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Liberalism and progressivism within Islam
Liberalism and progressivism within Islam or simply Islamic liberalism or Islamic progressivism are a range of interpretation of Islamic understanding and practice, it is a religiously left-leaning view, similar to Christian and other religious progressivism. Some Muslims have created a considerable body of progressive interpretation of Islamic understanding and practice. Their work is sometimes characterized as progressive (Arabic: الإسلام التقدمي al-Islām at-taqaddumī) or liberal Islam. Some scholars, such as Omid Safi, differentiate between "progressive Muslims" (post-colonial, anti-imperialist, and critical of modernity and the West) versus "liberal advocates of Islam" (an older movement embracing modernity). Liberal Islam originally emerged from the Islamic revivalist movement of the 18th–19th centuries. Leftist ideas are considered controversial by some traditional fundamentalist Muslims, who criticize liberal Muslims on the grounds of being too Western and/or rationalistic.
The methodologies of liberal and progressive Islam rest on the re-interpretation of traditional Islamic sacred scriptures (the Quran) and other texts (the Hadith), a process called ijtihad.[page needed] This reinterpreting can vary from minor to fundamental, including re-interpretation based on the belief that while the meaning of the Quran is a revelation, its expression in words is the work of the Islamic prophet Muhammad in his particular time and context.
Liberal Muslims see themselves as returning to the principles of the early ummah and as promoting the ethical and pluralistic intent of the Quran. The reform movement uses monotheism (tawhid) as "an organizing principle for human society and the basis of religious knowledge, history, metaphysics, aesthetics, and ethics, as well as social, economic and world order".
Liberal Muslims affirm the promotion of progressive values such as democracy, gender equality, human rights, LGBT rights, women's rights, religious pluralism, interfaith marriage, freedom of expression, freedom of thought, and freedom of religion; opposition to theocracy and total rejection of Islamism and Islamic fundamentalism; and a modern view of Islamic theology, ethics, sharia, culture, tradition, and other ritualistic practices in Islam. Liberal Muslims claim that the re-interpretation of the Islamic scriptures is important in order to preserve their relevance in the 21st century.
The rise of Islam, based on both the transmission of the Quran and the life of Muhammad, strongly altered the power balances and perceptions of origin of power in the Mediterranean region. Early Islamic philosophy emphasized an inexorable link between religion and science, and the process of ijtihad to find truth — in effect, all philosophy was "political" as it had real implications for governance. This view was challenged by the "rationalist" Muʿtazilite philosophers, who held a more Hellenistic view, emphasizing reason above revelation, and as such are known to modern scholars as the first speculative theologians of Islam; they were supported by a secular aristocracy who sought freedom of action independent of the Caliphate. By the late ancient period, the "traditionalist" Ashʿarīte theology had in general triumphed over rationalists. According to the Ashʿarītes, reason must be subordinate to the Quran and the sunnah.
Ibn Rushd (1126–1198) often Latinized as Averroes, was an Andalusian polymath. Being described as "founding father of secular thought in Western Europe", he was known by the nickname the Commentator for his precious commentaries on Aristotle's works. His main work was The Incoherence of the Incoherence in which he defended philosophy against al-Ghazali's claims in The Incoherence of the Philosophers. His other works were the Fasl al-Maqal and the Kitab al-Kashf. Ibn Rushd presented an argument in Fasl al-Maqal (Decisive Treatise) providing a justification for the emancipation of science and philosophy from official Ash'ari theology and that there is no inherent contradiction between philosophy and religion; thus Averroism has been considered a precursor to modern secularism. Ibn Rushd accepts the principle of women's equality. According to him, they should be educated and allowed to serve in the military; the best among them might be tomorrow's philosophers or rulers. The 13th-century philosophical movement in Latin Christian and Jewish tradition based on Ibn Rushd's work is called Averroism. Ibn Rushd became something of a symbolic figure in the debate over the decline and proposed revitalization of Islamic thought and Islamic society in the late 20th century. A notable proponent of such a revival of Averroist thought in Islamic society was Mohammed Abed al-Jabri with his Critique de la Raison Arabe (1982).
Egyptian Egyptologist and renaissance intellectual Rifa'a al-Tahtawi (1801−1873) is considered one of the early adapters to Islamic Modernism. Islamic Modernists attempted to integrate Islamic principles with European social theories. In 1831, Rifa'a al-Tahtawi was part of the statewide effort to modernize the Egyptian infrastructure and education. They introduced his Egyptian audience to Enlightenment ideas such as secular authority and political rights and liberty; his ideas regarding how a modern civilized society ought to be and what constituted by extension a civilized or "good Egyptian"; and his ideas on public interest and public good. Tahtawi's work was the first effort in what became an Egyptian renaissance (nahda) that flourished in the years between 1860 and 1940.
In 1826, Al-Tahtawi was sent to Paris by Mehmet Ali. There, he studied at an educational mission for five years, returning in 1831. Tahtawi was appointed director of the School of Languages. At the school, he worked translating European books into Arabic. Tahtawi was instrumental in translating military manuals, geography, and European history. In total, al-Tahtawi supervised the translation of over 2,000 foreign works into Arabic. He even made favorable comments about French society in some of his books. Tahtawi stressed that the Principles of Islam are compatible with those of European Modernity. In his piece, The Extraction of Gold or an Overview of Paris, Tahtawi discusses the patriotic responsibility of citizenship. He uses Roman civilization as an example of what could become of Islamic civilizations; at one point, all Romans are united under one Caesar but split into East and West. After splitting, the two nations see "all its wars ended in defeat, and it retreated from a perfect existence to nonexistence." Tahtawi understands that if Egypt is unable to remain united, it could fall prey to outside invaders. He stresses the importance of citizens defending the patriotic duty of their country. One way to protect one's country, according to Tahtawi, is to accept the changes that come with a modern society.
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Liberalism and progressivism within Islam
Liberalism and progressivism within Islam or simply Islamic liberalism or Islamic progressivism are a range of interpretation of Islamic understanding and practice, it is a religiously left-leaning view, similar to Christian and other religious progressivism. Some Muslims have created a considerable body of progressive interpretation of Islamic understanding and practice. Their work is sometimes characterized as progressive (Arabic: الإسلام التقدمي al-Islām at-taqaddumī) or liberal Islam. Some scholars, such as Omid Safi, differentiate between "progressive Muslims" (post-colonial, anti-imperialist, and critical of modernity and the West) versus "liberal advocates of Islam" (an older movement embracing modernity). Liberal Islam originally emerged from the Islamic revivalist movement of the 18th–19th centuries. Leftist ideas are considered controversial by some traditional fundamentalist Muslims, who criticize liberal Muslims on the grounds of being too Western and/or rationalistic.
The methodologies of liberal and progressive Islam rest on the re-interpretation of traditional Islamic sacred scriptures (the Quran) and other texts (the Hadith), a process called ijtihad.[page needed] This reinterpreting can vary from minor to fundamental, including re-interpretation based on the belief that while the meaning of the Quran is a revelation, its expression in words is the work of the Islamic prophet Muhammad in his particular time and context.
Liberal Muslims see themselves as returning to the principles of the early ummah and as promoting the ethical and pluralistic intent of the Quran. The reform movement uses monotheism (tawhid) as "an organizing principle for human society and the basis of religious knowledge, history, metaphysics, aesthetics, and ethics, as well as social, economic and world order".
Liberal Muslims affirm the promotion of progressive values such as democracy, gender equality, human rights, LGBT rights, women's rights, religious pluralism, interfaith marriage, freedom of expression, freedom of thought, and freedom of religion; opposition to theocracy and total rejection of Islamism and Islamic fundamentalism; and a modern view of Islamic theology, ethics, sharia, culture, tradition, and other ritualistic practices in Islam. Liberal Muslims claim that the re-interpretation of the Islamic scriptures is important in order to preserve their relevance in the 21st century.
The rise of Islam, based on both the transmission of the Quran and the life of Muhammad, strongly altered the power balances and perceptions of origin of power in the Mediterranean region. Early Islamic philosophy emphasized an inexorable link between religion and science, and the process of ijtihad to find truth — in effect, all philosophy was "political" as it had real implications for governance. This view was challenged by the "rationalist" Muʿtazilite philosophers, who held a more Hellenistic view, emphasizing reason above revelation, and as such are known to modern scholars as the first speculative theologians of Islam; they were supported by a secular aristocracy who sought freedom of action independent of the Caliphate. By the late ancient period, the "traditionalist" Ashʿarīte theology had in general triumphed over rationalists. According to the Ashʿarītes, reason must be subordinate to the Quran and the sunnah.
Ibn Rushd (1126–1198) often Latinized as Averroes, was an Andalusian polymath. Being described as "founding father of secular thought in Western Europe", he was known by the nickname the Commentator for his precious commentaries on Aristotle's works. His main work was The Incoherence of the Incoherence in which he defended philosophy against al-Ghazali's claims in The Incoherence of the Philosophers. His other works were the Fasl al-Maqal and the Kitab al-Kashf. Ibn Rushd presented an argument in Fasl al-Maqal (Decisive Treatise) providing a justification for the emancipation of science and philosophy from official Ash'ari theology and that there is no inherent contradiction between philosophy and religion; thus Averroism has been considered a precursor to modern secularism. Ibn Rushd accepts the principle of women's equality. According to him, they should be educated and allowed to serve in the military; the best among them might be tomorrow's philosophers or rulers. The 13th-century philosophical movement in Latin Christian and Jewish tradition based on Ibn Rushd's work is called Averroism. Ibn Rushd became something of a symbolic figure in the debate over the decline and proposed revitalization of Islamic thought and Islamic society in the late 20th century. A notable proponent of such a revival of Averroist thought in Islamic society was Mohammed Abed al-Jabri with his Critique de la Raison Arabe (1982).
Egyptian Egyptologist and renaissance intellectual Rifa'a al-Tahtawi (1801−1873) is considered one of the early adapters to Islamic Modernism. Islamic Modernists attempted to integrate Islamic principles with European social theories. In 1831, Rifa'a al-Tahtawi was part of the statewide effort to modernize the Egyptian infrastructure and education. They introduced his Egyptian audience to Enlightenment ideas such as secular authority and political rights and liberty; his ideas regarding how a modern civilized society ought to be and what constituted by extension a civilized or "good Egyptian"; and his ideas on public interest and public good. Tahtawi's work was the first effort in what became an Egyptian renaissance (nahda) that flourished in the years between 1860 and 1940.
In 1826, Al-Tahtawi was sent to Paris by Mehmet Ali. There, he studied at an educational mission for five years, returning in 1831. Tahtawi was appointed director of the School of Languages. At the school, he worked translating European books into Arabic. Tahtawi was instrumental in translating military manuals, geography, and European history. In total, al-Tahtawi supervised the translation of over 2,000 foreign works into Arabic. He even made favorable comments about French society in some of his books. Tahtawi stressed that the Principles of Islam are compatible with those of European Modernity. In his piece, The Extraction of Gold or an Overview of Paris, Tahtawi discusses the patriotic responsibility of citizenship. He uses Roman civilization as an example of what could become of Islamic civilizations; at one point, all Romans are united under one Caesar but split into East and West. After splitting, the two nations see "all its wars ended in defeat, and it retreated from a perfect existence to nonexistence." Tahtawi understands that if Egypt is unable to remain united, it could fall prey to outside invaders. He stresses the importance of citizens defending the patriotic duty of their country. One way to protect one's country, according to Tahtawi, is to accept the changes that come with a modern society.