Reinterpreting Revelation in Modernist Thought and Its Impact on Islamic Preaching Discourse  Author:

IsmailNourEl-DinAtiya, Mohamed

doi:10.21608/bfsgm.2025.441731

Reinterpreting Revelation in Modernist Thought and Its Impact on Islamic Preaching Discourse Author:

Author

Mohamed IsmailNourEl-DinAtiya

Al-Azhar University

10.21608/bfsgm.2025.441731

Abstract

This study seeks to explain how modernist thought redefines and deconstructs the Islamic concept of revelation, aiming to remove the sacred status traditionally accorded to the Qurʾān and Sunnah. Although this reinterpretation was initially proposed by Orientalists in the mid-nineteenth century, modernist thinkers, building on Orientalist foundations, subsequently developed it further, primarily targeting Islamic studies broadly and Islamic preaching (daʿwa) specifically.
The study employs a critical-analytical methodology and is structured into three main sections:
Section One explores the foundational assumptions of modernist thought behind altering the concept of revelation, namely subjectivity and critical rationality. Important implications of these assumptions include advocating the historicity of sacred texts and promoting subjective interpretations.
Section Two analyses the modernist concept of "intellectual creativity" as an alternative to traditional revelation and its impact on preaching discourse. Modernist thinkers assert that intellectual creativity demonstrates the human origin of the Qurʾānic text. Their arguments rest upon two main ideas: first, interpreting religious concepts through critical rationality, and second, arguing that traditional concepts of revelation inherently contain contradictions. Consequences of this approach include calls to redefine revelation, dismantle notions of divine transcendence, and question the sacredness of religious texts.
Section Three examines "emotional intuition" as another modernist substitute for traditional revelation, discussing its implications for Islamic preaching discourse. Modernist thought proposes two interpretations: the first dismisses revelation entirely, portraying it as episodes of epilepsy or mania; the second interprets revelation as a purely psychological or emotional experience. This view corresponds with postmodern perspectives that reject the concept of revelation as either pathological or as an existential intuition similar to that described by existentialist philosophers.
The study concludes that modernist thought significantly alters the traditional Islamic understanding of revelation by redefining it as intellectual creativity or emotional intuition, influencing contemporary Islamic preaching. It recommends analysing Orientalist and modernist perspectives together to better understand the underlying assumptions of these reinterpretations.

Keywords