Theology

This paper introduces Mok'aliatholo, the Sotho-Tswana creedal statement. It presents various versions of the statement as known from various Sotho-Tswana tribes, pertinent issues on the statement such as: its title, a reconstruction of its origins, socio-historical context, and meaning. The paper concludes that knowledge is essential for better human relations, enhanced socioeconomic environment and religious-philosophical development.

Percakapan antara gagasan pembenaran oleh iman di dalam Kekristenan tentu akan diperhadapkan kepada dua figur raksasa di dalam sejarah Kekristenan yaitu Paulus dan Yakobus. Sepintas keduanya seperti memiliki perbedaan ketika sedang mempercakapkan iman dan perbuatan. Pembenaran oleh iman seolah sangat digaungkan oleh Paulus dan seolah

Karya Tulis ini memuat kajian teologis terhadap tindakan hukuman mati berdasarkan perspektif antropologi “Imago Dei.” Hal ini dilatarbelakangi oleh pemahaman etis apakah hukuman mati diperbolehkan atau tidak serta implementasinya pada konteks relasi antara manusia dengan Allah serta dalam hidup bermasyarakat. Metode penelitian yang dipakai dalam penulisan karya tulis ini menggunakan metode penelitian kualitatif-bukan eksperimental dengan menelaah aspek antropologi “Imago Dei dalam Teologi Perjanjian Lama.” Analisis terhadap Hukum Taurat menjadi acuan dijatuhinya tindakan hukuman mati pada manusia yang bersalah dan melanggar ketetapan Allah.

In this rather sketchy and general overview, I focused on two aspects of medieval semantics: on what can be considered a sign with respect to God’s reality, and on the explanation of the manner in which sign and the denoted object are linked. I have chosen 3 important, and in certain manner connected, moments of the process of development of the accounts concerning these both aspects. In the first section I focused on the initial domination of Augustine’s theory of natural sign and the naive-realistic account of language. I focused there also on the function and working of aenigma as the proper sign of God’s mystery. Then I passed to description of the emergence of more sophisticated Aristotelian, so called, 3-grade theory of signifying, and the tendency to base theological research on logical inferences. The example of this approach is the theology of Peter Abelard. In the last section I tried to individuate the causes of skeptical decadency of late medieval semantics. These being, among others: materialistic or physical interpretation of species, and prevalent non-discursive, passive understanding of human cognition. Of course many other important issues have not entered into the present article. (Let’s mention i.e. some X and XIth century accounts treating the puff of air as the bearer of meaning, or revival of faith in the close isomorphism holding between the grammatical structure of human language and the structure of reality, so called modi significandi). But, despite this, I hope this presentation will turn out useful for those who are willing to get some general insight in the fascinating world of medieval semantics.

In my thesis I provide an interpretation of Palamas’ distinction between divine ousia and divine energeiai. This interpretation is based upon an analysis of the implicit epistemological assumptions of Palamas. This implicit epistemological framework is reconstructed by means of analysing the main sources of Palamas’ thought. The direct sources are: the semantics of Gregory of Nyssa, epistemological and semantic framework of Pseudo-Dionysius Areopagite, ontology of knowing and willing of Maximus the Confessor. And the more remote ones are: the inherent to the Greek mentality of understanding of the act of knowing as necessarily dual, the conception of the powers of God by Philo of Alexandria and the three philosophical solutions of the problem of the cause of beings (Aristotelian, Neoplatonic and theurgic).
The conclusion of my thesis is that the distinction can be interpreted as a heuristic term, i.e. as a theorem establishing the proportion of action and passion between the human mind and God as Object of its cognition. In this way the distinction should not be taken as primarily describing the ‘elements’ of God, but functions as a core of the method of establishing the rules of theological predication.

The exploit of religion is a negative quality that can exist in every religion and
every period. This phenomenon, which is in the Jewish and Christians who are members of the Christian religion in the historical process, is also related to the Muslims. Though it is not approved by the overwhelming majority of Muslims, the basic ideas of such organizations based their formation on the explotation of the principles of belief in Qur'an and hadith. In the history of Islamic thought, the sects and groups which embraced a wide range of violence and saw it as a necessity ordered by the religion, generally attacehed themselves to the idea of Salafism and in their references they showed people belonging to this school. As a reason for their behavior and attitudes, they expressed their commitment to the principle of tawhid. As such, radical organizations that exploit religion seem to have their own specific theological infrastructure. In this direction, such formation and thought structures fall under the direct interest of Islamic theology. In their usage of religious terms it is clear that these organizations have a different understanding than that of Ahlu Sunnag that is mainly composed of Ash’ari and Maturisdi schools.
Keywords: Exploit the religion, Violence, Islamic theology, Tawhid, Fitnah (temptation).

In the Qur’an, there are evidences to persuade Muslims and to persuade nonMuslims. Qur’an considered Muslims to perform mental actions as worship by thinking and contemplating. He accused non-Muslims of not using their minds. He accused nonMuslims of disuse their minds. According to the Qur’anic data, there is a priority of
mental actions in the adoption and assimilation of faith. The Qur’anic scholars also called this commandment of the Qur’an, the nazar and the istidlal, and considered the verdict necessary for faith. In line with Qur'anic statements, evidence has been put forward for the purpose of consolidating the values of faith and advocating against unethical ones. According to the evidences, which are considered as two kinds of reason and thought, the predators that prioritize the intellectuals in the area other than semiyyat, used the evidence in the foundation of the belief subjects by emphasizing the burhan evidence. These faculties of theologians were inspired by the verses in which the term burhan in the Qur’an were included. As a matter of fact, it is understood that the verses containing the word burhan are predominantly. In this study, it is suggested that the term burhan it is a Quranic method in which theologians use a mental action to prove a faith subjects.
Keywords: Qur’an, Mind (aql), Kalam, Reason, Burhan.

Khabar/naql has priority in terms of providing information about the states in the Akhirah, which is called “sam’iyyat” that is one of the main subjects of the scientific field of Kalam. In this respect, Imam al-Maturidi provided an account of the circumstances in the Akhirah according to the Qur’an and authentic hadiths, and he also made reasonable and rational considerations about the reality of the life in the Hereafter. He examined the principles of belief on the subject for the most part in the light of the Qur’anic data. In doing so, he responded to certain philosophers who rejected the life in the Hereafter, and also opposed the religious schools, which he called innovation/ bid’ah, such as the Mu’tazila particularly, by identifying and explaining the authentic aqaid. He also offered unique, rational opinions about hasab, sirat, and the people of Araf, which are considered as some stages in the Akhirah, as well as some other stages. His opinions  about  some  stages of the Akhirah are especially important in terms of their rationality. It is so because the issues dealt within the field of sam’iyyat cannot be sensed by the five sensory stimuli and the mind. However, problems arise when the stages in question are not evaluated in a well-thought manner. In this regard, Maturidi interpreted the information available in the Qur’an and hadiths about the life in the Hereafter.
Keywords: Akhirah, Hashir, Hisab, Sirat, Araf, al-Maturidi

The Sultan II. Bayazid’s son Shahzada Korkud 872 (1467) or 874 (1469), also known as Harimi, was born in Amasya, and was killed on 5 Muharram, 919 (March 13, 1513). He served in the name of the Ottoman Empire for a long time in and around Antalya. In addition to his political identity, he is known as a person admired for his knowledge of literature, poetry, and his works. Also known as the protector of artists, Korkud himself authored works, and some works were written on behalf of him. It is recorded in the sources that he knew the religious sciences such as fiqh and hadith as well as Islamic sects, kalam, and aqidah (Islamic creed). He argued that shar’i principles should be prioritized rather than traditions and customary practices.
The political-religious developments of the period led him to adopt an intellectual approach against the sufis. It is also stated that he followed the path of Shafi’i sect in religious matters with his own will and preference, however, he was not in a strict commitment but had religious tolerance. As a matter of fact, he has collected books containing the views of not only one sect but various sects and other sciences. Korkud decided that he should choose the Shafi’i sect upon a dream he had had. He was a scholar member of the Ottoman dynasty. He chose Shafi’i sect although he had been raised in a Hanafi circle, and became one of the leading fiqh scholars of the Shafi’i. Being a member of the Ottoman family did not prevent him from criticizing some practices preferred in a powerful and open political establishment which became a great empire thanks to the political, legal, and scholarly activities of his grandfather Fatih.
In this study, the boundaries of iman-kufr (faith-denial) shall be discussed in the context of modern takfirist religious discourse. Shahzada Korkud discussed his views on the boundaries of iman and kufr within the framework of the concepts of Muslim and Murtakib al-kabira in his work called Sharhu alfaz a’l-kufr, also known as Hafiz a’l-insan ʿan lafz a’l-iman. Written in the XVI. Century, a controversial period of the Ottoman history, the book is of quite importance for today as well as the takfirist/Wahhabi discourse has rapidly gained strength with the support of some circles since the XVII. century. These discourses are known to be anti-Ottoman from the beginning. This takfirist discourse accelerated the detachments from the Ottomans and resulted in the formation of new states under the shadow of external powers. Current rulers of these states have declared that they serve to the whole world the takfirist discourses (WahhabiyyaSalafiyya), which play the Muslims off against each other and drag them into fire, upon the request and support of their friends. As a matter of fact, it is seen that contemporary takfirism is an ideology shaped in conflict zones. Today, takfirists form their own identity in various religious groups. Islamic movements are often shifting to the takfirist line through interpretations based on specific assessments. It is seen that the modern takfirists generally serve as ideologues, and the outer rings influenced by their ideas have more tendency to violence.
The boundary between iman and kufr has become and continues to be a matter of debate since the first century. Shahzada Korkud, in this line, defined the concepts of iman and kufr, and attempted to determine who is a Muslim in the XVI. century. Within this framework, he started his study with the question of who a Muslim is in order to determine the boundaries of iman and kufr. After defining Islam, iman and kufr and determining the boundaries, he brought an important issue to the agenda. This issue, which closely concerns the subject of this study, is the concepts of iman and kufr. Shahzada Korkud listed the important principles to clarify an issue that the takfirists use without limitation and by often violating the rules, and seeing no harm in considering Muslims out of religion. In this context, he stipulated the conditions of having iman, in other words, staying in the circle of iman. He listed the indications of the manifestation of iman. Thus, the limits of iman and kufr were drawn. After listing the issues that eliminates iman, he stated the iman definitions of Ahl al-Sunnah. This study evaluates the contemporary takfirist discourse with a critical approach within the framework of Shahzada Korkud’s definitions of iman, kufr, and murtakib al-kabirah.
Keywords: Shahzade Korkud, Sufism, Faith, Kufr, Muslim, Ottaman

Ajal, who was the focus of attention of people at all times, was considered as a subject of faith in the books of Islamic theology. In this respect, our study refers to the Islamic concept of the Mutazila of Islamic sects. Then it aims to evaluate the views of Ahl al-Sunna on the subject. Ajal, in the Qur'an, and the books of the words of God, in general, the attributes of God; in particular, it was examined in the context of fate. In this direction, God is associated with God's knowledge of Science, Will and Power. The main theme is the ajal,
and the two ends are a particular life process. Positive and negative factors such as nutrition, good living conditions, income balance, negative environmental factors, diseases and killing affect this process. In addition to the Knowledge, Will and Power of Allah, they made different evaluations to differentiate the function of external factors. It is seen that the separation between Mutazilah and Ahl alsunnah is more terminological. Ajal related to the topic of the main emphasis on the debate, the killer is related to the agent. Therefore, it is understood that the views of each sector are shaped according to their own sectarian principles. In the article, the study of the ajal,
which is a humanitarian problem, according to the Qur'an and hadiths, and especially an approach based on Ahl al-sunna is exhibited. The aim of this article is to examine whether the Sunnis' beliefs on the subject are compatible with Ahl al-sunna's suitability.
Key Words: Qadar (Destiny), ajal (Time of death), Ahl alsunnah, Mutazilah, Islamic theology.

The issue of the attributes of Allah is the most important factor in defining the scope and purpose of the scientific field of kalam, and occupies the greatest place in the theology literature. This is because the phrase "relating to the Islamic law" that constitutes the most fundamental feature of kalam makes it necessary for faith in God to be in place according to the Holy Qur'an and the authentic hadiths. It is the most primary responsibility of a believer to have true faith in Allah in line with the essence of nusus. This can be ensured only through being familiar with the attributes of Allah specific to Him. This study aims to deal with the methodology developed by mutakallim scholars in the determination of the attributes of Allah according to the novel function of kalam. In this sense, it seems understandable that because of its very nature, there are varying opinions and approaches suggested by kalam scholars in relation to the determination, number, and categorization of the attributes that are not clearly evident in the verses of the Holy Qur'an.

The main reason that there are different approaches adopted by the Mu'tazila and the Ahl al-Sunnah schools lies in the need for the determination of a strong faith in Allah. It is for this reason that there are not only differences between the two schools, but there are also different approaches even among the scholars of the same Ahl al-Sunnah school. While there is consensus on the main issue of the categorization of the attributes of Allah, the fact that there are differences when it comes to their detailed categorization indicates that the scientific field of kalam is rather dynamic than static.
Keywords: Kalam, al-dhat, al-sifat, categorization, method

Sharhs (explanations) and hashiyas (annotations) were written by many scholars on the al-'Aqaid text written by the scholar of Kalam Umar al-Nasafi. Although Umar al-Nasafi is a member of the Maturidi school, among the sharhs and hashiyas made, there are people other than the scholars of Kalam as well as those who adopt the idea of Ash'ari. While these studies reveal the importance of Nasafi's aqaid, it also shows that it is a basic resource for different Islamic thinking styles such as Sufism.
Qarabash Veli (d. 1097/1686), one of the scholars who wrote a sharh to Nasafi’s al-'Aqaid, saw himself as a member of the Ahl al-Sunnah and tried to reflect this in all his works. However, Qarabash Veli is mostly known as a member of the Sufi school in the history of Islamic thought. Qarabash Veli, who adopted the method of Khalwatiyya, one of the Sufi factions, but was inclined to the way of thinking of Muhyiddin Ibn al-Arabi, discussed this work with the idea that Sufism should be evaluated within the Ahl al-Sunnah.
There is a relationship between Sufism and Kalam in the Kalam tradition. While there are opinions stating that both ways of thinking are incompatible with each other, there are also theses stating the opposite. As a matter of fact, the word “al-akabir” in the title of the work named Kitab al-yawaqit wa al-jawahir fī bayan ‘aqa’id al-akabir, which is one of the works done in this direction and written by Abd al-Wahhab al-Sha'rani (d. 973/1565), refers to the elders of the Sufism. In this work, the author compared the main subjects and principles of Kalam with the views of Muhyiddin Ibn al-Arabi and tried to reveal that there is no problem in terms of belief. A similar study was carried out by Andalusian muhaddith, faqih, mufassir and scholar of Kalam, Abu Bakr Muhammad ibn Abdallah ibn Muhammed al-Ma'afiri, Abu Bakr Ibn al-Arabi (d. 543/1148). Abu Bakr Ibn al-Arabi, who adopted the Ash'ari method of the Ahl al-Sunnah school, wrote a work called Siraj al-Muridin and in this study, he interpreted the Sufistic concepts found both in the Quran and in the books of the Sufis in accordance with the data related to Kalam.
This work by Qarabash Veli, who was one of the important representatives of the mentioned tradition in the Ottoman period, called Sharh 'Aqaid al-Nasafi, preserved the Nasafi aqaid text in its main lines. The writer, who accepts the belief of Ahl al-Sunnah as the main principle, displayed his own Sufism approach after the main acceptance. According to him, it is necessary to adopt the expressions in the aqaid text first. Subsequent Sufi comments are optional. In Sharh 'Aqaid al-Nasafi, the author emphasized his thoughts on certain concepts such as being, knowledge and wali (master), which are the core data of Sufism. The aforementioned issues are generally accepted as the main principle by Sufis, especially Muhyiddin Ibn al-Arabi.
There are some obvious errors in the Arabic version of the work in terms of the Arabic language. These are left unchanged as they are originally present in the main text and other copies. When authentic expressions and phrases are found in the copies, this situation is stated in the footnotes.
The work is important in terms of contributing to the relationship between Sufism and Kalam. At the same time, the work seems remarkable with regards to expressing how the terms used by scholars of Kalam received by Sufis. On the other hand, this work is a source in terms of helping today's Sufistic movements to question the conformity of the basic creed principles to the aqaid of Ahl al-Sunnah.

The two rukuns (pillars) of Islam, consisting of belief and deeds, are formed by the Quran and authentic hadiths. In this direction, scholars of Kalam evaluated Islam in two parts as Usul al-Din and Furuʿ al-din. Usul al-Din, which means the essentials of religion, consists of the principles of creed. Furuʿ al-din is related to the deeds dimension of religion. Both are two main essentials that necessitate each other. Because deeds were applied in accordance with the principles of belief. Because a mu’min who believes in Allah (swt) cannot consciously oppose His commands. Ignorance in this regard cannot be accepted as a permanent excuse. Misinformation and ignorance may only be some kind of justification in the beginning.
Prophet Muhammad (saw), like all other prophets, stood by the truth in the struggle between truth and falsehood and endeavored to eliminate falsehood. In the name of merit and truth, Prophet Muhammad (saw), who worked for the spread of the truth in order to eliminate all the mistakes people applied, dwelled firmly on the mistakes of the society He was in and ensured the mu’mins to be purified from them.
In accordance with the verses of the Quran, mu’mins are commanded to use their minds to understand and realize the wrongness of their beliefs and behaviors regarding the wrong practices of the societies to which the verses were sent. It has been carefully emphasized that those who make their mind functional will be on the right path and will be free from mistakes. Accordingly, since beliefs, attitudes and behaviors known as superstition are contrary to reason, they were opposed by Quran and Prophet Muhammad (saw). Because Islam, as a fundamental principle, has rejected everything that is contrary to reason.
With reference to the thought that the knowledge of Kalam has two tasks which are enlightening the believer and fighting against beliefs and thoughts that are against Islam, superstitions along with their derivatives in the form of bid'ah directly fall into the field of Kalam. It is among the duties of the scholars of Kalam to carry out studies in order to remove the superstitions in the field of belief from the mu’mins.

Bringing solutions to Muslims' belief-related concerns, primarily, fall into the field of study of kalam researchers. Yet, kalam knowledge primarily aims to enlighten the believers, as well as to serve for the elimination of questions and doubts that stem from the individual's outside world. The next goal of kalam knowledge is to defend Muslims' world of belief. In line with this mission of kalam knowledge, our topic of study involves the detection and analysis of 17,444 doctrine/kalam-related questions selected from 7,000 variables, which were submitted to High Board of Religious Affairs through e-mail, between the years of 2006-2010.
The study formed around the axis of "Usul al-Salasah" in line with the data on classical kalam knowledge, involves the society in Turkey and our citizens abroad. Within this framework, recently asked religion/doctrine and kalam-related questions by modern-day Muslims bear substantial scientific data. Owing to the fact that the nature and content of the questions submitted to the institution involve recent matters on belief/doctrine, this study is also an up-to-date kalam.
In consideration of the main theme, this study, which was realized in line with the classical kalam method, comprises an introduction, three chapters, conclusion and recommendations. Besides elaborating on the topic, aim, significance, and method of the study, the introduction section also includes definitive statistical data comprising such variables as gender, age, education, overseas, and domestic. The questions that fall into the categories of faith and i'tiqad, which were submitted to High Board of Religious Affaris of the Presidency of Religious Affairs through e-mails, constituted the core of our study. At the outset, in line with the division (taqsim) denoted as "Usul al-Salasah" in kalam literature, which constitutes the main theme of kalam knowledge, the intensity of questions regarding faith in Allah as well as qadar and qada under the topic of "Uluhiyyah" were taken into consideration and these questions were categorized. Again, in the same section, other Uluhiyyah matters such as khayr and shar, hidayah and dalalah, sa'adah and shakawah, salah and aslah, hiqmah and illah, husn and qubh, taklif ma la yutaq, time of death and sustenance were elaborated. The second section dwells on the subjects of "faith in prophets" and "faith in books", under the topic of "Nubuwwah" (propethood). Considering the content of those questions in hand, certain categories and sub-categories were established. The first main heading of the third section, in which matters on "Sam'iyyah" were discussed, is "Faith in Angels". And the next main heading in this section is called "Faith in the Afterlife". In each section, questions were categorized and some sub-groups were established under the said categories, and the study was finalised with the conclusion section, which also includes recommendations.
It is obvious that the questions sent to the High Board of Religious Affairs by almost all social groups are aimed at acquisition of knowledge, instead of form or style. What can be inferred from this case is that Muslims are in dire need of knowledge in terms of faith and that their knowledge is limited about that matter. With this in mind our study, which covers the period between 2006 and 2010, makes a contribution as to the determination of the religious agenda of our citizens, on which topics they mostly focused, and to what extent they are interested in matters related to faith, in general terms. This study, in general, will also be helpful for the researchers, who intend to determine the modern-day Muslims' problems about faith and those who wish to conduct a field research.