Critical-Progressive Muslims: On Islamic hermeneutics, Gender and Interreligious Dialogue

  Khaled Abou El Fadl’s   Religious Humanism: A Qur’anic Call to Love and Unity in a Divided World   Adis Duderija   In an era marked by rising polarization, religious extremism, and global conflicts, the essence of faith often gets lost in the noise of dogma and division. Yet, buried within the teachings of Islam lies a profound vision of religious humanism that could serve as a beacon for our troubled times. Drawing from the insights of scholar Khaled Abou El Fadl in one of his seminal works The Great Theft , I argue that true religious devotion is not about isolation or supremacy, but about actively pursuing goodness, beauty, and love on earth as a reflection of the Divine. This perspective transforms faith from a rigid set of rules into a luminous force for compassion, urging believers to create the conditions where humanity can truly know and love one another. As we navigate the challenges of the 21st century—from interfaith tensions to social injustices...

  Embracing Islam as a Dynamic Civilizational Project: The Progressive Muslim Worldview  this is a chapter from my ebook -Essay on Critical-Progressive Islam  Adis Duderija Within the diverse spectrum of Islamic thought, the progressive Muslim worldview offers a unique understanding of Islam as a dynamic and evolving civilizational project. Unlike viewing Islam as a static religion or culture, progressive Muslims perceive it as a constantly progressing phenomenon that transcends reification. This essay aims to explore the delineating attributes of the progressive Muslim worldview, emphasizing its perspective on Islam as a global and adaptable faith that bridges cultural, national, and ethnic divides. Furthermore, it will highlight the inclusive and interactive nature of Islam with culture, acknowledging its rich civilizational heritage while recognizing its ongoing evolution. Ultimately, the core beliefs and practices of Islam remain deeply rooted in the historical ...

   Beyond Islamisation: A Progressive Muslim Critique of Al-Attas’ Epistemology and Vision of Islamic Tradition   Adis Duderija   The recent passing of Syed Muhammad Naquib al-Attas invites renewed reflection on one of the most ambitious intellectual projects of the modern Muslim world: the “Islamization of knowledge.” Al-Attas sought to defend Islamic metaphysics and civilizational identity against what he saw as the corrosive effects of secular modernity. His critique of Western epistemology and his insistence that knowledge must be grounded in a coherent metaphysical worldview made him one of the most influential Muslim philosophers of the late twentieth century.   Yet from the perspective of progressive Muslim thought, this project, while intellectually serious, rests on problematic assumptions about the nature of revelation, knowledge, and the Islamic tradition itself.   At the core of al-Attas’ epistemology lies a hierarchical view of ...