What Does Shahrur Say?
The text attributes to Shahrur an extension of his critique of the concept of the “maqasid of the Sharia” as formulated by jurisprudence, arguing that many of its alleged objectives are “human rights and public freedoms that the state and society must safeguard.” It also presents freedom as “the highest value” and the primary objective in place of the traditional objectives of preservation, especially in matters of religion, expression, and choice.
This is connected to his rejection of coercion in the religious sphere: he maintains that faith is not valid unless it arises from “voluntary conviction and consent,” then questions the validity of commanding right and forbidding wrong when the stick and the whip are used in them.
Atlas Explanation
This atom records a shift in the center of the argument: from presenting maqasid as an inherited list of things to be preserved to reading them through the lens of rights and freedoms, whose protection is the responsibility of the state and society. This does not mean that the terms “maqasid” and “rights” are wholly synonymous; what the witness establishes is that Shahrur describes many alleged maqasid as public rights and freedoms.
For the broader context on the centrality of freedom, see: Freedom, the Human Being, and Responsibility.
Synthetic Conclusion
The two witnesses can be combined into a limited conclusion: in this conception, the priority of freedom is not merely the declaration of an abstract value, but is connected to rejecting the grounding of faith or religious guidance in coercion. This is an inference drawn from combining the two witnesses, not an independent definition of maqasid provided by the text.
Open Question and Limits of Reading
The available evidence does not provide a definitive list of all the rights and freedoms included in this conception, nor does it specify the legal or institutional mechanisms by which the text intends the state and society to protect them. The principal witness is also a documented report of Shahrur’s position, not a direct first-person passage from him.
To access the book: Muhammad Shahrur: Drying Up the Springs of Terrorism.