Cyber-apostasy: its repercussions on Islam and interfaith relations*
In relations between Islam and the West, apostasy has been an issue of perennial contention. Although the Qur'anic perspective on apostasy is ambiguous, the ?adiths and later Islamic legal thought prescribe harsh sanctions against apostasy, making repudiation of Islam extremely difficult, if no...
| Main Author: | |
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| Format: | Electronic Article |
| Language: | English |
| Check availability: | HBZ Gateway |
| Journals Online & Print: | Drawer...
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| Fernleihe: | Fernleihe für die Fachinformationsdienste |
| Published: |
[2017]
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| In: |
Journal of contemporary religion
Year: 2017, Volume: 32, Issue: 2, Pages: 189-203 |
| Standardized Subjects / Keyword chains: | B
Islam
/ Apostasy (motif)
/ New media
/ Interreligiosity
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| Further subjects: | B
Muslims
B Cyber B hadiths B ex-Muslims B Islam B Apostates B Religious Freedom B Conscience B Qur'an B Interreligious B Web sites B Apostasy |
| Online Access: |
Volltext (Verlag) |
| Summary: | In relations between Islam and the West, apostasy has been an issue of perennial contention. Although the Qur'anic perspective on apostasy is ambiguous, the ?adiths and later Islamic legal thought prescribe harsh sanctions against apostasy, making repudiation of Islam extremely difficult, if not impossible, in the Muslim world. Such a coercive approach contravenes the Western value of freedom of conscience and the correlative right to religious freedom. Moreover, the rise of a parallel form of Islamonline- or cyber-Islamhas complicated the issue of apostasy even further. For countless Muslims worldwide, this parallel expression of their religion, although virtual, is even more real' than its offline, analogue expression. In this new Islamic expression, freedom of conscience can indeed be exercised. Online dissent, even to the point of engaging in cyber-apostasy' and encouraging others to do likewise, has given rise to a new level of reciprocity between Islam and other religions interacting with it in the marketplace of religions', thus opening a new chapter in the history of Islamic interaction with other faiths in the contemporary world. |
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| ISSN: | 1469-9419 |
| Contains: | Enthalten in: Journal of contemporary religion
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| Persistent identifiers: | DOI: 10.1080/13537903.2017.1298902 |