Teaching Islamic Law in a Modern Secular Context: The Didactical Challenge

Abstract

The aim of this contribution is to analyse didactic approaches to the subject of Islamic law in pre-modern context and, in particular, in the current secular European context, and to outline the basic principles of an appropriate didactical approach. Although Sharia law cannot claim to serve as a legal reference in secular democratic societies, it can make an important contribution on a moral and ethical level. The relevance of Islamic law should consist in making ethical and normative recommendations for solving social challenges – especially with regard to Muslim minorities – in order to better understand the inherited classical Islamic conception of law and to further develop some of its aspects, especially moral and ethical concepts. These aspects are reflected in the structure of the contribution. I shall argue that any new didactical concept to the Islamic Law should be based on the didactic heritage of the subject from the pre-modern era, oriented towards the overarching goals of learning in local modern societies, and based on existing didactic approaches from other related subjects. Accordingly, the use of the problem-oriented method for the teaching and research in the field of Islamic law in modern context would be an added value to this field, due to the successful use of this methodology in other legal and social disciplines.

The first part of the contribution is devoted to basic definitions – in particular of "didactics" and "pedagogy" – as well as a systematic presentation of pre-modern forms of teaching Islamic law. These theoretical-historical insights serve as a framework for the analysis of current teaching approaches in the second part of the contribution. Particular attention is paid to the development of the subject of "Islamic law" at German universities, especially in the context of the recently founded Islamic theological institutions, which serve as exemplary case studies