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17 pages, 349 KB

Open AccessArticle

Islamic Pacifism: Contexts, Principles, and Dilemmas

by Abdessamad Belhaj

Religions 2026, 17(3), 327; https://doi.org/10.3390/rel17030327 - 5 Mar 2026

Viewed by 1238

Despite increased interest in Islamic pacifism, there are still significant gaps in academic research on this topic, especially regarding the contexts of its emergence, its shared principles and ethical dilemmas. The goal of this article is to chart the rise and evolution of [...] Read more.

Despite increased interest in Islamic pacifism, there are still significant gaps in academic research on this topic, especially regarding the contexts of its emergence, its shared principles and ethical dilemmas. The goal of this article is to chart the rise and evolution of Islamic pacifism throughout various Muslim contexts since the middle of the 20th century. I will also discuss some of the main ethical principles of Islamic pacifism as they relate to modern Muslim ethics and politics, particularly the peaceful settlement of disputes and the recent work on covenants in Islam and peacebuilding. Additionally, I will address some of the dilemmas that Islamic pacifists confront in relation to absolute pacifism, the efficacy of nonviolence, conflict and just peace. This article makes the case that pacifism could be a viable alternative to Islamist politics in the current Middle East conflicts. However, Islamic pacifists also face major skepticism amidst unjust policies. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue The Ethics of War and Peace: Religious Traditions in Dialogue)

37 pages, 555 KB

Open AccessArticle

Jihād and the Protection of Places of Worship in Early Islam: Between Covenant, Conquest, and a Just Peace

by Halim Rane, Ibrahim Zein and Ahmed El-Wakil

Religions 2026, 17(1), 86; https://doi.org/10.3390/rel17010086 - 12 Jan 2026

Viewed by 1993

Abstract

This article examines the relationship between jihād and the protection of non-Muslim places of worship in early Islam. Drawing primarily on Qurʾānic verses 22:39–41 and the Covenants of the Prophet, it employs a synchronically comparative framework that analyzes a broad corpus of textual [...] Read more.

This article examines the relationship between jihād and the protection of non-Muslim places of worship in early Islam. Drawing primarily on Qurʾānic verses 22:39–41 and the Covenants of the Prophet, it employs a synchronically comparative framework that analyzes a broad corpus of textual sources, seeking to reconstruct how the early Muslim worldview understood the justification for jihād. It also examines the norms governing conduct after conflict, particularly in relation to treaty-making. The article attempts to make sense of Q22:39–41 within the broader landscape of late antiquity, which was marked by religious persecution and the destruction of sanctuaries under Byzantine and Sasanian rule. The study highlights how clear rules of engagement were articulated in early Islam, including limits on violence and the consequences of treaty violation. It argues that the motivations behind the early conquests cannot be reduced to material interests but rather were guided by a theological and ideological vision linking conquest with the establishment of a just peace, one grounded in the protection of communities, faith, and places of worship through a covenantal paradigm. Full article

18 pages, 422 KB

Open AccessArticle

Genre and Genesis: Locating Covenants in the Qurʾān and the Bible

by Karim Samji

Religions 2024, 15(11), 1380; https://doi.org/10.3390/rel15111380 - 13 Nov 2024

Viewed by 2230

Abstract

The present article considers the intersection between genre and covenant in scripture in order to locate historical covenants and to trace their complex textual boundaries. Standing on the shoulders of Smith, Wellhausen, and Gunkel, the joint legacy left behind by Martin and Albrecht [...] Read more.

The present article considers the intersection between genre and covenant in scripture in order to locate historical covenants and to trace their complex textual boundaries. Standing on the shoulders of Smith, Wellhausen, and Gunkel, the joint legacy left behind by Martin and Albrecht Noth is equally significant for both Biblical and Islamic studies. Nothian scholarship laid solid foundations for reconstructing the history of tribal traditions. Both of them together created a common frame of reference for studying primary and secondary themes (Themen), literary and documentary forms (Formen), introductory and concluding formulas (Formeln), and theological and political perspectives (Tendenzen), in addition to geographical, transitional, and framing devices (Schemata). In spite of this shared scholarly heritage, it appears that both Biblical and Qurʾānic studies have either been talking at cross-purposes or have reached a critical crossroads, as has happened in the case of covenant. All things considered, genre and tradition criticism allow us to move forward beyond the Methodenstreit in covenant studies. Full article

19 pages, 311 KB

Open AccessArticle

Mobilising a Decolonial–Islamic Praxis: Covenants in Islam and Muslim–Indigenous Relations

by Halim Rane, Debbie Bargallie and Troy Meston

Religions 2024, 15(3), 365; https://doi.org/10.3390/rel15030365 - 18 Mar 2024

Cited by 3 | Viewed by 5692

Abstract

Islam was an important factor in the decolonisation of Muslim countries from European colonial rule during the 19th and 20th centuries. However, Muslims are among the migrant-settler populations of Australia, Canada, the United States, and other British colonial states that continue to dispossess [...] Read more.

Islam was an important factor in the decolonisation of Muslim countries from European colonial rule during the 19th and 20th centuries. However, Muslims are among the migrant-settler populations of Australia, Canada, the United States, and other British colonial states that continue to dispossess and disenfranchise Indigenous populations. This article contributes to the debate on “decolonising Islam”. It contends that covenants with God and between people in Islam’s pre-eminent sources, the Qur’an and sunnah, are antithetical to colonialism and reinforce a praxis-orientated decolonial–Islamic agenda. This article focuses on three aspects of decolonisation, addressing: (1) supremacist ideology; (2) human existence and coexistence; and (3) claims of entitlement. Using Australia as the primary case study, it examines Islamic obligations towards Indigenous peoples in settler-colonial states, emphasising the potential of covenants to promote mutual recognition and dialogue towards redressing injustices and building respectful coexistence. Full article

14 pages, 317 KB

Open AccessArticle

Moses and Christ in the Wilderness Narrative: Transformation of Religious Traditions in 1 Cor 10

by Sin Pan Ho

Religions 2023, 14(7), 906; https://doi.org/10.3390/rel14070906 - 13 Jul 2023

Viewed by 3762

Abstract

Unlike Islam, Judaism and Christianity, religions in antiquity were non-confessional and lacked moral instructions for worshippers. Patron–client associations seemed to depict gods-worshipper relations in Paul’s time. In this paper, I argue that Paul in 1 Cor 10:1–4 uses both his former religious traditions [...] Read more.

Unlike Islam, Judaism and Christianity, religions in antiquity were non-confessional and lacked moral instructions for worshippers. Patron–client associations seemed to depict gods-worshipper relations in Paul’s time. In this paper, I argue that Paul in 1 Cor 10:1–4 uses both his former religious traditions and those of the first audience, Jews and non-Jews, to convince them about his novel God–Christ patron–covenant theology. Paul abruptly introduced Moses (10:2), spiritual food/drink (10:3–4a) and Christ (10:4b) into the classic Jewish wandering story in the wilderness to delineate his anti-idol rhetoric throughout 1 Cor 10. Paul paradoxically warned the first audience against their idol-worshipping lifestyles by utilising and transforming Jewish Shema worship into a binitarian God–Christ covenantal relation, and idol-worship traditions to the only patron family god of the Christ-follower community. Paul’s rhetorical purpose of (re)introducing the concept of God as Moses’ God and Christ as an anti-idol polemic is a coherent theme throughout 1 Cor 10 and probably throughout 1 Cor 11–14. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Biblical Texts and Traditions: Paul’s Letters)

25 pages, 409 KB

Open AccessArticle

Higher Objectives (maqāṣid) of Covenants in Islam: A Content Analysis of ‘ahd and mīthāq in the Qurʾān

by Halim Rane

Religions 2023, 14(4), 514; https://doi.org/10.3390/rel14040514 - 7 Apr 2023

Cited by 12 | Viewed by 13984

Abstract

The concept of covenant occupies a central place in the Qurʾān but has been understudied and underrepresented in discourses about Islam. This article contributes to redressing this lacuna by applying the method of content analysis to the Qurʾān, specifically the terms ‘ahd [...] Read more.

The concept of covenant occupies a central place in the Qurʾān but has been understudied and underrepresented in discourses about Islam. This article contributes to redressing this lacuna by applying the method of content analysis to the Qurʾān, specifically the terms ‘ahd and mīthāq that refer to the concept of covenant. The aim of this article is to identify the maqāṣid (higher objectives) of covenants in Islam and discuss their implications for education about Islam and contemporary Islamic thought. This content analysis finds that covenants in the Qurʾān provide an overarching paradigm governing human existence and coexistence across six covenantal relationship categories. Covenants establish the terms and conditions of God-human and intra-human relations for human existence on Earth in relation to the afterlife, the dissemination of the divine message, the promotion of righteousness, welfare and wellbeing, and restricting the use of armed force to self-defense in response to treaty violation for preserving peace and security. This article recommends that the study of Qurʾānic covenantal knowledge ought to be integrated into courses and discourses about Islam commensurate, with its centrality in the Qurʾān and Prophet Muḥammad’s approach to building peaceful interreligious relations between Muslims and non-Muslims. Full article

24 pages, 328 KB

Open AccessArticle

Interfaith Actor Reception of Islamic Covenants: How ‘New’ Religious Knowledge Influences Views on Interreligious Relations in Islam

by Halim Rane

Religions 2022, 13(9), 873; https://doi.org/10.3390/rel13090873 - 19 Sep 2022

Cited by 5 | Viewed by 6040

Abstract

The historicity of early Islamic diplomatic documents, referred to as the covenants of Prophet Muhammad, has received considerable scholarly attention over the past decade. This article is the first to present a critical examination of the reception of the Prophet’s covenants among interfaith [...] Read more.

The historicity of early Islamic diplomatic documents, referred to as the covenants of Prophet Muhammad, has received considerable scholarly attention over the past decade. This article is the first to present a critical examination of the reception of the Prophet’s covenants among interfaith actors. An educative intervention instrument was used to examine how research on the historicity of the Prophet’s covenants influences participants’ thinking about interreligious relations in Islam. With reference to Stuart Hall’s audience reception theory, the study found that most participants adopted the ‘preferred’ reading of the educative intervention material, while minorities adopted ‘negotiated’ or ‘oppositional’ readings. This article discusses these findings, highlighting that participants’ openness to new religious knowledge, prior views on interreligious relations in Islam, and knowledge of primary Islamic sources influence reception of the Prophet’s covenants. Full article

18 pages, 640 KB

Open AccessArticle

Safeguarding Places of Worship during the Prophetic Era: Assessment of Early Islamic Covenants and Their Impacts on Early Muslim Polities

by Musferah Mehfooz

Religions 2022, 13(9), 799; https://doi.org/10.3390/rel13090799 - 30 Aug 2022

Cited by 4 | Viewed by 6577

Abstract

Treaties and covenants have been the most important instruments of international relations in both ancient and modem times, playing a significant role in the promotion of religious freedom, peaceful coexistence, and interfaith harmony. The rapid spread and broad appeal of early Islam brought [...] Read more.

Treaties and covenants have been the most important instruments of international relations in both ancient and modem times, playing a significant role in the promotion of religious freedom, peaceful coexistence, and interfaith harmony. The rapid spread and broad appeal of early Islam brought matters of international relations and cosmopolitan state governance to a cadre of Muslim leaders whose main political experience had been with parochial Arabian tribalism. The foremost issue was the position, rights, and responsibilities of non-Muslim religious communities within the Arab-Islamic empire. Consequently, numerous covenants and treaties were devised with subjects and with foreign states during the expansion of the Muslim world. This study examines the protection of non-Muslim places of worship under the rule of the Prophet Muḥammad ﷺ and his successors, including future caliphs and generals. It explores the practical application of the covenants by the successors of the Prophet Muḥammad ﷺ during early Islamic history, exploring the extent to which these covenants and treaties were effective in maintaining peaceful co-existence in a multi-faith society. In sum, for the sake of concision, only specific segments of the covenants and treaties are examined, which were devised with the non-Muslims for the protection of their worship places during the early Muslim Conquests. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Religious Pluralism in the Contemporary Transformation Society)

10 pages, 3668 KB

Open AccessArticle

The Prophet Muḥammad’s Covenant with Yūḥannah Ibn Ru’bah and the Christians of Aylah

by Abdalrahman Abulmajd

Religions 2021, 12(6), 450; https://doi.org/10.3390/rel12060450 - 18 Jun 2021

Cited by 2 | Viewed by 7868

Abstract

This article examines the Prophet Muḥammad’s covenant with Yūḥannah, Prince of Aylah, and illustrates the role it plays in understanding religious pluralism and civil rights as envisioned in Prophet Muḥammad’s dream of a “Muslim Nation”. The article also briefly makes use of other [...] Read more.

This article examines the Prophet Muḥammad’s covenant with Yūḥannah, Prince of Aylah, and illustrates the role it plays in understanding religious pluralism and civil rights as envisioned in Prophet Muḥammad’s dream of a “Muslim Nation”. The article also briefly makes use of other covenants contracted between the Prophet and other Arab Christian tribes. The covenants reveal Prophet Muḥammad’s desire for religious pluralism and the granting of rights to all people, regardless of religion, creed, or personal practices. Although Prophet Muḥammad’s covenants with the Christians of his time are used as a framework of analysis in this article, these documents have not received as much attention as they deserve, as few researchers in our time have shown interest in them. Early manuscripts and historical sources, both Arab and Western, are referenced in order to explore the circumstances and consequences of these early correspondences between Islam’s final Prophet and contemporary Arab Christians. The findings of this investigation are significant in that the covenants serve as critical milestones and reminders in light of current discussions about relations between Muslims and Christians. The contents of the covenants can also be used as models for improving relations between Muslims and Christians in religiously diverse communities the world over. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue The Letters, Treaties, and Covenants of the Prophet Muhammad)

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21 pages, 790 KB

Open AccessArticle

On the Origins of the Hijrī Calendar: A Multi-Faceted Perspective Based on the Covenants of the Prophet and Specific Date Verification

by Ibrahim Zein and Ahmed El-Wakil

Religions 2021, 12(1), 42; https://doi.org/10.3390/rel12010042 - 8 Jan 2021

Cited by 9 | Viewed by 21376

Abstract

There has been much speculation as to the type of calendar that was used by the pre-Islamic Arabs and the early Muslim community. The Hijrī calendar is said to have been adopted by ‘Umar b. al-Khaṭṭāb during his Caliphate despite evidence suggesting that [...] Read more.

There has been much speculation as to the type of calendar that was used by the pre-Islamic Arabs and the early Muslim community. The Hijrī calendar is said to have been adopted by ‘Umar b. al-Khaṭṭāb during his Caliphate despite evidence suggesting that it was instituted as soon as the Prophet emigrated to Madīnah. In this paper, we argue that a number of competing Arabian calendars existed up until 17 AH/AD 638, after which the Hijrī calendar was adopted as the definitive calendar of the Muslims. We propose that attempts at reconciling dates emanating from different calendars for major events in the Prophet’s life led to miscalculations which subsequently affected the chronology of the sīrah. This study ultimately argues that a purely lunar calendar was used by the pre-Islamic Arabs in parallel to a lunisolar calendar, and that specific dates reported in the covenants of the Prophet and in the historical works could shed new light in reconstructing the chronology of major events in the Prophet’s life. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue The Letters, Treaties, and Covenants of the Prophet Muhammad)

33 pages, 1422 KB

Open AccessArticle

“Whoever Harms a Dhimmī I Shall Be His Foe on the Day of Judgment”: An Investigation into an Authentic Prophetic Tradition and Its Origins from the Covenants

by Ahmed El-Wakil

Religions 2019, 10(9), 516; https://doi.org/10.3390/rel10090516 - 5 Sep 2019

Cited by 15 | Viewed by 28003

Abstract

The ḥadīth, “whoever harms a dhimmī I shall be his foe on the Day of Judgment’, can be found as an end clause to covenants which the Prophet Muḥammad issued to Christian, Jewish, and Magian communities. As it is highly unlikely for different [...] Read more.

The ḥadīth, “whoever harms a dhimmī I shall be his foe on the Day of Judgment’, can be found as an end clause to covenants which the Prophet Muḥammad issued to Christian, Jewish, and Magian communities. As it is highly unlikely for different non-Muslim communities to have forged this Prophetic statement at the end of their respective documents, this paper argues that this utterance is authentic and can be confidently traced back to the Prophet. This paper examines the occurrence of this statement as a ḥadīth in the Islamic literature and notes how it was dismissed by scholars of tradition who only accepted one of its variants. The paper then compares the rights granted to non-Muslims in the covenants to those conveyed in a number of ḥadīths and notes the discrepancies between early Islam’s official documents and the legal injunctions found in Muslim tradition. It argues that the ḥadīths on the rights of non-Muslims oftentimes reflect legal maxims of scholars living in the ‘Abbasīd era and that these were back-projected to the Prophet and his Companions using fictitious isnāds. Finally, this paper concludes by recommending the incorporation of the Prophet’s official decrees, which includes the covenants, within the fabric of Islamic law. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Interfaith, Intercultural, International)

22 pages, 708 KB

Open AccessArticle

“Cogent Religious Instruction”: A Response to the Phenomenon of Radical Islamist Terrorism in Australia

by Halim Rane

Religions 2019, 10(4), 246; https://doi.org/10.3390/rel10040246 - 3 Apr 2019

Cited by 19 | Viewed by 14596

Abstract

Over the past 15 years, 47 Muslim Australians have been convicted for terrorism offences. Australian courts have determined that these acts were motivated by the offenders’ “Islamic” religious beliefs and that interpretations of Quranic verses concerning jihad, in relation to shariah, [...] Read more.

Over the past 15 years, 47 Muslim Australians have been convicted for terrorism offences. Australian courts have determined that these acts were motivated by the offenders’ “Islamic” religious beliefs and that interpretations of Quranic verses concerning jihad, in relation to shariah, caliphate, will of God and religious duty contributed to the commission of these crimes. This paper argues that these ideas, derived from certain classical-era Islamic jurisprudence and modern Islamist thought, contradict other classical-era interpretations and, arguably, the original teachings of Islam in the time of the Prophet Muhammad. In response to the call for “cogent religious instruction” to combat the phenomenon of radical Islamist terrorism, this paper outlines a deradicalization program that addresses late 20th- and early 21st-century time-period effects: (1) ideological politicization associated with Islamist jihadism; (2) religious extremism associated with Salafism; and (3) radicalization associated with grievances arising from Western military interventions in Muslim-majority countries. The paper offers a counter narrative, based on a contextualized reading of the Quran and recent research on the authentication of the Covenants of the Prophet Muhammad. It further contends that cogent religious instruction must enhance critical-thinking skills and provide evidence-based knowledge in order to undermine radical Islamist extremism and promote peaceful coexistence. Full article

21 pages, 244 KB

Open AccessArticle

Religious Pluralism and Civic Rights in a “Muslim Nation”: An Analysis of Prophet Muhammad’s Covenants with Christians

by Craig Considine

Religions 2016, 7(2), 15; https://doi.org/10.3390/rel7020015 - 4 Feb 2016

Cited by 15 | Viewed by 80430

Abstract

This article examines the roles that religious pluralism and civic rights played in Prophet Muhammad’s vision of a “Muslim nation”. I demonstrate how Muhammad desired a pluralistic society in which citizenship and equal rights were granted to all people regardless of religious beliefs [...] Read more.

This article examines the roles that religious pluralism and civic rights played in Prophet Muhammad’s vision of a “Muslim nation”. I demonstrate how Muhammad desired a pluralistic society in which citizenship and equal rights were granted to all people regardless of religious beliefs and practices. The Covenants of the Prophet Muhammad with the Christians of his time are used as a framework for analysis. These documents have received little attention in our time, but their messages are crucial in light of current debates about Muslim-Christian relations. The article campaigns for reviving the egalitarian spirit of the Covenants by refocusing our understanding of the ummah as a site for religious freedom and civil rights. Ultimately, I argue that the Covenants of Prophet Muhammad with the Christians of his time can be used to develop a stronger narrative of democratic partnership between Muslims and Christians in the “Islamic world” and beyond. Full article

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