Editing Sharia (section)

==== Islamic political theories ====
{{Main|Political aspects of Islam|Islam and democracy|Shura|Ijma}}
[[File:Grand Ayatollahs Qom فتوکلاژ، آیت الله های ایران-قم 02.jpg|thumb|220px|upright|[[Ayatollah|Grand Ayatollah]]s of [[Qom]], Iran; Religious leaders who have the authority to interpret Sharia sources in [[Shiism|Shia Islam]]<ref>Sociology of religions: perspectives of Ali Shariati (2008) Mir Mohammed Ibrahim</ref> used assertive names and titles such as [[Ruhollah Khomeini|Ruhollah]], [[Ayatollah]], [[Hujjat al-Islam]], which directly connect their identities to Allah or Islam, and gained [[walayah|tutelage over people and the administration]].<ref name="Newman in Meri 2006 734">{{harvnb| Newman|2006|p=734}}</ref>]]
Muslih and Browers identify three major perspectives on democracy among prominent Muslim thinkers who have sought to develop modern, distinctly Islamic theories of socio-political organization conforming to Islamic values and law:{{sfn|Muslih|Browers|2009}}
* The rejectionist Islamic view, elaborated by [[Sayyid Qutb]] and [[Abul A'la Maududi]], condemns imitation of foreign ideas, distinguishing Western democracy and the Islamic doctrine of ''shura'' (consultation between ruler and ruled). This perspective, which stresses the comprehensive implementation of Sharia, was widespread in the 1970s and 1980s among various movements seeking to establish an Islamic state, but its popularity has diminished in recent years.
* The moderate Islamic view stresses the concepts of ''[[maslaha]]'' (public interest), ''[[Adl|ʿadl]]'' (justice), and ''shura''. Islamic leaders are considered to uphold justice if they promote public interest, as defined through ''shura''. In this view, ''shura'' provides the basis for representative government institutions that are similar to Western democracy but reflect Islamic rather than Western values.{{Citation needed|date=January 2025}} [[Hasan al-Turabi]], [[Rashid al-Ghannushi]], and [[Yusuf al-Qaradawi]] have advocated different forms of this view.
* The liberal Islamic view is influenced by [[Muhammad Abduh]]'s emphasis on the role of reason in understanding religion. It stresses democratic principles based on pluralism and freedom of thought. Authors like [[Fahmi Huwaidi]] and [[Tariq al-Bishri]] have constructed Islamic justifications for full citizenship of non-Muslims in an Islamic state by drawing on early Islamic texts. Others, like [[Mohammed Arkoun]] and [[Nasr Hamid Abu Zayd]], have justified pluralism and freedom through non-literalist approaches to textual interpretation. [[Abdolkarim Soroush]] has argued for a "religious democracy" based on religious thought that is democratic, tolerant, and just. Islamic liberals argue for the necessity of constant reexamination of religious understanding, which can only be done in a democratic context.