Renewal is indeed an urgency and an existing reality. It is a sustained religious, legal and scientific necessity at all times and places. It is also a vital indication of the dynamism of this religion and its assimilation of the Muslim nation’s issues. Besides, it is binding for scholars and reformers. This frequently-addressed topic is both a religious and a secular enactment. However, disciplined and desired renewal can only be attained through the efforts of scholars who are well-informed about the higher objectives of faith and who possess the capacity to practice Ijtihad (jurist reasoning), being guided by their trust in their Lord and their fear from the Day of Judgment.

 

Tradition is the nation’s heritage that is transferred by prophets. Those prophets bequeathed no material wealth; rather they bequeathed knowledge. So, whoever acquires knowledge would be acquiring a massive gain. Only the ignorant would abandon this inheritance. Therefore, we properly appreciate this heritage, without excess or negligence. This approach is maintained by the nation in word and deed. There are numerous traditional views that calls us not to overestimate that heritage and to renovate it as a necessity. Among these traditions are the established scholarly opinions that read, “Any human statement can either be accepted or rejected, expect for the words of the Prophet (pbuh)”; “Nobody other than the Prophet (pbuh) was totally true”; “Truth is not measured by its advocates”; “Knowledge is a shoreless ocean, and it is scattered among the nation, being accessible only to those who quest for it.”

 

Practically speaking, it is traditionally established that the disciples of the major jurisprudents disagreed with their mentors or abandoned their opinions for more preponderant ones in case the mentor’ opinions were proven wrong or less preponderant. This, for example, was the case of Abu Yusuf Al-Qadi and Muhammad ibn Al-Hasan Ash-Shaybani, who frequently disagreed with their Jurist school’s Imam, Abu Hanifah.

 

Our heritage abounds with similar examples. Since its emergence, jurisprudence was based on weighing opinions against one another and selecting preponderant opinions. And since the beginning of narrations, these were subjected to scrutiny and criticism. So, renewal has always been accompanying heritage, knowing that the notion of contradiction between tradition and reality is groundless.

 

 

 

Besides, the current crisis of renewal is that some of its advocates and opponents who essentially aim to undermine the tradition are in fact enemies of true renewal. So, renewal as advocated by Al-Azhar Ash-Sharif draws on the Qur’an, authentic Sunnah and also on reason, preserving these foundational sources and building upon them. It adheres to fixities, acknowledges and adapts to variables, and opens up to others to benefit them and benefit from them.

 

Among the worst consequences of indulgence is that it induces radicality. Likewise, excessiveness induces a fertile ground for indulgence! The cure to these two ugly attitudes is nothing but moderation.

 

Despite the efforts exerted by Al-Azhar throughout history in the field of renewal, being armed with its moderate approach and its long history that exceeds a thousand years, and abounding with the finest imams and scholars, the Grand Imam still deemes it necessary to hold this international conference on renewal of Islamic thought and sciences. He thus wishes to bring together the nation’s leading scholars, jurisprudents, representatives of reputable schools and jurisprudence academies from all over the world. This wish is driven by his firm belief in the necessity of establishing an accurate definition of renewal, in theory and practice, and his conviction that no single person or authority can undertake this massive task alone.

 

 

Hence there sprang the necessity of holding the conference to remove ambiguity regarding the term “renewal”, unveil its reality, outline its premises, and announce a new beginning for the Mujtahids (scholars exercising juristic reasoning) to introduce their arguments on various contemporary issues that are almost unaddressed or only lightly treated by scholars.

 

 

The conference was held over two days under the generous patronage of President Abdel Fattah El Sisi, attended by Prime Minister, Eng. Mostafa Madbouly. The main themes of the conference addressed the frameworks and mechanisms of renewal-related concepts, redress of misconceptions, women and family issues, and the role of international religious and academic institutions on renewal of Islamic thought.

 

This is part of the efforts led by the Grand Imam in renewing Islamic thought, revisiting the concept of religious discourse, and revisioning misconceptions, with the purpose of managing the challenges currently facing our Arab and Muslim world.

 

 The conference themes involved the requirements of renewal, its causes and regulations, legal rulings between the fixed and the variable, concerned institutions and their role in renewal, and a review of the renewal efforts carried out by Al-Azhar past and present.

 

The themes also involved dismantling misconceptions related to Jihad and combat in online missionary discourse, underscoring citizenship in contemporary legal vision, and addressing the role of international religious and academic institutions in renewing Islamic thought, including Al-Azhar, the ministries of endowments, and fatwas academies, universities and academic institutes.

 

The conference also discussed the challenges of renewal, especially the relatively-promoted misconception of excommunicating the nation and abandoning it in the missionary discourse, lending sanctity to the individual by terrorist groups and their employment of religious slogans to achieve their goals, investigation of the bloody terrorist thought, and finally the political, economic, security and technological impact on renewal.

In the Name of Allah, the Most Merciful, the Ever Merciful

All praise is due to Allah. May Allah’s Peace and Blessings be upon our Master Muhammad and upon his family and companions, and those who follow his path and adopt his approach.

Your Eminence, Prime Minister Mustafa Madbouly representing President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi, President of the Arab Republic of Egypt, may Allah safeguard him and guide his way!

Eminent Muslim scholars from around the world!

Respectable attendees,

May Allah’s Peace, Mercy and Blessings be upon you all!

Our dear guests, guest of blessed Egypt, welcome to this first of its kind conference: "Al-Azhar International Conference on Renewal of Islamic Thought". Thank you all for accepting our invitation and for taking the trouble of coming here. Thanks a lot for your kind participating in this conference.

The topic of Islamic thought renewal is such a broad one.  It has recently become a vague and ambiguous concept due to the frequent treatment of it in the press and satellite TV programs at the hands of both well-informed and ill-informed persons equally. It has been addressed by those who are well versed in discussing topics, often without fully investigating or properly approaching them. That is why scholarly treatment of the topic needs more than the limited time and space allotted for a single speech as this. As such, we can only make some hints and brief notes.

The first thing to note is the relationship between renewal and maintenance of Islam as a living religion that is meant to serve achieving welfare to the entire humanity. This is a positive correlation where the two variables are almost identical. It is like the relationship between the two sides of one and the same coin, so much so that the separation of the two can only lead to disfiguring or ruining the coin, rendering it worthless.

Historical records prove that Islam – along with renewal - has remained a faith capable of serving people's interests and of appealing to them through offering a role model for good conduct and sound dealing, regardless of people's race, color or faith. History also witnesses that with stagnation, blind imitation and bigotry, faith remained a historical reflection of ancient nations and archaic civilizations, being at best confined to prayer houses, or statements to be remembered on certain occasions, like funeral and burial traditions. This miserable destiny still represents a sweet dream and a rosy hope for marauders in the east and the west who seek to undermine Islam specifically among all religions and ideologies. Unfortunately, some of those plotters only nominally belong to this religion.

Muslims should note that the law of regeneration or renewal is a pure Qur’ānic enactment that has long been investigated by leading scholars of the Islamic tradition, especially in our rationally well-established tradition. Those scholars discovered the necessity of renewal for development in politics and sociology, perceiving that Almighty Allah has set renewal as a prerequisite for change to the best. They also knew that in its absence the conditions of the Muslims would inevitably deteriorate in all walks of life.

In considering the law of renewal, our scholars drew on explicit and implicit references in Qur’ānic verses of which the following are examples:

- “That is because Allah would not change a favor which He has bestowed upon a people until they change what is within themselves.” (Qur’ān, 8:53)

- “Indeed, Allah will not change the condition of a people until they change what is in themselves.” (Qur’ān, 13:11)

- “You see the mountains thinking them rigid, while they actually pass on like moving clouds.” (Qur’ān, 27:88)

- “Did We fail in the first creation? But they are in doubt about a new creation.” (Qur’ān, 50:15)

- “Unquestionably, to Allah do [all] matters revert.” (Qur’ān, 42:53)

- “There is no deity except Him; to Him belongs the [ultimate] destination." (Qur’ān, 40:3)

They also drew on an authentic hadith in this regard, which reads, “Surely, Allah sends to this [Muslim] nation at the turn of every hundred years those [scholars] who renew its [understanding of] religion.”

Here, it is worthwhile reminding or asserting that the rulings of Islam are classified into two categories: Definitive rulings that are fixed and thus may not be changed or renewed. These are conclusive rulings in terms of their evidence and interpretation. The reason behind their stability in face of the law of development is that Allah’s enactments in this respect are applicable at all time and every place. Most of these rulings relate to matters of creed, acts of worship and morals, while only a few of them pertain to family system and some other detailed issues of life. A space-age Muslim, for instance, still prayers in the same way done by his Muslim predecessors in the desert at the camel-age. This also applies to fasting, Zakah (the poor due) and Hajj (pilgrimage), which all have kept their very form for about fifteen centuries now. Yet, this case seldom applies to fixities established through definitive evidence or through the consensus of the [Muslim] nation.

The second category consists in the rulings liable to change. These involve other human daily life aspects such as civil, constitutional, criminal, economic, political, social, and transactional laws. They also include governance, international relations, common decency, customs and traditions related to food, drinks and clothing, etc. In these fields, the Islamic law of Shari`ah is introduced in the form of collective and general principles, allowing a spacious room for several applications and various modes which are all lawful as long as they serve common interests approved in terms of Shari`ah and morals.

“Reformers among our contemporary scholars offer as example to this category the issue of 'sales contracts', which is profusely addressed in contemporary laws. Yet, referring to the respective rulings introduced in the Glorious Qur’ān, one would find only three. This also applies to the laws of constitutional jurisprudence where the Qur’ān establishes only three principles, namely Shūra (consultation), justice and equality. The same also applies to punitive and economic laws and the like.” 

Honorable attendees,

Elaboration on the reasons behind closing the gate of Ijtihad and discontinuity of the renewal movement, and even on the respective stance of modern Muslim scholars and other intellectuals, falls beyond the scope of this brief speech. Yet, I should very concisely note that an overview of the Muslim and non-Muslim cultural scene reveals that those undertaking the responsibility towards our youth and our nation are not serious enough. There was total silence in face of the spreading phenomenon of religious fanaticism on the levels of education, missionary and guidance. Though fanatical calls do not honestly represent Islam, they have gained considerable financial and moral support. Added to this is the rise of westernization and modernization trends dedicated to scandalizing, mocking and distorting the image of Muslim figures, and flouting their heritage. Many Muslim youth are now bound to make a choice in this arena between two evils, either opting for seclusiveness, hatred, violence and rejection of the others or plunging into an abyss of stray and cultural suicide. The seclusive trend has failed in its mission, betting on the Muslims’ ability to keep on living well while closing the gates in face of the influx of Western culture. It retracted, leaving behind vulnerable Muslim youth who could not face the sweeping influx of such foreign culture. Here, I would claim that if this trend has failed, the trend adopted by the westernized and the modernists was not any more fortunate. Thus, it turned its back on heritage and showed no reservation in flouting and attacking it. Besides, its propagators sang the wrong note in a way that rendered the scene more chaotic.

Today, I have no doubt that the moderate reformist trend is alone entitled to undertaking the mission of renewal desired by the nation. By renewal I mean the sort of innovation that does not distort the faith or cancel it. Rather, it is one that drinks from the founts of faith and seeks guidance through it, while dropping unfit juristic rulings that were once applicable at certain historical moments during which they constituted a form of renewal necessitated by their respective circumstances. When appropriate rulings are not available, new rulings should be inferred in a way that conforms to the objectives of the faith. We thus wish that this approach is honestly reflected in today's conference of Muslim scholars held at Al-Azhar.

I would like to conclude this speech by maintaining that this conference is not a typical one or a repetition of former conferences. Rather, it is meant to undertake the mission of discussing specifics and particularities, and conclusively decide on them. We discovered that the issues liable to renewal are too many to be encompassed in one conference. Therefore, Al-Azhar Ash-Sharif has decided to establish a permanent center that is titled “Al-Azhar Center for Legacy and Renewal”. This center would have, as its members, scholars from inside and outside Egypt. It would also encompass a group of university professors and experts in different epistemological fields who wish to contribute to the process of renewal anticipated by Muslims and non-Muslims alike.

Thank you for your ardent listening.

May Allah’s Peace, Mercy and Blessings be upon you.

 

Grand Imam of Al-Azhar

Ahmad At-Tayyeb