Direct Answer
The “contemporary reading” here is not a detailed label for a complete method in the available witness. Rather, the passage indicates a rejection of limiting the understanding of the final message to the readings of the first three Hijri centuries, and calls for ijtihad. This atom connects to the broader entry Muhammad Shahrur, the Qur’an in Contemporary Thought.
What Is Attributed to Shahrur
Shahrur says: “We cannot confine it to the reading of the first three Hijri centuries; rather, we must exercise ijtihad in order to grasp the truths and essence of its three characteristics.” What is explicitly attributed to him is the rejection of such confinement and the call for ijtihad. See the book’s context: The Method of Contemporary Reading.
Atlas Explanation
The Atlas uses the phrase “contemporary reading” to summarize this methodological orientation: understanding is not closed within the era of the early centuries, but remains open to ijtihad. This explains the phrase’s significance in this atom; it is not a complete technical definition of it. For the text’s general entry, see The Qur’an.
Conclusion
A limited methodological position can be inferred from the witness: rejecting historical confinement entails preserving the possibility of ijtihad in understanding. However, the witness does not set out the rules of this ijtihad or its detailed procedures.
Open Question and Limits
The available evidence does not mention “the juristic heritage,” nor does it state that the reading proceeds “from within the text” or that it reconstructs knowledge. These specifications should therefore not be attributed to Shahrur on this page without additional direct evidence. Likewise, the description “the Wise Revelation” does not appear in the available evidence, so it is not used to interpret the claim here.