Islam And The Living Law

Ibn Al Arabi, the mystic scholar of the 13th century, highlights the ambiguities of language and the polysemantic, multifaceted text of the Quran. With Al Arabi's help, Winkel expounds how narrowly religion is interpreted by most scholars. Al Arabi disturbs the comfort of man-made religion by his reflections on language, and Winkel's book takes up the same challenge.

This volume examines the important question of whether or not international human rights and Islamic law are compatible. It asks whether Muslim States can comply with international human rights law whilst adhering to Islamic law. The traditional arguments on this subject are examined and responded to from both international human rights and Islamic legal perspectives. The volume engages international human rights law in theoretical dialogue with Islamic law, facilitating an evaluation of the human rights policy of modern Muslim States. International Human Rights and Islamic Law formulates a synthesis between these two extremes, and argues that although there are differences of scope and application, there is no fundamental incompatibility between these two bodies of law. Baderin argues that their differences could be better addressed if the concept of human rights were positively established from within the themes of Islamic law, rather than by imposing it upon Islamic law as an alien concept. Each article of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, and the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, as well as relevant articles of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women are analysed in the light of Islamic law. The volume concludes that it is possible to harmonise the differences between international human rights law and Islamic law through the adoption of the 'margin of appreciation' doctrine by international human rights treaty bodies and the utilization of the Islamic law doctrines of 'maqâsid al-sharî'ah' (the overall objective of Sharî'ah) and 'maslahah' (welfare) by Muslim States in their interpretation and application of Islamic law respectively. Baderin asserts that Islamic law can serve as an important vehicle for the guarantee and enforcement of international human rights law in the Muslim world, and the volume concludes with recommendations to that effect.

The sharia is a set of traditional laws that define a Muslim's obligations to God and his fellow human beings. Westerners often misunderstand the nature of the sharia, born as it is of a complicated legal and academic tradition that may not always seem relevant to today's world. Written for those unfamiliar with Islam, this volume provides an accurate and objective assessment of the sharia's achievements, shortcomings and future prospects. It explores the fundamentals of Islam and traditional sharia laws. In addition, the sharia is discussed with respect to Ottoman law, puritanism and jihad. The sharia's relevance to today's world events is also explored. Among items provided in appendices are a commentary on a Western translation of the concept of jihad and an analysis of the sharia in 29 selected countries.

Introduction -- Muslims in the United States: pluralism under -- Exceptional circumstances -- Jurisprudence as mirror -- The Qurʼan and American politics -- Britain's shariacracy -- Si(gh)ting Muslim women on the U.S. legal landscape -- The unfamiliar abode.

Living together explores international law responses to the challenges of growing religious antagonisms. Building on historic concepts, it looks at the role of religious institutions and religious law before examining the contribution of human rights bodies and particular human rights.

"The Islamic law of personal status is of immeasurable significance to the lives of many millions of people of the Islamic faith throughout the world. This systematic account of the subject, and the explanatory references to both traditional Islamic treatises and modern interpretative texts, make this new edition an immensely useful guide for both jurists and students."--BOOK JACKET.

The essays brought together in Islam, Law and Identity are the product of a series of interdisciplinary workshops that brought together scholars from a plethora of countries. Funded by the British Academy the workshops convened over a period of two years in London, Cairo and Izmir. The workshops and the ensuing papers focus on recent debates about the nature of sacred and secular law and most engage case studies from specific countries including Egypt, Israel, Kazakhstan, Mauritania, Pakistan and the UK. Islam, Law and Identity also addresses broader and over-arching concerns about relationships between religion, human rights, law and modernity. Drawing on a variety of theoretical and empirical approaches, the collection presents law as central to the complex ways in which different Muslim communities and institutions create and re-create their identities around inherently ambiguous symbols of faith. From their different perspectives, the essays argue that there is no essential conflict between secular law and Shari`a but various different articulations of the sacred and the secular. Islam, Law and Identity explores a more nuanced and sophisticated understanding of the tensions that animate such terms as Shari`a law, modernity and secularization