Encyclopedia of Islam

theology

  

669  J

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movements, it is that the only legitimate govern-

ment is that which recognizes the absolute unity 

and sovereignty of God. In their view submission 

to Islamic rule offers believers a way to salvation 

in this world and in the afterlife. Where attempts 

at establishing such theocratic governments have 

been made, however, the record is less than 

impressive thus far. They have usually resulted in 

totalitarian rule and gross violations of individual 

hUman

 

rights

.

See also 

anthropomorphism

; 

batin

;  b

rethren

oF

  p

Urity

; 

dialogUe

; 

Fate

; 

fitna

;  h

asan

 

al

-b

asri

; 

heresy

; i

bn

 

al

-a

rabi

, m

Uhyi

 

al

-d

in

; 

imam

; i

slamic

government

; 

kufr

;  m

Ulla

  s

adra

; 

reneWal

 

and

reForm

 

movements

.

Further reading: Frederick M. Denny, An Introduction to 

Islam, 3d ed. (1994. Reprint, Upper Saddle River, N.J.: 

Pearson Education, 2006), 164–186; Sayyed Hossein 

Nasr and Oliver Leaman, eds., History of Islamic Philos-

ophy (London: Routledge, 1996); F. E. Peters, A Reader 

on Classical Islam (Princeton, N.J.: Princeton University 

Press, 1994), 358–412; Fazlur Rahman, Islam. 2d ed. 

(Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1979); Josef 

van Ess, The Flowering of Muslim Theology (Cambridge, 

Mass.: Harvard University Press, 2006); W. Montgom-

ery Watt, Islamic Philosophy and Theology (Edinburgh: 

Edinburgh University Press, 1962); Harry A. Wolfson, 

The Philosophy of Kalam (Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard 

University Press, 1976).