Islam as the Image of Hope: Liberation and Pubic Sphere
Abstract
This essay frames Islam as an image of God, opening the path for meaningful encounter and collaboration in the pursuit of civil society, liberation, and the common good across diverse public spheres. I explore Islamic public theology, highlighting its commonalities with liberation theology. Women’s rights and dignity are examined through a creative reinterpretation of Quranic texts. In conclusion, I address the Islamic understanding of Jesus and the significance of interreligious recognition.
Comparison: Liberation Theology and Public Theology
Islamic liberation theology focuses on the correlation between God, people, and justice in which adherence to the justice is seen as closer awareness of God. “Be upright to God, witnessing with justice, and let not the hatred of a certain people prevent you from acting justly. Adhere to justice, for that is nearer to piety, and fear God” (5:8).
Ashgar Ali Engineer (1939-2013), an Indian reformist, proposes Islamic liberation theology in which he conceptualizes Islamic faith within the realm of social liberation, economic justice, and tolerance of other religions. In the initial stage Islamic faith was closely bound to liberation from oppression of pagan Arab aristocracy. In appeal to grass root movements, Islamic liberation theology pursues justice, equality, human rights, women equal rights in advocacy for the oppressed and the weak.[1]
Ali Shariati is regarded as the chief ideologue of the Iranian Revolution, blending religious spirituality with Marxist ideas while maintaining an anti-clerical stance. His critique of Marxism is framed within a coherent vision of Islam as an ideology, positioning his liberation theology within the context of political spirituality, as described by Michel Foucault. Shariati emphasizes religious humanism as the source of human liberation, highlighting the infinite space between man and God in Islam. However, the reverse path—moving from God to man—appears to be disregarded.
“Man is presented as the sole being within creation having the divine spirit, bearing the responsibility of the divine trust, and finding incumbent upon it the assumption of divine qualities.”[2]
Shariati’s Islamic definition of anthropocentrism aligns with Marx’s European humanism, which is rooted in the Greek myth of Prometheus. However, Shariati integrates Marx’s humanism and moral impulse within the framework of Islam. Drawing on existentialist influences, he highlights the importance of human existential and moral value in Marx’s critique of the capitalist system. Shariati’s existential understanding of the human being views humanity as bearing sacred substance and eternal, absolute ideas. His spiritual or mystical humanism stands in contrast to Marx’s dialectical materialism. Marx bestows value upon human beings in the context of society, but ultimately strips them of that value through the lens of dialectical materialism.
So, he cites: “Marx the philosopher crushes all the substantive values of man under the wheels of the blind juggernaut of dialectical materialism; but Marx the politician and leader, with the most fervid and electrifying praise of these values, mobilizes people for power and victory.”[3]
Shariati’s theology of religious humanism is existential in nature, framed by a sociological perspective and grounded in the religious concept of Tawhid (the belief in the oneness of God). He critiques the materialist form of determinism, which he believes undermines human creative agency, freedom, morality, and spirituality. For Shariati, Marx’s deterministic materialism is problematic because it not only denies humanity its divine potential but also elevates materialistic determinism above the inherent historical agency of human beings. This creates an additional chain of oppression in the practical realm. Shariati’s interpretation of Marx is influenced by Engels’ reliance on Darwin’s theory of evolution, which Shariati critiques for its reductionist view of human history and development. Engels, after studying the works of Darwin, said: “I accept this view as the biological basis for my philosophy of history.”[4]
Against biological reductionism, Shariati draws on Islamic teachings to offer an alternative vision of social justice and human emancipation, which is especially articulated in his sociology of religion. In this framework, the dignity and sovereignty of the people or the masses are elevated to divine significance, while maintaining a strong anti-clerical stance and critique of hierarchical oppression. His theology of Tawhid has a sociological and universal character, as it provides both the intellectual and ontological foundation for all societal affairs, viewing the entire universe as a unified whole. The relationship between God, humanity, and nature is conceived as spiritual and organic, akin to the relationship between light and the lamp that emanates it. Within the framework of Tawhid, religious humanism and spiritual anthropology are grounded in principles of social justice, equality, and liberation from oppression.[5]
While Muhammad Abduh articulates his theology of Tawhid within a rational framework aligned with the Mu’tazilite school of Enlightenment and Averroes’ interpretation of Aristotle’s philosophy, Shariati emphasizes Tawhid as the ontological and spiritual foundation of an egalitarian society. The absolute oneness of God, in Shariati’s view, signifies the fundamental equality of all human beings, where no one can claim superiority or dominion over another, except for God.
On the contrary, Shirk (polytheism/associationism) is associated with social inequality and exploitation, as it involves submitting to impersonal forces such as wealth, power, class, or racial hierarchies, which in turn perpetuate the oppression of the masses. Shariati’s liberation theology is framed as the ongoing conflict between Tawhid and Shirk.
In light of Tawhid, public theology shares many commonalities with liberation theology. Both embrace religious values, democratic humanism, interreligious recognition, and a rational-egalitarian perspective. In essence, civil society, solidarity-based democracy, and legal rationality are central to a project of immanent critique and liberation from hierarchical oppression. However, public theology tends to emphasize rational civil society and the common good more than issues of class struggle, popular movements, or political spirituality.
Furthermore, Samir Amin argues that the Prophet Muhammad should be understood in the tradition of the Jewish prophets, who were dedicated to repentance, social justice, and peace—especially in solidarity with the marginalized and oppressed of their time. This perspective is essential for developing a Muslim theology of liberation, particularly when compared to Christian Liberation Theology.[6]
In a Christian context, the liberative model does not fully align with public theology, which is more focused on the social scientific analysis of cultural stratification and the religious construction of reality across all aspects of human life within an ecological context. While the liberative model emphasizes class struggle, economic distributive justice, liberation from oppressive regimes, and political populism, public theology is framed within the concept of civil society and the integrity of the life-world. It fully incorporates the dialogue between science and religion, aiming toward a proleptic project of hope and transformative practice.
Creative Epistemology and Politics of Recognition
Islamic public theology can embrace an approach to critique, construction, and emancipation, emphasizing collaboration between religious scholars and public intellectuals. This process would involve collective interpretation (ijtihad) and a democratic system of mutual consultation for a civil state, alongside trust in the conduct of public affairs and debates (Quran, 42:39).[7]
Islamic public theology can draw upon the theology of Tawhid as articulated by Muhammad Abduh, a prominent 19th-century Egyptian modernist reformer. Abduh sought to reconcile Islamic teachings with the challenges of modernity and colonialism, using Tawhid as an intellectual foundation for social and political reform. He integrated reason and revelation in interpreting Tawhid to shape ethical, social, and political structures. A public theology grounded in Tawhid serves as a guiding principle for ethical behavior, social interaction, and political systems, and interfaith recognition without compromising the transcendence of God in relation to the masses.
It promotes intellectual and rational engagement with faith, critiquing rigid adherence to traditional interpretations of religious texts and doctrines (taqlid) that neglect rational inquiry. This approach provides a holistic worldview encompassing all aspects of life—reason, education, social action, and natural science. The pursuit of knowledge, including natural science, is seen as a religious obligation for Muslims, encouraging an appreciation of Western modernity and scientific progress while preserving Islamic values and cultural authenticity.
The Qur’an urges people to reflect on God’s creation and avoid a superficial encounter with His signs in nature: “Say, ‘O Prophet,’ Consider all that is in the heavens and the earth!” Yet neither signs nor warners are of any benefit to those who refuse to believe.”” (surah Yunus: 101).
Islamic public theology may find its promising regime by addressing science religion dialogue and integration in exploring the correlation between God and creation. This constructive position strives for social, economic, and political change. Islamic public theology is of critical emancipatory character in translating the sacred texts and faith commitment for communication, contextual interpretation, and common good, which resonate with civil society, democracy, and scientific reasoning in collaboration with religious community and legal scholars. The peace belongs to the subject matter of Islam, because an abode of peace comes from God (6:127).
Zakat (almsgiving or a tax for the needy) exemplifies Islam as a religion of orthopraxis and social fairness, alongside belief, good deeds, and prayer (2:277). This mandatory tax, intended to support the poor, can serve as a model for the benefit of all, particularly from the perspective of marginalized communities. By emphasizing distributive justice, it challenges all forms of inequality and exploitation (zulm). This Islamic principle encourages solidarity and collaboration across all phases of life.[8]
The Qur’an and Islamic tradition encourage Muslims to seek knowledge from anywhere. Thus, we read in the Qur’an: “So, give good news to My servants who listen to the word and follow the best of it.” (surah al-Zumar:17).
This characterizes the Islamic philosophy of Enlightenment and cultural renaissance during the Abbasid Caliphate in Baghdad (8th to 12th centuries), as well as in Muslim Spain (al-Andalus) in Córdoba (9th to 12th centuries). The Islamic sense of “dare to know” emphasizes the pursuit of knowledge for the common good, focusing on the well-being of the community rather than individualistic egotism.
In the Arab Awakening of 2003 across the MENA (Middle East and North Africa) region, democracy aligned fundamentally with the Islamic concept of Shura (consultation). Democratic principles—such as the rule of law, equality for all citizens, universal suffrage, accountability, and the separation of powers (executive, legislative, and judiciary)—must be realized within the context of a civil state, popular sovereignty, and deliberative democracy.
As Ramadan argues, “a genuine, tangible process of reform, democratization, and liberation cannot take place without a broad-based social movement that mobilizes civil society as well as public and private institutions…On this question, the philosophy of Islam could not be clearer: human beings can reach their full stature only through intellectual, spiritual, social, and professional education.”[9]
In his introduction to Contemporary Islamic Thought: One or Many?, Ibrahim M. Abu-Rabi‘ articulates the complex relationship between religious scholars and the masses in contemporary Muslim societies. He draws on Antonio Gramsci, who focused on the role of intellectuals, hegemony, and the cultural realms of civil society and religion, as well as political leadership.
This critical perspective helps address the elitist problem among religious intellectuals within the official bureaucratic structures and their relationship with the masses. Gramsci’s distinction between ecclesiastical and organic intellectuals proves useful, as it clarifies the role of religious scholars as public intellectuals, especially in solidarity with the masses in contemporary Arab society.[10]
Islam and Feminism
In modern reformist Islam, the role of women deserves attention, particularly in the transmission of grassroots women’s piety and moral reform in Egypt and across generations. This postcolonial politics of piety in the lived experiences of Muslim women can be enriched by reinterpreting scripture and engaging with exegetical traditions, which challenges diverse forms of legal and social discrimination against women.
Amina Wadud, an American Muslim theologian, is committed to full equality and social empowerment for women. While the rights of women are often included in broader discussions of human rights within contemporary Islam, some scholars, like Wadud, make women’s rights a central focus.
Wadud acknowledges that women’s status in many parts of the Muslim world remains distinctly lower than that of men. Reflecting on Islamic values, she emphasizes that the fundamental Quranic ethos—“equity, justice, and human dignity”—is derived from a holistic understanding of the Quran, and that this ethos inherently includes gender justice.
But “if two men be [not at hand] then a man and two women, of such as you approve as witnesses, so that if the one errs the other can remind her” (2:282).
Wadud disagrees with the classical jurists’ interpretation that the verse implies women’s testimony is only half as reliable as that of men. She argues that the perceived unreliability of women’s testimony was specific to the historical context of the verse, rather than a universal principle.
Wadud applies the same analytical approach to other major issues regarding the legal status of women, including men’s authority over women, inheritance, the right to initiate divorce, and child custody in the event of divorce.
In all cases, she derives conclusions from the Quran, which she views women as “primordially, cosmologically, eschatologically, spiritually, and morally … full human being[s] equal to all who accepted Allah as Lord, Muhammad as prophet, and Islam as din.”[11]
From a historical and sociological perspective, Islam (din) as both a religious system of meaning and a cultural, democratic framework offers a mode of engagement for Christian public theology. This can help renew its critique of Eurocentric discourse, while deepening its meaningful connection to theologia crucis, reconciliation, and emancipation, contributing to immanent critique and the politics of recognition.
“We desired to favor those who were oppressed in the land, and to make them leaders, and to make them the inheritors” (28:5). Those who have weakened and oppressed on earth should be made the leaders of the people and heirs to the earth—this is the subject matter of Islamic public theology which is positioned for the margins and from them.
Difference and Recognition: Jesus in the Christian-Islamic Context
In advancing Jewish-Christian-Muslim dialogue, Hans Küng highlights the significant role of Jesus as the Messiah in the Quran, where he is regarded as a recipient of the Gospel. However, unlike in Christian doctrine, the Quran does not portray Jesus as a pre-existent divine being; rather, he is seen solely as a messenger of God. The Quran also rejects the concept of the Trinity (4:171). According to Küng, there is a parallel between the Quranic understanding of Jesus and the views held by certain sectarian Jewish-Christian communities.[12]
In what way can Tawhid recognize different approaches to God without accusing them of shirk (associating partners with God)? “Indeed, those who have believed [in Islam] and those who are Jews or Christians or Sabians—those who believe in God and the Last Day and do righteous work—will have their reward with their Lord, and no fear will there be concerning them, nor will they grieve.”(Quran, 2:62)
Islam emphasizes the absolute oneness of God while acknowledging the diversity of human experiences and beliefs. Tawhid can be understood as an affirmation of God’s accessibility through various cultural and spiritual expressions. Different faith traditions can be seen as striving to reach the same God, albeit through varied forms. This perspective resonates with the Quranic approach, where the People of the Book (Jews and Christians) are acknowledged for their monotheism, despite differences in theological interpretations.
Abbas Mahmud al-Aqqad (1889-1964) was an Egyptian journalist, poet, literary critic, and outspoken political thinker who condemned Nazism as the greatest threat to freedom, modernity, and the survival of humanity. In his seminal work, The Genius of Christ (revised edition, The Life of Christ, 1958), al-Aqqad offers a positive appraisal of Jesus, grounded in the Christian gospels and framed within a historical context.
He examines Jesus in relation to the social, religious, and political milieu of the first century, including the Essenes, Pharisees, Sadducees, Zealots, and Samaritans. Al-Aqqad highlights the uniqueness of Jesus through his universal message of love and mercy, emphasizing worship of conscience over strict adherence to the law. This portrayal does not suggest that Jesus replaced the law of Israel but instead supplemented it with the law of love, calling for the transformation of the external and ceremonial Torah through divine forgiveness and the establishment of the Kingdom of God.[13]
In al-Aqqad’s view, Jesus is respected as God’s anointed one and the light of the world. God, as the Light of the heavens and the earth, fuels the lamp by the olive tree with its illuminating oil. “Light upon Light,” as stated in Surah 24:35, God guides to His light whomever He wills. In the Islamic understanding of Jesus, divine presence is affirmed in his prophetic mission, offering an interpretation that contrasts with traditional Islamic views of Jesus. Drawing from Western scholarship, al-Aqqad seeks not to fuel the controversy between the two faiths, but to foster mutual understanding and build a bridge between Christianity and Islam, despite his skepticism about the historical events of Jesus’ crucifixion and resurrection.
For al-Aqqad, Jesus is an advocate of collective self-emancipation from the oppressive burden of tradition. He finds significance and relevance in his subversive reworking of the collective consciousness of humanity and society.[14]
Furthermore, Kűng argues that Christians should not be considered polytheists, challenging Jűrgen Moltmann’s interpretation of Trinitarian theology, particularly his view of Jesus’s Godforsakenness. Moltmann’s stance effectively rejects Jewish-Christian monotheism. From the Jewish perspective, however, God, including attributes like the Spirit and the Word, is understood as the one and only, in a sense of emanation. In the New Testament, there is belief in God the Father, Jesus the Son, and God’s Holy Spirit—though this differs significantly from the traditional doctrine of one God in three persons. The traditional dogma, which emphasizes the homoousios (same substance) of God the Father and Jesus Christ, ultimately affirms the deity of the Holy Spirit.[15]
However, it seems that Kűng may be sacrificing the transcendence of God in favor of a Neoplatonic theory of emanation. Within the framework of God’s transcendence, the eternal Son is grounded in God the Father, much like the Spirit. In God, there exist mediators and forces of life, which serve as embodiments and representations of God’s divine essence and covenant. This implies a dynamic relationship and continuous communication within the divine essence.[16]
In Jesus’ prayer of Shema Israel (Mk 12:29-30) and the Spirit’s knowledge of the depths of God (1 Cor. 2:10), we encounter the dynamic and mutual communication within the divine life. The transcendence of God is fully revealed in the life of Jesus (assumptio carnis) through the presence of the Holy Spirit, thus reconciling God with the world in Christ. This realization aligns with both the transcendence and immanence of God in the final eschatology; after the Son’s subjection to the Father, God will be all in all (1 Cor. 15:28).
Trinitarian thought, in this sense, would remain abstract and speculative without the embodiment of God in the theologia crucis and reconciliation, which acknowledges the Jewish and Islamic understanding of monotheism and its transcendence: “One God and Father of all, who is above all and through all and in all” (Eph. 4:6).
[1] Asghar Ali Engineer, A Living Faith: My Quest for Peace. Harmony and Social Change (Orient Blackswan, 2012).
[2] Ali Shariati, Marxism and Other Western Fallacies: An Islamic Critique, trans. R. Campbell (Islamic Foundation Press), 14.
[3] Ibid., 17.
[4] Ibid., 2l
[5] Ali Shariati, On the Sociology of Islam, trans. H. Algar (Berkeley: Mizan, 2000), 83-4.
[6] Amin, Eurocentrism, 84.
[7] Hosen (2012), “Public Theology in Islam: A New Approach”, Interface, 70-71.
[8] Paul F. Knitter and Chandra Muzaffar, eds. Subverting Greed: Religious Perspectives on the Global Economy (Maryknoll, NY: Orbis, 2002).
[9] Ibid., 113.
[10] The Blackwell Companion to Contemporary Islamic Thought, ed. Ibrahim M. Abu-Rabi‘(Oxford: Blackwell, 2006), 5.
[11] Amina Wadud, Qur’an and Woman: Rereading the Sacred Text from a Woman’s Perspective (New York: Oxford University Press, 1999), x.
[12] Kung, Islam, 496.
[13] Abbas Mahmud al-Aqqad, The Genius of Christ, trans. and ed,. F. Peter Ford, Jr. (Binghamton. NY: Global Academic Publishing, 2001), 170-2.
[14] Maquardt, Das christliche Bekenntnis zu Jesus, dem Juden, Bd.1 (Munich: Chr. Kaiser, 1990), 20-21.
[15] Kűng, Islam, 506-7.
[16] F. W. Marquardt, Eia, wärn wir da–eine theologische Utopie (Chr. Kaiser /Gűtersloher Verlaghaus, 1997), 543-4.