Publications
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The Muslim Community and its Ethos
The Muslim Community and its Ethos The meaning of “community” changes as human societies develop new social and political orders. This is true of any term: a part of it remains tethered to past meanings, and a part grows in response to new developments and novel contexts. Language is a carrier of human memory, and faith is an important part of this memory, thus the intersections between language, faith, and the political writ large. If the context is not considered, faith stands still, and so does language. They all need to be perpetually reinterpreted to be filled with new energy and insights. This essay responds to questions raised by the…
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Farewell to Hassan Hanafi, the Intellectual Father of the Islamic Left and Occidentalism
Farewell to Hassan Hanafi, the Intellectual Father of the Islamic Left and Occidentalism Hassan Hanafi (1935-2021) was one of the big names of contemporary Arab philosophical and theological studies. He was one of the most prolific and erudite of the 1960s generation of Arab philosophers and thinkers who formed and defended reforms throughout their lifetimes. Hanafi left a huge body of work for scholars to study, to agree and disagree with. He was mourned by prominent Arab intellectuals and scholars, including the Grand Imam of al-Azhar, Ahmed al-Tayeb. On his funeral, on 22 October 2021, his coffin toured the campus of the University of Cairo that he loved, and where he…
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Who was Mohamed Waqidi? Redefining Epistemology from the Southern Shore
Who was Mohamed Waqidi? Redefining Epistemology from the Southern Shore There is a lot of ideology – i.e. politics at large – behind what we know, how we know, and what we do not know. Time, space, family, society, egoism, and the political world order we are born into are all major factors that impact our limited view of the things around us. Even in our scholarly studies, which are supposed to be “neutral” and “objective”, there is always the personal, and/or the political, whether we admit it or not. The most we can do to be balanced in our views is to control both the personal and the political,…
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Who was Mohamed Waqidi? Redefining Epistemology from the Southern Shore
Who was Mohamed Waqidi? Redefining Epistemology from the Southern ShoreMohammed Hashas 8 August 2021 There is a lot of ideology – i.e. politics at large – behind what we know, how we know, and what we do not know. Time, space, family, society, egoism, and the political world order we are born into are all major factors that impact our limited view of the things around us. Even in our scholarly studies, which are supposed to be “neutral” and “objective”, there is always the personal, and/or the political, whether we admit it or not. The most we can do to be balanced in our views is to control both the personal…