Islam has a relationship with the other Abrahamic faiths, namely Judaism and Christianity, through the concept of Wiḥdah al-Dīn. This concept affects Islam in many ways. Not only it affects in the principal matters of faith, such as the belief in the other prophets, but it also affects belief in the previous sacred revelations, such as the Tawrāh, Zabūr and Injīl. From this belief in the previous sacred revelations, some Muslims resort to the Isrā’īliyyāt to understand Islam. Nevertheless, to use sources from other religions to understand Islam, specifically in this case of Isrā’īliyyāt, seems confusing and perplexing. Chronologically, polemic on the use of Isrā’īliyyāt had begun since the age of the Prophet Muhammad. This issue is not only restricted to the Muslim circle, but it also prompts questions from the Jews and the Christians as to why Muslims would source the Torah and the Bible to understand Islam. This paper highlights issues related to the use of Isrā’īliyyāt in Muslim scholarship by exposing some positions in the Islamic rulings and the sharī cah justifications for these positions. These positions in the Islamic rulings and its sharīcah justifications are extracted through the use of textual analysis methodology. It is suggested that from understanding these justifications that one can make sense of the use of Isrā’īliyyāt in Muslim Scholarship. It is also suggested that from this principal understanding of the use of Isrā’īliyyāt in Muslim scholarship, the Biblical interpretation in the Islamic contexts should be developed and discussed by the present and future scholars of Muslim-Christian studies.

Ibn Khaldun dalam karangan terkemuka beliau, Muqaddimah menekankan asas penting kekuatan ‘asabiyyah sebagai penentu kepada jatuh bangun sesebuah tamadun. Karakteristik ‘asabiyyah ini berkonotasi positif dan tidak terhad sifatnya kepada semangat seketurunan sebaliknya dapat diadaptasi dalam senario masyarakat multi etnik. ‘Asabiyyah Ibn Khaldun jauh berbeza dengan definisi cauvinisme yang sering disetarakan dengan maksud ‘asabiyyah oleh pandangan umum. Makalah ini membincangkan mekanisme adaptasi ‘asabiyyah Ibn Khaldun dan beberapa mekanisme lain bagi mendidik kekuatan semangat kekitaan dalam kalangan generasi muda multi etnik di Malaysia. Perbincangan ini adalah bersandarkan kepada kajian kepustakaan yang telah dilakukan ke atas bahan-bahan ilmiah yang berkaitan. Hasil penelitian mendapati bahawa wujud isu etnisiti yang menyebabkan kepincangan kekuatan semangat kekitaan dalam kalangan generasi muda. Terdapat mekanisme untuk memperkukuh semangat kekitaan antaranya peranan para penggubal dasar, peranan institusi pengajian tinggi, keprihatinan media massa, peranan institusi kekeluargaan dan peranan generasi muda itu sendiri. Pengadaptasian ‘asabiyyah Ibn Khaldun dilihat penting dalam mendidik generasi muda pelbagai etnik memperkukuhkan semangat kekitaan melalui satu identiti sepunya yang dipegang bersama. Implikasinya, penglibatan semua pihak amat diperlukan bagi menggembleng mekanisme peneguhan semangat kekitaan bagi menangani isu kepincangan antara etnik agar kelangsungan tamadun Malaysia lebih terjamin dengan kepimpinan generasi muda. Ibn Khaldun, in his magnum opus the Muqaddimah, emphasises the importance of ‘asabiyyah as a foundation determining the rise and fall of a civilisation. ‘Asabiyyah’s characteristic here has positive connotations, not limited to a shared ancestry, and could in fact be applied to a multi-ethnic society as well. Ibn Khaldun’s ‘Asabiyyah is more than just the commonly-held attempt to equate it to the concept of chauvinism. This article discusses the mechanism to adapt Ibn Khaldun’s ‘asabiyyah and other mechanisms to educate the younger, multi-ethnic generation of Malaysia on the strength of an esprit de corps among them. This discussion relies on library research on relevant academic materials. The findings show that the ethnicity issue is a stumbling block to form a spirit of solidarity among the younger generation. There are mechanisms in place to strengthen the esprit de corps among them, including efforts by policy makers, the institutions of higher learning, the role of the mass media, the family institution, and initiatives among the youths as well. The adaptation of Ibn Khaldun’s ‘Asabiyyah is important to educate this multi-ethnic younger generation to strengthen their spirit of solidarity through a shared identity. By implication, therefore, all parties must contribute to consolidate the mechanism to strengthen this esprit de corps to overcome the ethnic issue, thus ensuring the continuation of a more secure Malaysian civilisation, under the leadership of the younger generation.

Makalah ini membincangkan mengenai Wahhabiyyah berdasarkan pandangan Muḥammad Abū Zahrah dalam bukunya, Tārīkḥ al-Madhāhib al-Islāmiyyah Fī al-Siyāsah Wa al-ʿAqāi’d Wa Tāríkh al-Madhāhib Al-Fiqhiyyah. Muḥammad Abū Zahrah merupakan seorang ulama muktabar di Mesir yang memiliki kepakaran dalam bidang perundangan. Karya beliau yang menjadi rujukan utama makalah ini terbahagi kepada tiga bahagian iaitu politik, akidah dan fiqh. Beliau juga mengkhususkan satu topik membincangkan mengenai kemunculan gerakan baharu iaitu Wahhabiyyah, Bahāʿiyyah dan Qādiyaniyyah. Makalah ini memfokuskan analisis pandangan Muḥammad Abū Zahrah terhadap Wahhabiyyah bagi mendapatkan gambaran yang jelas mengenai kumpulan ini. Beliau menggariskan lapan ciri perilaku Wahhabi yang mana kesemua ciri ini saling berkait antara satu sama lain. Analisis ini turut mengemukakan pandangan Hersi Mohamad Hilole dalam bukunya yang bertajuk al-Salafiyyah al-Wahhābiyyah Bayna Muʿayyidiihā Wa Muntaqidīhā dan Naṣir ʿAbd al-Karim al-ʿAql melalui penulisannya, Islāmiyyah Lā Wahhābiyyah. Makalah ini juga menghuraikan hujah sokongan dan penolakan berdasarkan ciri-ciri yang dinyatakan oleh Muḥammad Abū Zahrah. Oleh itu, makalah ini menggunakan kaedah kualitatif iaitu kajian teks, yang secara khususnya tertumpu kepada kaedah analisis kandungan kepada skop Wahhabiyyah menurut pandangan Muḥammad Abū Zahrah. Hasil daripada kajian ini, terdapat tiga tema utama dapat dibentuk mengenai ciri-ciri Wahhabi seperti yang telah dibincangkan oleh Muḥammad Abū Zahrah. Ciri-ciri ini adalah pertama, tauhid dan ibadah. Kedua, sikap Wahhabi mengenai bidaah. Dan ketiga, sikap radikal golongan Wahhabiyyah dalam perkara agama sehingga mengkafirkan dan membunuh.

Book Review: Daniel L. Pals. Eight Theories of Religion. New York & Oxford: Oxford University Press. 2006. 2"d Edition. 340 pp. RM 147.73.

The revelation is a credible source of knowledge, because it is imbued with knowledge that is interdisciplinary, as it also provides guidance to how the knowledge should be identified and comprehended. The Islamic Epistemology consists of explanations and guidance needed to guide mankind in their quest for civilization, through the breakthroughs of new findings and practices. However, during the Western post-Enlightenment period, the Demarcation of Knowledge Theory was introduced and later immersed into the Westernization of Knowledge and disseminated to the global communities. This journal article discusses various issues pertaining to this theory, that Muslims should be aware of and provides suggestions as to how the Islamic Epistemology could be empowered.

No abstract