A society with 98% of its members being traditional Muslims...

A society with 98% of its members being traditional Muslims, and most of them adhering to their divine book\'s commands, is well prepared to accept revolution.\' Many have rejected the idea that religion, and in particular Islam could have played a strong role in the people\'s motivation towards revolting against the Shah.

Mohammadi writes: \'Among the main arguments against this ideology being used as the ideology of the revolution are: Many years of western imperialist propaganda had inspired the notion that, "Religion should be separated from politics and have no relationship with socio-political problems". This program of insinuation had affected various classes of people and even some of the clergy and religious authorities.

The ideal society that Islam intended to establish belonged to 14 centuries in the past and many believed it impossible to establish its orders in the modern era. Doubts existed whether it could answer the present epoch\'s conundrums.

Reliance on some of the Islamic principles, such as dissimulation and waiting for the advent of the 12th Imam in Shi\'ah tradition and obeying the designated guardian among the Sunnis, had left no room, not even in the minds of some true Muslims, for the idea that Islam could be wielded as a revolutionary ideology for changing the prevailing values.\' After discussing many of the abovementioned points he insists: \'The evidence in all of these popular and mass movements proves that the essential accelerating factor in the revolution had a purely religious aspect and was related to the insulting article as follows: From January 10, 1978 till the victory of the revolution, all of the demonstrations had a religious aspect and were performed using religious traditions, ceremonies and festivities, (like Ashura, the 40th day mourning ceremony, and religious festival), and had no other distinguishing traits.

The starting and ending points of the demonstrations were at mosques and the regime showed its enmity to religion by attacking the Great Mosque of Kerman, Habib Mosque in Shiraz, and Lonradeh Mosque in Tehran, trying to stop these gatherings. Invitation for the gatherings for street marches and leadership of the demonstrations were accomplished by the scholars. Non-religious leaders never had any role in administering and leading the demonstrations.