Overview

Muslim Qurʾānic interpretation today is beset by tensions. Tensions between localising and globalising forces; tensions between hierarchical and egalitarian social ideals; and tensions between the quest for new approaches and the claim for authority raised by defenders of exegetical traditions. It is this complex web of power structures, local as well as global, that this book seeks to elucidate. This book provides a fresh perspective on present-day Qurʾānic interpretations by analysing the historical, social and political dimensions in which they take place, the ways in which they are performed and the media through which they are transmitted. Besides discussing the persistence of exegetical traditions and the emergence of new paradigms, it examines the structural conditions in which these processes occur. Languages, nation states, global human rights discourses and intra-Islamic divisions all shape the nature of interpretive endeavours and frequently fuel conflicts over the correct understanding of the Qurʾān. This book contains more than twenty detailed case studies of recent Qurʾānic interpretations, based on translated texts that cover a variety of languages, regions, media, genres, approaches, authors and target groups. They are integrated into the chapters, bring their arguments to life and stimulate fundamental reflections on the authority of the text and the authority of its interpreters.

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9781800500273

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Reviews

This is an ambitious book that asks trenchant questions about Qur'anic interpretation in the contemporary world. Given the massive production of such texts around the globe in the past two decades, it is a very welcome and much needed contribution to the field of Qur'anic studies. It is to be praised for its breadth in that it explores a broad array of interpretations in various geographies, languages, and media, providing - better than any other book - a map of the very terrain of recent Qur'anic exegesis as well as an incisive examination of the debates, traditions, and power-structures that shape it. Without question, this book will be an invaluable resource for scholars, students, and curious minds for years to come. Brett Wilson, Associate Professor of History, Central European University Expansive, rigorous, and compelling new book on the development and contours of contemporary Muslim interpretations of the Qur'an... Scholars who teach on modern Islam and the norms of contemporary Muslim piety and practice - liberal to conservative, progressive to extremist - will benefit considerably from this book's incisive, fresh, and highly readable explication of how contemporary norms around qur'anic interpretation have developed, and what impact these developments have had and continue to have. Pink's work is particularly important for scholars whose research and teaching focuses on intersections between modern media forms and qur'anic interpretation, whether through the lens of media history or a digital religion. This book will also work well for teaching. Although the prose is scholarly, the language is clear and lucid, making it an easily intelligible and compelling read. While the nuanced arguments of some chapters will remain opaque to undergraduate students or others with no exposure to Islamic studies, many chapters could be easily and productively incorporated into courses for non-specialists - for example, into the contemporary section of an introductory course on Islam, into a course on Islamic fundamentalism, or into a course on Muslims in Europe, as well as more obvious options like a course on Qur'an and hadith or on Islam and media. In short, this book is a revelation in itself: broad in scope, bold in its arguments, comprehensive in its evidence, and a pleasure to read. Review of Qur'anic Research Pink has produced a fine new study in the field of contemporary Qur'anic exegesis. It is an irreplaceable resource for scholars and students on Qur'anic studies. Islamochristiana

Pink has produced a fine new study in the field of contemporary Quranic exegesis. It is an irreplaceable resource for scholars and students on Quranic studies. --Laviano, Mariangela, Islamochristiana, 45 (2019) . . . you will delight in every page, because this is the book that you have been waiting for. . . She deftly explains the fundamental structural conditions that influence Qur.an interpretation today: the increased prominence of the Qur.an in Muslim piety; the important and multi-valent role of nation-states; the tension between classically trained religious scholars and pious interpreters with professional backgrounds (physicians, engineers, literature professors, among others); the various kinds of constraining and enabling markets (readers, publishers, and more); and the shifting possibilities afforded by new media forms and new ways to reach, persuade, and discuss interpretative views with audiences and fellow interpreters. . . . broad in scope, bold in its arguments, comprehensive in its evidence, and a pleasure to read. --Andrea Stanton, University of Denver, Review of Quranic Research, vol. 6, no. 3 (2020) . . . you will delight in every page, because this is the book that you have been waiting for. . . She deftly explains the fundamental structural conditions that influence Qur.an interpretation today: the increased prominence of the Qur.an in Muslim piety; the important and multi-valent role of nation-states; the tension between classically trained religious scholars and pious interpreters with professional backgrounds (physicians, engineers, literature professors, among others); the various kinds of constraining and enabling markets (readers, publishers, and more); and the shifting possibilities afforded by new media forms and new ways to reach, persuade, and discuss interpretative views with audiences and fellow interpreters. . . . broad in scope, bold in its arguments, comprehensive in its evidence, and a pleasure to read. --Andrea Stanton, University of Denver, Review of Quranic Research, vol. 6, no. 3 (2020)

Author Information

Johanna Pink is Professor of Islamic Studies at the University of Freiburg. Among her publications are one monograph as well as numerous articles and handbook chapters on contemporary, modern and 18th century Qur'anic exegesis as well as classical Qur'anic hermeneutics. She is currently publishing a collective volume on tafsir and Islamic intellectual history (OUP) and a guest-edited issue of the Journal of Qur'anic Studies on the translation of the Qur'an. Other areas of interest include the history of Egypt and the status of non-Muslims in Muslim religious and legal discourses.

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