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The reasons for the diminishing status of women over several centuries are not clear. Many theories have been put forward to explain this phenomenon, but none address the revival of pre-Islamic ignorance that has come to prevail over the pure teachings of the Qur'an and Sunnah and that have caused Muslim woman to be excluded from the mainstream of society, her voice silenced and her inalienable rights ignored. The results manifest as poverty among women, abuse of women through unfair and un-Islamic laws and customs; emotional, spiritual, and material neglect of children, along with the refusal to educate women and enforcing strict codes of conduct on women that are not also attached to men. All this creates unbalanced, unjust and extreme interpretations of honor and chastity that are sometimes brutally enforced on women, but completely ignored when it comes to men, giving the erroneous impression that only women are bound by law to chastity and morality, while men can (and do) indulge in immorality to the extent that norms have been established in Muslim societies that suggest that such immorality is somehow being "manly," or a part of the male fitra. Even though we know, in theory, that the nature of a human being, our fitra, is pure, whether male or female, we have somehow accepted that men are inclined toward immorality, so we should be tolerant of their sins, despite knowing from the teachings of Islam that immorality can and has brought entire civilizations to their knees.

The corruptions that we have embraced are from the pre-Islamic ignorance of Arabia, coupled with the ignorance that previously prevailed in countries that subsequently accepted Islam, but fell again into ignorance and paganism, and from the decadent immorality and disregard for Allah (swt) that comes from the secular, liberal influence of the West. These concepts and traditions are passed on and inherited by generations as "culture" derived from religion.

Today the Muslim Ummah is faced with the challenge of restoring a pure, just Islam and re-establishing its laws and precepts in Muslim lands, by as law, and eliminating the influences that caused our societies to decline, and the status of Muslim women to decay. For years Islam has been charged with the injustices that have been suffered by Muslim women, yet the truth is becoming increasingly apparent: these injustices have resulted from the imposition of colonialist laws, and from the inadequacies and deficiencies of other faiths and cultures.

With some effort we are able to trace the decline in status of Muslim women from the time of the Prophet (saw) until now. In modern times, the fall of the Ottoman Empire perhaps initiated the most obvious decline in this status. The final obliteration of the last remnant of Islamic authority left each new "Muslim" nation-state to develop its own body of law, devoid of Shari'ah and mimicking the social and legal systems of the colonialist powers. For the most part these laws were secular, and the rulers established over the new Muslim nation-states were also essentially secular and godless, giving their allegiances to the colonial powers in exchange for position and power. If we attribute the low status of women in modern Muslim societies to this obvious and significant development, we may be on the brink of a cure, at least in principle.

Reversing the historic decline of Islamic authority in the Muslim world is a challenge for every Muslim, yet before we can accomplish this feat we must develop Islamic political and social ideals that address the myriad of contemporary social, political and economic challenges that face not only Muslims but the world. We must include in these programs and ideals significant roles for women in society, once again allowing Muslim women to take their place as the natural mates and companions of men in the establishment of Islam and the perpetuation of the Islamic order of life.

The common quality of those women who are declared the "best women" by Allah (swt) is their extreme struggle and sacrifice for the establishment of truth over falsehood, and for the liberation of all mankind from the chains of ignorance and sin. The doors must be reopened to allow women the opportunity to fulfil these roles, and the purifying quality of struggle must again become a central theme of our efforts. We must forsake the appeal of materialism and power, exchanging these temptations for activism motivated by the fear of Allah (swt) and a love of His creation that guides us, men and women, to great sacrifices. As secularism reaches the apex of its power, seeking to employ the women of the world as its agents in schemes designed to eliminate morality as a barrier to its dominion, Muslim women must be given the opportunity and freedom to join in the struggle and work alongside our men to restore the primacy of Islam in the world.

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