Dialogue with three major Muslim authors shows that Islam can take a positive stance toward human rights while also presenting differing interpretations of the meaning and scope of rights. Because of their subordination of norms reached through reason to those drawn from faith, as well as negative experiences of the impact of Western colonization of parts of the Muslim world, Abul A‘la Maududi and Sayyid Qutb place significant restrictions on rights of conscience. 'Abdolkarim Soroush's positive support for the role (...) of reason in Islamic faith and his less-negative assessment of the West lead him to more vigorous support for the human rights agenda. This study raises the question of whether the humility needed in comparative ethics and the respect for others at the root of human rights are necessarily linked. (shrink)

Ahmed uncovers new historiographical perspectives by critically examining the work of prominent intellectuals, such as Muhammad Abduh, Qasim Amin and Abdul A'la Maududi.

This article is an overview of the evolution of Islamic radicalism during the 19 th - 21 st centuries. It demonstrates that nineteenth century Islamic radicalism is based on the ideas of pan-Islamism, whose main representatives are J. al-Din al-Afghani and M. Abduh. In turn, Islamic radicalism of the twentieth to twentyfirst centuries is based on the ideas of Islamic fundamentalism. Its main representatives are H. Al-Banna, S. Qutb, the Deoband movement, al-Maududi and R. Khomeyni. Pan-Islamic theories of the (...) 19 th -20t h centuries are based on the thesis that people who seek liberation from colonial oppression should merge. However, scholars have different views on the union of the Muslim world. It was, once, regarded as a combination of historical circumstances and the political realities of the nineteenth century. These were further shaped by the basic idea of Islamic fundamentalism in the twentieth to twentyfirst centuries, which is Salafiyya, or a return to “pure Islam”, a revival of active faith traditions and the union of all walks of life under the Sharia law and strict interpretation and application of its rules. The instruments used by Islamic fundamentalists and radicals to implement it have been the Islam-related slogans for Takfir and Jihad. But in the 21st century, integration and globalization have started playing a significant role. Various geopolitical forces are using various tools, including the idea of Islamic radicalism. (shrink)

La ética teleológica del terrorismo islamista (obra principalmente del filósofo Sayyid Qutb, que hunde sus raíces, a su vez, en la ideología de los Hermanos Musulmanes y en las reflexiones de Ibn Taymiyya y Abul alla Maududi) fija como meta suprema de la vida del hombre la complacencia de Allah y como medio principal para alcanzar esta meta la aplicación plena de la sharía o legislación divina. Se sustenta que esta aplicación, que configura la forma de vida del musulmán (...) auténtico, sólo se realizó de forma adecuada entre el año 622 y el 660, en tiempos del Profeta y los primeros cuatro califas (los llamados «píos antepasados» o «salaf»). De modo que la ética del terrorismo islamista prefigura como futuro una utopía regresiva , para la que fijan ahora como enemigos tanto a los infieles (el enemigo lejano) como a los apóstatas (el enemigo cercano). La interiorización de los principios de esta ética y, en general, de las ideas vertebradoras de la filosofía que constituye la base del terrorismo islamista (el denominado «qutbismo», del nombre de su principal representante, Sayyid Qutb) correlaciona con distorsiones cognitivas, emocionales y comportamentales que presentan los terroristas, en particular: percibirse y sentirse como soldados perte-necientes a una vanguardia de musulmanes auténticos, que cumplen con el deber religioso (el mandato divino) de combatir a quienes contribuyen con sus ideas y prácticas a la degradación de los valores del Islam, tal como se fijan en los textos sagrados. Se trata, consideran, de una guerra justa , porque, aun cuando tenga la apariencia de ofensiva, los soldados de la vanguardia la llevan a cabo en defensa del auténtico Islam , amenazado en su esencia por apóstatas e infieles. A sus aparentes víctimas, concluyen, habría que verlas, pues, como lo que realmente son: los verdugos de una forma de vida tan excelsa como la auténticamente musulmana. (shrink)

In M.Nesprava’s article "Theoretical Foundations of Radical Salafism", the presence of a conceptual core in the radical Salafism doctrine is shown and the main formation stages of this core are analyzed. Also, the role of the ideas by such authors as Ahmad ibn Hanbal, Muhammad ibn ʿAbd alWahhab, Syed Abul A'la Maududi and Sayyid Qutb in the formation of the conceptual core is argued. The characteristic aspects of the interpretation by radical Salafists of such concepts as tawhid, takfir and (...) jihad are demonstrated. (shrink)

Many scholars, Muslim and Western, struggle to understand the concept of human rights in Islam and its status in contemporary Islamic societies. There is much debate because often the discussion of “universal” human rights does not address the subject of religion at all. Furthermore, the language of “universal” human rights, as presented in Universal Declaration of Human Rights, is not explicit in Islam’s primary and secondary sources, including the Qur’an and Hadith. The Rights of God: Islam, Human Rights, and Comparative (...) Ethics attempts to address this sensitive and largely unexplored relationship between Islam and human rights, by further focusing on, what the author calls, “comparative religious ethics,” which “seeks to understand ethical values across religions and cultures.” To demonstrate diversity of opinions on this issue, Irene Oh studies and compares the religious ethics of Abul A’la Maududi, Sayyid Qutb, and ‘Abdolkarim Soroush. This text opens the door for further research to investigate into the issue, and uncovers that “universal” ideas of human rights have found their way into Islamic thought. (shrink)

A dialogical approach to understanding Islamic ethics rejects objectivist methods in favor of a conversational model in which participants accept each other as rational moral agents. Hans-Georg Gadamer asserts the importance of agreement upon a subject matter through conversation as a means to gaining insight into other persons and cultures, and Jürgen Habermas stresses the importance of fairness in dialogue. Using human rights as a subject matter for engaging in dialogue with Islamic scholars, Muslim perspectives on issues such as democracy, (...) toleration, and freedom of conscience emerge. A capabilities approach to human rights, such as that developed by Martha Nussbaum, enables the coexistence of multiple religious ethical visions while insisting upon the need to protect and nurture essential human abilities. (shrink)