There should be a new generation of preachers or daie who could utilise modern tools and technology to disseminate the correct understanding of Islam. This new breed of daie 'the techno-daie if you will' is an important aspect of modern Islam. Without them, it would be difficult to present the true Islam in this post-modern world that we now live in.
The new generation in particular are be-coming more techno-savvy. So what better way to approach the post-modern generation than to apply that which they are most comfortable with? Why not use technology to narrow the gap between the daie and the community? ICT, for instance, could be utilised to the maximum by the techno-daie to disseminate information on Islam. Multimedia, to take an example, could be used to teach young children how to read the Quran correctly. Multimedia is interactive and combines the usage of most senses. This would make learning the Quran more interesting, especially to today's children.
ICT also presents an endless possibility to the techno-daie. Say, for instance, a techno-daie were to deliver a lecture in a mosque. He could make use of web-based presentation tools to make his talk more interesting. The audience would also be able to remember more effectively if multimedia is used.
Also, if classical works of Islam such as the voluminous Imam Syafii's Kitab al-Umm or Ibn Khaldun's Muqaddimah are produced in the form of CD-ROM, this would help the techno-daie carry these references anywhere.
The techno-daie would just need to carry a couple of CD-ROMs as opposed to several volumes of very thick books around. All the techno-daie would need is of course a laptop, which is becoming lighter and much easier to carry as technology progresses.
In Verse 125 of Surah al-Nahl of the Quran, God says to the effect that: "Invite (all) to the way of thy Lord with wisdom and beautiful preaching; and argue with them in ways that are best and most gracious: for thy Lord knoweth best, who have strayed from His path, and who receive guidance".
Using technology for dakwah is in line with using wisdom and beautiful preaching in dakwah as mentioned in the verse. The advancement of technology also demands that the audience be techno-savvy as well.
Tools such as the palmtop and the personal digital assistant (PDA) should be used by audience of a religious lecture to take down notes. Listening alone is not sufficient. Research has shown that to fully understand what is being taught, one must listen and jot down what one hears. This, unfortunately, is rarely done by Muslims when it comes to learning.
Looking back at the history of Islam, we could see that one of the most revered scholars of Islam, Imam Syafii, is someone who never failed to write down what he learnt.
During his early years as a student, he was too poor to purchase proper writing materials. Nevertheless this did not deter him even a little bit. He used his palm and saliva to replace the materials he could not afford to buy.
Imam Syafii may have used his palm to study. In this day and age, we could use palmtops and PDAs.
Maybe in the past, it is cumbersome to carry around books, pens, pencils and erasers especially if one is going to the mosque. However, today with the palmtop and PDA, things are made very much easier for us.
Why not take advantage of this develop-ment in order to better ourselves with the knowledge of Islam? Why should this technology not be used in our quest to truly un-derstand Islam? Perhaps, aside from the importance of creating a new breed of daie, that is the techno-daie, we must also at the same time focus on creating a new breed of ummah, that is the techno-ummah.[Source: http://ikimnt.ikim.gov.my]