Research Insights on Online Fatwas. A Comprehensive Systematic Literature Review

Abstract

Current research on online fatwas has not been thematically identified into a single entity, so it is useful to have guidelines for responding to online fatwas spread across different media. The purpose of this study is to conduct a thematic analysis of scholarly publications related to online fatwas and formulate knowledge based on the classification of the findings. In this study, the author used a systematic literature review by selecting Scopus publications related to online fatwas from 2000 to 2022. The results of this study found that online fatwas research in Scopus can be classified into two forms, first, focusing on the issue of online fatwas and religious authorities. Second, online fatwas are a tool of social engineering. Research on online fatwas about religious authority concludes that there is a shift in religious authority in the digital era, the emergence of digital muftis, even the issue of mazhab, and the need for offline religious authorities to transform themselves by advocating fatwas online. The article on online fatwas, which focuses on fatwas as a tool for social manipulation, recommends three screening methods, namely evaluating the content, establishing criteria for the credibility of fatwas sites, and developing fatwas screening technology.