{"id":17929,"date":"2020-08-03T15:09:33","date_gmt":"2020-08-03T20:09:33","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/english.kadivar.com\/?p=17929"},"modified":"2023-01-07T19:08:56","modified_gmt":"2023-01-08T00:08:56","slug":"blasphemy-and-apostasy-in-islam","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/english.kadivar.com\/2020\/08\/03\/blasphemy-and-apostasy-in-islam\/","title":{"rendered":"Blasphemy and Apostasy in Islam"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><em><strong>Blasphemy and Apostasy in Islam:<\/strong><\/em><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><em>Debates on Shi\u2019a Jurisprudence<\/em><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Mohsen Kadivar<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Translated by Hamid Mavani&nbsp;<br \/>Preface by Gianluca Parolin<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/edinburghuniversitypress.com\/series-in-translation-modern-muslim-thinkers.html\">In Translation: Modern Muslim Thinkers<\/a>, Series Editor: Abdou Filali-Ansary<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Edinburgh: <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/edinburghuniversitypress.com\/book-blasphemy-and-apostasy-in-islam-hb.html#\">Edinburgh University Press<\/a><\/strong>, April 2021 (in association with Aga Khan University Institute for the Study of Muslim Civilizations, London, United Kingdom)<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>411+xviii pages<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul>\n<li>ISBN: 9781474457576<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-large\"><img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"500\" height=\"750\" src=\"https:\/\/english.kadivar.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/9781474457576.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-17930\" srcset=\"https:\/\/english.kadivar.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/9781474457576.jpg 500w, https:\/\/english.kadivar.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/9781474457576-200x300.jpg 200w, https:\/\/english.kadivar.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/9781474457576-90x135.jpg 90w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 500px) 100vw, 500px\" \/><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n<p>\u2018<em>Professor Mohsen Kadivar brilliantly demonstrates theoretically and historically that charges of blasphemy and apostasy should no longer be prosecuted but instead viewed through the Islamic tradition of toleration and co-existence<\/em>.\u2019<strong> &nbsp;<\/strong>(Roy Parviz Mottahedeh, Harvard University)<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Take a front-row seat to the debate on blasphemy and apostasy in Islam<\/h4>\n\n\n\n<p>Is it lawful to shed the blood of a man or a woman who insults the Prophet Muhammad? Does the Qur&#8217;an stipulate a worldly punishment for apostates? Beginning with a genealogy of religious freedom in contemporary Islam, this book tells the gripping story of R\u0101fiq Taq\u012b, an Azerbaijani journalist and writer, who was condemned to death by an Iranian cleric for a blasphemous news article in 2006.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Delving into the most sacred sources for all Muslims &#8211; the Qur&#8217;an and Hadith \u2013 Mohsen Kadivar explores the subject of blasphemy and apostasy from the perspective of Shi\u2019a jurisprudence to articulate a polarisation between secularism and extremist religious orthodoxy. In a series of online exchanges, he debates the case with Muhammad Jawad Fazel, the son of Grand Ayatollah Fazel Lankar\u0101n\u012b who issued the fatwa pronouncing death penalty on Taq\u012b. While disapproving of the journalist\u2019s writings, Kadivar takes a defensive stance against vigilante murders and asks whether death for apostasy reflects the true spirit of Islam.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Key Features<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul>\n<li>Presents a back-and-forth debate between modern two Shi\u2019a jurists (one conservative, one reformist) that locates the exact points of controversy surrounding apostasy and blasphemy<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Engages with the broader subjects of religious freedom and human rights, addressing both secular and religious interests<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>An extensive new introduction and annotations throughout the text from Mohsen Kadivar bring the work up-to-date and place it in its academic and public contexts<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>A preface by Professor Gianluca Parolin explains the importance of the translation and the value of its contribution to current scholarly debate<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center\"><strong>Contents:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Introduction<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ol>\n<li>Literature Review of Religious Freedom and Apostasy in Contemporary Sunni Islam<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Literature Review of Religious Freedom and Apostasy in Contemporary Shi\u2019i Islam<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>The Genealogy of the Book\u2019s Ideas and Its Merits<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Part I: Apostasy and Blasphemy<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>The Background of the Treatise<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ol>\n<li>Legal Ruling on Assassination by Lankar\u0101n\u012b Sr. and Statement of Delight by Lankar\u0101n\u012b Jr. at its Implementation<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Objections to the Fatwa of Assassination \u2013 by Kadivar<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Response to Doubts Surrounding Apostasy \u2013 by Lankar\u0101n\u012b Jr.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Treatise on Refuting the Punishment for Apostasy and Blasphemy<\/strong>&nbsp;\u2013 by Kadivar<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ol>\n<li>Issuing a ruling on the death penalty by a process that falls outside the sphere of a competent court will engender lawlessness and anarchy<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Claiming the validity of the death penalty for apostasy and blasphemy is based on one deficient \u2018isolated report\u2019 (khabar al-w\u0101\u1e25id).<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Refuting the claim that most of the hadiths on apostasy are \u2018mutaw\u0101tir\u2019<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Refuting the claim of consensus (ijm\u0101\u2018) and the necessity to implement the death penalty for apostasy and blasphemy<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>No one, during the time of the Prophet, Imam Ali, and the other Imams, was sentenced to death solely for apostasy<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>The Absolute Cessation of the \u1e24ud\u016bd Punishments or those that Necessitate Death Penalty and Injury, and Suspension During the Time of the Imam\u2019s Occultation<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>\u2018Isolated reports\u2019 (khabar al-w\u0101\u1e25id) are non-probative in matters of critical importance<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Issuing fatwas on killing an apostate or a blasphemer weakens and tarnishes Islam<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Alteration of the subject of apostasy and objecting to the perpetual applicability of the death penalty for apostasy and blasphemy<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>The incompatibility of executing an apostate or a blasphemer with explicit Qur\u2019anic verses<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n<p>Appendix 1. A Further Clarification to Lankar\u0101n\u012b Jr.\u2019s Position<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Appendix 2. R\u0101fiq Taq\u012b in His Own Words and in the Words of His Defenders<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Part II: Freedom of Expression and Hate Speech&nbsp;<\/strong>\u2013 by Kadivar<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ol>\n<li>Islam: Between Freedom of Expression and Hate Speech<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Letter of Censure to the Jurists Who Issued the Latest Judgement on Apostasy<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Insulting the Prophet is a Form of Hate Speech<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Request for Clarification from the Jurists Who Defend \u2018Suffocating the Religionists\u2019<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n<p>Appendix 3: Imam [Ali]: Political Leader or Exemplary Role Model \u2013 by A. Gharav\u012b<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Glossary; Bibliography; Index<br \/>About the Contributors<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center\">Keywords:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Iran, Jurisprudence, Islam, Religious Freedom, Islamic Law, Sharia<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Take a front-row seat to the debate on blasphemy and apostasy in Islam: a. Presents a back-and-forth debate between two Shi\u2019a jurists (one conservative, one reformist) that locates the exact points of controversy surrounding apostasy and blasphemy; b. Engages with the broader subjects of religious freedom and human rights, addressing both secular and religious interests; c. Articulates the secular\u2013religious divide and proposes a pluralistic solution, making a case that apostasy and blasphemy are non-existent in the Qur&#8217;an; d. Packed with translations of primary sources, including fatwas and interviews.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":17930,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":true,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5328],"tags":[5120,5200,5199,5198,5144],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v22.5 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Blasphemy and Apostasy in Islam - Kadivar.com English<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/english.kadivar.com\/2020\/08\/03\/blasphemy-and-apostasy-in-islam\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Blasphemy and Apostasy in Islam - Kadivar.com English\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Take a front-row seat to the debate on blasphemy and apostasy in Islam: a. 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