Apostasy Is Not a Qur'anic Ruling

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Intended Meaning

Shahrur holds that apostasy is not a Qur’anic ruling, but rather an inherited conception that entered jurisprudence from outside the text. He also considers the reports transmitted on it to be insufficiently established to form a legislative principle.

The Atom’s Structure in the Atlas

  • Type of argument: legislative
  • Argument movement: apostasy is not a Qur’anic ruling, but an inherited juristic conception.
  • Key terms: apostasy, the Qur’an, jurisprudence, reports.
  • Degree of centrality: central.

The atom strips apostasy of the status of a Qur’anic ruling and returns it to the inherited juristic sphere. In doing so, it opens the door to reconsidering its legislative basis and the force of relying on it.

Basis

  • Supporting text: “Apostasy is not a Qur’anic ruling but an alien inherited notion, and the hadiths reported on it do not establish a legislative basis in his view.”

Place of basis in the book

  • Book: Religion and Power.
  • Location: early in the book, within the presentation of legislative rulings
  • Type of basis: close evidence.
  • Marker for verification: the first legislative ruling that was enacted
  • Reading note: the location is suitable because it explains the origin of legislative rulings in history, which makes it a close support for the idea that apostasy is not an authentic Qur’anic ruling.

Degree of documentation

  • Level: directly documented
  • Meaning of the level: the atom relies on an explicit witness close to the wording of the claim.
  • Limits of reading: the formulation above is an analytical summary and should not be treated as a verbatim quotation unless the witness is cited textually.

Its function in the book

Its function here is oppositional; it responds to a common understanding or overturns an inherited reading at this point.

Editorial note

The intent is to negate the Qur’anic source, not to deny the existence of historical debate.

Graph View

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Muhammad Shahrur Atlas