Meaning
Shahrur holds that no shaykh or imam has the authority to declare something prohibited; rather, this can only occur through a new messengerly authority. As for the modern state, its role is to permit or prevent, not to declare something prohibited.
The Atom’s Structure in the Atlas
- Type of argument: legislative
- Argument movement: It confines prohibition to messengerly authority and denies it to any shaykh or imam.
- Central terms: prohibition, messengerly authority, the modern state, prevention, permission.
- Degree of centrality: foundational.
It determines who possesses the authority to rule something prohibited and who does not, and distinguishes between the religious sphere and the administrative sphere. It is foundational to Shahrur’s conception of the relationship between fatwa and authority.
Links That Aid Reading
- Muhammad Shahrur: Toward New Foundations for Islamic Jurisprudence
- Legislation, Limits, and Prohibition
- Prohibition
- The Verse of Light Sets a Minimum Limit for Dress and Leaves the Rest to Custom
Evidence
- Supporting text: “He maintains that no shaykh or imam has the authority to declare something prohibited; rather, it is connected to a new messengerly authority. As for the modern state, it permits or prevents but does not declare things prohibited.”
Location of the Evidence in the Book
- Book: Toward New Foundations for Islamic Jurisprudence.
- Location: in the first section of the book
- Type of evidence: close supporting passage.
- Verification aid: the state permits or prevents, but does not declare things prohibited
- Reading note: The text distinguishes between prohibition and the state, stating that the state permits or prevents but does not declare things prohibited; this corresponds to the atom.
Degree of Documentation
- Level: directly documented
- Meaning of the level: The atom rests on an explicit passage close to the wording of the claim.
- Limits of interpretation: The wording above is an analytical summary and should not be treated as a verbatim quotation unless the supporting passage has been quoted directly.
Its Function in the Book
Its function here is argumentative; it supports, or prepares the way for, a broader conclusion in the chapter.
Related To
Note for the Reader
The atom clearly conveys the limits of legislative authority.