Food for Islamic thought

Long discussion with a friend about the Quran, its meaning and how we should study it. He thinks that there is an infinite level of discovery that we can reach (just how I don't know) if we analyze the Quran, each verse and each word. I told him there have been scholars who have written lengthy commentaries on the Quran, using their knowledge of the Arabic language, the content and context of the revelations and more, but he seems to think we need a new fresh set of minds for this task, not people whose minds are muhajjareen (made of stone), or frozen in old paradigms. He doesn't mean to discredit the scholars in early Islamic history, only that Muslims today need a significantly new way of looking at Islamic teachings and how they should be implemented in society, but that many of them (in particular the salafists) are stuck with the 'old stuff' and refuse to understand today's realities.

While I think this friend of mine has some pretty radical ideas, I can understand his frustration with contemporary Islamic scholars. The Muslim world needs to change from within and this change has to be spearheaded by our scholars. It appears that a lot of them (especially in predominantly Muslim countries) have failed to anticipate, understand and adequately respond to many of the challenges of the modern world. Instead of moving forward in a post modern, globalized world, many an Islamic society has become polarized, its people turning to confrontation with the West as the only possible 'right' way.

The issue is of course decidedly more complex, but I'll end with this: young Muslims like my friend want to stay true to their faith and religion, and in this sense, he is not dissimilar from the many who have either turned to Al-Qaeda style extremism or are sympathetic to it.