Muslima Theology: The Voices of Muslim Women Theologians

by Ednan Aslan (Editor), Marcia K. Hermansen (Editor), Elif Medeni (Editor)

This pioneering volume defines the contours of the emerging engagements of Muslim women scholars from around the world with the authoritative interpretive traditions of Islam, classical and contemporary. Muslima theology, here broadly defined to encompass a range of interpretive strategies and perspectives arising from multiple social locations, interrogates Islamic scripture and other forms of religious discourse to empower Muslim women of faith to speak for themselves in the interests of gender justice. Contributions provide an overview of the field at this juncture-ranging from pioneering Muslim scriptural feminism to detailed analyses of legal and mystical texts by a new international cohort of Muslim women academics and activists. Contemporary female Muslim "constructivist" approaches articulate concerns with diversity, including race and religious pluralism, paralleling developments in womanist and mujerista readings of religious texts.

Genres: Islam, Nonfiction, Feminism

340 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2013

Reviews

[أميرة · Rating 3 out of 5]

A good introduction to the work of mostly West-based Muslim feminist scholars who set out to weed out patriarchal interpretations from the Qur’anic exegesis and prophetic tradition. A bit repetitive, but still worth reading if you’re interested in a feminist perspective on how women’s production of Islamic knowledge was weakened over the centuries. Most essays are descriptive rather than analytical. However, there is a particularly interesting paper on the seemingly feminist tendencies exhibited by Ibn-Taimyya in 14th C. Syria. He did time in Damascus prison because he declared triple talaq pronouncements in a single utterance invalid. And if you’ve ever struggled with Q 4:34, this book will open doors for you.

[Sofia · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an absolutely excellent collections of papers authored by some of the greatest female Muslim scholars. The topics range from domestic violence, to divorce, to critical analysis of works of trail blazing feminists such as Mernissi. Each paper is insightful, well researched and well referenced, providing plenty of intellectual stimulation as well as opportunities to further explore presented ideas. These scholars and such works, cannot be recommended enough. I particularly enjoyed the paper entitled "Ibn Taymiyya the feminist" :)