Islam

Unlike all other present-day nationalities, Arab nationality is defined exclusively in terms of a single written language, which encompasses a huge range of mutually incomprehensible speech forms—the better to make the “Arab nationality” as large as possible, and to establish continuity between today's “Arabs” and the glorious past of the early Islamic conquerors. The secular version of Arabic nationalism lost its appeal when the Arab countries failed to unite politically and when they were defeated by Israel in 1967. The apparent (...) Islamization of Arabic society since 1967 is actually a response to these failures. When “Arabs” perceived that secular ideology had failed to achieve their national goals, they turned to Islamism as a different strategy for achieving the same objectives. (shrink)

In this book I offer a critical, comparative and empirically-informed defense of Islamic schools in the West. To do so I elaborate an idealized philosophy of Islamic education, against which I evaluate the situation in the Netherlands, Belgium and the United States. I examine in details notions of cultural coherence, the range of parental authority v. a child's interests, as well as the state's role in regulating religious schools.

Traditional theistic proofs are often understood as evidence intended to compel belief in a divinity. John Clayton explores the surprisingly varied applications of such proofs in the work of philosophers and theologians from several periods and traditions, thinkers as varied as Ramanuja, al-Ghazali, Anselm, and Jefferson. He shows how the gradual disembedding of theistic proofs from their diverse and local religious contexts is concurrent with the development of natural theologies and atheism as social and intellectual options in early modern Europe (...) and America. Clayton offers a fresh reading of the early modern history of philosophy and theology, arguing that awareness of such history, and the local uses of theistic argument, offer important ways of managing religious and cultural difference in the public sphere. He argues for the importance of historically grounded philosophy of religion to the field of religious studies and public debate on religious pluralism and cultural diversity. (shrink)

Ovaj leksikon je namenjen savremenom čoveku. Praktičan je i zanimljiv te može koristiti učenicima, studentima i svima koji žele da obogate svoja stručna i opšta znanja.

The aim of this study is to clarify whether the content of empathy, which is considered the process that motivates prosocial behaviour and prevents individuals and people doing harm to each other, is in harmony with the Qurʾān or not. If Muslims understand each other and non-Muslims as well, this will help in decreasing the conflicts and contribute to world peace. In this paper, to present the theoretical framework of empathy we will consider the concepts closely related to empathy such (...) as sympathy and altruism etc. After that, we will discuss the verses that appear to be related to empathy in the Qurʾān. During that effort, a risk of exceeding our human level awaits us: To claim that we can empathize with God. Can we put ourselves in His place? I must say from the perspective of the Muslim approach “No!” Nevertheless, considering both classical and modern era Qur’anic commentaries, we can investigate God’s Book sent to the prophet Muḥammad (pbuh) to understand His intention. This is quite normal unless we claim that our level of understanding is absolute. According to preliminary findings, people are encouraged by the Qurʾān to do self-criticism, to keep themselves away from transgression, and not to take revenge. We suggest that, taken together, the logic behind these recommendations is for us to develop a sense of empathy in any situation of conflict. (shrink)

This study aims to shed light on the position of Imām al-Māturīdī (d. 333/944) on atomism. It consists of three sections. The first section will delineate some theories of matter along with the meaning of certain pertinent terms, which were widely accepted during al-Māturīdī’s time. The following section will discuss whether Imām al-Māturīdī understood such notions as body (jism), substance (jawhar), and accident (ʿaraḍ) within the frame of traditional Islamic atomism. Moreover, this section will give some information on how al-Māturīdī (...) approached the issues pertaining to physics and cosmology. The last section will cover the development of atomism in the Māturīdiyya kalām school after Imām al-Māturīdī. (shrink)

In reference to the philosophical theology of medieval Islamic theologian Ibn Taymiyya, this paper outlines a parallel between Taymiyyan thought and Alvin Plantinga’s thesis of ‘Reformed Epistemology’. In critiquing a previous attempt to build an account of ‘Islamic externalism’, the Taymiyyan model offers an account that can be seen as wholly ‘Plantingan’.

I shall argue that the prominent realist methodological approach that is adopted by majority of analytic theologians is inconsistent with the Islamic tradition. I will propose that the realist outlook is constituted of two essential components – metaphysical theological realism and epistemic theological realism – both of which fail to be amenable with the Islamic tradition. The prime reason for this, as I shall demonstrate, is that both metaphysical theological realism and epistemic theological realism divest the Islamic God of absolute (...) transcendence in different ways, impinging on the religion in a manner which ironically defies the purpose of analytic theology. In conclusion, this would establish that the prominent realist position adopted by majority of analytic theologians is inconsistent with the Islamic tradition. (shrink)

Materialism, which reduces the whole of existence as simply matter and its interactions, and respectively ignores the intervention of a divine being into the universe; it is often traced back to a time when philosophy was born. However, when we study the historical process, we find that materialism was a thought that was generally rejected by the majority. With the enlightenment and secularism that came following the Renaissance, Reforms and 17th Century Scientific Revolution in Europe, materialism gained more followers. In (...) the 20th century, in what was known as its golden era, it became a world view by manifesting itself in the religious, social, political and economic spheres of life. Materialism came to the Ottomans following the first half of the 19th century through students who went to the West and newly established military and medical schools. Despite materialism forming the backbone of debates on westernization and secularism towards the end of the 19th century, this did not deter many intellectuals from endorsing much of the values that came with materialism, and it led to many repercussions within the political and social realms of the Ottoman world. On the other hand, materialism was not welcomed but rather disapproved of by many Ottoman scholars of kalāmsuch as Abdullatif Harputi, Izmirli İsmail Hakkı, Mehmet Şemsettin Günaltay and Ömer Nasûhi Bilmen. However, their criticism has caused them to break away from the classical period mutakallimūnin some respect. We attempt to outline the mentioned late period Ottoman mutakallimūn’s critique of materialism and compare their views with the classical mutakallimūn’s seemingly materialistic worldview. (shrink)

This paper studies the understanding and interpretation of a specific ḥadīth by Muhy al-dīn Ibn ʿArabī. His view on the ḥadīthabout ‘holding up the hands during ṣalāh’ is explained in the light of his well-known book, Futūḥāt al-Makkiyya. Besides the general knowledge and terminology of fiqhand ḥadīth, Ibn ʿArabī also utilized his unique methods and methodologies of taṣawwufto interpret the ḥadīth. It is concluded that in interpretation of a ḥadīth, Ibn ʿArabī differed from other scholars as he skillfully used these (...) three areas of knowledge as a trivet and by synthesizing these three sciences, he approached to the issue in a comprehensive way. The dreams, one of Ibn ʿArabī’s special methods and one of Sufism’s wisdom sources, are presented within the context of the interpretation of ḥadīth. While Ibn ʿArabī was inspired the ḥadīthby a dream, he also stated its place and status in ḥadīth sources. Moreover, he derived several conclusions by critically reviewing the related ḥadīths. (shrink)

In this thesis, which bears the name of The Perception of Human Being in al-Māturīdī, the subject of Human Conception for Imam Māturīdī, who is one of the most important figures of the Islamic thought and one of the pioneers of Ahl al-Sunnah, has been studied. In order to address this issue comprehensively, “What is human and why he is existed? What kind of being does man have? Is there a link between the creation of the human species and the (...) creation of the world/universe in its present form? What is the position and limit of man before Allah, the realm in which he gains existence, and other creatures with whom he shares the universe? In what way and in what dimension is his relationship with Allah and the universe? What are the main principles that enable man to realize his humanity? What is the greatest blessing given to man and the most valuable talent he has? Who is a good and ideal person? Can any human be the ideal person? What is death? Why does man die? The answers to many questions that can be listed such as; “What kind of existence does one expect after death? have been investigated. While this was done, it was tried to put forward the human conception of al-Māturīdī in a holistic manner on the basis of his point of view and the aspects he put forward in human thought. This study consists of an introduction, three sections and conclusion. The introduction provides information about the purpose, importance, scope, sources and methods of the research. In the first chapter, based on the question “What is human?”, Māturīdī's thoughts about the nature of human being, the structure of existence before and after the birth, The Messenger of AllahAdam, creation of Eve, the stages of human creation in the world and the place of mankind in the world were subjected to a detailed examination. Māturīdī's answers to the mentioned question and the religious and philosophical foundations of these answers have been investigated, his explanations of the nature of man and short comparisons between the mutaqaddimūn period of Kalām and philosophical tradition have been made. With his views on this issue, Māturīdī's standing in the Islamic viewpoint has been tried to be determined. al-Māturīdī thinks that man is an entity with complex and ontological integrity with his life and soul that gives him consistency, his nafs which is the grasping principle that enables him to comprehend and reason, and likewise with his body which is the apparent dimension of his material and spiritual properties, and rejects reductionist and fragmentary approaches. Māturīdī, who states that ‘aql is the most valuable thing that man possesses, accepts that in addition to human ‘aql, there is also a nature from a realist point of view. al-Māturīdī states that human nature is at times in conflict with reason and that this is inevitable. But he accepts that in the event of such a conflict, what is surely cherished, that is, mind must be followed. Similar to Imām Abū Ḥanīfa, Māturīdī, who understood the Fitrah as “Islamic Creation", emphasizes that in this sense, every human being, like all beings, is brought into being by the function of pointing to the existence and unity of Allah with the characteristics of creation. Mīsāqaccording to Māturīdī; is the creation of human with the capacity to reply with “balā” meaning; "Yes, you are our Lord” to the question; “Alastu bi-rabbikum” meaning: "Am I not your Lord”, If it was a reality. Therefore, according to him, metaphorical language was used in the statements regarding mīsāqin the Qur’ān. The second part of the study bears the title “Human as AimedBeing". According to Māturīdī, “Why did Allah create universe?” The correct answer to his question must be; “Because he is Allah." Accordingly, the act of creating is His attribute, and Allah Almighty creates because He is the Creator. Therefore, it is not right to show man or any other being as the cause of Allah's creation. However, when the universe and beings are observed, it is understood that the establishment of the world is aimed at human beings, and that the wisdom and fate in the creation of the world is reached only through the discovery of human beings, and that everything in the universe is created for man, for his benefit and observation. All this shows that human beings are “Purposed Being” and “Small World.” Among the beings in the universe, human beings have a separate position by having reason and freely performing their actions. As an entity capable of obedience or rebellion with the freedom of Will and choice, man has become available to position himself at the top of the hierarchy of being and to fall below if he fails to use these abilities correctly. According to Māturīdī, freedom is the most precious thing he has, just as reason is the most valuable ability of man. The price of human freedom is to address the proposal and to be held responsible for its choices and actions. al-Māturīdī states that every person is assigned the duty of caliphate. The "Caliph man" should carry out reconstruction and reform activities throughout the world, starting with himself. Every human being is a custodian on Earth and in his own body and has to act with safety awareness. In this sense, human beings must be just and moral towards their soul, creatures and Allah, and they must make their relations on the axis of the principle of Tawhid. The ideal person of al-Māturīdī is “Distinguished Man”. The distinguished person has a realist structure, not utopian in terms of role modeling, and has examples in the outside world. The most obvious examples of this are all the Messengers of Allah, especially messenger Muhammad. In the third chapter called” The End or Eternity of Man", the meanings that al-Māturīdī places on death as the characteristic of man, the new structure of being gained by man with death, and the situation of this structure in the barzakh and the Hereafter life are discussed. al-Māturīdī thinks that the existence of the Hereafter is a necessity of reason and wisdom and humanity within the framework of the idea of wisdom and fate. Because, according to Māturīdī, human is a being that is going to be complete with death. Death in the world is something must be prepared for, not avoided, for Man. Life, that is the top of the worldly tastes; was given to seek the life of Paradise, which is eternal life; Worldly death, the most severe of pain, was given to avoid the eternal torment, the eternal and most painful death. al-Māturīdī states that man will lead a spiritual life in the life of the barzakh, but with the resurrection –as required by al-Māturīdī's system– soul, nafs and body will be reunited. The thesis is completed with the “conclusion” section containing the findings/results reached in the research. Here, it is emphasized that there is a need to re-negotiate the idea with the human conceptions in the Islamic tradition in order to re-establish the human conception of the Muslim individual, which has changed under the influence of Western philosophy and has shifted from its own line. In order to meet this need, it is foreseen that reviving the ideas of al-Māturīdīcan make important contributions. The reason for this is that al-Māturīdīhas an intensity and richness that can be the cornerstone of human conception in this regard. (shrink)

In the historical process, the science of Kalām has become more interacted with the two disciplines. The first is philosophy and the other is Sufism. Its relationship with both disciplines has been a decisive factor in shaping the agenda and interest of the Kalām in favour of the disciplines in question. Therefore, when trying to determine the historical trajectory of Kalām science, it is necessary to consider its relationship and interaction with these disciplines. Here, taking into consideration the perspectives of (...) Sufis and Sufis will provide a better holistic point of view on the concept of Ahl al-Sunna in order to understand the thought structures of both Ash’arī and Ḥanafī-Māturīdī kalām systems. In this context, the relationship between Ḥanafī- Māturīdī kalām system from the early periods to zuhd and Sufism has been important in terms of shedding light on modern times for the early periods. Because in the early stages of Islamic thought, a scholar had multiple qualities in a process where disciplines were not yet divided into sections, in modern times it is necessary to look at them from a holistic perspective without longing for a certain pattern of thought. In this context, the most victimized from the reductive and discriminatory point of view of modern times are Māturīdī and the thought structure devoted to it. On the one hand, while trying to get closer to the rationalism of Mu‘tazila through Kitāb al-Tawḥīd, on the one hand, al-Māturīdī and his thought structure were turned into a guarantee of the legitimacy of Sufism and Sufis. The point to be mentioned in particular is the distance between Sufism and Ḥanafī-Māturīdī theologians’ views on inspiration. Therefore he and his thought system have been sacrificed from the context of his time and sacrificed to construction activity in line with the needs of modern times. In this case, starting from Abū Ḥanīfa, it is necessary to look at the Holistic-Sufism relationship from a holistic point of view by evaluating the Ḥanafī-Mâtürîdî kalām system in its own time and context. Starting from the historical background and background of the issue, the study of Kalām and Sufism in terms of topics of interest leads us to different conclusions from the building activities of modern times. In these factors, the relationship between the Ḥanafī-Māturīdī kalām system and Sufism in the early period was tried to be evaluated in its own time and context. It should be noted that the aim of this study is not to introduce the Ḥanafī-Māturīdī theologians, especially Abū Ḥanīfa and al-Māturīdī, to a Sufi-style as opposed to the rational identity assigned to them. On the contrary, by positioning the Ḥanafī-Māturīdī Kalām system somewhere in the middle of rational and mystical poles, it is to reveal its distance to both poles. In this context, our study consists of four chapters. In the first chapter, the common aspects of the theological and sufi movements which are present in the Ḥanafī-Māturīdī culture basin are tried to be put forward by referring to the historical background of the issue. However, no Sufi movement and formation have been considered as the equivalent and projection of the Ḥanafī- Māturīdī kalām system in Sufism. Anyway, evaluating both the Ḥanafī-Māturīdī kalām system and any Sufi school as branches of the same mentality in different disciplines and the equivalent of each other does not benefit from repeating the misconceptions that have fallen into the perspective of modern times. In the second part, the issue has been cross-evaluated in terms of the subjects of interest of both disciplines in the context of theology and the most important subject of Sufism. In particular, in the subjects of Sufism, the competencies of the Ḥanafī-Māturīdī theologians, and especially their mastery of Sufism, have been emphasized. In the third chapter, the subjects of prophethood in which the relationship between theology and Sufism are put forward have been discussed in the context of sainthood, inspiration, ismah and dignity. In this section, it is seen that the criticisms of Ḥanafī-Māturīdī theological system are aimed more at Shiite-Bātınī thought than Sufism and sufi. In the fourth chapter, the most important subject of early theological science of esmâ and ahkâm issues have been evaluated in terms of kalām and Sufism and the social dimension of the issue has been tried to be put forward. In the conclusion part, it is emphasized that it is difficult to define the Ḥanafī-Māturīdī Kalām system as anti-Sufi or faraway from to Sufism, considering the mystical infrastructure and historical background of the region, although it is not engaged in a Sufi thought and lifestyle. In addition, the necessity of placing him in a conciliatory position in the middle of rational and mystical ends has been brought to the fore despite the pure rational role that was given to him in modern times. (shrink)

A book review is a multifaceted critical analysis of a book and an evaluation on the quality, value/meaning, significance, and contribution of the book to its own subject/field. It is not a report, summary, or advertisement, rather it is a serious scholarly work. Book reviews have certain functions such as, for academics, being aware of the recently published books and saving time by getting an idea about those publications through reading experts’ evaluations about their significance, value, and contributions; for publishers, (...) finding an opportunity for a kind of advertisement of their publications that mostly remain to a limited environment like academia; for authors, receiving a feedback about their books to enable them to improve them in future editions. Although there is not only one right method for book reviews, because they are personal and reflect the reviewer’s personal ideas and remarks, this note makes suggestions on how to compose an ideal book review after providing a brief description of the nature of book reviews and includes some relevant technical notes hoping to be a helpful guide for those who want to write a book review. (shrink)

This thesis,Ibn Taymiyya’s Contextual Biblical Hermeneutics in Al-Jawāb al-Ṣaḥīḥ/The Correct Response, analyses how the renowned Ḥanbalī scholar Ibn Taymiyya interprets quotations from the Bible in his voluminous al-Jawāb al-Ṣaḥīḥ li-man baddala dīn al-Masīḥ. Ibn Taymiyya wrote Jawābto refute the anonymous Christian Letter from the people of Cyprus. Ibn Taymiyya’s Jawāband the Christian author’s Letterare not only significant literary compositions representing fourteenth-century interreligious polemical correspondences but, most importantly, these two polemics provide important insights into how late medieval Christians and Muslims understand (...) and read each other’s scripture. The Christian author of the Letter cites extensively from the Qur’ān to argue that Islam is a religion for only pagan Arabs and Christianity is still a valid religion, and that the Qur’ān confirms the soundness of Christian beliefs and doctrines. Ibn Taymiyya, on the other hand, uses biblical citations both to refute these claims of the Christian author and to argue that Christians misinterpret the Bible. According to the expediency of their argumentation, both of the authors use the Bible and the Qur’ān with an intertextual approach forming a scholarship that primarily focuses on appropriating the other’s scripture in the light of their own theological outlooks. Analysed in the context of this particular scriptural scholarship, the Jawāband the Lettermight reveal interesting insights into the hermeneutical character of interreligious polemics, which often remains in the shadow of polemical and apologetic characters of these works. By means of reflection on this interest, this study sets out to analyse the use and interpretation of biblical quotations in the Jawāb, with the purpose of understanding the hermeneutical character of Ibn Taymiyya’s biblical scholarship. The thesis also investigates the use of biblical quotations in the works of five major Muslim authors of refutations of Christianity, al-Ṭabarī’s, Ibn Ḥazm, Pseudo-Ghazālī, al-Qarāfī, and al-Dimashqī as a backdrop against which to assess the extent to which Ibn Taymiyya’s biblical hermeneutics is similar to and different from mainstream Muslim biblical scholarship. The key conclusion of this thesis is that for biblical interpretation, Ibn Taymiyya employs a contextual theory of meaning that is inspired by the hermeneutics of Islamic legal theory and Qur’ānic exegesis, and guided by his wider theological principles. This thesis argues that Ibn Taymiyya’s contextual biblical hermeneutics clearly distinguishes him from the other five Muslim scholars who use a theory of literal-nonliteral meaning for biblical interpretation. It will be shown that the originality of Ibn Taymiyya’s biblical hermeneutics lies in his use of the technical apparatus of Islamic Legal theory and Qur’ānic exegesis, and in the modification of this hermeneutics to make it accord with his wider theological and intellectual framework. It will become apparent that in relying on this modified version of Islamic hermeneutics, Ibn Taymiyya reads and interprets the Bible in a similar way to his reading and interpreting the Qur’ān. (shrink)

Beginning with ʿusūls, that is, the ḥadith booklets which were originally formed to record the Imam’s words back in the late second hijrī century, Shīʿī ḥadith scholarship has developed a comprehensive and unique literature over the last twelve centuries. One of the unique features of Twelver Shīʿīte ḥadith approach is the fact that the systematic application of isnad-centered criticism in the study and evaluation of ḥadiths with regard to accuracy was begun to be practiced after the 7th hijrī century and (...) gained wide acceptance only after that time. To put it differently, the text and the textual criteria, instead of the chain of transmitters were central in the evaluation of ḥadith reports for a long time in the history of Shīʿī ḥadith scholarship. This centrality of textual criteria employed in the evaluation of ḥadith reports continued throughout the Shīʿī ḥadith history and it reached its most effective position in the last century. Despite the decisive role the text and textual criteria have played in the study of ḥadiths in Shīʿa, textual criticism has received little scholarly attention so far, which makes this topic a significant research question. Furthermore, in order to examine the exact meaning of textual criticism present in Islamic tradition as comprehensively as possible, it is a necessity to approach it not only from Sunnī perspective but also with an approach that includes all the other madhhabs. Correspondingly, this study, Şīʿa’da Metin Tenkidi [Textual Criticism In Shīʿa] has explored the different approaches and practices of textual criticism as employed over the course of Shīʿīte ḥadith tradition. The social and political unrest, especially during the 2nd and 3rd hijrī centuries before the Shīʿa completed its development as a systematic Islamic madhhab, led to the emergence of ġhulāt, the extremist groups ascribing divine characteristics to ʿAlī and his family members. As an effective way of propagation and attracting more supporters, such groups used some reports fabricated in accordance with their views, and attributed them to the Imams of Shīʿa. The widespread practice of fabricating ḥadiths led way to the formation of a group reacting against such extremist ideas as well. The first chapter of the thesis provides a brief overview of the 3rd century Shīʿī theologians’ critiques of the ġhulāt-induced ḥadiths, and explores the initial attempts of early-period Akhbārīs, the scholars of so-called Qom School, to eliminate the fabricated reports as the first practices of textual criticism made by Twelver Shīʿītes. Having lived in the 3rd hijrī century, al-Faḍl b. Shāẕān and Ibn Qiba were among the early Shīʿī theologians, and they developed significant approaches with regard to textual criticism in ḥadith scholarship. They claimed that some factoids attributed to Shīʿa were actually originated from the reports of ġhulāt, and thus criticized them. The uncompromising attitude of Qom School towards the ġhulātis presented by Imāmiyya as an argument for the elimination of fabricated ḥadiths and not including these kind of reports in al-Kutub al-Arbaʿa. Indeed, it is obvious that the scholars of early Qom School employed a text-based criteria in eliminating the reports containing extremist ideas, such as ascribing divinity to other beings except Allah. As a matter of fact, such extremist ideas of ġhulātdo not appear as ḥadith reports in Shīʿī compilations. While the absence of such reports can be seen as an argument for the existence of a critical approach based on the content, it is rather impossible to determine the exact criteria used and the status of textual criticism due to lack of data concerning its methodology. Besides, it cannot be claimed that these efforts were successful in eliminating the fabricated reports of ġhulātcompletely and in preventing their circulation among the Shīʿī ḥadith sources. Additionally, when it comes to the problem of imāmah -the identity and the features of the leaders after Prophet Mohammad-, the critique of the fabricated reports was not practiced in the same meticulous manner, which is because of the fact that its imāmahparadigm is the core concept shaping Imāmiyyah as a madhhab and Shīʿī scholars failed to be objective in evaluating the ġhulātfabricated reports on this issue. Consequently, most of such reports escaped textual criticism. The second chapter examines the approaches and practices of Baghdad, Ḥilla and Jabal ʿĀmil Usūlī schools, which had active roles between 5th and 11th hijrī centuries respectively, towards textual criticism. The most prominent representatives of Baghdad Usūlī School are al-Shayḫ al-Mufīd, al-Sharīf al-Murtaḍā and Abū Jaʿfar al-Ṭūsī. Drawing on the works of these three scholars, it was aimed to be exposed the fact that text-related issues are the main determinants for evaluating, accepting or rejecting ḥadith reports in practise of Baghdad Usūlī School. In this respect, the key concept, used by these scholars is “qarīna”. According to their approaches, “khabar al-wāhid” is acceptable only when it has one of the qarīnas which are being coherent with the Qur'an, Sunnah, reason or ijmāʿ. The reports contradicting those qarīnas were claimed to have been rejected, at least theoretically. On the other hand, the role of sanad was not overlooked completely by scholars of Baghdad. It is obvious that isnad was an important tool in evaluating contradictory reports, as in the practise of al-Ṭūsī in particular. As I argue, Bagdad Usūlī School had serious doubts concerning the accuracy of sanads of reports, which made the scholars employ textual criticism instead of isnad,as the main method in evaluating ḥadith reports. Increased emphasis on the role of isnad with the rise of Ḥilla School in 7th hijrī century resulted in a decrease in the efficiency of qarīnas related to matn. I am of the opinion that the most influential factor for this is the fact the Shīʿa communities had to live under Sunnī rule for long years, especially with the collapse of the Buwayhids in the second half of the 5th hijrī century. It is inconceivable that Shīʿa, undergoing an unproductive era after Buwayhids, was not affected by Sunnī understanding, which was at the height of its scholarly productivity back then. Thus, with the Ḥilla School, isnad began to gain a substantial position in Shīʿī ḥadith methodology in ways similar to the isnad-centered Sunnī ḥadith methodology. Moreover, the isnad-centered Usūlīsm, beginning with the Ḥilla School, reached its heyday especially with al-Shahīd al-Thānī, who was one of the prominent scholars of Jabal ʿĀmil of Lebanon. This is due to the different approach of al-Shahīd al-Thānī favoured in ḥadith evaluation process. In Ḥilla School, despite the increasing role of isnad, matn was still important. However, al-Shahīd al-Thānī, who wrote Shīʿa’s first ḥadith methodology book, rejected the role of matn in the consideration of ḥadith reports almost completely. As I argue, that dysfunction of textual criticism, which is one of two main methods of ḥadith criticism, accelerated the rise of Systematic Akhbārism, which gained prominence in the 11th hijrī century and objected to all forms of criticising ḥadith reports. The third chapter investigates the contemporary practises of textual criticism. During the last century, in addition to the classical approach of Usūlīsm, significant improvements have taken place with regard to the understanding of textual criticism because of various historical and sociological factors. Within the scope of such recent practices, there have been scholarly attempts to identify and eliminate the ḥadith reports that were fabricated -especially- by ġhulātin the early period of Islam and found their ways into the main ḥadith sources. In this regard, it is crucial that the first examples of mawḍūʿātbooks, including the fabricated reports, have been compiled. Especially in al-Mawḍūʿātof Hāshim Maʿrūf al-Ḥasanī, textual criticism seems to be the main method used in order to identify the fabricated reports. However, it is not possible to say that such attempts have found wide acceptance among the Shīʿa scholars yet. To conclude, this study demonstrates that the textual criticism has always been used as a method in evaluating ḥadith reports throughout the history of Shīʿī ḥadith scholarship. However, there are differences with regard to the scale of emphasis put on textual criticism and to what extent it has been employed as a methodology in each school. Even in the periods dominated by al-Shahīd al-Thānī and his successors and shortly afterwards by Akhbārīs, textual criticism was applied to the reports related to doctrinal issues while its practice area was significantly limited for the reports on Islamic Jurisprudence. (shrink)

From the beginning of the first periods of Islamic theology, the concept of kufr is the most important amongst other terminology related to the judgement of murtakib al-kabīra in this world and Hereafter. The purpose of this article is to focus on the problems in the use of takfīr, which is the final judgement of murtakib al-kabīrarepresenting the very extremism itself, against other views of other theological readings within kalām methodology. Ibn Ḥaẓm is another major scholar who investigates the judgement (...) of murtakib al-kabīrawithin the scope of faith in itself. Examining the understanding of takfīr in different kalam schools, Ibn Ḥaẓm also evaluates the use of this judgement in intellectual disputes. The relationship of īmānand ‘amal in the debates of kalam schools, some concepts such as īmān, kufr, fisq, shirk, nifāqand al-manzila bayn al-manzilatayn, some mentioned in the Qur’ān and some not, are in constant use. It is observed that some of these discussions were institutionalized and transformed into a school in the process. Thus, takfīrwas not only a matter of only cardinal sins in later periods, but was also utilized for differences of opinions due to the different readings and interpretations arising from social and political factors. Thus, takfīrhas been the issue for both religious and political purposes, which are two separate areas. Therefore, takfīr has been studied relying on its political disputes in a theological paradigm and its major feature, being weaponized to silence and overpower the opponent, has been emphasized in this work. (shrink)

The theory of the production of space used in our study, which was put forward in 1974 by Henri Lefebvre in his book The Production of Space, brought about many space discussions in social theory. The book, which claims to put forward a general theory of space, has been the subject of controversy, but it is noteworthy that it is one of the most frequently used sources of space studies. The aim of this study is to re-read the theory mentioned (...) in the book. Because a different perspective will be brought to the social relations and problems that are encountered every day in social life and which are tried to be understood, explained and solved by the related researches. This study, The Production of Space: Everyday Life in Medina in The Period of The Prophet Muḥammad aims to provide an important perspective on understanding the intellectual roots of the problem even if it does not provide a concrete and direct contribution to the solution of social problems. The research problem of the thesis is the evaluation of the processes of production of space in the context of the theory of the production of space, which occupies an important place in space discussions in social theory. What is space? What does the space cover? How is the space produced? How does space affect daily life? Based on such a research problem, two dimensions of the scope and purpose of the thesis can be mentioned. First of all, the thesis should be evaluated in two categories as theoretical and research scope. In terms of theoretical/conceptual scope, the thesis is examined in three axes. The first axis is the philosophy of space based on what the concept of space is, and the relationship between the philosophy of space and the theory of production of space, which is written by the same name that stands out in a number of works of Lefebvre, and the theory that is adopted as a basis. Although the definitions and propositions of many philosophers and theorists are discussed here, the theory of the production of space constitutes the backbone of the theoretical context of the thesis. In this context, the theoretical/conceptual aim of our thesis is to make a detailed reading of the related theory and to evaluate the structural/conceptual frameworks that emerge in the theory. The first step of the theoretical dimension is to evaluate the conceptual, structural and factual components that come forward especially with a detailed reading of the book The Production of Spaceand to functionalize the relevant theory for space research in a concrete context. In other words, it is an indirect interpretation of the possibilities and limitations of the theory in the context of concrete time-space with functionalized frameworks. The second axis of the theoretical/conceptual scope is the concept of daily life, which is closely related to the theory of production of space. In this title, what is the concept of daily life, how it is institutionalized and where / how it takes place in the eyes of theoreticians/theorists as a reality is examined. The historical process and basic principles of the concept, which has become increasingly important as sociology of daily life, are discussed in detail in a timely and concrete relationship with chronological discussions. The main purpose of this second stage is to create an undefined, undefined, undefined behaviors, wishes, how and in which processes the individuals who are involved, adopted, adopted, defined the social institutions, spaces that were previously used to, and who were involved in the social reality with the roles they took in the societies where the space was produced. and the complex character of this organization process. Another conceptual purpose is to help the concept, which is evaluated in a very complex and wide range, to find a place on a more reasonable and more grounded ground. Therefore in our research, we went to a limitation in the context of time-space. Before they give hints about daily life or before the emigration. We excluded the narratives, events or people that emerged after Muḥammad. In addition, we did not include some features such as fezâil, which we think did not give information about the everyday life of Medina. The third and last axis of the conceptual/theoretical scope is the part where body theory is discussed in terms of its close interest to both space and society. In this section, where the place and importance of body concept which constitutes the backbone of the research scope are discussed, the theoretical framework has been tried to be put forward more clearly. The second dimension of the thesis, the aim of the scope of the research in the context of the production process of space and space, especially Muḥammad during the Medina's daily life is to reveal the narrative. For this reason, firstly, the temporal and spatial dimension of the Medina was briefly discussed. In this study, which can also be seen as a background study, In the period of Muḥammad, the city of Medina was trying to be brought to the forefront as a spatial scope. The choice of such scope can be justified in several respects. The first of these is the scattered and closed-up former name of Yasrib, which has been subjected to a pagan culture, conflict, fighting and war throughout history, and remains far from a central authority and political unity. Besides, Yesrib people are a full agricultural society in terms of the climate and geographical location of the region; It is also known as a full trade society with the control of the economic power of the Jews which is another element of the region. The Jews and Arabs, who had to lead a mutualist life, naturally used the commonplaces of daily life, such as the farmland and the bazaar, like common areas. With the introduction of a different element in the region with Islam and Muslims, some things completely disappeared, some of them caused changes in forms and also caused some developments that were put forward / extracted for the first time in the region. Here, one of the main objectives of the research scope of the thesis study is the source of a rich literature accumulation of the space, city, urbanization process and the changes that occurred in the region in the following decade with the emigration and the contribution of these changes to urbanization on existing life forms present The aim of this study is to determine whether the characteristics of Arab society overlap with the characteristics of body theory. Briefly, in this thesis study based on space theory, the processes of the production of space and space during the period of Muḥammad are handled in terms of reflection at everyday life. (shrink)

Mysticism, visions, feminism, music, herbal medicine…Hildegard of Bingen have been identified with these notions. Because she has influenced Christianity until today with her extraordinary visions and various works about God, man, cosmology, music, botany and anatomy. In this study it will be evaluated the life of Hildegard who is one of the remarkable mystics in Christian mysticism history and her effect to Christian mysticism. Studies on the Christian mysticism is very limited in our country. Therefore, this study aims to contribute (...) to Christian mysticism and to provide a source for the researchers who work on this field. This thesis, Hildegard as a Mystic and her Place in the Christian Thought, consists of three chapters. The first chapter is an introduction to mysticism and the Christian mysticism. In this chapter is discussed the basic dynamics of Christian mysticism. Christianity has undergone a mystical transformation with Paul, who intended to move away from Judaism's emphasis on law. This mystical formation began to gain strength with elements such as saint and martyrdom from the 2nd century onwards. In the later period, Christianity has become even more spiritual structure with desert and monastic life. In the first chapter, it is emphasized that Christian mysticism is influenced by Jewish mysticism and Greek tradition and Mystery religions. Therefore, we think that Christian mysticism impressed by the internal dynamics like Paul and the New Testament texts and the external dynamics mentioned above. In this chapter, it is emphasized that Christian mystics usually prefer the word "love" which is a mystical expression when speaking about Jesus. Also, they concentrate on contemplation and evaluate rituals like sacraments in such a manner that mystical. At the end of this chapter, it is stated that Christian mystics usually prefer the word "love" when speaking about Jesus which is a mystical expression. Also, they concentrate on contemplation and evaluation of rituals like sacraments in a mystical manner; therefore we can say that they have a different understanding of religion than from institutional Christianity. In the second chapter, it is evaluated the relationship between the Church and mysticism and the socio-cultural background of the period influenced her thoughts. We can say that Christian Mysticism has begun to mature since the Middle Ages; even though Christianity tended to mysticism in the early period. Living in that period, she can be seen as a remarkable woman when her mystic character is taken into consideration. Even though she spent most of his life in the monasteries, it would be misleading to regard her as the one who is confined within the limits of the monastery since she established close relationships with many important people from the Pope to the Emperor. Thanks to her visions, she was accepted as a consultant or an oracle by the people around her. Also, she travelled to different cities to preach to people and priests, and in these sermons, she both criticized the clergy in some aspects and warns people against heretic movements. Even if she applied different rules in the monasteries and criticized the church authorities on some issues, she often paid attention to stay at the limits of orthodoxy and to defend the Catholic faith. Another remarkable aspect of Hildegard is that men and women are equally responsible for the first sin. The fact that she says Adam's ate the forbidden fruit due to Eve's love, that women are closer to Godly knowledge, and that she is appointed by God because of males unable to fulfil responsibility is noteworthy. Hildegard was not recognized as a heretic because of her aristocratic relatives who supported and power of visions. During this period, Christians began to fight against groups that were considered heretical by the Church and she lived at a time of Crusades. In other words, this age was a period which the Jews and Muslims were defined as heretics and infidels. This attitude affected other mystics. For example, Clairvaux Bernard in spite of as a mystic organized the Crusades and gave sermons to support it. Similarly, she did not remain indifferent to these developments and developed a rather harsh perspective against the members of the religious groups called "other “. The aim of our study is to reveal that Hildegard, a mystic in the Middle Ages, did not follow a different policy from the Church such an in religious and sociology atmosphere. In this chapter, we try to emphasize that the Church in the Middle Ages generally supported to mystics, though sometimes they struggled them. Because it is accepted that mystics and monasteries have empowered the Church by doing missionary and struggled against heretics. But we should also remember that there is a struggle for sovereignty among the Church and the mystics and the Church has accepted some mystics as heretics. We can state that she intuited this danger and tried to keep herself within the boundaries drawn by the Church. Hildegard has influenced Christianity until today with her extraordinary visions and different works such as God, man, cosmology, music, botany and anatomy. In addition, she especially generated thoughts about the human-Jesus-God relationship, universe, spirit, satan and the salvation of the world. What makes Hildegard different is that to describe some of God's attributes in a feminine way like God's wisdom and mercy, to explain nature, God's attributes and virtues in a connection with each other manner. At the end of this chapter is discussed Hildegard's contribution to Christian thought. For example, she supported her visions with paintings, thus contributed to the development of Christian illustration art. We can also say that her symphonies have contributed Church music and her cures it has been followed even today which is called herbal medicines. Besides these, it is made a film about her, also St. Rupert and St. Disibod monasteries has nearly recognized as a pilgrimage site nowadays. On the other hand, we can see that Hildegard's views about women are accepted by feminists and that they use the phrase for her "women's rights advocate of the Middle Ages". However, we believe that this statement is a misnomer. We can see this when we approach the works of Hildegard with a holistic reading. We think that this statement is also an anachronistic approach because feminists try to find a witness themselves from the Middle Ages. In the third and last section, we have tried to examine Hildegard's contribution to Christian mysticism and Catholic theology in terms of God, world, human, salvation. She was in close contact with the Pope and Bernard, it shows that she developed a theology on the line of the Church. Part of this theology was the perception of "others". For example, the pagan danger that Hildegard frequently expressed in her works, it aimed to reduce the impact of Christianity and paganism. Although Christianity became widespread during this period, it is possible to say that the Church and mystics such as Hildegard fought against the revival of paganism. She has more positive thoughts about Jewish heritage because Christianity depends it on theological and historical ties. However, Hildegard harshly criticized the Jews because they did not accept Jesus and crucified him. On the other hand, she believes that Judaism and Christianity are separated about mercy. According to her, Jesus eased the hardship of religious law. Thus, she pointed out that Jesus overhauled Judaism and the Old Testament which emphasized law. According to Hildegard, one of the differences between Judaism and Christianity is that Judaism is a world-oriented religion, but Christianity gained spirit through asceticism and monastery. Another group that Hildegard mentioned in her letters and visions is heretics. Although she did not mention precisely, it is clear that the features of this heretical group are Cathars. She often mentioned about the danger of Cathars, whose activities had increased in Europe. She warned the priests and the people of the danger of Cathars in the sermons tours. Hildegard accepted the rise of the Cathars as the devil coming out of the bottomless pits and warned the Church for their destruction. Emperor Friedrich supported the Crusades like Bernard and he died during these expeditions. We can say that she is not completely unaware of the Muslims because of these relationships. The thesis ends with "Conclusion" which includes the findings of the study. Additionally, the study is enriched maps, figures and pictures which including cities, monasteries and visions of Hildegard. (shrink)

In the XIX. century, Ottoman State has witnessed changes in many areas. Looking at the content of both the dated 1840 and the dated 1851 Penal Codes legislated in Tanzimat Era, it has seen that the transformation in criminal procedure, the judicial system, administrative fields were attempted to be accommodated with penal codes. The aim of this study is to seek answers to the question of how the criminal law of the Ottoman State changed in the period starting with the (...) 1858 Penal Code in the nineteenth century within scope of ta‘zir and more particularly, crime of murder and complicity as one of special forms of crime. The discussions of the criminal law scholars of the period about the nature of Article 45 regarding complicity in the 1858 Penal Code and their seeking solutions and how they developed new rules due to need in the process and at this point how they benefited from European penal codes, commentaries and their scholars will be attempted to demonstrate. More importantly, it will be witnessed how Ottoman judges used the classical principles in their minds when implementing the article of code. However, when looking from a broad perspective, we will see how the Classical Law School, in which Ottoman State was included through it’s 1858 Penal Code, and the crime policy of France and the French Penal Code have influenced Ottoman Criminal Law. (shrink)

ttachment theory has been studied in numerous researches since it was put forward by Bowlby who had that all infants were born with biological and emotional needs toward their mothers or caregivers. Since Bowlby’s attachment theory has been taken part in several fields beside Psychology, such as Psychology of Religion in which especially the attachment to God is tried to be understood, Pathology which does give attachment theory wide coverage to explain some mental disorders derived from unsecure attachment. After the (...) birth, the relationship between child and caregiver shapes perspective of child toward religion and God and gives him/her perception of God.The attachment patterns that children gain in their childhood form the attachment to God that they gain afterwards in their life, in that to understand children’s attachment to God, it is substantial to understand the primary attachment patterns of children. Perception of God shapes not only individual’s religious life, but also his/her behaviors toward his/her social environment and individual’s sense of self. For this reason, it is very essential to understand the attachment and how the attachment forms child’s perception of God. The problems of the study are how the attachment occurs, what it is affected by, and how the attachment pattern occurring between child and caregiver shapes child’s perception of God. In this context, the study aims to understand children’s perception of God on their attachment patterns they have acquired as well as providing scientific information for religious educators and religious education institutions. For the study, 5 main and 8 deeper questions aiming to find out children’s perception of God have been asked a study group consisting 13 children at the ages of 4-6 in Yeşil Elma Kinder Garden in Ankara by using interview technique. Interviews have been conducted with one student and one interviewer at a time regarding children’s psychological conditions. This study is a qualitative research, and the collected data have been interpreted by using descriptive analysis. According to findings of the study, it has been noted that the questions were answered with some sentence patterns which they might have heard from their families regarding that the kinder garden is mostly preferred by conservative the families, and that the children have positive-love based God perception, beside that they have a concrete God image accordingly their ages. (shrink)

Māturīdī, one of the prominent Kalām scholar, is mostly considered to have played a significant role in the construction of a sustainable religious approach today. This recognition originates from his joint reference to intellect and divine inspiration with regard to issues in Kalām in addition to his contributions to the Sunni way of thinking. His balanced use of the intellect and divine inspiration in his solutions for issues of Hidāyat increased his popularity. In the Muslim world, just as in any (...) other community, perception of reality or guidance not as a process but as outright values of their community causes such problems as religious fanaticism and advocacy for sole truth. To solve such problems, a sound understanding of guidance in Muslim communities should be constructed in the light of scientific and social realities. In this respect, determining unique and comprehensive interpretations of Māturīdī of the issue will be of great help for establishing a peaceful religious understanding for the common future of humanity. In the center of Māturīdī’s interpretations of guidance lies his approach to guidance with respect to its methods and varieties. Besides presenting the definitions of these methods and varieties, the current study analyzes Māturīdī’s interpretations of how these methods and varieties interact. (shrink)

This study, which aims to investigate the existence of Islamophobia in European schools, an important part of the social structure, is designed as a phenomenological study. Data were collected through interviews with 36 teachers working in seven different European countries. As a result of the study, Islamophobia has been identified as an unignorable and a major problem in European schools. Moreover, it reveals that the teachers do not have enough knowledge about Islam, but the majority of participants have open or (...) hidden Islamophobic tendencies. In addition, the teachers think that Islamic lifestyles and Muslims are not part of European cultures and that Muslim students should be subjected to intense cultural training. Again, the majority of the participants argue that the fight against Islamophobia can be achieved through prejudice and communication training for teachers. This study is important in that it is a pioneering work in the literature that investigates the entity of Islamophobia among teachers in Europe. (shrink)

In the modern age, the confl ict between science and religion manifests itself in the debate between evolution and creation. If we adopt a creationist’s reading of the Qur’ān, we discover an interesting anomaly. Reading the Qur’ān literally does not necessarily provide the foundation of creationism. Creationists usually have in mind the concept of creatio ex nihilo, or ‘creation out of nothing’. However, in the Qur’ān, one of the words used for creation, khalaqnā, has the root khlq, which means ‘to (...) split’ or ‘to divide’. This root word may even apply to the biological process of cell division. Therefore, from a scientifi c perspective, using the word khlq to describe this physical process is not problematic. In addition, with close textual analysis of the Qur’ān, we realize that the word for creation ‘be’ does not truly describe the moment of creation, but rather that of ‘being’. The Qur’ān separates the notion of creation from being, which poses the question as to what the text constitutes as the ontological nature of the human being and the universe. Therefore, even if we do adopt a literal reading of the Qur’ān, we fi nd that it does not necessarily support a worldview that endorses creatio ex nihilo. (shrink)

In this volume, Douglas Yoder uses the tools of modern and postmodern philosophy and biblical criticism to elucidate the epistemology of the Tanakh, the collection of writings that comprise the Hebrew Bible. Despite the conceptual sophistication of the Tanakh, its epistemology has been overlooked in both religious and secular hermeneutics. The concept of revelation, the genre of apocalypse, and critiques of ideology and theory are all found within or derive from epistemic texts of the Tanakh. Yoder examines how philosophers such (...) as Spinoza, Hume, and Kant interacted with such matters. He also explores how the motifs of writing, reading, interpretation, image, and animals, topics that figure prominently in the work of Derrida, Foucault, and Nietzsche, appear also in the Tanakh. An understanding of Tanakh epistemology, he concludes, can lead to new appraisals of religious and secular life throughout the modern world. (shrink)

: This article argues that the agreed-upon periodization of early Islam is an Abbasid-era construct that became a binding framework for later generations of historians down to modern times. It also contends that scholars have tended to ignore the fact that this periodization was first and foremost an Abbasid claim to power. It investigates the Abbasid-era construction of the past and demonstrates that alternative periodizations were used prior to these massive efforts to enclose the past into a rigid structure, and (...) so it sheds light on forgotten alternative pasts. The links between periodization and space are emphasized, focusing on the example of early Islamic Syria. Indeed, this province largely vanished from the map with the coming of the Abbasids to power since Syria’s memory came to be limited to its Umayyad past. Elaborating upon alternative periodizations, the paper offers a fresh attempt at a history of the meanings of a long Syrian eighth century, articulated around memory and power. (shrink)

The ‘rise’ and ‘decline’ refer to the rationale behind Islamic attractiveness and its rejection. What I intend to write is a narrative based on theoretical intuitions and empirical facts very different from Olivier Roy’s thesis on the ‘failure’ of political Islam and Asef Bayat’s post-Islamism. My theoretical intuition is that political Islam has for years at best taken advantage of a long-term series of failures. First, there is the failure of modernization, of secularity and of national ideology. Islamist movements transformed (...) this kind of ‘negative legitimacy’ into an electoral success. This is the case with En-Nahdha in Tunisia. Second, however, this electoral legitimacy was rapidly eroded. Third, post-Islamist expectations were not met: political Islam with its radicalism was not cut off and did not digest jihadism and terrorism. It is still worked out by a double-handed attempt: a neo-authoritarian politics and a religious anti-liberal zeal. Now, this project is failing, not because political Islam entered into a ‘post-Islamist’ area but thanks to a strong and heroic resistance of secular civil society. (shrink)

ABSTRACTChapter 4, verse 34 of the Qur'an permits husbands to physically discipline recalcitrant wives. Modern Muslims who find this husbandly privilege discomfiting often rely on Muhammad's prophetic practice to mitigate the meaning of this verse. In light of Muhammad's example of never hitting his own wives, as found in one prophetic report, they reinterpret the verse as restricting and/or voiding a husband's right to physically discipline his wife. This essay provides a critical and expository survey of prophetic reports related to (...) the husbandly privilege to physically discipline wives. The essay argues that the modernists are correct in positing that Muhammad's prophetic practice was to morally censure husbands who hit their wives. However, taken as a whole, it is impossible to ignore that Muhammad's example also unilaterally upheld physical discipline as a husband's marital right. (shrink)

Indonesia has received Islam over the past millennium During this period, Islam has intermingled in varying degrees with Buddhism, Hinduism, and indigenous animism in different parts of the archipelago. Consequently, beliefs and practices diverge. Nevertheless, Islam has an overwhelming if diverse presence in Indonesia. The paper will examine the resultant diverse versions of Islam that currently coexist in Indonesia. These versions are the modernist, traditional, devotional, and syncretic aspects of Islam. Each version will be analyzed in terms of both differences (...) and similarities. (shrink)

First, I argue for historical contextualization of the Qur’an as a given historical collection of discourses propagated by Muhammad as divine inspiration. Secondly, I argue for a distinction between the Qur’an and Islam, since the latter is the outcome of human efforts to construct their lives in accordance with what they understood to be the teachings of the Qur’an. The last point is to show how the role of Muhammad in his interaction with the communities of his time in Hijaz (...) shaped the Qur’an. So, the article is organized as introduction; the Qur’an and lslam; the Qur’an and history: open hermeneutics; Muhammad and the Qur’an; the divine—human communication; Muhammad: the first recipient; Muhammad in the Qur’an; and the community of believers and the need for legal regulations; followed by conclusion. (shrink)