Day: January 7, 2023

Islam and the State from a Shi’ite perspective

The article details the perspective of Ja’fari Shi’ite Muslims and delves into the history of Shi’ism, the separation of religious and profane affairs, the guardianship of the jurists, Shi’ism within a constitutionalist context, political Shi’ism in a secular context, and Islamic republic. The author’s thorough historical overview is followed by a discussion of political theories of Shi’ite authorities after constitutionalism and the establishment of the Islamic Republic of Iran, specifically theories proposed by Khorasani and Khomeini, and how other Shi’ite scholars differ from these two groups of thought.

Rethinking Muslim Marriage Rulings through Structural Ijtihad

Within ‘Structural Ijtihad’, all juristic arguments on marriage and the validity of all derived rulings should be tested against four criteria: reasonability, justice, ethics, and effectiveness, all according to contemporary standards of justice and social realities. The author applies structural ijtihad to four contested areas of marriage (child marriage, rights and duties in marriage, divorce, and polygamy) to demonstrate the implementation of these criteria. In contrast to traditional fiqh, applying the structural ijtihad approach can preserve principles and standards within the tradition while adequately addressing today’s needs, contexts, and standards.

Free Speech and Critique of Religion in Contemporary Islam

While the Qur’an and the practical tradition of the Prophet strongly support freedom of expression and critique of religion, serious obstacles to the realization of freedom of expression and critique of religion are not easily deniable in the hadiths, conventional Islamic sciences, and the lived experiences of Muslims throughout the history. There is no red line or any restrictions for a scholarly critique of Islam in academic circles, while for the mass audience, there are restrictions that will not shake the faith of people due to weak public information.