Accusations of Unbelief in Islam: A Diachronic Perspective on Takfīr, edited by Camilla Adang, Hassan Ansari, Maribel Fierro, and Sabine Schmidtke

Abstract

First Paragraph: This volume takes its readers in a journey of the subject of takfīr (generally rendered “accusation of unbelief”) in Islam. It begins with an introduction that is generous with references to sources on various aspects of takfīr. Despite, or perhaps because of, the “long history” of takfīr in Islam (p. 2), the Editors emphasize from the outset that many of the traditions, Prophetic and otherwise, from early and medieval Islamic history condemned the practice of takfīr that was regarded as a “dangerous instrument” (p. 12). In an overview of events from early Islam and the emergence of early Muslim sects, the Editors touch on issues that were closely associated with the rise of takfīr, mainly, the definition of faith and the status of miscreants (fussāq). Here, we find a tendency among some Muslim sects (such as the Muʿtazilīs and the Sunnīs) to condemn certain views as constituting unbelief while abstaining from accusing individuals holding them of takfīr.

Keywords

• Accusations of Unbelief
• Diachronic Perspective
• Takfīr