The discussion about the “dependent thinkers” and “independent thinkers” enticed me to put it in the framework of Islam.
The Quran, to some extent, classify people into categories: believers, knowers (3alem), mushrek (believes in more than one god) , mol7ed (does not believe in god), and so on.
As I mentioned in my previous post, believers are dependent thinkers. The Quran values one specific group of believers and not all. Specifically, the “believers who do not get astray from linking to God”. Those are promised happily eternal life. Consequently, the believers who get astray of linking to God are promised miserable eternal life.
On the other hand, the Quran glorifies the knowers. Those who create their own knowledge through the use of faculties of the brain. In fact, the very first moslem as mentioned in the Quran, i.e. Ibrahim (the biblical Abraham) is considered to be the first Muslim because he believed in God through reason. Notice: believing thru reason!. Merger of belief and science! The Quran glorifies the “independent thinkers” far more the “believers”. For example, as mentioned, the first independent thinker in history is the first muslim. There an aya in the Quran that states explicitly that we cannot compare the “knowers” with the “unkowers” (aka believers) in stature (Wa hal yastawi al lazen ya3lamoon wa al lazen la ya3lamoon). Another aya explicitly states that God “yakhsha” (i.e. owe respect) the knowers from among his followers (Wa la yaksha allahu min 3badihi ila al 3olama’).
Unfortunately, modern Islam, in both its Shiite and Sunni versions, valuee believers and believing overs knowers and reason. In clear contradiction to the will of God as presented in the Quran.
Later, I will support my Quranic references with exact aya and sura,