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The role of Islamic education teachers in enhancing higher-order thinking: a systematic review
By Sultan Khalaf G Alotaibi, King Saud University
Teaching strategies used by teachers have a direct impact on how well their students learn high-order thinking skills. The purpose of this study was to summarise prior research on the application of higher-order thinking skills from the perspective of a teacher in Islamic education. The PRISMA guidelines were used to search for the relevant literature on five different databases (Scopus, Web of Science, EBSCO, Google Scholar, and Ovid). One thousand one hundred and fifty-eight relevant studies were found in these databases which were screened for duplicates on Endnote software. The result indicated the main challenges that Islamic education teachers encounter while attempting to teach higher-order thinking skills in their classes. Two of these issues are inadequate professional development and the widespread implementation of conventional teacher-centred practices. Though more people are beginning to recognise the value of critical thinking and problem-solving skills development, there is still a lack of consistency and advancement in their application, especially in areas with inadequate institutional support and policy structures.
Link: https://doi.org/10.1080/01416200.2024.2436921
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Tags: #Pedagogy #Religion #ReligiousEducation
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Monotheism and Religious Experience
By Mark Owen Webb, Texas Tech University
In the monotheistic traditions, there are people who report having special experiences that justify their monotheistic beliefs. They see, hear, or otherwise experience directly the one true God, ruler of the universe. In order to understand what is going on in these experiences and how we should respond to reports of these experiences, it is important to understand what religious experiences can and can't be, what the claim of monotheism entails, and therefore how what reports of such experiences mean, both for the experiencer and for the recipient of the report.
Link: https://doi.org/10.1017/9781108955317
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Tags: #Monotheism #Religion #God #Psychology
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God and Happiness
By Matthew Shea, Franciscan University of Steubenville
This Element explores the connection between God and happiness, with happiness understood as a life of well-being or flourishing that goes well for the one living it. It provides a historical and contemporary survey of philosophical questions, theories, and debates about happiness, and it asks how they should be answered and evaluated from a theistic perspective. The central topics it covers are the nature of happiness (what is it?), the content of happiness (what are the constituents of a happy life?), the structure of happiness (is there a hierarchy of goods?), and the possibility of happiness (can we be happy?). It argues that God's existence has significant, positive, and desirable implications for human happiness.
Link: https://doi.org/10.1017/9781009270182
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Tags: #God #Spirituality #Theism
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Anglo-Muhammadan Uṣūl al-Fiqh?: The Development of Colonial Legal Theory in British India
By Dr. Sohaira Siddiqui, Georgetown University
The jural colonization of Islamic law in India is predominantly read through the translation of key Ḥanafī fiqh texts in the early colonial period and the adjudication of legal cases relying on these texts. Ostensibly missing in this discussion is uṣūl al-fiqh. To what extent were colonial officials concerned with uṣūl al-fiqh? Were there any texts of uṣūl al-fiqh penned under the guise of jural colonization? And if so, what do these texts reveal about the Ḥanafī tradition in the British colonial period? This essay will analyze the first text of uṣūl al-fiqh, The Principles of Muhammadan Jurisprudence, penned in the late 19th century by a prominent Muslim judge, Abdur Rahim (1867-1952). Abdur Rahim's impetus for writing his text was to respond to specific critiques of Islamic law that characterized it as an incoherent legal system that could not generate legal certainty. Through exploring his text, I argue that despite his lack of ostensible madrasa training, Abdur Rahim situates his text within the intellectual development of the Ḥanafī school. However, because his text was intended for the British colonial elite, he minimizes key features of Ḥanafī uṣūl al-fiqh and ultimately produces a text that reflective more of madhhab eclecticism.
Link: https://doi.org/10.1111/muwo.12493
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Tags: #Islam #Fiqh #IslamicLaw #History
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Divine Contradiction: replies to critics
By Jc Beall, University of Notre Dame
This is a collection of replies to critics of Divine Contradiction, each critic a symposiast in the Religious Studies symposium on said book.
Link: https://doi.org/10.1017/S0034412524000283
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Tags: #God #Trinity #Jesus #AnalyticalPhilosophy
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Averroesian Religious Common Sense Natural Theology as Reflective Knowledge in the Form of Teleological Argument
By Kemal Batak, Sakarya University
In his Middle Commentary on Posterior Analytics, the great Aristotelian Commentator Ibn Rushd defines “knowledge” (scientific knowledge, epistemē, ‘ilm) as one of Aristotle’s five intellectual virtues and the faculty of reason, akin to the other virtues, in an Aristotelian way. Ibn Rushd defends the teleological argument, rooted in Aristotle’s teleological reading of nature, and supports the modal strong epistemic status of this argument, which is part of the concept of knowledge, in his early work (Short Commentary on Metaphysics), middle period work (al-Kashf) and late work (Long Commentary on Metaphysics), all in harmony with each other. Ibn Rushd, constructing the teleological argument based on the definition of knowledge, which fundamentally articulates the necessary or essential qualities inherent in objects in defense of de re modality, takes a step that seems quite radical within the context of the Aristotelian epistemic tradition to which he is affiliated: The teleological argument, strongly associated with the concept of knowledge—one of the five intellectual virtues—is presented as a form of deductive inference accessible not only to philosophers but also to ordinary public. In other words, according to him, the argument is both a philosophical and a religious way. This implies, for instance, that natural theology, typically viewed by Aquinas as an activity reserved for the higher epistemic class with talent and leisure, is seen by Ibn Rushd as a robust epistemic activity accessible to ordinary people. This new element, which can be referred to as common sense natural theology, contends that ordinary public knowledge and philosophers’ knowledge differ in details, such as whether it is a simple or complex deductive inference, while remaining the same in terms of their knowledge status.
Link: https://doi.org/10.3390/rel15121429
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Tags: #God #Teleology #Epistemology #Aristotle #IbnRushd
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Religious Doubts and Emotions Toward God in Adolescents: Relation to Self-Esteem and Meaning in Life
By Alice Kosarkova, Palacky University
Religious doubt (RD) and emotions toward God (EtGs) are areas of religiosity and spirituality that can play a role in the development and well-being of youth. The aim of this study is to investigate whether RD and EtGs are related to self-esteem and meaning in life in adolescents and what factors may be associated with them in a secular setting. A sample of Czech adolescents (n = 984, mean age 16.61, SD 1.21; 28% male) participated in the online survey. We measured RD, EtGs, meaning in life (ML) divided into presence (ML-P) and seeking (ML-S), adolescents’ self-esteem (ASE), faith in the adolescent environment, the perception of religion and church, and religious education (RE). RD and negative EtGs were associated with reduced ML-P. Negative EtGs were associated with a reduction in ASE. However, positive EtGs were associated with an increase in ML-P. Respondents experiencing faith in their environment, having a positive view of church and religion, and enriching RE were more likely to report a decrease in RD and an increase in positive EtGs and vice versa. Our findings suggest that RD and EtGs are related to adolescents’ well-being and point to factors to be adequately addressed to minimize the negative impact of RD and promote positive EtGs.
Link: https://doi.org/10.3366/jqs.2024.0584
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Tags: #God #Religion #Spirituality #Pedagogy
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The Prophet Problem
By Reuven Firestone, University Ave
Because scripture represents the direct word of God, it is the most sacred source for authority in the scriptural monotheisms. Scripture is conveyed to humanity through extraordinary individuals known as prophets. But if the purported prophet is a false prophet, then the conveyed message is false, resulting in the collapse of the structure upon which religious authority rests. This problem was recognized in the Hebrew Bible, and accusations of flawed prophecy and deceitful prophets figure prominently in relations between the scriptural monotheisms. Jews do not accept the authenticity of Jesus’ role as messiah (and prophet) in the NT, and Jews and Christians do not accept the authenticity of Muhammad’s role as prophet in the Qur’an. But the rejection is unidirectional. As a rule, established religions cannot accept new prophets, while new religions accept the prophets that lived before, though with certain qualifications. Each of the three classic scriptural monotheisms also declares an “end” to prophecy after the canonization of its scripture. Yet despite these deadlines, each acknowledges that God could nevertheless send another prophet, leaving open the wild card for new prophecy, new revelation, and even new religion; within each of the classic scriptural monotheisms, individuals arose after the canonization of scripture who were deemed by many to be prophets or something “like” prophets. This essay presents a preliminary phenomenology of prophethood, around which much of the religious polemics between the scriptural monotheisms are constructed.
Link: https://doi.org/10.3366/jqs.2024.0584
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Tags: #Prophet #Islam #Christianity #Judaism
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The daʿwa Qur'an? Exploring the Evolution of ʿAbdullah Yūsuf ʿAlī’s Translation
By Charles Ramsey, Baylor University
The Holy Quran: Text, Translation and Commentary by ʿAbdullah Yūsuf ʿAlī (1872–1953) was prepared for daʿwa purposes, to spread the message and guidance of Islam in the English language. The subsequent editorial changes to this translation made in editions published decades later problematise the use of translation in propagating a particular interpretative framework and reflect developments in the practice of daʿwa and in interpretive methodologies during the second half of the twentieth century. This article argues that these interventions in Yusuf Ali's original translation were less to do with the English rendition of the text, and more to do with the paratext that structures the text and filters the experience of the reader.
Link: https://doi.org/10.3366/jqs.2024.0584
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Tags: #Quran #Islam #QuranicStudies
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Propositions with Negative Predicates in Arabic Logic
By Yusuf Daşdemir, University of Jyväskylä
This paper explores a neglected category of propositions in Arabic logic, propositions with negative predicates (sālibat al-maḥmūl), by addressing two pivotal questions concerning this propositional form: first, whether it is possible to defend it as distinct from metathetic and simple negative propositions and second, whether affirmative instances of these propositions have existential import. The paper argues for the existence of two distinct and conflicting theories of existential import frequently implicit in the views of Arabic logicians: one centered on the copula and the other on the predicate.
Link: https://doi.org/10.1080/01445340.2024.2410107
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Tags: #Arabic #Logic #Negation
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The Concept of Divine Revelation According to Ibn Sînâ and Al-Ghazālī: A Comparative Analysis
By İbrahim Halil Erdoğan
and Sema Eryücel, Akdeniz University
This article examines the conceptions of divine revelation held by two prominent figures in Islamic thought, Ibn Sīnā and Al-Ghazālī, through a comparative lens within the context of metaphysical and epistemological processes. Ibn Sīnā views divine revelation as a metaphysical process occurring at the highest level of intellect. According to him, divine revelation is an abstract reflection of divine knowledge transmitted to the prophet’s imaginative faculty through the Active Intellect. This process, explained within a philosophical framework, is grounded in the development of human intellectual capacity. In contrast, Ghazālī defines divine revelation as a mystical experience and considers it a divine encounter beyond the limits of human reason. For Ghazālī, divine revelation manifests as an expression of God’s attribute of speech and occurs solely by divine will. Moreover, this experience cannot be fully comprehended by reason. Ghazālī’s approach, imbued with Sufi depth, regards divine revelation as an integral part of spiritual growth. This article explores the fundamental similarities and differences between these two thinkers’ understandings of divine revelation and metaphysics. By analyzing how Ibn Sīnā’s reason-based approach intersects and diverges from Ghazālī’s intuition and inspiration-based Sufi approach, this study provides an in-depth examination of how the concept of divine revelation has been shaped within Islamic theology and philosophy, highlighting the contributions of both thinkers to the discourse on divine revelation.
Link: https://doi.org/10.5840/islamicphil202415210
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Tags: #IbnSina #Ghazali #Islam #God
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Al-Junayd’s Epistemic Definition of Monotheism (tawḥīd) and his Theory of Self-Consciousness
By Ahmed Abdel Meguid, American University of Cairo
The objective of this study is to present a new argument for understanding the philosophical roots of Abū al-Qāsim al-Junayd’s (d. 909/297) ambiguous definition of monotheism (tawḥīd). Al-Junayd defines tawḥīd in terms of separating the eternally existing (qadīm) from the temporally generated (muḥdath). This study argues that Plato’s distinction between “that which is and always is” and “that which comes to be and never is” in the Timaeus better clarifies neglected aspects of al-Junayds’s definition than the orthodox Neo-Platonic interpretation put forward by Ali Hassen Abdel Kader. Given the lacuna of historically decisive textual evidence in support of either interpretation, this study will demonstrate how the Platonic distinction, which was widely circulating in the theological and philosophical circles of the ninth and early tenth century Baghdad, better furnishes a more coherent interpretation of al-Junayd’s positions. The first part of the study suggests that al-Junayd’s definition of tawḥīd could best be described as a creatively epistemic appropriation and development of the Platonic essentially metaphysical distinction. Through a careful examination of his theory of self-consciousness, the second part of the study explains how al-Junayd developed his epistemic definition of tawḥīd in response to the charges of pantheism addressed to Sufisms. This examination will further support my claim that a Platonic, rather than a Neo-Platonic, framework better explains the philosophical foundation of al-Junayd’s conception and definition of monotheism. I conclude by indicating how this study’s results contribute to the larger scholarship on philosophy and formation of early Sufism.
Link: https://doi.org/10.5840/islamicphil20241529
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Tags: #Islam #Monotheism #Sufism #History
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Gadamer, Ibn Sīnā, and the Aesthetics of Self-Transformation
By Syeda Maryam Fatima Taqvi, University of California
By expanding on Hans-George Gadamer’s critique of contemporary formalist approaches to art, wherein the artist pursues an artwork with a “disinterested” self, this paper endeavors to underline the transformative aspect of aesthetic experience. Even though it acknowledges the epistemological difference between Gadamer’s phenomenological approach and the Arab-Islamic one, particularly Ibn Sīnā’s treatment of arts and aesthetics, it nonetheless discovers some subtle similarities between the two. Consequently, it articulates artistic endeavor as an act of askesis (spiritual exercise) aimed at theosis (becoming like God).
Link: https://doi.org/10.5840/islamicphil202415212
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Tags: #Islam #Theology #Avicenna
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Measuring Muslim Lifestyle Using a Halal Scale
By Ulrich Riegel et al, University of Siegen
The background and motivation of the research presented in this article is the obligation of Public Theology to do justice to young Muslim refugees as a minority group in German society regarding the role of religiosity in the way they are coping with life. In the research process, the authors became increasingly aware that most instruments to measure religiosity have a Western and/or Protestant bias in that they are more interested in religious attitude than in religious practice and/or religious lifestyle, which is very important for Muslim religiosity. Therefore, this article focuses on the distinction between halal and haram as indicators of religious practice according to Muslim benchmarks. Both the concept and the operationalization of a two-dimensional instrument of living a halal life are described. The instrument distinguishes between the individual importance of halal goods (food, medicine, cosmetics) and services (doctors) and their availability in the local environment. Each of the two dimensions comprises four items. Construct validity is shown by confirmatory factor analysis (CFIrobust = 0.934, TLIrobust = 0.902, RMSEArobust = 0.114 [0.073; 0.156]) of a sample of N= 155 Muslim adolescents who have fled to Germany from Syria, Iraq and Afghanistan. External validity is tested by analyzing the correlation of the measurement instrument developed by the authors with the Centrality of Religiosity Scale. The presented halal instrument offers an approach to Muslim lifestyle that meets the orthopractic character of this religion. At the same time, it addresses the consequential dimension of religion within quantitative research.
Link: https://doi.org/10.1093/jis/etae049
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Tags: #Islam #Muslim #Sociology #Religion
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‘The Caliphate Will Last for Thirty Years’: Polemic and Political Thought in the Afterlife of a Prophetic Ḥadīth
By Han Hsien Liew, Arizona State University
The Prophetic ḥadīth ‘The caliphate will last for thirty years, then it will be kingship’ is one of the key proof texts for the Sunni doctrine of the ‘rightly guided caliphs’. While modern scholarship has examined its origins and transmission during the first two centuries of Islam, the political discussions that emerged from it after the crystallization of Sunnism in the third/ninth and fourth/tenth centuries have not received adequate attention. By examining ḥadīth compilations and commentaries, theological treatises, and historical chronicles, this article maps out the various ways in which Sunni Muslim scholars have engaged with the ḥadīth. It argues that in addition to employing the ḥadīth as a polemical tool against Shiʿi political claims, most Sunni scholars through the Mamluk period sought to circumvent its literal meaning out of reluctance to concede that a legitimate caliphate was limited to the first four caliphs. But in doing so, they were also hard-pressed to define what a true caliphate entailed. The ensuing discussions surrounding the ‘thirty-year ḥadīth’ often revolved around the political ideals of consensus, justice, and piety. They also shed light on the intricate connection between historiographical considerations and political thought in medieval Islam.
Link: https://doi.org/10.1093/jis/etae049
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Tags: #Islam #Hadith #Politics
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Religious education: learning what from studying religions?
By Brendan Carmody, University College London
‘Learning from’ in Religious Education, as a mode of moving towards interdenominational and interfaith learning, has a long and fruitful history. However, It has been criticised for being overly subjective as it mainly encourages learning about oneself. Though this has value, it needs to address better the need to understand rather than simply use the religious tradition that is being studied. It raises the question of the objectivity of ‘Learning from’ religions. It is argued that interpreting the correctness of one’s understanding of a text entails more than ‘learning about’ a religious tradition. It should also include a process of self-reflection to enable a judgement of one’s accuracy in comprehending the text’s grammar as well as its underlying more universal truth. This calls for a movement towards what the philosopher-theologian, Bernard Lonergan, named intellectual conversion, a personal appreciation of what true knowledge entails. It is thus contended that ‘Learning from’ religions needs not only awareness of one’s ‘signals of transcendence’ but also of how they can be developed, in light of what is being presented, leading to an informed and wise choice of worldviews about how one is to live, which is an admirable goal of Religious Education.
Link: https://doi.org/10.1080/01416200.2024.2436919
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Tags: #Pedagogy #Religion #ReligiousEducation
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Music and Monotheism
By Gareth F. Wilson, University of Cambridge
What connects the phenomenon of music as an art with the belief in one indivisible God? What has music, a non-linguistic medium, to say about the personal, loving, communicative God of Scripture and the Prophets, or the omniscient, omnipotent, omnipresent, transcendent God of the Philosophers and can it bring these 'concepts of God' together? To answer these questions, this book takes divine Creation as its starting point, that the God of monotheism must be the Creator of all that is. It thus argues that anything which instantiates and facilitates communication within the created realm has been enabled to do so by a God who communicates with His Creation, and who wishes that His Creation be communicative. Indeed, it will argue that the communication allowed by music, and aesthetic experience in general, is the very raison d'être of Abrahamic monotheism and might thus allow an opportunity for dialogue between monotheistic faiths.
Link: https://doi.org/10.1017/9781009158916
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Tags: #Monotheism #Music #God
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Islam, Causality, and Science
Perspectives on Reconciliation of Islamic Tradition and Modern Science
By Özgür Koca, Bayan Islamic Graduate School
This Element intends to contribute to the debate between Islam and science. It focuses on one of the most challenging issues in the modern discussion on the reconciliation of religious and scientific claims about the world, which is to think about divine causality without undermining the rigor and efficacy of the scientific method. First, the Element examines major Islamic accounts of causality. Then, it provides a brief overview of contemporary debates on the issue and identifies both scientific and theological challenges. It argues that any proposed Islamic account of causality for the task of reconciliation should be able to preserve scientific rigor without imposing a priori limits on scientific research, account for miracles without turning them into science-stoppers or metaphors, secure divine and creaturely freedom, and establish a strong sense of divine presence in the world. Following sections discuss strengths and weaknesses of each account in addressing these challenges.
Link: https://doi.org/10.1111/muwo.12493
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Tags: #Islam #Science #ConflictThesis #Causality
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Bridging the Mackie–Plantinga Debate on Evil with Ibn Arabi’s Metaphysics
By Elif Nur Balci, Sakarya University
This study examines how Ibn Arabi’s metaphysics can address key challenges in the contemporary philosophical debate on the problem of evil. John Mackie famously argues that the existence of an omnibenevolent and omnipotent God is logically incompatible with the existence of evil, suggesting that theism must relinquish one of these divine attributes to resolve this contradiction. Alvin Plantinga, through his Free Will Defense, demonstrates that no logical contradiction undermines the coherence of the theistic conception of God. Although Mackie concedes this point, he contends that Plantinga’s defense does not sufficiently explain why God permits evil. With the resolution of the logical problem of evil, the evidential problem has gained prominence in the theistic debate, where Plantinga’s defense remains inadequate. While Plantinga invites theists to explore potential theological reasons for God’s allowance of evil, he acknowledges that this approach may not yield strong philosophical results. In contrast, Ibn Arabi’s metaphysical framework offers a more comprehensive solution. By integrating ontology, epistemology, and metaphysics to establish a coherent relationship between God, the universe, and humanity, Ibn Arabi renders Mackie’s logical critique irrelevant. Furthermore, his approach fills the gaps left by Plantinga’s defense, offering a more nuanced understanding of the relationship between God and evil.
Link: https://doi.org/10.3390/rel15121463
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Tags: #God #IbnArabi #Plantinga #PoE
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Divine Contradiction: some snippets
By Jc Beall, University of Notre Dame
Two doctrines (or axioms) of christian theology sharply distinguish christian monotheism from its traditional monotheistic siblings (viz. jewish and islamic monotheism): the incarnation of God and the triunity of God. Both doctrines, as many have long observed, face a conspicuous so-called logical problem – namely, apparent contradiction. How should the strong appearance of such fundamental contradiction be explained? Beall's answer: the incarnation and trinity appear to be contradictory because God is a contradictory being – a being of whom some contradictions are true. The full truth of God is expressed only via contradiction, which is why the fundamental axioms of christian theology have long appeared to be contradictory. Divine Contradiction presents the target contradictory account of the trinity; its predecessor The Contradictory Christ presents the contradictory account of the incarnation.
Link: https://doi.org/10.1017/S0034412524000295
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Tags: #God #Trinity #Jesus #AnalyticalPhilosophy
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Faith and Reality: Marx’s Understanding of an Ontological Argument in Reference to Kant
By Chuantao Feng and Jianmei Li, Luoxue Research Institute of Zhengzhou University
In the Appendix to his dissertation, with respect to Kant, Marx provided an in-depth analysis of the ontological proof of the existence of God. Here, we explore this analysis in detail. Firstly, we argue that “faith” (Glaube) is the foundation of Marx’s interpretation of the ontological proof of God and its difference from that of Kant. On one hand, Marx’s understanding of the ontological argument can be called the “Realization of Belief” (RB). The object of faith is, for the believer, endowed with some kind of real power; that is to say, the object is real for the believer who has faith in it. This line of argument differs from the Kantian Hypostatization of Idea (HI), which attempts to prove the transcendental God as an a priori concept that implies itself as an empirical being or a posteriori phenomenon. On the other hand, “faith” was also the foundation upon which Marx based his interpretation of Kant. Subsequently, in the context of Marx’s dissertation, we clarify the connotations of “reality”, “belief”, and “faith”. “Reality” refers to objects exerting a real force that works on those with faith in their imagination while not necessarily entailing that the imagined object of belief is an empirical one. “Belief” refers either to an opinion (doxa) based on “faith” or to an idea without necessity in the sense of David Hume’s philosophy. As for “faith”, Marx uses this term in the Protestant sense, meaning obedience to the object one believes in, where obedience refers to the absence of self-righteousness. In a state of “faith”, the faithful one possesses “the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen” (Heb. 11:1). Finally, on the basis of these two considerations, we reflect on the existing academic interpretations of the theme of this article and highlight some differences between these interpretations and the present article. We show that existing interpretations of Marx’s summary either conflate the two theories of the HI and RB or miss the importance of “faith” in Marx’s arguments. We conclude that Marx, at the time of his dissertation, interpreted the ontological argument by way of the RB, which was based on the concept of “faith”, and that his critical understanding of Kant’s refutation of the ontological proof was founded on the same interpretation.
Link: https://doi.org/10.3390/rel15121427
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Tags: #God #OntologicalArgument #Kant
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God made me this way: same-sex attraction through the lens of evolutionary creation in Christian theology
By Jack A. C. Key, Independent Scholar
In an examination of same-sex attraction through the lens of evolutionary creation and Aquinas’ secondary causality, this paper seeks to challenge the understanding of many Christians today that this trait is a negative result of ‘the fall’. By presenting a new approach called the Evolutionary Evaluation Model, a set of five questions guide this process of fairly evaluating traits in humans today which seem to contradict God’s design for humanity. Using this model to evaluate existing peer-reviewed scientific evidence alongside theological considerations, same-sex attraction appears to have been intentionally designed by God. Within a minority of humans, this trait produces the ability to build social bridges and ensures the survival of their families. Whilst same-sex attraction is not a result of ‘the fall’, such individuals need God’s support to overcome barriers that neutralize the benefits of the trait.
Link: https://doi.org/10.3366/jqs.2024.0584
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Tags: #God #Christianity #Evolution #Gender
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Engaging Jeffrey Koperski’s decretalism: is occasionalism really avoidable?
By Nazif Muhtaroglu, Yale University and
Shoaib Ahmed Malik, University of Edinburgh
This article critically evaluates Jeffrey Koperski’s decretalism, which presents the laws of nature as divine decrees functioning as constraints rather than dynamic forces. Building on his work, we explore whether his model successfully avoids the implications of occasionalism, as he claims. By analysing his latest publications, we first reconstruct Koperski’s argument and then present three key objections. These include (1) issues related to scientific realism, (2) the principle of simplicity, and (3) the reduction of Koperski’s model to occasionalism. We argue that despite his attempts to distinguish his framework, Koperski’s model ultimately collapses into occasionalism due to the continuous divine sustenance required for natural processes. By engaging with recent developments in metaphysical and scientific debates, this article highlights the limitations of Koperski’s decretalism.
Link: https://doi.org/10.3366/jqs.2024.0584
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Tags: #Causality #Kalam #Occasionalism
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On Tang Junyi’s Critique of Anselm’s Argument for the Existence of God
By Yumin Dai, Nanjing University
Anselm’s argument for the existence of God posits that the concept of God inherently implies its existence. Tang Junyi critiques this argument from two fundamental angles. Firstly, he argues that the contingency of human thought places an unwarranted burden of proof on the existence of God, introducing an inherent contradiction within the argument’s premise. Secondly, he contends that Anselm’s argument fails to deduce the existence of God from empirical things. Tang’s empirical approach to critiquing the argument bears a superficial resemblance to St. Thomas Aquinas’s cosmological argument for God’s existence, yet a profound difference exists between the two, precluding their equivalence. Delving deeper, Tang’s critique is rooted in the Confucian philosophy. Nevertheless, Tang’s critique, while insightful, does not fully dismantle Anselm’s argument, underscoring the intrinsic differences and tensions between Chinese and Western perspectives on religion and philosophy.
Link: https://doi.org/10.3390/rel15111374
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Tags: #God #Anselm #Religion
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Genre and Genesis: Locating Covenants in the Qurʾān and the Bible
By Karim Samji, Gettysburg College
The present article considers the intersection between genre and covenant in scripture in order to locate historical covenants and to trace their complex textual boundaries. Standing on the shoulders of Smith, Wellhausen, and Gunkel, the joint legacy left behind by Martin and Albrecht Noth is equally significant for both Biblical and Islamic studies. Nothian scholarship laid solid foundations for reconstructing the history of tribal traditions. Both of them together created a common frame of reference for studying primary and secondary themes (Themen), literary and documentary forms (Formen), introductory and concluding formulas (Formeln), and theological and political perspectives (Tendenzen), in addition to geographical, transitional, and framing devices (Schemata). In spite of this shared scholarly heritage, it appears that both Biblical and Qurʾānic studies have either been talking at cross-purposes or have reached a critical crossroads, as has happened in the case of covenant. All things considered, genre and tradition criticism allow us to move forward beyond the Methodenstreit in covenant studies.
Link: https://doi.org/10.3390/rel15111380
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Tags: #Quran #Bible #Islam #History
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Al-Fārābī’s Poetics Reconsidered
By Syed Maisam Haider Ali Rizvi, University of California
The primary goal of this paper is to read al-Fārābī’s Kitāb al-shiʿr [Book of poetry] between the lines. Though it touches upon his other treatises on poetry and poetics, i.e., Risāla fī qawānīn ṣināʿat al-shuʿarāʾ [Essay on the rules of the art of the poets] and Qawl al-Fārābī fī al-tanāsub wa-l-taʾlīf [al-Fārābī’s saying on harmony and composition), it does so only in passing. Emphasizing the primacy of mimesis (muḥākat) in al-Fārābī’s discussion of poetics, this paper demonstrates how poeticity (shiʿriyya), according to al-Fārābī, goes beyond being a mere “textual” or “oral” quality to even encompass various human actions and activities. In doing so, it also underscores how al-Fārābī’s definition(s) of mimesis is not reducible to comparison, simile, metaphoror even the extended metaphor.
Link: https://doi.org/10.5840/islamicphil202415210
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Tags: #AlFarabi #Philosophy #Arabic
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Substances (jawāhir), Accidents (aʿrāḍ), and Rental Agreements
The Relation between Atomism in Islamic Theology (kalām) and Islamic Law (fiqh)
By Serdar Kurnaz, Humboldt-Universität
Link: https://doi.org/10.5840/islamicphil202415213
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Tags: #Islam #Theology #Kalam #IslamicLaw
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Ṭabāṭabāʾī on Mental Constructions
By Maryam Olamaiekopaie, University of South Bohemia
Link: https://doi.org/10.5840/islamicphil202415212
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Tags: #Islam #Theology #Metaphysics
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Muṣṭafā Ṣabrī on Waḥdat al-Wuǧūd and its Philosophical Origins
By Muhammad Sami, Pembroke College
This article studies the critique of waḥdat al-wuǧūd penned by Muṣṭafā Ṣabrī (d. 1954), one of the last Ottoman şeyhülislams. Ṣabrī’s critique echoes those written by previous theologians such as al-Taftāzānī while simultaneously criticising their shortcomings. In Ṣabrī’s view, waḥdat al-wuǧūd originates in what he calls “the divinization of existence”: the identification of God’s essence with his existence, a doctrine held by Muslim peripatetics and adopted by several philosophical theologians. It is just because they failed to locate such an origin that Ṣabrī believes previous critiques of the Akbarian doctrine were not adequate.
Link: https://doi.org/10.1093/jis/etae049
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Tags: #Islam #Sufism #Theology #Kalam #IbnArabi
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The Revival of Teleology, After Its Death By Darwin
By Nima Narimani, University, Tehran
Two distinct teleological perspectives emerge from the ancient Greek tradition. (1) Platonic teleology, which represents teleology as the result of intentional agency and is the origin of the idea of design; and (2) Aristotelian teleology, which introduces teleology as the result of natural and intrinsic causes. The preceding framework for understanding nature was superseded by the advent of the modern era and the establishment of the scientific method. Nevertheless, despite the prevailing skepticism regarding the possibility and utility of teleology in the modern era, it is asserted that several prominent scientists of the modern era are staunch defenders of teleology (design). However, with Darwin's proposal of the theory of evolution, the path to the destruction of teleology was initiated. This article examines the interconnection between Darwin's theory of evolution (then neo-Darwinism) and teleology, focusing on how this theory effectively undermines the teleological perspective. However, it seems that recent findings in the field of biology challenge this dominant view and open the way for the revival of teleology.
Link: https://doi.org/10.22091/JPTR.2024.11464.3151
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Tags: #Evolution #Teleology #Design #Darwin
