News & Events

Saturday, 25 February 2023  ❖  09.30–17.45

Brunei Gallery Lecture Theatre, SOAS, University of London

Organized by Musawah and the Centre of Islamic and 

Middle Eastern Law (CIMEL), SOAS, University of London 

Panellists and participants in this public seminar will discuss some of the main insights from Justice and Beauty in Muslim Marriage: Towards Egalitarian Ethics and Laws (Oneworld, 2022; forthcoming in Arabic, Kotob Khan, 2023). In this volume, a diverse group of scholars explore how egalitarian marital relations can be supported from within Islamic tradition. Brought together by the Musawah movement for equality and justice in the Muslim family, they examine ethics and laws related to marriage and gender relations from the perspective of the Qur’an, Sunna, Muslim legal tradition, historical practices and contemporary law reform processes. Collectively they conceptualize how Muslim marriages can be grounded in equality, mutual well-being and the core Qur’anic principles of ‘adl (justice) and ihsan (goodness and beauty).

Seating is limited! This is an in-person event. It will not be livestreamed but recordings will be available at a later date.

Please read the full programme agenda below and register via https://bit.ly/eventbrite-justiceandbeauty

Seminar Programme 

09.30–10.00 Registration and light refreshments

10.00–10.20 Welcome and Introduction 

Dr Jonathan Ercanbrack, CIMEL, SOAS 

Ms Zharin Zhafrael Mohamed, Musawah 

10.20–11.40 Towards Egalitarian Ethics and Laws

The co-editors discuss how the project came about, the framing for the book, key insights from the four sections of the book, and plans and goals for the future. 

Dr Ziba Mir-Hosseini, Dr Mulki Al-Sharmani, Ms Jana Rumminger, Ms Sarah Marsso

Moderator: Dr Sofia Rehman

11.45–13.00 Muslim Family Laws and Legal Theory (Uṣūl al-Fiqh)

How do scholars and activists work within Islamic legal tradition to theorize and advocate for egalitarian Muslim marriages? The authors in this panel propose new approaches to interpretation and law reform that preserve principles and standards within the tradition while addressing today’s needs, contexts and standards.

Professor Lynn Welchman: Trajectories of Muslim Family Law Reform

Dr Nevin Reda: Reform of Uṣūl al-Fiqh and Marriage: A Spiritually Integrative Approach

Moderator: Professor Shaheen Sardar Ali

13.00–14.30 Lunch Break (on your own at restaurants near campus)

14.30–15.55 Lessons from the Prophet

What can we learn about marriage from the Prophetic tradition? The authors in this panel use different methodologies to explore the Prophet’s lived experiences and teachings and propose frameworks for how marriages can be grounded in equality and justice.

Dr Yasmin Amin: Marriage in the Hadith

Dr Shadaab Rahemtulla and Dr Sara Ababneh: Reclaiming Khadīja and Muhammad’s Marriage as an Islamic Paradigm

Moderator: Baroness Shaista Gohir

15.55–16.15 Tea / Coffee Break 

16.15–17.45 Ethics, the Qur’an and Beyond

What ethical foundations make possible Muslim marriages of equality, partnership and mutual care? How do we read and interpret the Qur’an as a source of such foundations? The authors in this panel explore how we engage with Islamic tradition, the Qur’an and modern ethics to build Muslim worldviews of justice, beauty and goodness.

Dr Mariam Al-Attar: Ethics and Gender Equality in Islam: A Constructivist Approach 

Dr Mulki Al-Sharmani: Qur’anic Ethics of Marriage

Ms Amira Abou-Taleb: iḥsān: A Mandate for Beauty and Goodness in Family Relations

Moderator: Ms Faeeza Vaid