Horizons and limitations of muslim feminist hermeneutics
reflections on the menstruation verse
pp. 33-49
in: Pamela S. Anderson (ed), New topics in feminist philosophy of religion, Berlin, Springer, 2010Abstract
The aim of this paper is to "converse" with recent feminist readings of the Qur"an in the light of traditional Qur"an exegesis. In the course of the paper, I will first reflect on the horizons opened up by these new readings of the Qur"an. Then, against the backcloth of an aspect of the law of purity concerning menstruation as outlined in traditional exegesis, I will go on to examine the limitations which arise from constructing Qur"anic hermeneutics on the basis of binary oppositions in which interpretations of gender in the Qur"an are either modern feminist and egalitarian, on the one hand, or traditional, male and misogynistic on the other hand. In the end, a third possibility is advocated for a Muslim feminist hermeneutics which affirms the original purity of humanity as a horizon for the divine.