The Unifying Idea
This axis regulates the relationship between revelation, ijtihad, and freedom. Religion does not become coercion, and prohibition remains within God’s exclusive prerogative, while the space of human understanding and ijtihad remains open within its bounds. From this perspective, religion is understood as a free covenant, not as an instrument of compulsion.
The Propositions Included in the Axis
- Shahrur’s legislation distinguishes between divine prohibition and human ijtihad
- The distinction between the messenger and the prophet redefines the boundaries of authority and revelation
- Religion in Shahrur’s view is a free covenant that rejects coercion and violence
The Axis’s Support from the Atoms
- Definitive prohibition belongs to God alone
- Some prohibitions are subject to ijtihad
- The messenger and the prophet are different
- The covenant of Islam is a voluntary commitment
- Obedience to the messenger within the framework of freedom
Reading Method
This axis does not view religious authority as a closed center, but as a field regulated by revelation and freedom together. Therefore, responsibility and choice take precedence over coercion and compelled obedience.