Is<i>Shura</i>a Muslim Form of Democracy? Roots and Systemization of a Polemic

Shavit, Uriya

doi:10.1080/00263200902917085

Cited by 30 publications

(11 citation statements)

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“…In this context, the renowned Egyptian Islamist thinker Sayyid Qutb (d.1966) identified shura as a necessary tool for governing a Muslim-majority community, but never widened the scope of shura to accommodate or embrace a system of governance based on a secular Western democracy. For Qutb, Western democracy is “in a state of bankruptcy,” and thus Muslims should not follow Western democratic norms (see Saeed 2014, 152; Shavit 2010, 351–352). Along similar lines, Sayyid Qutb’s brother, Muhammad Qutb (b.1919), argues that “democracy is the equivalent not of shura but of jahiliyya ” (cited in Shavit 2010, 359).…”

Section: Contemporary Muslim Scholars’ Views On the Relation Between mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…For Qutb, Western democracy is “in a state of bankruptcy,” and thus Muslims should not follow Western democratic norms (see Saeed 2014, 152; Shavit 2010, 351–352). Along similar lines, Sayyid Qutb’s brother, Muhammad Qutb (b.1919), argues that “democracy is the equivalent not of shura but of jahiliyya ” (cited in Shavit 2010, 359).…”

Section: Contemporary Muslim Scholars’ Views On the Relation Between mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In the course of this article, I focus on the notion of shura since it has become a major focus of debate and contestation amongst Islamic scholars who seek to promote democracy within an Islamic framework. While some studies have provided overviews of the debate among Muslim thinkers about the compatibility or incompatibility of shura and democracy (Shavit 2010; Saeed 2014, 148–159; Soage 2014; Ellethy 2015), 2 they have not fully discussed how this issue might be addressed from the perspective of some reformists such as Abu Zayd, Soroush, and Shabestari. In contrast with most previous scholarly work on the ideas of the aforementioned scholars (see Bennett 2005; Ghobadzadeh 2015; Kamrava 2008, 155–172; Bayat 2007, 91–96; Bayat 2013; Ghamari-Tabrizi 2008, 223–242; Dahlén 2003, Amirpur 2015, 35–65, 140–198; Shahibzadeh 2016, 111–151), this article seeks not only to frame their ideas as representative of a liberal turn among contemporary Muslim scholars, but to demonstrate how their political discourses are based on their theological-philosophical views, their methods of reading of the Qurʾan, and the distinctions they draw between the pre-modern and modern worldview.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“… 7 For the ideas of moderate Islamist scholars see Shavit (2010, 353–356). For details of al-Turabi’s shura system see al-Sulami (2003, 88–203).…”

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confidence: 99%

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Muslim reformist scholars’ arguments for democracy independent of religious justification

Akbar

2020

Critical Research on Religion

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This article examines the ideas of three contemporary Muslim reformists, namely Abdolkarim Soroush, Nasr Hamid Abu Zayd, and Muhammad Mujtahed Shabestari, concerning the relationship between democracy and the Islamic principle of shura (consultation). The article aims to demonstrate how the theological-philosophical approaches of these scholars—particularly with respect to their methods of interpreting the Qurʾan and the distinctions they draw between the pre-modern and modern worldview—have contributed to the rise of a political discourse which seeks to understand concepts such as shura and democracy within their own specific epistemological and cultural contexts. This political discourse, as the article argues, supports democracy without any narrow religious justification and promotes a form of government whose legitimacy is not based on religious sources or authority, and thus is neutral towards different religions and their followers.

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Section: Contemporary Muslim Scholars’ Views On the Relation Between mentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Contemporary Muslim Scholars’ Views On the Relation Between mentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“… 7 For the ideas of moderate Islamist scholars see Shavit (2010, 353–356). For details of al-Turabi’s shura system see al-Sulami (2003, 88–203).…”

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confidence: 99%

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Muslim reformist scholars’ arguments for democracy independent of religious justification

Akbar

2020

Critical Research on Religion

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“…25 In contemporary Arab debates liberals are usually defined broadly as "scholars and activists whose main concern is the introduction of Western-type democracy in Arab countries." 26 The Tomorrow Party, which defines its line as "socialist liberal democratic," 27 has indeed made the liberalization of the Egyptian regime through free and fair elections its main political message and leading demand. 28 The party's political platform defines "liberal democracy" as a "peaceful format for managing disagreements and conflicts in accordance with principles which are accepted by all parties [involved]."…”

Section: Egyptian Liberals' Approach To Israelmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Role of Israel in Ayman Nour's Liberal Vision for Egypt

Winter¹

2011

NMES

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In recent years, Ayman Nour has emerged as a prominent leader of the Egyptian liberal opposition. Although Israel is not at the focus of his discourse, it is, nevertheless, not entirely ignored. This article examines Nour's attitude toward Israel by analyzing his views on three inter-connected issues: (a) his views on the Israeli-Egyptian peace treaty and normalizing relations with Israel; (b) the distinction between his approaches to the United States and to Israel; (c) his vision for the resolution of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and the future of Israeli-Egyptian relations. In his public activity, Nour embodies a unique case study for Israel's role in the overall political agenda of a liberal oppositionist in contemporary Egypt. This article argues that understanding Nour's motives allow us to interpret his positions toward Israel as part of a broader line against the Egyptian regime, and not necessarily as reflecting a systematic ideological doctrine.

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The legacy of representation in medieval Europe for incomes and institutions today

Pavlik

Young

2021

Southern Economic Journal

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Why can some governments credibly commit to the rule of law and protection of property rights while others cannot? A potential answer involves deep historical traditions of institutions that constrain rulers. We explore whether experiences with representative assemblies in medieval/early modern Europe have left their mark on incomes and institutions today. We employ Stasavage's (2010) data on representative assembly activity in 30 medieval/early modern European polities and the Putterman and Weil (2010) data on descendancy shares from circa 1500 populations to construct country-level measures of historical assembly experience. We find that assembly experience is positively correlated with a measure of the rule of law and property rights and the Polity IV index that emphasizes constraint. Our estimates imply an important advantage for countries with assembly experiencean increase in experience from zero to that of an average Stasavage country would improve the country's property rights score by nearly 1.5 points.

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IsShuraa Muslim Form of Democracy? Roots and Systemization of a Polemic

Cited by 30 publications

References 2 publications

Muslim reformist scholars’ arguments for democracy independent of religious justification

Muslim reformist scholars’ arguments for democracy independent of religious justification

The Role of Israel in Ayman Nour's Liberal Vision for Egypt

The legacy of representation in medieval Europe for incomes and institutions today

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