Blockchain Papers

Kabiru Uba Ibrahim, Muhammad Samir Tahir, Dr. Auwal Salisu

No abstract is available for this record.

Mohammad K. Elshqirat

Since its inception in 2009, cryptocurrencies have been a subject of debate in literature. In the general literature, the debate is mainly about the legality and application of these currencies while in Islamic literature, the debate is about its compliance with Sharia rules and directions. The primary objective of this study was to analyze current cryptocurrencies using a novel methodology and propose a new Islamic cryptocurrency, called “Halal Coin”. To achieve the objectives of this study, a qualitative research method was followed by analyzing how the included cryptocurrencies work, analyzing some of its data for the period from January 1, 2023 to May 31,2025, and determining the characteristics of the proposed coin. Data used in this study were analyzed using descriptive statistics and the measure of “value at risk”. The results revealed that none of the current cryptocurrencies are Sharia-compliant, and the proposed Halal coin is characterized by 15 attributes, including being accessible to all people, serving as a unit of account, and being free from high volatility.

Essa Al-Mansouri

This article critically evaluates the Sharia legitimacy of Bitcoin by applying Usul al-Fiqh—the foundational principles of Islamic jurisprudence—to several influential fatwas that prohibit it. Despite stemming from sincere concerns, many such fatwas rely on incomplete factual understanding, unverified analogies, or secondary policy considerations rather than explicit textual or consensus-based evidence. Consequently, these rulings risk conflating genuine harms (fraud, volatility, illicit use) with Bitcoin’s inherent characteristics, which classical fiqh frameworks may otherwise recognize as permissible if carefully regulated. Drawing on examples of fatwas that deem Bitcoin permissible, the study demonstrates how thorough subject comprehension and methodologically robust legal derivation (ijtihad) often yield more nuanced conclusions. It further underscores that well-established Qur’anic and Prophetic principles— such as avoiding excessive uncertainty (gharar) and upholding wealth preservation—need not preclude thoughtful, evidence-based engagement with emerging financial technologies. Concluding that clear methodological grounding and accurate technology assessment are indispensable, the paper advocates ongoing dialogue between Sharia scholars, economists, and technical experts to ensure balanced rulings that protect Muslims’ interests while fostering innovation.

Mubashir Husain Rehmani

I received the BEng degree in computer systems engineering from Mehran University of Engineering and Technology, Jamshoro, Pakistan, in 2004, the MS degree from the University of Paris XI, Paris, France, in 2008, and the PhD degree from the University Pierre and Marie Curie, Paris, in 2011. I am currently working as a Lecturer in the Department of Computer Science, Munster Technological University (MTU), Ireland, since January 2019. Prior to this, I worked as a Postdoctoral Researcher at the Telecommunications Software and Systems Group (TSSG), Waterford Institute of Technology (WIT), Waterford, Ireland, from 2017 to 2018. I also served for 5 years as an Assistant Professor at COMSATS Institute of Information Technology, Wah Cantt., Pakistan. Before joining COMSATS, I worked as a Postdoctoral Researcher at PASNET, LIGM, Université Paris Est Marne La Vallée, France in 2012. Over the last two decades, my research focused on wireless networks, smart grid, Internet of Things, cognitive radio networks, energy harvesting, privacy preserving algorithms, renewable energy systems, Terahertz communication, cybersecurity—protecting critical infrastructure, biomedical image analysis, generative artificial intelligence, blockchain, non-fungible tokens, tokenization, tokenomics, decentralized finance, metaverse, and cryptocurrency. Initially, I was in doubt that I didn't do anything extraordinary in teaching and learning. Thanks to my MTU colleagues, who motivated me to think and write about my leadership role and how I influenced others in teaching and learning. These few words of appreciation and motivation from colleagues boosted my confidence and now I am proud to share that I have achieved the status of Senior Fellowship from Advance HE, United Kingdom. I am serving in various academic leadership positions to shape the future of teaching and learning and participate in policy making for higher education. I am a member of the Academic Council, MTU, and a member of the Research and Innovation Committee, MTU. I extensively serve in international scientific community in various roles and capacities. I am currently an Area Editor of the IEEE Communications Surveys and Tutorials and IEEE Open Journal of Communications Society. I am also serving as an Editorial Board Member of NATURE Scientific Reports. Additionally, I served for 3 years (from 2015 to 2017) as an Associate Editor of the IEEE Communications Surveys and Tutorials. I served both as Column Editor for Book Reviews and Associate Editor in IEEE Communications Magazine. I am currently serving as an Associate Editor for IEEE Transactions on Green Communication and Networking and IEEE Transactions on Cognitive Communications and Networking, Elsevier Journal of Network and Computer Applications (JNCA), the Journal of Communications and Networks (JCN), and several other journals. I served as Lead Guest Editor and Co-Guest Editor for more than 40 special issues which were published in top leading journals such as IEEE Transactions on Industrial Informatics, Elsevier Future Generation Computer Systems, Elsevier Physical Communications, IEEE Journal on Selected Areas in Communications—Series on Network Softwarization and Enablers, Transactions on Emerging Telecommunications Technologies, Elsevier Ad Hoc Networks, IEEE Communications Magazine, and Elsevier Pervasive and Mobile Computing. I served as Chair, Co-Chair, and Technical Program Committee Member of prestigious international conferences and workshops such as IEEE ICC, IEEE Globecom, IEEE PIMRC, Infocom, IEEE VTC, IEEE WCNC, and so forth. I served as Industry Exhibits Co-Chair (Industrial Forum and Exhibition) in the IEEE Conference on Communications (ICC) 2020 held in Dublin, Ireland. My research profile is well established and recognized nationally and internationally. I am leading research by developing multi-disciplinary, industry-focused research with national and international partners. It focuses on United Nation's Sustainable Development Goals encompasses “sustainable cities and communities,” “affordable and clean energy,” and “industry, innovation and infrastructure.” I have authored/edited total 10 books—published by international publishers such as Springer, IGI Global, USA, CRC Press—Taylor and Francis Group, UK, and Wiley, UK. I have published 130 peer-reviewed publications in high impact journals/transactions/magazines and international conferences. My total Accumulative Impact Factor is more than 600, H-Index = 50, i-10 index = 115, Citations = 13,163—according to Google Scholar. I received “Best Researcher of the Year 2015 of COMSATS Wah” award in 2015. I received the certificate of appreciation, “Exemplary Editor of the IEEE Communications Surveys and Tutorials for the year 2015” from the IEEE Communications Society. I received Best Paper Award from IEEE ComSoc Technical Committee on Communications Systems Integration and Modeling (CSIM), in IEEE ICC 2017. I consecutively received research productivity award in 2016–2017 and also ranked # 1 in all Engineering disciplines from Pakistan Council for Science and Technology (PCST), Government of Pakistan. I received Best Paper Award in 2017 from Higher Education Commission (HEC), Government of Pakistan. I am the recipient of Best Paper Award in 2018 from Elsevier Journal of Network and Computer Applications. I am the recipient of Highly Cited Researcher award thrice in 2020, 2021, and 2022 by Clarivate, USA. My performance in this context features in the TOP 1% by citations in the field of Computer Science and Cross Field in the Web of Science citation index. I am the Only Researcher from Ireland in the field of “Computer Science” who received this International prestigious award. In Oct 2022, I received Science Foundation Ireland's CONNECT Centre's Education and Public Engagement (EPE) Award 2022 for my research outreach work and being a spokesperson for achieving a work-life balance for a career in research. The author declares no conflicts of interest.

İrfan Doğan, İbrahim Yıldız, Lokman Doğan

Blokzincir teknolojisi ve kripto paralar, günümüz dünyası finansal ekosisteminde giderek daha fazla önem kazanan unsurlardır. Blokzincir, dağıtık defter teknolojisi olarak tanımlanmakta olup, güvenli, şeffaf ve değiştirilemez bir veri yapısı sunarak merkezi otorite ihtiyacını ortadan kaldırmaktadır. Bu teknoloji sayesinde Bitcoin, Ethereum, Ripple ve Litecoin gibi dijital varlıklar, ekonomik faaliyetlerde alternatif bir araç olarak değerlendirilmeye başlanmıştır. Söz konusu teknoloji, toplumlarda hızla bir farkındalık oluşturmuş ve yatırım aracı olarak kabul edilmesi çabuklaşmıştır. Ancak bu yeni nesil finansal araçların İslam fıkhındaki konumu ve meşruiyeti üzerine ciddi tartışmalar söz konusu olmaktadır. Hızlı finansal etkileşimler, Müslüman yatırımcıların da dikkatini çekmiş; dolayısıyla kripto paraların meşruiyeti hususunda çeşitli tartışmalar gündeme gelmiştir. İslami finans prensipleri, riba (faiz), gharar (belirsizlik) ve maysir (şans oyunu) gibi unsurları yasaklamakta, bu nedenle kripto paraların doğası ve işleyişi üzerine ayrıntılı bir inceleme yapılması gerekmektedir. Bu çalışmanın ana amacı, bu belirsizlikleri ele alarak kripto para teknolojisini derinleme şeklinde olmasada genel hatlarıyla açıklamak ve İslami finans perspektifinden meşru bir araç olup olmadığını irdelemektir. Araştırma, söz konusu teknolojinin bazı İslami otoriteler ve bazı İslam alimlerinin görüşlerini inceleyip analiz etmeyi amaçlamaktadır. Blokzincir teknolojisi ve kripto paraların İslam fıkhındaki yeri, geniş bir literatüre ve tartışmaya tabi olan karmaşık bir konu olarak karşımıza çıkmaktadır. Yapılan inceleme ve araştırmalar sonucunda, bu kuruluşların ve uzmanların büyük ölçüde kripto para teknolojisine yönelik ciddi itirazları olduğu ve bu itirazlar giderilmediği sürece, İslami olarak meşru bir finansal enstrüman olarak görülemeyeceği sonucuna ulaşılmıştır. Çoğunluk görüşünü yansıtan bu yaklaşımın yanında, kripto paraların meşru olması gerektiğini savunan önemli sayıda da alim bulunmaktadır. Bu alandaki görüşlerin çeşitliliği dolayısıyla kripto para konusunun, Müslüman toplumlar arasında helal olup olmadığıyla ilgili tartışmaları bir süre daha sürdüreceği ve yeni söylemlere zemin hazırlayacağı öngörülmektedir. Ayrıca ilgili konudaki fetva, görüş vb. Müslüman yatırımcıların karar alma süreçlerinde önemli bir etken olmakla birlikte gelecekte bu konudaki çalışmaların artacağı öngörülmektedir.

Muhammad Aslam Latang, Fathurrahman Fathurrahman, M. Isnin Faried

This study aims to analyze the Islamic legal rulings on cryptocurrency as established by the 7th Ijtima Ulama Fatwa Commission of Majelis Ulama Indonesia (MUI) held in November 2021. The research focuses on clarifying the status of cryptocurrency in Islamic law amid growing digital financial innovations. Methodologically, the study employs a qualitative approach based on an in-depth review of fatwas, Islamic jurisprudence, and Indonesian legal frameworks, supported by deliberations involving over 700 scholars, religious leaders, and academics. The findings reveal that MUI declared the use of cryptocurrency as a digital currency haram due to the presence of gharar (uncertainty), dharar (harm), and incompatibility with Indonesian monetary regulations. Similarly, cryptocurrency transactions as commodities or digital assets are deemed invalid because of gharar, dharar, and qimar (gambling), as well as failure to meet the shariah condition of sil’ah (clear ownership). However, an exception applies to cryptocurrencies backed by clear underlying assets, definite value, and proven benefits, which may be permissible. This research contributes original insight into contemporary Islamic finance by addressing cryptocurrency’s evolving legal status within Indonesia’s socio-legal context. The results serve as essential guidance for Muslim communities and policymakers in navigating digital finance consistent with shariah principles.

Idrus Idrus

The invention of the computer which was originally a calculating machine (Difference Engine no. 1) which was discovered by Charles Babbage (1791- 1871) is something very famous in the history of computer development and is the first automatic calculator. With the very rapid development of the digital world, in 1983 an American cryptography expert David Chaum used cryptographic electronic money called e-cash, and in 1995, he implemented it through Digichash, which became the initial form of collaboration between the digital world of computers and Money, which is a cryptographic electronic payment instrument that requires user software to pull notes from the bank and designate a specific encrypted key before it can be sent to the recipient. And in 1996, the NSA, namely the United States National Security Agency, which was founded by President Harry S. Truman on November 4, 1952, had the task and function of collecting and analyzing communications from other countries, as well as protecting information belonging to the United States. The agency published a paper entitled How to Make a Mint: The Cryptography of Anonymous Electronic Cash, describing the Crypto currency system that first published it on the MIT mailing list, later in 1997, in the journal The American Law Review (Vol. 46, Issue 4). It was these researches that eventually led the developers to start developing what is known today as blockchain which is basically a distributed open ledger to record transactions between two parties efficiently and in a verifiable and permanent way. The discovery of Bit coin in 2009 which was declared as electronic money was developed by an institution or individual who has the initials Satoshi Nakamoto, the technology used is using a peer to peer network without centralized storage so that verification can be done anywhere in the world anywhere that dedicates a computer, to do this or it is called mining. Since 2009 other coins and tokens have started to appear, as we can see on CoinMarketcap which has more than 6000 coins and tokens. The utilization and use of this technology is still being debated from the point of view of Muslims in Indonesia, as stated by Yenny Wahid in the activities carried out by the Islamic Law Firm (ILF), this is due to the uncertainty of the asset value which can change at any time.

Simon Sorgenfrei

In Terrains of Exchange: Religious Economies of Global Islam (2014), historian Nile Green suggests a theoretical framework that could be employed to analyse Muslim responses to colonialism. Especially he analyses how individual Muslims as well as Islamic organisations transformed themselves or developed as they struggled with each other in order to stake claims on an increasingly connected world. One such development was the ideology of Pan-Islamism, which strives to unite Muslims of all creeds in an effort to meet the challenges posed by colonialism and modernity. The Pan-Islamic current was, however, merely one of many Islamic ideologies that developed during the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, and rather than being a time of Muslim unity, the period in question witnessed the emergence of a multitude of Islamic factions. One of these was the Aḥmadiyya Jamāʿat which will be in focus in the current article. In his study, Green turns the spotlight on such processes and attempts to “look beyond the discursive surface similarities of Muslim ‘beliefs’ to probe instead the multifarious – and indeed competing – social producers of religion.”11 Nile Green, Terrains of Exchange: Religious Economies of Global Islam (New York: Oxford University Press, 2014): 2. A further objective of his study is to suggest a terminology that will, in contrast to using emic vocabulary, better allow us to analyse Islam as an “internally competitive field of social actors and organizations.”22 Green, Terrains of Exchange, 10. The aim of this article is to make use of Green’s conceptualisations and terminology in order to analyse the evolution of the Aḥmadiyya Jamāʿat as it transformed from being a Sunnī reform movement into the world’s largest Islamic new religious organisation. The Aḥmadiyya Jamāʿat is to be understood here as an Islamic new religious movement based upon the fact that it was founded by a charismatic leader, Mīrzā Ghulām Aḥmad (1835-1908), who emerged as a preacher connected to Islamic reformist currents in nineteenth-century India but who later increasingly developed a theology rejected by other Muslims.33 For a discussion of the concept of new religious movements, see David, G. Bromley, “The Sociology of New Religious Movements”, in Hammer, Olav & Rothstein, Mikael (eds.). The Cambridge Companion to New Religious Movements. (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2012): 13-28. For a discussion of the Aḥmadiyya Jamāʿat as an Islamic new religious movement, see Brian Arly Jacobsen; Göran Larsson & Simon Sorgenfrei, “The Ahmadiyya Mission to the Nordic Countries”, in James R. Lewis & Inga Bårdsen Tøllefsen (ed.), Handbook of Nordic New Religions, (Brill: Leiden, 2015): 359-373. In his framework, Green directs our attention to what he labels “firms” and “entrepreneurs” as “producers” of religious goods through “adaptations” and “innovations” used to attract “consumers” on a developing religious “market”. “Adaption,” in Green’s usage, is employed to signify how such Muslim entrepreneurs might use and modify the techniques of their competitors in order to suit their own purposes while “innovation” refers to forms of religious strategies that go beyond adaptation so that new (often hybridised) religious forms may be generated.44 Green, Terrains of Exchange, 9-10. A subordinate aim of Green’s book is to develop an analytical terminology and we must therefore not confuse the analytical term “innovation” with the emic use of the term, i.e., as a translation of the Arabic bidʿa. As in other economies, religious entrepreneurs and firms are dependent upon consumers for their success and therefore might need to adapt their products so that they become more attractive and desirable than the goods offered by their competitors. This might be done by making use of new forms of technology; novel and more effective organisational structures; or various interpretations of religious sources or practices, some of which may be more creative than others. In regard to such new markets, Muslim entrepreneurs having educational backgrounds other than the traditional madrasah education became more common, and they also increasingly disseminated their teachings through novel forms.55 Francis Robinson, “Technology and Religious Change: Islam and the Impact of Print”, in Modern Asian Studies, Vol. 27, No. 1, (1993): 229-251; Göran Larsson, Muslims and the New Media: Historical and Contemporary Debates, (Farnham, Surrey: Ashgate, 2011). The growing popularity of such preachers gradually undermined the authority of the ʿulamāʾ in regard to a market where “any Ahmad, Mahmud or Muhammad could claim to speak for Islam.”66 Francis Robinson, “Technology and Religious Change: Islam and the Impact of Print”, in Modern Asian Studies, Vol. 27, No. 1, (1993): 245. Mattias Dahlqvist, The Politics of Islam, Non-Violence, and Peace: the Thought of Maulana Wahiduddin Khan in Context. Diss. (Umeå: Umeå University, 2019): 54. Let us now take a closer look at the market context in which Mīrzā Ghulām Aḥmad emerged. By 1834, when the American Presbyterian Mission was established in Ludhiana near Mīrzā Ghulām Aḥmad’s hometown of Qāḍiān, British missionary churches had already been active in India for some twenty years, and they were then bustling with activity.77 Spencer Lavan, The Ahmadiyyah Movement: A History and Perspective. (Delhi: Manohar Book Service, 1974): 44. Missionary stations were built, and through them new forms of religious organisations were introduced alongside novelties such as the printing press. Missionaries published apologetic Christian tracts and refutations of local religions as well as grammars and dictionaries of Punjabi, Urdu, Persian, Hindi, and Kashmiri. Shortly afterwards came translations of Hindu, Sikh, and Islamic religious texts. Through such new and often belligerent methods of evangelism, Christian missionaries quickly expanded their activities throughout the Punjab and the so-called North-West Frontier.88 Simon Ross Valentine, Islam and the Ahmadiyya Jama'at: history, belief, practice, (London: Hurst & Co, 2008): 44. This antagonism could not go unanswered for long and demanded therefore responses from local religious leaders. The new situation both provoked and intrigued them, and efforts were subsequently made to learn about the competing religions and the methods of the European missionaries. It also forced them to engage creatively with their own traditions. This situation resulted in a wide range of Sikh, Hindu, and Muslim reform and fundamentalist movements.99 Valentine, Islam and the Ahmadiyya Jama'at, 44. Historical developments were, however, also great sources of inspiration when developing such new responses. In regard to Islamic developments, which is the main focus of this article, Islam in India had been negotiated by a growing number of competing preachers and groups at least since the time of Shāh Walī Allāh al-Dihlawī (1703-1762), who argued for the need of ijtihād – active interpretations of the Islamic sources rather than taqlīd, conformity to institutionalised earlier interpretations – and who developed a means of Islamic reform that combined elements from both historical Sufi and modern Wahhabi currents stemming from the Arabian peninsula.1010 For a thorough discussion of ijtihād and taqlīd, see Rudolph Peters, “Ijtihad and Taqlid in 18th and 19th Century Islam” in Die Welt des Islams, vol. 20, no. 3–4, (1980): 131–145. The Barelwī movement could be described maybe as a of and the movement is a Sufi while the were to the Wahhabi Islamic in British Oxford University Press, The emergence of religious reform therefore be understood both as a to and as by the and by the British and the of modern for and the of on the of the in in & and the of University of the Press, with and Global Religious in of the American of vol. no. The about by also resulted in the development of a new and the of this often had a more or European education that became dependent upon British to their in Modern Islam in A 2. New also a in time as a to this a growing number of religious subsequently a need to their religious and them in a to and with the modern then In his study Modern Islam in analyses the development of reformist Islam in India in the development of Aḥmad by European educational founded Muslim University in This was to be a modern educational based upon a European to the new than being Islam to similarities and Islam, and developed a to Islam as being with European and Modern Islam, The in is who was active during a period when the was developing a of in regard to the British and was also a new of that resulted in European and a in Islamic than Aḥmad Islam, to was not with but the of therefore argued that was as a to Islam, and through such of he was to attract or of the new than the that were to Aḥmad Modern Islam, The development is by the was in and was a when Mīrzā Ghulām Aḥmad while at the local was to become a and in as well as in and from to his to he developed from the Islamic since Aḥmad In his book The of Religious Thought in Islam for for a but Islam, one that take into both the and of Islam while being to modern developments in and other of Modern Islam, also Muhammad The in Contemporary of Press, were also other currents and active that must be in such as the or Wahhabi current with a themselves that had in with Arabian in of their of or sources for Islam other than the and the of the was the which could be as an made by ʿulamāʾ to develop a that of the of Aḥmad and the of Lavan, The Ahmadiyyah For a thorough see Islamic and the who argued for a Islam that to and charismatic Islamic the nineteenth a wide of Muslim themselves in to Islamic sources and through of all in to and and the of Christian missionary not by to the of Christian missionary firms religious by in and preachers to a traditional of The of religious to new by Christian missionary firms and later by both and Muslim missionary new as well as new Green, Terrains of Exchange, One of the in which Christian missionary churches new religious economies, a that be and developed by the of colonialism and missionary was to and which were by Hindu, Sikh, and Muslim Mīrzā Ghulām Aḥmad was into a Punjab of historical for the but which at the time of his in and in to in the by the and later by the to A Muslim in University Press, 2015): an education for a of his with by when he was was by a Sunnī of who in the and the of he Arabic with a connected to the he Arabic and with a In to the he also with his who was a of and in to The of he had the of the Islamic of nineteenth-century India and also Ghulām Aḥmad’s later that the fact that Mīrzā Ghulām Aḥmad had madrasah education could be of for his later evolution as he was therefore to the of such an of Religious Thought and Oxford University Press, he not a or also in with other Islamic of the late nineteenth and early twentieth to In Aḥmadiyya this fact been used to develop an of Ghulām Aḥmad as i.e., in the as the to as Khan Ghulām Aḥmad’s education was which could some of the in his when to historical Sunnī the development of his later theology and Spencer and Khan that Ghulām Aḥmad had a or some other of Sufi as a number of his and of his terminology be to Sufi teachings that were in in Punjab and the India of the Lavan, The Ahmadiyyah Khan that is the it Ghulām Aḥmad in with earlier such as the Shāh Walī Allāh al-Dihlawī as it he indeed with and also Sufi Mīrzā Ghulām Aḥmad was employed as a in the of the of which also was a for Christian missionary in not Ghulām Aḥmad time to religious in and and in that other to As Khan also a of during the he in but what he was his had It is Khan these the which later came to of Ghulām Aḥmad’s to to Green’s concept of of this is an of how the methods and of their and them into of Ghulām Aḥmad was not the to and in he also the of Aḥmad and other currents of Islamic It however, that he was to a by the more of than by the of Aḥmad to It is also during these that we Ghulām Aḥmad’s Sufi as it was then that he the to In Mīrzā Ghulām Aḥmad was in and with his It as he his religious on his but is also to been in with local as well as with of the to his in Ghulām Aḥmad to a on both a and had by then for local but was a of that allow to the of he had to was forced to on his own and his in the world. By Ghulām Aḥmad in the reformist and the more fundamentalist as well as the Christian active in the to and develop into a and with his and of increasingly being by his and the he was about to the Aḥmadiyya The of Christian missionary churches in India to the of a of who also were in to Lavan, The Ahmadiyyah to It was these and as a to such challenges that Mīrzā Ghulām in the published his of the It was in and Christian and In a to he so by to the Islamic sources to new interpretations which he argued were more for his time and the challenges of his In the the of Ghulām Aḥmad’s described is creatively in a was now developing his own of what a of an modern Islam might look The book was well and was a by of the who Mīrzā Ghulām Aḥmad’s of and the religious Lavan, The Ahmadiyyah in the early Mīrzā Ghulām Aḥmad was a reformist Muslim and was for his apologetic who his in other he had a to attract consumers on the religious market of which he was now a One of the we that Ghulām Aḥmad with 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when that Ghulām Aḥmad was increasingly attention from other Muslims in This use of a that Mīrzā Ghulām Aḥmad and his Jamāʿat at a in time and also be as a with other new religious & Rothstein, to New Religious The organisational that had by then developed was to missionaries and by Mīrzā Ghulām Aḥmad and his the Jamāʿat was by a of who their to Ghulām but the of his he however, to the organisational framework of the In the of the Aḥmadiyya was to his his Valentine, Islam and the Ahmadiyya Jama'at, One of the of the was, and to a i.e., Mīrzā Ghulām Aḥmad’s Valentine, Islam and the Ahmadiyya Jama'at, we might to modern forms of and to early Islamic and the of the The organisational of the Jamāʿat developed further the and the and is by Simon Ross of Muslim reform Valentine, Islam and the Ahmadiyya Jama'at, As of this Mīrzā Ghulām Aḥmad also established educational to the further and of his In the was founded in as a for the education of the of the and to them the of Mīrzā Ahmad, Ahmad, Press, the was a modern connected to Islamic and in the Mīrzā Ghulām Aḥmad as the that Islamic as well as modern so that may to 2. In the education at the which by then had into a was into own – the The the developed into own the which was established in in Punjab as a missionaries to be into the in order to local Aḥmadiyya are established in in and in of Islam in the Vol. In developing the educational and missionary Mīrzā Ghulām Aḥmad and the Aḥmadiyya Jamāʿat were by traditional Islamic as well as by their Christian Islamic in the (New York: Oxford University in their educational activities and in their translation and of the and Ghulām Aḥmad’s in an growing number of their activities methods employed by Christian missionaries in and who and published the in local and also the for apologetic The of the Islamic of the movement the into the Aḥmadiyya to the European in India was to and One of Christian missionary activities in British India that Mīrzā Ghulām Aḥmad and other Muslim was the of on Islam and translations of the in and local done by British such as and which and Islam on The The Muslim or the in Vol. No. 1, In order to engage in the disseminated by both Aḥmad and had their published in in and with a in Modern Islam, As we Ghulām Aḥmad to the on a and the the Aḥmadiyya Jamāʿat in being founded was the that Green as the religious at that time and one of the in the missionary that was then – a printing Valentine, Islam and the Ahmadiyya Jama'at, the of the printing in Muslim see Larsson, Muslims and the New As Ghulām Aḥmad had and his own was he with to his own to his own tracts as well as other Islamic he their own printing them not to Mīrzā Ghulām Aḥmad’s but also and i.e., modern a The and were published in Urdu, but already in they published the of The of in a that is in as a In The of Religions, Mīrzā Ghulām Aḥmad’s teachings and the activities could be to the in India more to As European missionaries and also translations having and that many Muslims as A was long the translation of the into done by a Muslim was by an early of Mīrzā Ghulām In published his translation The with on the and the of the and been The that his translation a and Islam, from developments throughout as well as from by it rather than Muslims might on it is a European that he had in The he for his to a of the to the For a of Aḥmadiyya translations of the into see Sorgenfrei, of the into by Aḥmadiyya A in of Studies, and Mīrzā Ghulām Aḥmad however, a and it that already the that his translation was on a new translation was by of Mīrzā Ghulām Maulana who also Mīrzā Ghulām Aḥmad’s into Maulana translation of the was published in and is introduced by a long about Islam as a and the as Muhammad The the Arabic with and Islamic and translations – with their what they to be European at the time that they an Aḥmadiyya of Islam – might therefore be to be what in which the to or in of Studies, vol. no. the time that the of Mīrzā Ghulām Aḥmad to be as a period during which his developed into a but their in their own the of techniques and missionary methods such as the printing new and translations of the into Ghulām Aḥmad and the to develop as an Islamic new religious movement and into an increasingly As the market a market Mīrzā Ghulām Aḥmad was but one of many Muslim active in British India during the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, as he argued for the of ijtihād and therefore the of the ʿulamāʾ by that was a need for a Islam that could meet the challenges of Lavan, The Ahmadiyyah use of Green’s we regard as a religious making use of and and in a he be attractive on the religious market of his his and were well but his popularity in to the of his The he was was or to attract the the and from Mīrzā Ghulām Aḥmad developed his theology the and of the it further be argued that Mīrzā Ghulām his and the development of other new religious in such as the and the of Through an use of both Christian and Islamic he developed his own both as a religious and as an in an As Ghulām Aḥmad his from a Islam that could be attractive to the of Muslims to as a and his market in as the market Mīrzā Ghulām Aḥmad and the Aḥmadiyya Jamāʿat increasingly developed of such as translation and a of Green’s and theoretical framework as these were the new of that Muslims other of in the nineteenth Green, Terrains of Exchange, the the Aḥmadiyya Jamāʿat being established was a printing so that Ghulām Aḥmad’s could be in and then increasingly in Through the of his the of Ghulām Aḥmad and his and the Aḥmadiyya became increasingly as by a growing number of who Ghulām Aḥmad and the Aḥmadiyya in a later refutations of Ghulām and the Aḥmadiyya Jamāʿat as he had to the they were to be as or see also Larsson, of It was rejected and developed into an Islamic new religious movement the charismatic and later of Mīrzā Ghulām Aḥmad and his It could here be that this is not in to Ghulām Aḥmad and the Aḥmadiyya As we he was but one of many more or interpretations of sources to a market of consumers for religious to a social In to some of the other Muslim he was in his efforts to attract the Sunnī but in to he was charismatic or to a that on with of the world.

William Ryle-Hodges

This thesis challenges the conventional view of Muḥammad ʿAbduh’s reform ideas in broad and binary terms as bridging a gap between ‘Islam and Europe’ or ‘tradition and modernity’. I offer instead an analysis of ʿAbduh’s reformist thought in his own words and local practical context in 19th century Egypt, based on a close-reading of his newspaper articles. I argue that ʿAbduh’s reform project, in terms of what was at stake in his job as Director of Publications for the Egyptian state from 1880-1882, is best understood as a bureaucratic publishing project or politics of adab that bridged journalism and the modern state, the Arabic Nahḍa and the Ottoman modernizing reforms known as the tanẓīmāt. He was pioneering journalism as a form of moral education (adab) to mobilize the souls of the reading public in what he conceptualized as a new biopolitical phase of state reform – reform and accountability to law that would operate bottom up from the people. His journalistic pedagogy worked by addressing readers with a polemic about a superficial nationhood and empty modernity that lacked both substance in the people’s souls and visible proof in ‘society’. Locating this project in Egypt’s emerging capitalist economy, I argue that his journalism particularly targeted Egypt’s cotton-enriched landed elite for failing to uphold rule of law and to distribute the benefits of modernization. ʿAbduh’s reform thus becomes a window into a wider dynamic of power taking shape between journalism, bureaucracy and law – itself crucial to understanding a pivotal moment in Egypt’s modern history, known for being the time of the so-called ʿUrābī Revolution.

Erum Sattar

No abstract is available for this record.

Chris Berg

A blockchain is an institutional technology—a protocol—that allows for economic coordination between agents separated by boundaries of possible mistrust. Blockchains are not the only technology in history to have these characteristics. The paper looks at the role of the diplomatic protocol at the very beginning of human civilisation in the ancient near east. These two protocols—diplomatic and blockchain—have significant similarities. They were created to address to similar economic problems using similar mechanisms: a permanent record of past dealings, public and ritualistic verification of transactions, and game-theoretic mechanisms of reciprocity. The development of the diplomatic protocol allowed for the creation of the first international community and facilitated patterns of peaceful trade and exchange. Some questions about a generalised ‘protocol economics’ are drawn.

Silke Noa Elrifai

Fear of a creeping Islamization of the “West” and its secular legal and constitutional orders has fueled debates on immigration in the media and politics for several years. With the ascent of the so-called “Islamic State” and the horrific terror attacks it claimed or inspired, as well as the waves of refugees from Muslim-majority countries reaching European shores, debates have further intensified. They are turning increasingly populist, further feeding the flames of fear. In the United Kingdom, the successful but divisive campaign for the UK to leave the European Union is said to have strongly benefitted from voters hoping to stop Muslim (alongside East European) immigration. In the US, president-elect Donald Trump appealed to supporters during his campaign promising a complete ban on Muslims’ entering the US, if elected president. In Germany, the far right and anti-Islam movement “Patriotic Europeans Against the Islamisation of the West,” abbreviated “PEGIDA,” has won many followers; the AfD, a folkish-populist right wing party has prospered on a divisive anti-immigration, anti-Islam platform and threatens the dominance of mainstream parties. A common claim is that Muslims in the West are building states within states, where parallel legal structures in the form of Shari’a councils are the first step to erode the states’ secular constitutional order. The spread of extremist thought subversive to the state by homegrown Islamists further heightens the fear. Two recent books by Machteld Zee and John R. Bowen promise to take a closer look at Shari’a councils, their constitutional basis, practice and (in)compatibility with the constitutional order of Western states. Reviewing the books side by side, it becomes quickly clear that though they cover the same ground, and in fact, evaluate the very same institutions and their leaders, their assessment starkly diverges; itself a mirror of the prevailing polarization. The concurrent reading of both books also highlights the pitfalls of Zee’s book, while cementing Bowen’s reputation as distinguished expert on Islam and anthropology. Unfortunately, Zee’s book is beset with inaccuracies and errors, which are largely rebutted by Bowen’s book. Zee sets out asserting that “the development of British Sharia councils is the result of the combination of multiculturalism and Islamic fundamentalism.” She passionately stresses the need to talk about Islamic fundamentalism, which “challenges the relationship between religion and the state as we know it in the West” (Zee, at xi). Throughout the book, her main concern is women’s rights, a legitimate concern generally, but particularly so when considering the undeniable inequality in treatment of men and women in many Muslim majority states. In contrast, framing the background and purpose of his book, Bowen highlights “a moral panic . . . over claims that state-aided schools in Birmingham were promoting shari’a and Islamic extremism” and fears that “shari’a councils endanger[] the rule of law and gender equality throughout Britain” (Bowen, at 3). In his words, Shari’a councils “have become a flashpoint in British public debates, drawing the ire and fire of many commentators even as they adapt to the English legal environment” (at 4). In response, thereto, his book is intended as a “study of British Islam to “highlights issues and practices surrounding shari’a” (at 3). Accordingly, whilst Zee explicitly sets out her opinion on the desirability of Shari’a councils, Bowen frames his book as a descriptive and matter of fact analysis of the history and the current state of British Islam to unmask misconceptions. However, his work is not without bias either, and his underlying aim to calm the prevailing panic is apparent from the very start. Zee’s book is divided into three distinct parts, in which she sets out to cover, first, a theoretical discussion of the multiculturalist ideology, second, a summary of Islamic fundamentalism, and, third, Shari’a councils as the practical consequence of the prevailing multiculturalist ideology in the West and the Islamic fundamentalism practiced in our midst. The three parts are disjointed, as she acknowledges. In Part I, reading akin to a Bachelor or Master thesis, Zee confronts the reader with two tribes in the imaginary country of “Sea landistan,” expressing the hope “that after at least 25 years of multiculturalist sensitivities a fresh case of cultural twists can open the mind for healthy judgment” (at 19). In Sealandistan, two vastly different groups live side by side. One group kill their eldest when they reach 90, but greatly value animal welfare; another group celebrates a monthly feast during which they enjoy kicking animals to death. She then uses this artificial scenario in an attempt to deconstruct six tenets which she alleges underlie the multicultural ideology: (i) who someone authentically is, is determined by his or her cultural identity; (ii) non-recognition of this cultural identity constitutes psychological harm; (iii) culture is good; (iv) cultures are equal; (v) cultural differences are good, but if not, they should at least be tolerated; and (vi) minority cultures must not be criticized by the dominant culture which has the positive obligation to preserve these. To support her claims, she references and quotes well-known authors relevant to the multicultural debate. At the same time, the chapter is interspersed with polemic and often irrelevant statements: “We get told ‘if we were all the same the world would be a dull place’ (imagine those poor monocultural African tribes not mixed with Asian homosexuals and Maori)” (at 34). Perhaps for reasons of brevity, or perhaps for reasons of her polemic style and lack of detachment, the author does not succeed in setting out how the claimed tenets are arrived at or how the theoretical analysis and the example of Sealandistan are relevant to the remaining parts of the book. This is unfortunate as she does mention several pitfalls of multiculturalism. In Part II she addresses Islamic fundamentalism, which is built on the premise that “there is increasing competition between Islamic and secular law on Western soil” (at 52). While Zee succeeds in highlighting some of the main features of Islamic fundamentalism, it becomes apparent that the author’s knowledge of Islam, albeit not completely lacking, is limited. To illustrate, she equates Islamic fundamentalism “for the purpose of clarity . . . with the concepts of Islamism and political Islam,” while incorrectly classifying in the same paragraph Egypt’s al-Azhar University as espousing the same (at 52). Likewise, it is disappointing that she quotes Ahadiths (Arabic, plural of Hadith, the transmitted word of the prophet) by questionable secondary literature. Zee translates the infamous daraba (beating) verse of the Quran twice in her book, but fails to comment on the difference in translation, or perhaps even fails to notice it: On page 63, she translates it as “men have authority over women, for Allah has made the one superior to the other,” while quoting the same passage as “men are the protectors and maintainers of women, because Allah has given the one more (strength) than the other . . .” twelve pages thereafter. Continuing her polemic style used in Part I, she introduces Saudi Arabia as “the most ‘complete’ Sharia state, to see what happens if Islamist principles are the basis of a nation’s blueprint, starting with the judicial foundation” (at 64). This is seemingly to indicate what awaits Europe if the spread of Shari’a councils is not halted. Subsequently she cites Malaysia as a nation that “intrinsically changed for the worst” and “islamised in a short period of time” (at 73). In Part II, Zee entertains and supports the belief that the term “Islamophobia” was invented to “stifle debate and suppress criticism of Islam” and that “the term was created by Islamists to create an atmosphere of victimisation, where Muslims are continuously portrayed as victims suffering from hatred, discrimination and negative stereotyping” (at 86). Sometimes the book has undertones of a conspiracy theory, such as when the author appears to espouse the belief that Yusuf al-Qaradawi, a well-known Islamic scholar, and Tareq Ramadan, Professor of Islamic Studies at Oxford University, together with Muslim and Islamist organizations are actively working towards establishing a global Shari’a state, whereby ghettoization and institutions such as Shari’a councils are only a pre-stage to the establishment of a worldwide Shari’a state. This is allegedly based on a pact between the Muslim Brotherhood and Wahhabi Saudi Islam, which together have succeeded in a short period to build media outlets, educational centers and, importantly Shari’a councils. That Wahhabi Saudi-Arabia has had a multifarious and regularly thorny relationship with the Muslim Brotherhood, particularly in the recent past, is nowhere considered.1 Finally, in Part III and, so to speak, the culmination of her groundwork of Part I on multiculturalism and Part II on fundamentalism, Zee takes a closer look at Shari’a councils in the UK. It is here that the qualitative difference between Zee’s research and that of Bowen becomes most obvious. Both Zee and Bowen focus on the very same Shari’a Councils, namely the Islamic Sharia Council (ISC) in London, the Birmingham Central Mosque Sharia Council and the Muslim Arbitration Tribunal in Nuneaton. We will therefore look at Bowen’s book, with references to Zee’s. Whereas Zee extensively quotes tabloids throughout her book, Bowen derides the same and turns the rectification of tabloid messages into the raison d’être of his book. Bowen’s book is cohesive, and unmasks many of Zee’s assertions as erroneous. In Part I, “Pathways,” Bowen provides the reader with the origins of the establishment of Shari’a councils in the UK by looking at the historical background of British Muslims in East Asia, and the current topography, i.e., their geographical concentration in Britain and internal divisions (at 10–25). In contrast, Zee qualifies British Shari’a councils as the fruits of Saudi and Muslim Brotherhood efforts to Islamize the United Kingdom (at 116 et seq.) In Part II, “Practices,” Bowen presents his findings collected through interviews, attend ance at client sessions and Shari’a councils deliberations over a period from 2007 to 2013, as well as reviews of case files, wherever available. He deals with the same institutions as Zee does, who, however, only spent two afternoons at the ISC and half a day at the Birmingham Central Mosque Sharia Council (Zee, at 131). Bowen focuses on the legal issues and procedures in divorce cases mentioning only tangentially the general reputation of the councils’ members, with judgment reserved to the readers. This is particularly interesting in relation to the ISC, where some of the council members are known in the press as extremists or Salafists. Zee, in contrast, draws on such characterizations to further her general message of the book, i.e., that Shari’a councils are bad for our constitutional order and must be feared. Bowen’s descriptive style stands in stark contrast to Zee’s, who considers her three afternoons at Shari’a councils as sufficient evidence to draw sweeping conclusions such as that “all Sharia councils condone violence against women” (at 139). Perhaps owing to his descriptive style, Bowen consist ently remains neutral and detached, even when considering controversies surrounding Shari’a councils, for example that Islamic law, as commonly interpreted by Shari’a councils, continues to disadvantage women. The core of Bowen’s work is his detailed analysis of the constitutional challenges at stake in Shari’a councils, which he labels “unstable performativity” (Bowen, at 88–102). Given that Shari’a councils do not have legal legitimacy in the United Kingdom, with no claims to valid legal authority and only a self-proclaimed religious authority (at 89), Bowen analyses what the act of marriage dissolution performed by the Shari’a council actually amounts to in legal and constitutional terms. He explains that institutions depend on the capacity to change the world by performative acts such as decreeing, stating, affirming, announcing, pronouncing. In the works of the Shari’a councils, Bowen identifies, first, judicial performativity, whereby a marriage is dissolved by the council itself, second, the husband’s performativity, when he agrees to a divorce, even if reluctant and, third couple’s performativity, when the council certifies the breakdown of the marriage that has already occurred, i.e., when the marriage is dissolved due to nonperformance by one of the parties. Bowen shows that the Shari’a councils rely on all three performativity theories, despite them being mutually exclusive. Accordingly, their performativity is “intrinsically unstable” (at 90). In Part III, Bowen provides a detailed description of the work of the Birmingham Central Mosque Sharia Council as well as the Sufi Muslim Arbitration Tribunal in Nuneaton, both of which are also covered by Zee. Bowen focuses on the heart of the Shari’a council debate in the media, in particular the popular critique that such councils hollow out women’s constitutional protection. He highlights that within their communities Shari’a councils provide a way for women to break free from an abusive relationship, in a manner acceptable to their community. They are seen as institutions that divorce women against their husbands’ will. Thus, he suggests that they actually support women’s rights. In contrast, Zee argues that the existence of Shari’a councils forces women to seek religious divorces keeping them trapped in failed marriages longer than they should and forcing them to negotiate away rights (such as custody), they might not even know they have. Bowen highlights however that religious divorce proceedings may often last no longer than civil divorces in the UK. In Part IV, “Boundaries,” Bowen acknowledges, albeit indirectly, that Shari’a councils are lacking in terms of equality. At the same time, however, he points out that their services are increasingly adapting to the British constitutional and other legal expectations (Bowem, at 210–28). Perhaps his overall assessment is too positive and apologetic. But only Bowen’s book provides the necessary insights that enable readers to get a better understanding of the complex issues at play. Zee’s book merely polarizes. Reading their texts side by side offers several examples of the complexities involved, one of which shall suffice here for illustration purposes: Comparing Shari’a councils with their Jewish equivalent, the Batei Din, Zee mentions the fact that not many Shari’a councils have thus far applied for registration under the Divorces (Religious Marriages) Act 2002, as proof of their miso gynist leanings. Yet, Bowen’s more detailed discussion shows that the issue is a lot more complicated than that. The Divorces Act was passed with the aim of preventing limping marriages in the Jewish community, whereby a couple may have a civil divorce but the husband then subsequently declines to agree to a religious divorce. Under Jewish law, as commonly interpreted, a woman cannot divorce her husband against his will, nor can a court or Bet Din for that matter. Thus, to incentivize husbands to consent to a Jewish divorce, the Act allows the courts to halt a civil divorce, until a religious divorce is finalized. Hence, as Bowen highlights, registering under the Act might not actually benefit Muslim women. Were Shari’a councils to register under the Act, a husband would be able prolong the civil proceedings by using dilatory tactics in the religious proceedings. Since he may remarry under Shari’a, as commonly interpreted, while still being married, he would not have an interest in finalizing the divorce. Moreover, a Muslim woman may under Shari’a get divorced against the husband’s will, in stark contrast to her Jewish counterpart. There is thus no upside for Shari’a Councils to register, other than making the divorce more difficult for the wife. Bowen’s book is not without fault. While his analysis is based on extensive empirical research on Shari’a councils, he does not sufficiently address the possibility that the sessions of the Shari’a councils he attends are affected by his presence. This is true even where, as in one reported session, one of the ISC members, Haitham al-Haddad, refuses to continue the discussion since it is being recorded by Bowen (at 105). (Haitham al-Haddad is one of the members profiled by the media and Zee as misogynist and extremist.) In line with his descriptive style, Bowen’s book ends without firm conclusions or strong answers, leaving many questions open. This is due to the complex nature of the issue at stake, but can also be a little dissatisfying to the reader. In stark contrast, Zee’s book concludes with a brief plea for states to adopt “political agnosticism” as opposed to “multiculturalism” to stop the advance of Shari’a councils undermining Western democracies. (At no stage does she provide any meaningful analysis of political agnosticism.) Bowen’s book ultimately provides a very valuable resource for readers interested in the workings of Shari’a councils. The same cannot be said for Zee’s book, whose academic quality is questionable, and a good read only for those interested in affirming opinions already swayed by the anti-Muslim zeitgeist.