Ali Abdel Raziq

Ali Abdel Raziq (1888-1966) was an Egyptian Islamic scholar and sharia judge. He can be regarded as the intellectual father of Islamic laicism or secularism (the separation of state and religion, not the secularization of society). His main work is called "Islam and the Foundations of Governance" (Al-Islam Wa Usul Al-Hukm) and was first published in 1925. Due to its controversial standpoints regarding the necessity of the caliphate and religious government, the book triggered an intellectual and political battle in Egypt. In essence the author claims that the Muslims may agree on any kind of government, be it religious or worldly, as long as it serves the interest and common welfare of their society. Abdel Raziq brings forward the following arguments: First, the two main sources of Islamic law (sharia), the Quran and the Sunnah (Tradition of Messenger Muhammad), neither demand nor reject the rule of a caliph (caliphate) or imam (imamate). Second, there is nore real ijma (consensus) on the necessity of the caliphate. Third, experience shows that the caliphate entailed a series of disasters for the Muslim community, and there is no single rational argument for the (re-)establishment of the caliphate. As Abdel Raziq recounts the horrors of the caliphate, among other things, one can conclude that he advocated a humanist kind of governance, probably a democratic state. This assumption is supported by the fact that his father Hassan Abdel Raziq and his oldest brother, the philosopher Mustafa Abdel Raziq, were also liberal activists. In Abdel Raziq's opinion, the separation of Islam and state is supposed to protect Islam and the Muslims from the political abuse of Islam. Ali Abdel Raziq also wrote "Consensus in Islamic Law" (Al-Ijma´ Fi Ash-Shari´ah Al-Islamiyyah) which was published in 1947. Abdel Raziq's arguments:
1. The two main sources of Islamic law (sharia), the Quran and the Sunnah (Tradition of Messenger Muhammad), neither demand nor reject the rule of a caliph (caliphate) or imam (imamate).
2. There is no real ijma (consensus) on the necessity of the caliphate.
3. Experience shows that the caliphate entailed a series of disasters for the Muslim community, and there is no single rational argument for the (re-)establishment of the caliphate. As Abdel Raziq recounts the horrors of the caliphate, among other things, one can conclude that he advocated a humanist kind of governance, probably a democratic state. This assumption is supported by the fact that his father Hassan Abdel Raziq and his oldest brother, the philosopher Mustafa Abdel Raziq, were also liberal activists. In Abdel Raziq's opinion, the separation of Islam and state is supposed to protect Islam and the Muslims from the political abuse of Islam. Ali Abdel Raziq also wrote "Consensus in Islamic Law" (Al-Ijma´ Fi Ash-Shari´ah Al-Islamiyyah) which was published in 1947. He later served as Minister of Endowments (twice), one of the three highest positions in religious learning and administration (besie the Rector of al-Azhar and the Grand Mufti) before he died in December 1966.

References

• Adams, Charles C.: Islam and Modernism in Egypt. Russell & Russell, New York, 1968 (2ndd Edition). Page: 259-68.

• Meier, Andreas: Der Politische Auftrag des Islam (The Political Mission of Islam). Wuppertal (GER), 1994. Page: 106-114.

• Abdel Raziq, Ali: Al-Islam Wa Usul Al-Hukm: Bahth Fi-l Khilafa Wa-l Hukuma Fi-l Islam (Islam and the Foundations of Governance: Research on the Caliphate and Governance in Islam). Critique and commentary by Mamdooh Haqqi (Beirut, 1978).