Abstract
This chapter addresses the scholarly discourse concerning Islamic jurisprudence for Muslim minorities in the West, also known as fiqh al aqalliyyat or minority fiqh for short. It examines the broader context, origins, theory, and criticisms of this juristic discourse, which has gained considerable scholarly attention among Muslims in the West around the turn of the century. The chapter highlights that minority fiqh does not have immediate relevance to all or even the majority of Muslims in the West who are for the most part ignorant of or indifferent to the kind of arguments and responses the discourse generates and juristic questions and methodologies which underpin them. It explains that even those Muslims in the West who do take these discussions more seriously tend to adopt and select certain views over others on a basis of several considerations and factors, not all of which can be traced back to particular methodological or normative commitments. In this regard, the chapter puts into perspective notions that Muslims in the West are actively seeking the implementation of Islamic law or even that most seek to live their lives according to a formal Islamic jurisprudential framework.
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Notes
- 1.
This will, hopefully, become evident to the reader over the course of this chapter in the context of discussing the theories and methodological approaches underpinning fiqh al-aqalliyyat.
- 2.
Our discussion of minority fiqh discourse will be restricted to the Sunni branch of Islam not only because it was a product of Sunni scholars but also because not only the vast majority of Western Muslims are of Sunni persuasion but also as noted by Hassan (2013, 10–11) Shi’is unlike Sunnis “due to their historical minority experiences and legal philosophy of accommodating minority life…developed an early clear stance on the legitimacy of minority life”.
- 3.
In this regard, he mentions certain shortcomings of classical jurists’ conceptualisation of the Qur’anic message of Islamic universality, concept of citizenship, the emergence of international law, the United Nations and various diplomatic conventions which require radical rethinking of pre-modern concepts from Islamic jurisprudence such as the concept of dar al harb, jihad al talab, and so on.
- 4.
- 5.
Loyalty.
- 6.
Resemblance of Muslims to non-Muslims in dress and appearance.
- 7.
“When the angels take the souls of those who have wronged themselves, they ask them, ‘What circumstances were you in?’ They reply, ‘We were oppressed in this land,’ and the angels say, ‘But was God’s earth not spacious enough for you to migrate to some other place?’” Abdul Haleem (2005, 60).
- 8.
“You who believe, do not take the Jews and Christians as allies:a they are allies only to each other. Anyone who takes them as an ally becomes one of them–God does not guide such wrongdoers” (Abdul Haleem 2005, 73).
- 9.
“You who believe, do not take for your intimates such outsiders as spare no effort to ruin you and want to see you suffer: their hatred is evident from their mouths, but what their hearts conceal is far worse. We have made Our revelations clear for you; will you not use your reason?” (Abdul Haleem 2005, 43).
- 10.
As in the case of early Muslims who fled to Ethiopia and did not return to Arabia even after Muslims established themselves in Arabia there and Islam become victorious.
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Duderija, A., Rane, H. (2019). Minority Fiqh (Fiqh al-Aqalliyyat). In: Islam and Muslims in the West. New Directions in Islam. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-92510-3_11
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