Shari’a law is (by definition) a system for rule of Law. It may not be the kind of Law that Westerners would want to be ruled by, but it is a system of Law nevertheless. Therefore, in a very simple yet fundamental way, Shari’a is an anathema to the might-makes-right oppression of gangs and warlords,…

One of the singular best references about Islam, in all its complexity and diversity and nuance, is an online and free collection of essays and reference articles: Oxford Islamic Studies Online. It builds on the classical Oxford Encyclopedia of Islam, as well as several other major reference works, and will be continually updated online. As…

Steven Waldman makes an interesting point, quoting a hadith of the Prophet SAW, “Do not buy fish in the sea, for it is gharar .” and suggests that this could be applied to financial transactions like sub-prime mortgages. That’s a great tassavur (exegesis), one that I hadn’t heard before, but will certainly quote from now…

A can of worms, indeed: ISLAMIC law has been officially adopted in Britain, with sharia courts given powers to rule on Muslim civil cases. The government has quietly sanctioned the powers for sharia judges to rule on cases ranging from divorce and financial disputes to those involving domestic violence. Rulings issued by a network of…

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