Ulumuna

Navigating Disability: Perspectives and Practices in Indonesian Religious Courts

Arif Maftuhin, Mark Cammack — Sat, 20 Dec 2025 07:46:10 +0000

This study explores how disability is defined and addressed in Indonesia’s Islamic religious courts, drawing on court decisions from the Direktori Putusan Mahkamah Agung Republik Indonesia (Directory of Supreme Court Decisions of the Republic of Indonesia) spanning 2005 to 2023. The central research question is: how are persons with disabilities perceived and treated within the context of Islamic legal proceedings in Indonesia? Despite national laws promoting inclusive justice, this study reveals a sustained misalignment between statutory commitments, judicial practice, and the lived accessibility of justice for people with disabilities. Through analysis of over 200 relevant cases, the research identifies four key patterns: (1) the inconsistent and often outdated definitions of disability used by judges; (2) the continued equation of disability with legal incapacity; (3) the unique challenges faced by disabled individuals in marriage and divorce proceedings; and (4) the inadequate provision of reasonable accommodations in courtroom settings. These findings underscore the enduring influence of traditional paradigms and call for a more integrated approach to disability within Islamic legal practice in Indonesia. The paper contributes to broader discussions on disability rights, Islamic law, and the transformation of religious legal systems toward greater inclusivity.

From the Balkans to Istanbul: The Legal Politics of Social Mobilities through Devshirme in the Ottoman Empire from the 14th to the 17th Century

Entol Zaenal Muttaqin — Sat, 20 Dec 2025 07:56:18 +0000

The Ottoman Empire rose to prominence as a dominant force from the 13th to the 19th centuries, establishing a vast empire and nurturing cultures that continue to enrich global heritage today. A notable feature of their sociopolitical structure was the practice of devshirme. This unique policy facilitated new forms of social mobility by transforming Balkan Christian youths into Muslim elites serving the sultan. This strategy significantly bolstered the Ottomans' ability to annex European territories over several centuries. In this context, the following discussion explores various aspects, including the origins of Devshirme as a pivotal legal policy, the extent of social mobility during the 1400s and 1600s, and the methodologies employed within Devshirme to strengthen the empire's stability. A historical methodology will be used, incorporating heuristic steps that begin with verification and historiographic analysis. Ultimately, this study demonstrates that the fundamental aim of the devshirme was social engineering, intended to maintain control over subjugated regions in Europe. Moreover, the social mobility fostered by this policy transformed the lives of Christian working-class children into elite status, with some even rising to become the sovereign's most trusted advisors. Finally, the recruitment strategies for the Devshirme involved selecting children for educational institutions, providing them with training, and assigning roles that matched their abilities.

Reframing Islamic Family Law Through Web-Based Tafsir: The Case of Nushuz in the Indonesian Tafsir Online

Suqiyah Musafa'ah, Mukhammad Nur Hadi, Muhammad Alwi Al Maliki; Muhammad Ghufron — Sat, 20 Dec 2025 15:07:44 +0000

One of the most effective strategies for disseminating tafsīr al-aḥkām today is through digital platforms, particularly Islamic web portals. These sites offer accessible, thematic, and concise interpretations that appeal to diverse audiences, especially on gender-sensitive issues such as nushūz, which has often been read in ways that marginalize women’s rights. This article draws on the theories of Cyber Islamic Environments (CIEs) and virtual community. This study conceptualizes Islamic tafsīr websites as interactive digital spaces where individuals with shared religious commitments form interpretive communities. These communities not only consume religious content but also participate in reinterpreting Islamic law through inclusive, rights-based frameworks. Focusing on two Indonesian websites, tanwir.id and tafsiralquran.id, this normative study combines conceptual analysis with a comparison of digital content. The findings reveal two key points: first, both platforms advance progressive interpretations of nushūz that prioritize women’s protection from psychological and physical harm, reframing it through ethical accountability and gender equity; second, the interactive nature of these platforms fosters virtual tafsīr communities, enabling collective knowledge production that challenges patriarchal norms and advances interpretations aligned with maqāṣid al-sharīʿa. In this way, digital tafsīr not only contributes to reforming Islamic family law in Indonesia but also democratizes religious authority and embeds Islamic ethics in lived online experiences.

Promoting New Muslim Romance in the Digital World: State Law in Society in Advocating Early Marriage

Ahmad Bunyan Wahib, Novin Raushan — Wed, 31 Dec 2025 00:00:00 +0000

Religious conservatism among urban Muslim youth in Indonesia has become an important phenomenon in the development of Islam in Indonesia. In the context of marriage law, this phenomenon is marked by the emergence of Muslim romance among urban Muslim youth with the young marriage movement. This paper examines the phenomenon of the Muslim romance movement in the digital space, focusing on content analysis of messages uploaded by the Instagram account @gerakannikahmuda. This paper shows that, unlike the early 2000s young marriage movement campaigns using print media, which tended to ignore marriage administration, the digital space campaigns view marriage procedures and administration as important. The @gerakannikahmuda account uses legal regulations and policies regarding marriage administration procedures as a medium to campaign for the young marriage movement. Drawing on Migdal's state-in-society concept, which emphasizes the state's presence within society, this article argues that the use of marriage administration to campaign for the young marriage movement demonstrates the presence of state law within society, even when society holds ideas that oppose state regulations.

The Oran Fatwa as an Emergency Fiqh Strategy Addressing the 16th-Century Identity Crisis of Morisco Muslims

Wed, 31 Dec 2025 00:00:00 +0000

The Oran fatwa, issued by Ahmad ibn Abi Jum'ah al-Maghrāwī in the early 16th century, emerged as a religious response to the tragic circumstances faced by the Morisco Muslims in Spain following the fall of Granada. This fatwa provides legal guidance for Muslims who maintained their faith while being outwardly compelled to adhere to Catholic practices. This study provides the Oran Fatwa by placing it within the broader discourse of Islamic jurisprudence on minority issues under repressive regimes. The analysis employs a historical-normative framework, concentrating on Islamic legal principles while acknowledging exceptional circumstances, specifically al-ḍarūrāt tubīḥ al-maḥẓūrāt and ikrāh. The results indicate that the fatwa exemplifies a form of contextual ijtihād influenced by emergency circumstances, serving not only as a legal concession but also as a strategic measure to protect Muslim identity in the face of systematic conversion pressures. This form of contextual ijtihād illustrates the contextual approach of Islamic law in addressing oppressive political circumstances by Spanish Inquisition. This study improves our understanding of how Islamic legal thought has changed over time and how religious scholars have helped to balance law, faith, and authority during times of severe persecution. It is still important for modern discussions about religious freedom and the rights of minorities.

Deconstructing Misogynistic Interpretations: A Gender-Just Fiqh Approach to the Role of Women in Family and Career

Zulfi Ida Syarifah, Hendra Cipta, Ahmad Syukron — Wed, 31 Dec 2025 00:00:00 +0000

This study focuses on gender injustice within families, particularly as experienced by women working in environments where misogynistic ideologies continue to dominate and shape domestic relations. The theoretical framework suggests that this problem stems from gender-biased interpretations of traditional fiqh, especially concerning concepts such as qawāmah. The research examines how ideology influences decision-making, role distribution, and women's financial autonomy, thereby creating burdens and obstacles. By offering a more just perspective, the study seeks to deconstruct misogynistic tendencies embedded in family. A mixed-methods approach was employed, combining critical analysis of Qur'anic exegesis with empirical data collected from 100 respondents and in-depth interviews with 10 informants in South Tangerang. The findings show that misinterpretations of fiqh reinforce family injustices, while progressive perspectives aligned with contextual and justice-oriented interpretations also emerge. The study concludes that both social and theological factors shape gender injustice. Consequently, achieving egalitarian and just relationships requires a paradigm shift through the progressive revision of Islamic family law toward gender justice.

The History of the Malay Fiqh Development: An Analysis of the Manuscript ‘Qawānīn al-Mubtadi’fī al-Fiqh’ Work by Abdurrahman Husin al-Kelantani, Mufti of ‘Amantubillah’

Wed, 31 Dec 2025 00:00:00 +0000

This study examines the development of Malay fiqh by analyzing the manuscript Qawānīn al-Mubtadi’ fī al-Fiqh by the Mufti of Mempawah, Abdurrahman Husin al-Kelantani. This manuscript is part of the intellectual heritage of Islamic scholarship in the Nusantara, especially in the field of fiqh. This study focuses on tracing the background of the manuscript's compilation, its structure and content, and its influence on the development of Islamic law in the Malay region. This study uses a historical approach, which combines philological and contextual analysis of the manuscript. The results of the study show that this manuscript is related to the Syafi’i school of thought and the ijma’ fuqaha. This manuscript reflects the characteristics of fiqh that developed in the Malay region in the 19th century. Abdurrahman’s thoughts made a significant contribution to Islamic legal education and practice in the Mempawah Sultanate and its surrounding areas. This study also highlights that the development of fiqh in the Malay region was greatly influenced by the role of local scholars in producing fiqh works relevant to their communities' socio-cultural contexts.

Al-Juwaini's Ideas and the Development of Islamic Law: A Shifting Paradigm from the Inadequacy of Qiyas as a Method of Ijtihad to Mashlahah

M. Harir Muzakki, Masykur Rozi, Yusuf Yusuf, Ali Akhbar Abaib Mas Rabbani Lubis — Wed, 31 Dec 2025 00:00:00 +0000

This article examines the emergence of maslahah in the legal thought of Imām al-Haramayn al-Juwaynī and argues that it constitutes a critical methodological intervention in the development of Shāfiʿī legal theory. While remaining committed to textual universalism and the supremacy of revelation, al-Juwaynī identified structural limitations in conventional qiyās in addressing increasingly complex socio-political realities. Employing a philosophical-historical hermeneutic approach and drawing on Thomas Kuhn’s theory of paradigm shift, this study interprets maslahah as an instance of extraordinary science that recalibrates established methods to address epistemic anomalies. Focusing on al-Burhān fī Uṣūl al-Fiqh, the article shows how qiyās maʿnā and munāsabah reformulated ʿillah as an intelligible indicator of divine legislative intent, enabling purposive legal expansion without endorsing autonomous ethical rationalism. The study positions al-Juwaynī as a decisive methodological link between al-Shāfiʿī and the later systematization of maqāṣid al-sharīʿah, contributing to contemporary debates on legal change in Islamic law.

Female Leadership of Islamic Philanthropic Institutions in Indonesia

Indah Piliyanti, Noor Alwiyah — Wed, 31 Dec 2025 00:00:00 +0000

This study aims to examine the experiences of female leaders in Islamic philanthropy in managing zakat in Indonesia from the perspective of Maqāṣid al-Sharīʿah and gender justice. Through the phenomenological method, this study aims to analyze the description of women's involvement as important actors in the structure of Islamic philanthropic institutions in Indonesia, their bureaucratic systems, and the obstacles they face. By focusing on data on the Zakat Management Organization (Organisasi Pengelola Zakat), which includes The National Amil Zakat Agency (Badan Amil Zakat Nasional/BAZNAS) and Privtae Amil Zakat Institution (Lembaga Amil Zakat/LAZ), it becomes clear that women's involvement in the governance of Islamic philanthropy in Indonesia remains very low. Even though there are no limiting regulations, women's participation in the structure is still hampered by several things, such as the conservative religious views of leaders, patriarchal-misogynistic culture in the workplace, limited human resources with the required qualifications, and limited awareness among women regarding participation to social work. Enforcing the principles of organizational professionalism, adhering to the applicable merit and bureaucratic systems, and educating on the importance of gender awareness in the work environment must also be accompanied by efforts to improve the quality of human resources, so that Islamic philanthropic work can provide fair benefits for both men and women.

Typology and Characteristics of Typology and Characteristics of 9th Hijri/15th-Century CE Astronomical Manuscripts in CairoAstronomy Manuscripts of The 9th/15th Century in Cairo

Wed, 31 Dec 2025 00:00:00 +0000

Cairo’s astronomical manuscripts (falak) are abundant, yet many remain understudied and insufficiently analyzed in contemporary scholarship. This study focuses on astronomical manuscripts produced in the 9th century Hijri (15th century CE), which display distinct typologies and characteristics compared to earlier periods, particularly in terms of structure, content organization, and methodological orientation. These differences are shaped by evolving socio-religious and intellectual dynamics, including changes in educational institutions, scholarly networks, and the patronage of scientific knowledge. The production of these manuscripts was driven not only by the practical needs of the community—such as calendrical calculation, prayer times, and determination of the qibla—but also by intellectual pursuits and the development of astronomical science as a scholarly discipline. To some extent, these typologies share affinities with falak manuscripts found in Indonesia, especially in their practical orientation. However, significant differences remain, particularly in the depth, mathematical rigor, and complexity of the discussions.