in some camps, due to certain qualities of prisoners, the leadership was conducted by a council; For example, in some camps, five clerics, two or three IRGC members and two or three army personnel who were at the same level, were in charge of leadership in a council.
Planning for the future
Living in new conditions required the captives to take advantage of opportunities. "There was a discussion at the very beginning of the captivity that eventually the captivity will end one day and these forces will be released, it was necessary to preserve the physical, mental, and religious health of the captives, as well as to think about their educational development so that once back in the society they would not feel they had fallen behind. The captivity was planned moment by moment so that even the smallest opportunities would not be wasted; Therefore, educational scientific programs were prepared; ranging from the basic literacy classes and the recital of the Quran to advanced courses.[2]
Picturing a bright and promising future
The most prominent task of the leadership of the clergymen was to picture a bright future for the captives by performing religious, personal and social duties according to the requirements of captivity. To picture this bright future, the clerics took the following actions:
Strengthening religious spirit
In the most difficult conditions, captives were bound to perform their religious duties, and obligations and to keep their vows.
Strengthening the fighting spirit during captivity
The warrior did not feel that now that he was a captive, he no longer had to fight. Just like the fighters on the battlefield, the captives too were fighting, though one was being done at a close range and the other one at a distance.
Strengthening spirituality and morality
Reciting the Quranic verses and hadiths highlighting moral and spiritual issues for the prisoners was one of the actions that helped the prisoners in terms of spirituality. "For example, Mr. Abu Toraby Fard suggested that half an hour before sunset, all the captives should perform the ablutions and sit facing the Qibla and be silent. As the silence continued, the captives fell into a spiritual ecstasy , and gently began to cry, and that was the very spirituality, which once fortified, could be wielded as an effective weapon against the hardships of captivity. Planning Nodbe, Shabaniyah, Komeil prayers et.al., and holding religious services and organizing the Quran and Nahj –ol -Balaghah classes were other means of strengthening spirituality."[1]
Spiritual resort to Ahl al-Bayt (RIP)
The clerics were trying to strengthen the spirit of faith and resistance in the captives by adapting their lives to the ways of Ahl al-Bayt (RIP).
Besides picturing a bright future, controlling and monitoring these actions was one of the other duties of the clergymen. This monitoring was achieved in three ways:
Preventing intellectual deviations in religious and spiritual issues during captivity
"The average age of LCs was between 15 to 18 years. These lads lived under the leadership and guidance of the clergymen, so that not even a single case of intellectual deviation was found among the prisoners. The clerics were the guardians of the thoughts of the captives during the captivity."[1]
Helping to promote the knowledge and learning of captives during captivity
The first step was to teach the correct recitation of Hamd & Sureh( as part of praying) ablutions, ritual washing and the primary rules; Because many prisoners had come to the front at a tender age and perhaps did not have enough information about the issues. The second step was teaching the Quran and Nahj ol -Balaghah.
Enlightenment and analysis of political issues
Changes and developments in Iran, such as the removal of Bani Sadr from the presidency, the martyrdom of the martyrs Rajaee and Bahonar, the martyrdom of the 7th of July martyrs, the removal of Ayatollah Montazeri from the position of deputy leader, the acceptance of Resolution 598, the death of Imam Khomeini, the leadership of Ayatollah Khamenei, especially with the propagandizing embellishments of the Baathists, they all needed to be elucidated and analyzed by some people who were totally aware of the issues, and this was done very well by the clergymen.
In the complete implementation of all these programs by the clergymen, one cannot turn a blind eye to the role of Hojjat al-Islam wal-Muslimin Seyyed Ali Akbar Abu Torabi. His emphasis on maintaining the physical and mental health of the prisoners, maintaining their morale and gentleness towards those who were sick and tired of the conditions, holding different classes and performing various sports activities, adopting a moderate approach suitable to the conditions of the Iraqi forces and other similar activities were all resulted from his leadership and guidance; something he had learned while living with our departed leader Imam Khomeiny in Najaf and socializing with eminent figures in the prisons of Shah. Ali Asghar Saleh Abadi, Mohammad Hassan Jamshidi, Ali Mohammad Ahad Tojari, Gholam Ali Ghasemi, Isa Narimisi, Alireza Bateny and Mohammad Hassan Sufi are among the other prominent clerics who made their presence felt during the captivity.
See also
- Management and leadership
- The general role of the clergymen in captivity
- The special role of the clergymen in captivity
Bibliography
Massoud Amirkhani