Theosophia Islamica

The starting point of the reflection is the assertion that to live is to be in a relationship. In society, relationships are built through dialogue, which is particularly evident in communication between religious communities of different religions. The article presents the decision of the Catholic Church for interreligious dialogue at the last Vatican Council (the document Nostra Aetate), which was made possible by the development of the doctrine of salvation. A sincere dialogue with those who think differently renews religion and deepens faith. The article concludes with a presentation of dialogical actions between Catholics and Muslims in the world and an outline of the religious situation in Slovenia. There is no salvation outside of dialogue, and dialogue is the most effective means of preventing war and maintaining peace.

This text examines the complex and ambivalent role of religion in historical and contemporary global conflicts, particularly focusing on the mechanisms through which religions have influenced the prevention of world wars and promoted peace. The global landscape features over 4,500 religions, with Christianity and Islam as the largest. Religions shape moral norms, communal behavior, and both positive and negative social outcomes. While religion is often linked with violence, the relationship is multifaceted. Statistical analyses show religious conflicts may initially appear more intense, but deeper integration of the religious context often diminishes this correlation. Religion can be both a divider and connector in conflicts. Religious leaders and institutions are recognized as “religious diplomats,” offering spirituality-based mediation and reconciliation. The text explores interreligious dialogue (IRD) as a transformative tool, emphasizing pluralism, meaningful conversations, restorative justice, and the importance of listening. Examples include cooperation after the 2011 tsunami in Japan and ecumenical initiatives in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Clergy and lay believers can mitigate conflict and aid reconciliation. Their spiritual authority, ability to mobilize, and unique resources (prayer, forgiveness, scriptural legitimacy) are highlighted, though their impact is difficult to quantify. Faith-based diplomacy is presented as a distinct field, emphasizing the necessity of integrating political and theological approaches. The document acknowledges issues such as the difficulty of measuring religious peacebuilding, the slow pace of change, and the influence of populism, nationalism, and fundamentalism.

The issue of interreligious dialogue has been seriously examined within Islamic theology since the dawn of Islam. Islamic religious texts have elucidated the rationale, methods, policies, and related topics concerning this dialogue. This research seeks to explore the viewpoint of Islamic sacred texts on the subject of interreligious dialogue. It presents its discussions across six key areas: the necessity of interreligious dialogue, its historical background, the methods and policies of interreligious dialogue, and its topics and implementation, all based on data from Islamic sacred texts. Furthermore, the paper examines Islam's policies regarding the acceptance of religious diversity, respect for religious freedoms, and the creation of an environment for constructive dialogue among religions. The aim of this article is to clarify the position of interreligious dialogue in Islam and to offer strategies for international interactions founded on religious and human principles. Ultimately, the findings of the article demonstrate that interreligious dialogue in Islam can play a significant role in reducing tensions and promoting global peace. This research was conducted through a review of data from Islamic sacred texts, utilizing a library-based methodology.

Today, one important method for overcoming interfaith conflicts is the analysis of historical documents, which can provide a model or a way to prevent future conflicts. This article aims to focus on two significant historical documents that hold promise for improvement and progress among the followers of two major Abrahamic religions: Islam and Christianity. These two historical documents are "The Prophet Muhammad's Letter to the Christians of Saint Catherine's Monastery in North Egypt" and the declaration of the Second Vatican Council, also known as Nostra Aetate, which addresses the declaration on the relation of the Church to non-Christian religions from the Vatican's perspective. It appears that the comparison of these two important documents is being undertaken for the first time in this article, seeking to emphasize a positive impact among the followers of these two religions, which constitute more than half of the world's population. The research method of this article is based on exploratory, thematic, and descriptive study relying on library research.

 Al-Fārābī is a renowned and influential Muslim philosopher who has impacted not only Muslim scholars but also scholars of other religions, among whom Moses Maimonides is one of the most significant. This study, employing an analytical and comparative approach and drawing upon the works of both al-Fārābī and Maimonides, seeks to answer the question of how much Maimonides was influenced by al-Fārābī in the domain of philosophical psychology, particularly regarding human characteristics, faculties, perfections, and ranks. The findings indicate that Maimonides was influenced by al-Fārābī in various areas, frequently citing him and his works as a primary source. However, in many instances, to avoid provoking sensitivity or opposition from his audience, he refrained from explicitly mentioning his source, though it is evident that al-Fārābī’s works were among his principal references. Furthermore, this study demonstrates that Maimonides was influenced by al-Fārābī not only in the structure of his works but also in his fundamental theories concerning human characteristics, faculties, perfections, and ranks. His conceptual framework and terminology also reflect al-Fārābī’s influence, to the extent that the title of one of his major works on faculties, perfections, and moral philosophy was derived from one of al-Fārābī’s works.

This study employs a descriptive-analytical method and a critical comparative approach to examine, critique, and compare the proofs for the existence of God in Western and Islamic philosophy. The introduction clarifies the meaning of proof and distinguishes it from faith and reasoning. It then outlines key concepts necessary for a deeper understanding of the proofs for God’s existence, including the role of Western and Islamic philosophers in shaping these arguments, the distinction between horizontal and vertical proofs in Western and Islamic traditions, and the empiricist and rationalist approaches to these arguments in both intellectual traditions. Following this foundation, the article systematically analyzes four categories of arguments for God's existence: ontological, cosmological, teleological (design), and moral arguments, as presented by Western thinkers. These arguments are then examined and critiqued based on the principles of Islamic philosophy. Throughout the discussion, the study highlights how misunderstandings or misinterpretations of key concepts and rational principles unique to Islamic philosophy—particularly in general and special metaphysics—have contributed to certain misapprehensions in the history of Western philosophy regarding proofs for God’s existence.

Nowadays, most Christian theologians, in defending theism, put forward the design argument against the arguments of scientists who, by appealing to chance, seek to render God unnecessary in explanation. Over time, the argument from design has been presented under various rubrics and interpretations—sometimes intertwined—in support of theism. It appears that the design argument was initially employed to complement knowledge of God, but over time, it has shifted its focus toward biological and empirical aspects that indicate the order of nature. In the present era, the primary aim of this argument is to defend theism against atheistic theories in the empirical sciences rather than to establish the purposiveness of existence. However, this formulation of the argument from design has not achieved the necessary success in proving God’s existence. Therefore, in this study, by elucidating the methodology of the empirical sciences and demonstrating the incompatibility of the design argument with this methodology, it becomes clear that one cannot rely solely on the design argument to counter atheism. In this way, it is shown that the intelligent design argument, in rejecting chance, lacks a demonstrative structure and not only fails to prove God but also falls short of establishing anything beyond what atheists themselves propose. Hence, one can draw upon the common ground between theology and science—namely, the metaphysical foundations of science—to advance empirical evidence in favor of theism. Accordingly, by employing a philosophical approach and enhancing the natural argument, this argument can be utilized as a strong proof for the existence of God.Keywords

In this article, I briefly examine “The proclamation of the faith of St. Thomas,” where he supposedly refers to Jesus as “his Lord and his God.” The material at hand will analyze the matter through contextual and grammatical viewpoints. By the means of Biblical Greek grammar, it will be elucidated that the claim is baseless as well as contradictory to Jesus’ teachings as recorded in the Bible.

Religious experience, as one of the most prominent states and experiences of human beings, has drawn the attention of both philosophers and scientists due to the justificatory role it can play in the realm of religious beliefs. However, if not properly understood and assessed, it can lead to a form of extremism. Therefore, a precise definition and explanation of all understandings of religious experience will help us properly recognize and validate it. Neuroscientist Patrick McNamara has studied the process of religious experience with a new approach based on neuroscience, distinguishing it from other rival approaches. Grounded in the scientific method, his approach addresses crucial questions and challenges that have called into question the validity of such experiences and their role in justifying beliefs. Accordingly, in this article, we seek to properly understand the validity of religious experience, using McNamara's strategies to evaluate and critique it. We will gather materials from McNamara's scientific works and other research, applying rational and analytical methods for a thorough assessment. Finally, we will introduce rational, revelatory, and empirical proof as conditions for the validity of religious experience, emphasizing the limitations and inadequacy of a purely empirical method in appraising such spiritual entities.

Intentionality, as a fundamental concept in the philosophy of mind, is essential to understanding how mental states are directed toward objects, concepts, or states of affairs. This article examines the theory of intentionality presented by ʿAllama Tabatabaʾi, with a focus on his Islamic philosophical framework. The research begins by defining the problem of intentionality, which concerns the nature, possibility, and content determination of mental states. We highlight how Tabatabaʾi’s grounding of intentionality in mental existence and immaterial knowledge provides a distinct perspective compared to contemporary naturalistic approaches. The study employs a qualitative, analytical, and comparative methodology, examining primary texts from Islamic philosophy, including works by Avicenna, Mullā Ṣadrā, and ʿAllama Tabatabaʾi, alongside modern Western discussions on intentionality. Through this critical lens, we identify Tabatabaʾi’s key contributions: the essential revelatory character of knowledge, the abstraction process in content determination, and the inseparable connection between mental existence and intentionality. The research findings reveal that while Tabatabaʾi’s model offers a metaphysically robust explanation of intentionality, it encounters significant challenges when evaluated in the context of contemporary cognitive science. Critiques include the lack of empirical testability, potential conceptual ambiguity for modern scholars unfamiliar with Islamic metaphysics, and the absence of a clear mechanistic explanation that aligns with materialist paradigms. Nevertheless, the article underscores the innovative nature of Tabatabaʾi’s approach in bridging classical Islamic thought with modern philosophical discourse. It also suggests potential interdisciplinary dialogues, especially with phenomenological perspectives that similarly emphasize the inherent directedness of consciousness. The findings contribute to a broader understanding of intentionality and open new avenues for future research on the integration of metaphysical and empirical frameworks in the philosophy of mind.

Al-Farabi's practical philosophy is one of the most important pillars of his thought on the relationship between knowledge, politics, and human happiness. This article examines Al-Farabi's reading of Greek practical philosophy, especially the ideas of Aristotle and Plato, in the context of Islamic thought. Al-Farabi, as the founder of Islamic philosophy and a second teacher, attempted to reinterpret the Greek rational system within the framework of the religious Medina. by accepting the epistemological and ontological foundations of Greek philosophy, he attempted to create a synthesis between practical philosophy and the Islamic civil system. This research is conducted using a descriptive-analytical method and examines Farabi's practical philosophy and its relationship with the concept of "Mellah". It uses content analysis to examine key concepts such as "Medina Fazeleh", "Rais awwal" and "Mellah" in Farabi's works. The findings of the research show that by introducing the first head (philosopher-prophet), Al-Farabi is trying to design a social system in which reason and revelation are aligned with a common goal (realization of Qasavi's happiness) and social relations and civil order are regulated and mapped on the natural order. In this system, philosophy and religion complement each other as two paths for the transmission of rational knowledge and public persuasion in society. The results of the research show that Al-Farabi designed an independent system that, although inspired by Greek philosophy, has an independent logic within its intellectual framework.

This article aims to demonstrate the dominance and prevalence of mercy and compassion over all principles and rulings related to women in the Holy Qur'an. The Qur'anic view of women has always been subject to criticism and evaluation. Numerous verses in the Qur'an address the status of women in Islam. An overall review of these verses shows that mercy and compassion are two overarching principles that permeate all these principles and rulings. This article examines the supremacy of the principle of mercy in the Qur'anic perspective on women. This examination is conducted across three dimensions of a woman's life: the individual, familial, and social dimensions. In the individual dimension, the Qur'anic merciful view of women is manifested in the following principles:1- Equality of men and women in the essence and substance of creation.2- Shared participation of both genders in the balance of creation, a common human identity, shared servitude as the purpose of creation, similarity in the Divine nature, and shared fundamental human dignity with its various aspects and forms.3- The value of women's deeds in the Qur'an and their equal status in attaining spiritual ranks are other facets of the Qur'anic merciful view regarding the individual dimension of a woman's personality. In familial roles, the dominance of mercy manifests itself in a different, and perhaps more explicit, way. Examples of the Qur'anic merciful view of women in the familial dimension include: The principle of living together amicably. The introduction of affection and mercy as the fundamental pillars of the family. Emphasis on kindness and the invitation to good even in the most critical of marital relationships. The supremacy of mercy in the social sphere can be clearly seen in the presentation of women as role models for the community of believers. This is demonstrated by women such as Asiya, the wife of Pharaoh, who is introduced as an example of faith, resistance against tyranny, and steadfastness against oppression, and Mary, who is introduced as a model of chastity, purity, and innocence. The totality of these cases indicates that the overall and overarching view of the Qur'an regarding women is a perspective founded on mercy, and all other specific issues must be explained and interpreted in light of this perspective.

Fathers today face increasing pressures from work, society, and changing family expectations. In such circumstances, the need for guidance, emotional support, and a redefined sense of responsibility is felt more than ever. This study conducts a comparative textual analysis of fatherhood in the Qur’an, Hadith, and the Bible, integrating Pleck’s Involved Fatherhood framework with Bronfenbrenner’s Bioecological Systems Theory. Through comparative content analysis of sacred texts, it examines themes such as spouse selection, the wife’s role in supporting fatherhood, and external influences on paternal responsibilities. The Qur’an articulates the primary religious and moral duties of fathers, while the Hadith expands these through prescriptive and illustrative guidance. Biblical perspectives are analysed in relation to Qur’anic and Hadith teachings to reveal areas of overlap in paternal ideals as well as distinct theological and practical emphases. Findings show that while all three emphasise provision, moral instruction, and emotional engagement, the Qur’an–Hadith relationship uniquely integrates universal theological principles with context‑specific behavioural models.