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The Authoritative and Authoritarian in Islamic Discourses: A contemporary case study
In this seminal work, Khaled Abou El Fadl analyzes the construction of the authoritative and authoritarian in contemporary Islamic discourses. He argues that authoritarian discourses negate the authoritativeness of Islamic religious texts. Drawing upon pre-modern Islamic sources and debates, Abou El Fadl demonstrates the rigor and discipline required to appropriately analyze and construct contemporary Islamic legal discourses. He presents a methodology by which the authoritative is preserved and the authoritarian avoided.
- GenresIslamReligionNonfiction
118 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 2001
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Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews
January 19, 2014
This essay (closer to an essay than a book) is an academic discussion of the phenomenon by which the authority of an authoritative source is appropriated to create authoritarianism in contemporary Islamic discourse, through making the opinion or interpretation of a religious text synonymous with the text itself.
In order to examine this phenomenon he dismantled a fatwa (of the typical two-dimensional literalist variety consisting largely of poorly-interpreted and irrelevant hadiths) issued by an Islamic group in America in support of a Muslim basketball player who refused to stand for the national anthem. He demonstrates the incoherence of their approach, which claims to rely purely on the scriptural sources and dispense with culture, juristic tradition and so on but is in fact simply oblivious to its dependence on them.
The most valuable discussion though, which took up the greater part of the book, was the effect of this on women in particular. Pulling no punches, he calls modern Islamic attitudes towards them "psychotic" and demonstrates how an opinion which is authoritarian or oppressive towards women is by default assumed to be more "Islamic" or legitimate and faithful to juristic tradition, even with a complete lack of evidence supporting it. He also gives a detailed analysis of several hadiths which make a woman's admission into heaven conditional upon the husband's satisfaction, as though the pleasure of God is dependent on the pleasure of men, and examines how these narrations came about historically and how they have been used through time to rob women of their agency and exclude them from society.
Among the issues considered are the concept of hijab and awrah, disputing that they actually have anything to do with sexual seduction or "fitnah" as popular discourse implies. He shows the multiplicity and diversity of opinions that existed historically on the definition of a woman's awrah, and shows how contemporary discourse is entirely ignorant of these, assuming that there was only ever one unanimous and explicit opinion. He includes discussions of maqasid - the objectives intended by the law - as well as a rationalistic moral approach, showing that the values which drive legislation must necesarily be understood if you are not to risk committing a travesty in the name of God's law.
I found the author to be an extremely incisive thinker - his position at the convergence of eastern and western scholarly traditions (being a distinguished professor of Law in the US as well as a muslim jurist of classical training in the middle-east) allows him to appeal to both Islamic tradition, with meticulously sourced arguments from major historical scholars, and the modern legal method.
In short, a nuanced, well-researched and excellent argument displaying precisely what is wrong with Islamic discourse and offering an alternative method, albeit in technical form. I'll certainly be getting his other works.
In order to examine this phenomenon he dismantled a fatwa (of the typical two-dimensional literalist variety consisting largely of poorly-interpreted and irrelevant hadiths) issued by an Islamic group in America in support of a Muslim basketball player who refused to stand for the national anthem. He demonstrates the incoherence of their approach, which claims to rely purely on the scriptural sources and dispense with culture, juristic tradition and so on but is in fact simply oblivious to its dependence on them.
The most valuable discussion though, which took up the greater part of the book, was the effect of this on women in particular. Pulling no punches, he calls modern Islamic attitudes towards them "psychotic" and demonstrates how an opinion which is authoritarian or oppressive towards women is by default assumed to be more "Islamic" or legitimate and faithful to juristic tradition, even with a complete lack of evidence supporting it. He also gives a detailed analysis of several hadiths which make a woman's admission into heaven conditional upon the husband's satisfaction, as though the pleasure of God is dependent on the pleasure of men, and examines how these narrations came about historically and how they have been used through time to rob women of their agency and exclude them from society.
Among the issues considered are the concept of hijab and awrah, disputing that they actually have anything to do with sexual seduction or "fitnah" as popular discourse implies. He shows the multiplicity and diversity of opinions that existed historically on the definition of a woman's awrah, and shows how contemporary discourse is entirely ignorant of these, assuming that there was only ever one unanimous and explicit opinion. He includes discussions of maqasid - the objectives intended by the law - as well as a rationalistic moral approach, showing that the values which drive legislation must necesarily be understood if you are not to risk committing a travesty in the name of God's law.
I found the author to be an extremely incisive thinker - his position at the convergence of eastern and western scholarly traditions (being a distinguished professor of Law in the US as well as a muslim jurist of classical training in the middle-east) allows him to appeal to both Islamic tradition, with meticulously sourced arguments from major historical scholars, and the modern legal method.
In short, a nuanced, well-researched and excellent argument displaying precisely what is wrong with Islamic discourse and offering an alternative method, albeit in technical form. I'll certainly be getting his other works.
August 1, 2015
Saya sarankan anda baca buku ini!
Terutama pelajar Syariah, memang wajar membaca buku ini. Diskusinya terbuka tetapi sangat saksama. Perbincangan tentang hukum-hukum dalam Islam tampak lebih bernyawa. Buku ini memberi contoh diskusi dalam isu berdiri menghormati lagu negara Amerika, isu-isu sekitar wanita - hijab, ketaataan isteri, kemuliaan wanita, kedudukan wanita dalam masyarakat, hadis-hadis dan pendapat ulama yang nampak merendahkan kedudukan wanita, persoalan moraliti dan lain-lain.
Perbincangan dalam buku ini (terutama berkenaan dengan wanita) menarik minat saya. Kenyataannya, ada beberapa fahaman yang sudah diterima baik dalam masyarakat, contohnya hadis yang menyatakan tentang ketaatan isteri apabila suami meminta sekalipun di atas belakang unta. Tak dapat dinafikan bahawa memang berlaku perbincangan yang menggunakan hujah-hujah daripada Quran dan hadis untuk menyokong pendapat mereka, tetapi malangnya pemahaman nas-nas tersebut tidak diperhalusi sebaiknya yang menyebabkan berlaku hukuman yang tidak wajar dalam perundangan Islam.
Penulis membuka mata kita supaya memandang sesuatu hukum Tuhan itu dengan saksama. Tidak menerima bulat-bulat. Meneliti latar-belakang nas, sejarah dan pendapat-pendapat ulama agung, bahkan memikirkan soal moral. Ia mengajak ulama-ulama kontemporari supaya berfikir. Bukan saja ulama tetapi juga masyarakat awam supaya lebih berhati-hati dalam menerima sesuatu pendapat.
Saya kekurangan perkataan yang tepat untuk menggambarkan betapa tuntasnya perbincangan dalam buku ini. Mungkin juga saya takut tersalah. Buku yang begitu baik. Kali pertama saya membaca tulisan yang menangani persoalan autoriti dengan amat baik.
Terutama pelajar Syariah, memang wajar membaca buku ini. Diskusinya terbuka tetapi sangat saksama. Perbincangan tentang hukum-hukum dalam Islam tampak lebih bernyawa. Buku ini memberi contoh diskusi dalam isu berdiri menghormati lagu negara Amerika, isu-isu sekitar wanita - hijab, ketaataan isteri, kemuliaan wanita, kedudukan wanita dalam masyarakat, hadis-hadis dan pendapat ulama yang nampak merendahkan kedudukan wanita, persoalan moraliti dan lain-lain.
Perbincangan dalam buku ini (terutama berkenaan dengan wanita) menarik minat saya. Kenyataannya, ada beberapa fahaman yang sudah diterima baik dalam masyarakat, contohnya hadis yang menyatakan tentang ketaatan isteri apabila suami meminta sekalipun di atas belakang unta. Tak dapat dinafikan bahawa memang berlaku perbincangan yang menggunakan hujah-hujah daripada Quran dan hadis untuk menyokong pendapat mereka, tetapi malangnya pemahaman nas-nas tersebut tidak diperhalusi sebaiknya yang menyebabkan berlaku hukuman yang tidak wajar dalam perundangan Islam.
Penulis membuka mata kita supaya memandang sesuatu hukum Tuhan itu dengan saksama. Tidak menerima bulat-bulat. Meneliti latar-belakang nas, sejarah dan pendapat-pendapat ulama agung, bahkan memikirkan soal moral. Ia mengajak ulama-ulama kontemporari supaya berfikir. Bukan saja ulama tetapi juga masyarakat awam supaya lebih berhati-hati dalam menerima sesuatu pendapat.
Saya kekurangan perkataan yang tepat untuk menggambarkan betapa tuntasnya perbincangan dalam buku ini. Mungkin juga saya takut tersalah. Buku yang begitu baik. Kali pertama saya membaca tulisan yang menangani persoalan autoriti dengan amat baik.
March 2, 2023
Supremely well-written book - I am not intellectually equipped to review it at all but if you are interested in seeing Islamic jurisprudence as more than mere applications of ancient laws, you'll enjoy this book very much!
July 29, 2019
Buku yang merungkai persoalan kebenaran, wibawa dan pemaksaan wibawa (authoritarian) wacana.
Ada satu kasus yang menarik dalam wacana setempat, yakni mengenai disiplin dirayah (kritik matan) hadis.
Dalam polemik terbaru umur perkahwinan A'isyah, dua sarjana muda -dalam satu sesi hampir 5 jam- cuba membantah hujah maulana asri yang dibentangkannya di UM dahulu.
Mereka bertegas dengan hujah riwayat (dengan menghurai panjang lebar periwayat itu & ini) dan pada satu ketika seolah memperlekehkan keobjektifan pengkajian maulana, bahawa sesuatu itu boleh dibuktikan dan bukan ikut sepertimana katanya, hanya mengikut logik akal manusia yang subjektif (lihat sanggahan Mortimer Adler terhadap pemikiran relatif/empirikal sebegini).
Sedangkan, pembentangan hujah maulana asri sedari awal -seperti penulis buku ini- mengambil kira kesan agama, moral, sosial dan politik (perundangan) dari hadith itu. Saya mencadangkan pembaca untuk merujuk video itu di laman sosial media/rakaman Youtube untuk menilai sendiri (supaya saya tidak mengklaim autoriti terhadap hal di atas).
Perlu disambung buku ini dengan buku Speaking in God's Name: Islamic Law, Authority and Women yang diakui beliau, dikembangkan lagi persoalan di dalam buku ini.
Ada satu kasus yang menarik dalam wacana setempat, yakni mengenai disiplin dirayah (kritik matan) hadis.
Dalam polemik terbaru umur perkahwinan A'isyah, dua sarjana muda -dalam satu sesi hampir 5 jam- cuba membantah hujah maulana asri yang dibentangkannya di UM dahulu.
Mereka bertegas dengan hujah riwayat (dengan menghurai panjang lebar periwayat itu & ini) dan pada satu ketika seolah memperlekehkan keobjektifan pengkajian maulana, bahawa sesuatu itu boleh dibuktikan dan bukan ikut sepertimana katanya, hanya mengikut logik akal manusia yang subjektif (lihat sanggahan Mortimer Adler terhadap pemikiran relatif/empirikal sebegini).
Sedangkan, pembentangan hujah maulana asri sedari awal -seperti penulis buku ini- mengambil kira kesan agama, moral, sosial dan politik (perundangan) dari hadith itu. Saya mencadangkan pembaca untuk merujuk video itu di laman sosial media/rakaman Youtube untuk menilai sendiri (supaya saya tidak mengklaim autoriti terhadap hal di atas).
Perlu disambung buku ini dengan buku Speaking in God's Name: Islamic Law, Authority and Women yang diakui beliau, dikembangkan lagi persoalan di dalam buku ini.
July 3, 2017
a must if you're interested in Islamic Law :)
November 1, 2007
Dalam bahasa Indonesia, Melawan Tentara Tuhan, diterbitkan oleh Serambi. Secara umum, Khaled mengupas ketidaksepakatannya pada Islam fundamentalis yang menginterpretasikan Islam lewat caranya yang kaku dan otoriter. Dimulai dengan cerita seorang atlet basket muslim Amerika yang menolak berdiri saat menyanyikan lagu kebangsaan Amerika, Khaled secara khusus menyindir kaum Wahabi yang ajarannya meluas di kalangan muslim Amerika.
Sebagai sebuah aliran, Wahabi (yang di Indonesia lebih dikenal dengan Salafi), dianggap Khaled sebagai golongan yang mengaku-ngaku diri mereka sebagai tentara Tuhan. Padahal, hanya Tuhan yang tahu siapa tentaraNya. Pemikiran guru besar ini, terlepas dari kontroversi di dalamnya, patut dibaca dan dicermati sebagai khazanah pemikiran Islam.
Sebagai sebuah aliran, Wahabi (yang di Indonesia lebih dikenal dengan Salafi), dianggap Khaled sebagai golongan yang mengaku-ngaku diri mereka sebagai tentara Tuhan. Padahal, hanya Tuhan yang tahu siapa tentaraNya. Pemikiran guru besar ini, terlepas dari kontroversi di dalamnya, patut dibaca dan dicermati sebagai khazanah pemikiran Islam.
August 7, 2008
Very dense. requires a dictionary =:O
August 10, 2015
I'd say this short book changed my life. I wish I had a copy.
May 4, 2021
Modernist propaganda disguised as a discussion on usul al-Fiqh. There is some benefit in this discussion for critical readers and students of knowledge, but it is mixed with a lot of falsehood.
November 21, 2025
scathing.
March 25, 2015
The book deals with the subjectivity that the interpreter introduces by his involvement with the text and how this can lead to the authoritative(Revelation- Quran and Sunnah) become subsumed by the authoritarian(interpreter). And in that respect, this book does a brilliant illustration of a topic that is often difficult to put into words. But the concern I had with this book was on what it did not say- in that there is an objective aspect in the Quran and Sunnah that is independent of the reader and transcending in its message.
Read
April 2, 2016Character interpreter of a text will greatly affect to the result of interpretation. The interpretation that could bring positive and negative effects for the readers and even for the interpreter himself. For further reading, see: http://kajianpemikiranislam.com/2016/...
February 3, 2008
A refreshing view about Islam and its social aspect within this pluralistic world. Started by a story of a basketball player who refuse to 'stand' while the US national anthem being played, in the end after reading this book we'll try to challenge our fundamentalist view about Islam.
December 15, 2015
This should be required reading for every Muslim. Dr. Abou El Fadl has beautifully articulated in this short book so much of what I have felt and thought about contemporary discourses on Islam for quite some time.
Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews