Some reflections on the Contextualist approach to ethico-legal texts of the Quran

Bibliographic Data

ID2795651
AuthorsAbdullah Saeed (0000-0002-2021-1089, The University of Melbourne, corresponding author)
Year2008
Volume71
Issue2
Pages221-237
Publication date2008-06-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueBulletin of the School of Oriental and African Studies (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0041-977X • E-ISSN: 1474-0699
PublisherCambridge University Press (CUP) (PUBLISHER)
DOI10.1017/s0041977x08000517
OpenAlexW2052990332
LanguageEN
Citations received9

A "contextualist" reading of the Quran is becoming increasingly popular, particularly among those Muslims referred to as "progressive-ijtihadis". One of the primary concerns of this reading is that in order to understand and interpret the ethico-legal content of the Quran and relate that content to the changing needs and circumstances of Muslims today, it is important to approach the text at different levels, giving a high degree of emphasis to the socio-historical context of the text. In the classical tafsīr this emphasis on socio-historical context was not considered important, particularly in the interpretation of the ethico-legal texts, despite the frequent use of asbāb al-nuzūl literature. In this paper, I will explore how progressive-ijtihadis are adopting a contextualist reading of ethico-legal texts of the Quran. To illustrate this, I will use one or two such texts (verses) and their interpretations by the progressive-ijtihadis and will seek to demonstrate the contours of this approach, and highlight some of the challenges this approach is facing

Context (archaeology) · Epistemology · Interpretation (philosophy) · Linguistics · Reading (process) · Sociology · Education and Islamic Studies · Families in Therapy and Culture · History · Islamic Studies and History · Philosophy

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