Written by His Eminence Abdullah bin Bayyah, Chairman of the United Arab Emirates Council for Iftā’ (Fatwas)
Understanding the changing reality and evolving contexts presents a challenge for the issuers of legal fatwas in this era. Some completely ignore reality, some lack the necessary tools to understand it, and others try to impose their own interpretation of reality on religious texts without understanding the guidelines and constraints involved.
Reality is the flowing river of life with which fatwas must engage, adapting to its hues, seeking its source, and contemplating its direction and endpoint. Reality is therefore a partner in the formulation of Islamic rulings, and understanding it is the means to apply these rulings to real situations.
However, understanding reality is not an easy task, especially in a globalised world that is becoming more complex day by day. The progression of time and the different human realities [that is a result of this progression] result in scenarios that are ultimately different from those in which the specific rulings were originally formulated. This modern reality involves international treaties, geopolitical boundaries, weapons of mass destruction, religious, cultural, and ethnic diversity, as well as innovations and Artificial Intelligence. It is a reality that affects systems and laws, calling for new interpretations in light of Islamic law to recall the original principles of those laws, whilst taking into account the overarching influences of time, era, or reality—whether political, social, economic, scientific, or technological.
Modernity in its various forms and contemporary issues have further complicated the understanding of reality, as many social scientists and philosophers, such as Edgar Morin, have highlighted. Morin’s theory calls for new approaches to “complex thinking” la pensée complexe, that avoid reductionism and oversimplification. The complex nature of reality cannot be fully grasped from a single perspective, and no amount of precision or accuracy in any field of knowledge is sufficient to fully grasp its essence. Rather, it requires the integration of different epistemological viewpoints to create a representation that is closer to accuracy and completeness. This complexity demands that the jurist seek out tools and methods to better visualise and interpret reality.
In this context, the upcoming Third Scientific Conference of the UAE Council for Fatwa, which will be held soon under the esteemed patronage of His Highness Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs, aims to draw attention to the importance of Jurisprudence of Reality. The conference will bring together official fatwa institutions from the Islamic world, as well as experts in philosophy, sociology, and natural sciences, to emphasise the necessity of considering the concept of reality when issuing legal fatwas. The conference also seeks to reconsider methods and approaches for deriving reality and the principles for applying legal rulings to it, a process known in specialised terminology as applying the evaluation of necessity (khiṭāb al-taklīf) to the means of practicing (khiṭāb al-waḍꜤ).
This conference aims to improve the quality of fatwas by addressing shortcomings in three specific areas:
1) The failure to understand what reality is
2) The lack of understanding regarding the impact of (the overall reality) on general legal rulings
3) The inadequacies in the methodology for deriving decisions based on the relationship between texts, objectives, and reality.
Thus, this conference addresses a context and discusses a subject. Both neglecting to understand reality and the failure to follow a systematic approach have led to superficial interpretations, with ignorance of the underlying wisdom and reasoning, and a disregard for the concept of reality in the application of rulings. As a result, fatwas have emerged that contain details without underlying principles and specifics without overarching goals, often ignoring public benefits and causing harm. This has led to a state of intellectual chaos in which fatwas deviate from the middle ground and tend towards excess or neglect, and sometimes even turn into extremism and conflicts that lead to the shedding of innocent blood and the violation of inviolable sanctities.
Holding this conference in the United Arab Emirates reflects the country’s continued leadership role as a beacon of progressive endeavour and well-founded, moderate fatwas, as well as its excellence in various scientific fields under the wise guidance of its leadership. It is also part of the UAE Council for Fatwa’s efforts to contribute to rigorous scientific research and to support scholars in fulfilling their noble duty of issuing fatwas. This conference follows the Council’s previous scientific conferences: the “Emergency Jurisprudence Conference” (2021), held in collaboration with the Muslim World League, which addressed the legal issues related to the COVID-19 pandemic, and the “Sharia Integration with Scientific Advancements Conference” (2023), which explored legal issues related to areas such as renewable energy, the human genome, performing worship in outer space, lab-grown meat, and big data trading, among others.
God, in His grace, is the Arbiter of success and the Guide to the right path.