Doing Justice to The History: The Effects of Narrative Literalism and Its Opposite

Abstract

In this chapter, we attempt to ground the central argument being made in the book that, on the one hand, allowing a religious tradition like Islam to succumb to narrative literalism in relation to its sacred narratives inevitably leaves it prone to being used aberrantly by both radical Islamists and anti-Islamic fanatics. On the other hand, ensuring that the tradition engages in education that assures well-founded levels of respect and avowal towards its sacred texts and history in a way that accords with modern textual method is actually a way in which Islam can be protected from such misuse and the trashing of the tradition that has become such a common sport in Western media and hard-line political circles of late. Furthermore, such education can only serve to place Islam on a more solid platform for being able to contribute to informed religious and social practice and so take up the role of global leadership conceived as appropriate to its charter by Mohamed Talbi in the modern era and, we contend, Muhammad al-Tabari in early medieval times.