Reclaiming 'Adl and Ihsan Archives

5 Things We Learned at the ‘Justice and Beauty in Muslim Marriage’ Seminar

After nearly 8 years since the launch of Men in Charge? Rethinking Authority in Muslim Legal Tradition, Musawah made its return to SOAS, the University of London, for a public seminar and launch of its latest publication, Justice and Beauty in Muslim Marriage: Towards Egalitarian Ethics and Laws.

Reflecting on the Justice and Beauty in Muslim Marriage Book Launch in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia

On 6 Dec, 2022, Musawah organised a launch of the multi-authored book Justice and Beauty in Muslim Marriage: Towards Egalitarian Ethics and Laws in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. The launch was held in conjunction with the transformational course, Islam & Gender Equality and Justice (I-nGEJ). In attendance were activists and advocates from Sudan, South Sudan, Somalia, Somaliland, Uganda and of course, Ethiopia.

WEBINAR: Conversations on Spirituality, Marriage and Family Relations in Islam

How can we build more just, equal, and spiritually nourishing Muslim marriages and intimate relationships? How does the Qur’an guide us in shaping this relationship that helps us realize our better selves? In this webinar, Dr. amina wadud and Dr. Sa'diyya Shaikh will reflect on issues of gender justice and family relations through spiritual lenses. Building on their scholarship and lived experiences, they will explore the intersections of spiritual growth, Qur'anic ethics, and egalitarian and mutually empowering family relations.

WEBINAR: In Search of an Ethical Framework for Gender Justice in Islam

What are the different approaches to Islamic ethics and how can we build upon them to develop an ethical framework that foregrounds gender justice? In this webinar, Dr. Mariam Al-Attar and Dr. Fatima Seedat will explore different understandings of ‘ethics’ and shed light on the challenges of ethics as a field of study within Islamic intellectual tradition. They will discuss the possible contours of an Islamic ethical framework for reform and its relevance for Muslim gender justice contemporary discourses.

WEBINAR: Approaching The Qur’an Through Women’s Experiences

How do we understand the Qur’an’s ethical framework for gender relations through empirical lenses? In what ways have women’s experiences been silenced in the conventional readings of the sacred text, and how can we reclaim these voices in contemporary engagements with the Qur’an? In this webinar, Dr. Nur Rofiah will address these questions and introduce her methodology of reading the Qur’an through women’s experiences with a goal of achieving substantive justice for women. She will shed light on Indonesian Muslim women scholars’ innovative interpretive approaches to the Qur’an and share with us the lessons learnt from the successful marrying of the production of Islamic feminist knowledge and gender-sensitive activism in Indonesia.

WEBINAR: The Prophet and Khadija: Partners in Marriage

What can we learn from the Prophet's marriage with Khadija? How is it different from the marriage model we find today in most Muslim family laws and practices? And how can we reclaim it in the present time as a model for feminist Muslim masculinities? In this webinar, Dr. Ababneh and Dr. Rahemtulla will address these questions and examine the marriage of Prophet Muhammad and Khadija bint Khuwaylid (d. circa 620) to question hegemonic narratives on “ideal” Muslim marriages. They will shed light on how Khadija and Muhammad, as marital partners, had built a harmonious, non-patriarchal relationship based on mutual support, care and respect. Dr. Ababneh and Dr. Rahemtulla will reflect on the implications of their study on today’s Muslim masculinities.

WEBINAR: Qur’anic Ethics on Marriage

What are the Qur'an's teachings on marriage - both as an intimate human relationship and as the most basic social institution? How can we approach the verses on marriage from within the Qur'an's ethical worldview? What are the implications of an ethically-oriented reading of the Qur’an for Muslim gender norms and rights? In this webinar, Asma, Omaima, and Mulki will explore these questions. They propose a new methodology for reading the Qur’anic verses on marriage and its different aspects, shedding light on the neglected link between Qur’anic ethics and Islamic legal tradition. They will also reflect on the importance of Muslim women engaging with the Qur’an and contributing to the science of tafsir.

WEBINAR: Ethics of iḥsan: Beauty and Goodness in the Muslim family

How are iḥsan and its concepts of beauty and goodness reflected in marriage and family matters in the Qur'an? What might the beauty and goodness represented in iḥsan mean in this context? In this webinar, Amira will focus on the function and meaning of iḥsan and its concepts of beauty and goodness in relation to gender, family, and community dynamics. Amira will reflect on how the Qur’anic mandate for iḥsan can play a role in revisiting hierarchical and detrimental gender norms and practices in Muslim contexts. She will open a conversation on the implications of this approach and perspective on multidimensional reform work towards equality and justice in the family.

WEBINAR: ‘Your Wife Enjoys Rights Over You’… or Does She? Marriage and Ḥadīth.

What the Ḥadīth says about Muslim marriages in general and the Prophet’s marriages in particular? In this webinar, Yasmin Amin mines the Hadith corpus for a framework for egalitarian Muslim marriage, using a methodology grounded in the Islamic interpretive tradition. She will focus, in particular, on Prophet's Muhammad's marriages to shed light on practices and teachings that emphasize cooperative spousal roles in the marital home; affirm women's needs and rights in intimate spousal relations; and welcome their presence and role in the public sphere. Yasmin Amin reflects on the lessons learned from this Prophetic model of marital relations for present day Muslim efforts to reform juristic rulings and codified family laws that sanction gender hierarchy and women's subjugation in marriage.

WEBINAR: Hadith and Family Relations: Towards an Ethics of Reciprocity

How can Hadith be a source of egalitarian ethics? How can we develop and apply an ethical context-sensitive reading of the Hadith tradition that leads to gender-equal relationships? In this webinar titled “ Hadith and Family Relations: Towards an Ethics of Reciprocity,” Dr. Faqihuddin Abdul Kodir will explore these questions and propose a reformist methodology that connects the Hadith tradition to Qur’anic ethics and the overarching higher purposes of Islamic theology.

WEBINAR: Muslim Family Law Reform: Pathways to Change

How can recent reforms of family laws in Muslim contexts provide ideas and strategies that can be used to advance gender justice? In this webinar, Dr. Jouirou, Professor Welchman and Dr. Sharafeldin will explore ways in which contemporary family laws and legal practices have been reformed in recent years to embrace gender equality. They will share examples of different approaches that reformers have taken around specific issues such as domestic violence, polygyny, and inheritance. They will examine some of the contexts and factors that have enabled change, including the interplay between Muslim legal tradition, human rights, state laws and societal norms, and critically assess strengths, remaining gaps, and possibilities for future reform.

WEBINAR: Women’s Agency in Muslim Marriages: A Historical Perspective

What can we learn from historical practices of Muslim marriage? In this webinar titled “Women’s Agency in Muslim Marriages: A Historical Perspective,” Dr. Hoda El Saadi examines marriage practices in pre-modern Muslim Egypt, focusing on the 8th to the 18th century.

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