Feryal Salem

One of the notable developments of the post-1970s is the production of a series of important works by a range of erudite female religious scholars based in Damascus. What distinguished their achievements was that they were not only pioneers as women in publishing Islamic books during a time when this was a realm primarily dominated by men, but through their work they also reframed the way many of the traditional fields of Islamic study were discussed. While a number of studies have been recently published noting the rise in women's movements in Damascus that have helped us better understand the shifting dynamics of gender roles led by religious women's movements in Syria, there is a scarcity of studies examining the contribution these women have made to Islamic scholarship. 1 It is unclear why recent scholarship on these modern Islamic women's movements have often given such limited attention to the contents of their publications and intellectual contributions. One explanation may be based on research tendencies that focus on women's appearances through highlighting external behaviors and dress as an object of academic inquiry, while a parallel scrutiny of the dress and behavior of observant Muslim men and religious leaders is notably absent. Other studies may focus on examining forms of women's leadership that models that of men, as this is regarded as a 'novelty.' One danger of this approach is that it tends to center male structures of leadership as standards by which other leadership forms are judged in cultures that have historically defined the roles of inner and outer spaces through a standard that starkly differs from the Western cultural lens through which they are often being examined. 2 As a result, this approach may not only exoticize Muslim women in visible leadership roles, but also overlook prominent leadership roles both Muslim women and men have continuously played in closed and private spaces that have had a significant impact well beyond private quarters. This study examines a lacuna in our understanding of the published works of contemporary Muslim women in Damascus through outlining their contributions to Islamic thought at the end of the 20th century. 318

H asan al-Basri: H is Life and W orks1 bü Said b. Abi al-Hasan Yasär al-Basri was born in 21/642 and lived until 110/728. The esteem with whieh he was regarded is dem©nstrated through the extensive influence of his sermons and his fame, both during and after his lifetime. Lectures and sayings attributed to him have been quoted in numerous works which followed and the prominence of his figure as a model of piety has prompted diverse groups to claim him as adhering to their own theological and political positions. The epistle claimed to be written by ï^asan al-Ba‫؟‬rI to Abd al-Malik is an important work that has been a source of controversy among a great many studies focusing on the figure of ‫؛‬ lasan al-Ba‫؟‬rI. The apparent advocacy of freewill in the letter has caused many to accuse him of Qadarism or ^ 'tazilism. while, yet, others deny the authenticity of the epistle altogether. A close re-examination of the epistle however, reveals far greater complexity in the theological positions maintained than a mere advocacy of freewill. This study seeks to analyze the epistle comprehensively in an attempt to more accurately understand the theological views supported in the text. A u th en ticity and C ontent

Though a relatively new field, Islamic chaplaincy has become integral to many spiritual care and religious life divisions of public institutions that have undergone a significant shift towards a multifaith presence in approximately the last fifty years. These changes promote new opportunities in which Muslim chaplains can enrich religious life through their distinctive contributions to the field. Simultaneously, there are challenges that need to be addressed such as hiring practices that provide balanced support for Muslim chaplains, the avoidance of tokenization tendencies through ensuring the proper education of students training to become Muslim chaplains, and the need for such students to have their own space for development and formation that does not compromise their religious identities in Christian majority contexts. These challenges have facilitated creative solutions as well as calls for action from interfaith allies.

Though a relatively new field, Islamic chaplaincy has become integral to many spiritual care and religious life divisions of public institutions that have undergone a significant shift towards a multifaith presence in approximately the last fifty years. These changes promote new opportunities in which Muslim chaplains can enrich religious life through their distinctive contributions to the field. Simultaneously, there are challenges that need to be addressed such as hiring practices that provide balanced support for Muslim chaplains, the avoidance of tokenization tendencies through ensuring the proper education of students training to become Muslim chaplains, and the need for such students to have their own space for development and formation that does not compromise their religious identities in Christian majority contexts. These challenges have facilitated creative solutions as well as calls for action from interfaith allies.

One of the notable developments of the post-1970s is the production of a series of important works by a range of erudite female religious scholars based in Damascus. What distinguished their achievements was that they were not only pioneers as women in publishing Islamic books during a time when this was a realm primarily dominated by men, but through their work they also reframed the way many of the traditional fields of Islamic study were discussed. While a number of studies have been recently published noting the rise in women's movements in Damascus that have helped us better understand the shifting dynamics of gender roles led by religious women's movements in Syria, there is a scarcity of studies examining the contribution these women have made to Islamic scholarship. 1 It is unclear why recent scholarship on these modern Islamic women's movements have often given such limited attention to the contents of their publications and intellectual contributions. One explanation may be based on research tendencies that focus on women's appearances through highlighting external behaviors and dress as an object of academic inquiry, while a parallel scrutiny of the dress and behavior of observant Muslim men and religious leaders is notably absent. Other studies may focus on examining forms of women's leadership that models that of men, as this is regarded as a 'novelty.' One danger of this approach is that it tends to center male structures of leadership as standards by which other leadership forms are judged in cultures that have historically defined the roles of inner and outer spaces through a standard that starkly differs from the Western cultural lens through which they are often being examined. 2 As a result, this approach may not only exoticize Muslim women in visible leadership roles, but also overlook prominent leadership roles both Muslim women and men have continuously played in closed and private spaces that have had a significant impact well beyond private quarters. This study examines a lacuna in our understanding of the published works of contemporary Muslim women in Damascus through outlining their contributions to Islamic thought at the end of the 20th century. 318

This book examines the way in which early Muslims begin to understand normative Islamic practice through the role of Muslim scholars who define, preserve, and pass on Islamic traditions. This later becomes the foundation of Sunni identity and Sufi piety. In the figure of ʿAbdallāh b. al-Mubārak (118–181/736–797), we find a paragon of the fields of ḥadīth, zuhd, and jihād, as attested to by the large number of references to him in the classical Islamic texts.

The ethical treatise of ʿAḍud al-Dīn al-Ījī (d. 756/1355), al-Akhlāq al-ʿAḍudiyya, is a key work in the genre of Muslim philosophical ethics whose primary significance includes the numerous lengthy commentaries extant until today, which depict the ethical discourse over a long period of time from a wide range of Muslim settings. As a prominent Ashʿarī and Shāfiʿī scholar of the Īlkhānid era, al-Ījī's work played an important role in the continuation of the intellectual genealogy of writers on ethical philosophy, that includes Ibn Sīnā (Avicenna, d. 428/1037), Miskawayh (d. 421/1030), al-Ghazālī (d. 505/1111), and al-Ṭūsī (d. 672/1274). As al-Ījī's ethics became prevalent within the realm of Ottoman scholarship, the impact of this treatise moved beyond Central Asia and Iran and into the Ottoman scholastic networks, where the commentaries on al-Akhlāq al-ʿAḍudiyya were studied. This article demonstrates facets of ethical philosophy during the tenth/sixteenth century by examining the commentary of a prominent Ottoman scholar of this era, namely Ṭaşköprüzāde (d. 968/1561), on al-Ījī's treatise on ethics.

H asan al-Basri: H is Life and W orks1 bü Said b. Abi al-Hasan Yasär al-Basri was born in 21/642 and lived until 110/728. The esteem with whieh he was regarded is dem©nstrated through the extensive influence of his sermons and his fame, both during and after his lifetime. Lectures and sayings attributed to him have been quoted in numerous works which followed and the prominence of his figure as a model of piety has prompted diverse groups to claim him as adhering to their own theological and political positions. The epistle claimed to be written by ï^asan al-Ba‫؟‬rI to Abd al-Malik is an important work that has been a source of controversy among a great many studies focusing on the figure of ‫؛‬ lasan al-Ba‫؟‬rI. The apparent advocacy of freewill in the letter has caused many to accuse him of Qadarism or ^ 'tazilism. while, yet, others deny the authenticity of the epistle altogether. A close re-examination of the epistle however, reveals far greater complexity in the theological positions maintained than a mere advocacy of freewill. This study seeks to analyze the epistle comprehensively in an attempt to more accurately understand the theological views supported in the text. A u th en ticity and C ontent

Ahmed El Shamsy has made an invaluable contribution to the study of Islamic legal history in his monograph, The Canonization of Islamic Law: A Social and Intellectual History. His book forms an easy to follow narrative of al-Shāfiʿī's life from his early youth through the end of his career. In addition, El Shamsy's Shāfiʿī centered approach provides a perspective, from the vantage point of al-Shāfiʿī, of the founders of the other three Sunni schools of law namely, Mālik b. Anas, Abū Ḥanīfa, and Aḥmad b. Ḥanbal. The second half of El Shamsy's work examines the historical milieu that enabled al-Shāfiʿī's ideas to thrive as well as the continued engagement of al-Shāfiʿī's students with the work of their teacher and the role their scholarship played in developing the Shāfiʿī tradition. His style is both lucid and engaging. The book reads as a narrative that develops from each chapter to the next. El Shamsy leaves the reader with questions that pique curiosity and then connects these questions to the next chapter in which they are answered. Below is a more complete overview of El Shamsy's book. Chapter 1 sets the stage for al-Shāfiʿī's emergence as an influential scholar by recreating a vivid picture of the historical milieu of his era. Characterizing Mālik as the " doyen " of Medinan scholarship, El Shamsy highlights the foundational role of the Muwaṭṭaʾ as an early source of Islamic law during its formative period. The second century saw a period in which the aural and written forms of knowledge were in competition and some of the prominent Medinan scholars of the time sought to standardize the oral tradition of Medina by compiling the Muwaṭṭāʾ in written form. This emphasis on writing coincides with the ascendancy of raʾy whose form of legal reasoning gains prominence in Kūfa and spreads in influence well beyond this region. El Shamsy vividly illustrates the multifaceted aspects of the ra'y movement including their hermeneutics of avoidance of a hadith focused approach in favor of broader moral maxims, as well as the tension this Iraqi school of law created with the Medinan legists. All of this brilliantly sets the stage for understanding the framework of the debates that would ensue among the anaf s and the M lik s and the response which would be offered by al-Shāfiʿī. Chapter 2 describes the nature of the debates among the adherents to the school of raʾy in Iraq and those who held to utilizing hadith as a primary source of law. Like Medina, Kufan scholars also linked their understanding of religious practice upon a tradition of early Companions based in their local region. Al-Shāfiʿī who came to Kufa as a student of M lik, began to regard both the emphasis placed on Medinan practice by the M lik s and the reliance on ra'y that would at times override prophetic hadith reports to be problematic and lacking in consistency. It is here that al-Shāfiʿī begins to establish his methodology for legal reasoning based on reliance on authentic prophetic reports and thus establishes himself as an independent scholar.