Interest in Religion

Adam is a 30-year-old man residing in the United Kingdom with his wife and young child while completing his postgraduate work in psychology. Adam is Muslim and is committed to his religion. At times, life in the United Kingdom clashes with his religious beliefs. Adam describes a time when he tried to lease a car, only to find out that the built in interest he was required to pay by the bank was at odds with his belief that “riba” is impermissible. Adam describes having to decide between the benefits of having an amenity such as a car at his and his family’s disposal and his loyalty to his religious beliefs.

Adam is a 30-year-old man residing in the United Kingdom with his wife and young child while completing his postgraduate work in psychology. Adam is Muslim and is quite committed to his religion, feeling that "Loyalty is a deeply moral issue which is based primarily on loyalty to God. Subsequently, loyalty to anyone else is based on what God prescribes.” 

When asked if he has ever been faced with a difficult decision, Adam describes a situation in which his religious beliefs were in sharp contrast to the business dealings of the United Kingdom. Adam had been using public transportation to and from the university, but the route was not direct and he was missing out on valuable time with his wife and child. For this, Adam decided to procure a vehicle to cut down on his commute. Unfortunately, this led to an unforeseen religious conflict with the contract. As Adam explains:

“In Islam, interest is prohibited on loans. However, in an effort to avoid this prohibition, some banks have come up with deceptive ways to take interest by giving it another name. For example, I leased a car with the agreement that, upon the final payment, the car would be transferred to my name. The bank essentially buys the car on your behalf and leases it to you until the final payment. Overall, the amount of money paid [to the bank] exceeds the amount [one would have paid] if the car was bought upfront.”

Adam is of the opinion that banks have learned to disguise some aspects of their contracts in an effort to gain customers whose religious teachings oppose such dealings. When Adam first agreed to the deal, he was not aware that the interest (what Muslims refer to as “riba”) was “built in” to the lease agreement.”. However, Adam’s friend, Hamza, is also Muslim and believes these sorts of agreements with banks are permissible. Hamza himself is leasing a car through the bank in this way. While Adam respects Hamza, he feels these contracts are not permissible. 

Adam describes how he decided to literally “pay the price” of this mistake and prematurely terminate the lease:

“...I realized how having two contracts, one for renting and one for owning the car, is impermissible, as well as the issue of asking the bank to buy the car on your behalf rather than… buying it independently. I decided to pay the fine in order to end the contract and give the car back. I do not regret the decision, and it has given me insight into how cultural change occurs through the use of language in order to create open secrets.”

Adam was disappointed that he could no longer rely on a car to cut down on his daily commute, and lost money (which is tight for many, particularly as a graduate student!), but he felt that he made the right decision for himself and his family in staying true to his religious beliefs. 

Adam reflected over this scenario and how it relates to what he sees are the major problems in society today:

“I believe that a lack of moral sensitivity and authentic meaning is behind all current issues.”

As a society, how do we ensure that we are not excluding those from cultural and religious backgrounds whose norms differ from our own? What steps can organizations and institutions take to avoid situations like this, and to rectify problems when they arise? 

Have you ever found your religious/spiritual beliefs to be in conflict with a social norm or policy?Have you ever disagreed with a friend on something important to you? Did this change your values? Did Hamza do the right thing by advising Adam to keep the contract? Where is the line between peer pressure and advising?