‘Compete with One Another in Good Works’: Exegesis of Qur'an Verse 5.48 and Contemporary Muslim Discourses on Religious Pluralism

Abstract

This article addresses the following two questions by examining the ideas of three modern Muslim scholars: Nurcholish Madjid (Indonesia), Asghar Ali Engineer (India), and Abdulaziz Sachedina (United States), with special reference to their interpretation of Q 5.48. How do modern Muslim scholars understand this verse and use it to support the idea that Islam advocates religious pluralism? And are modern Muslims simply superimposing modernist notions on the premodern worldview of the Qur'an? Two lines of thought will be explored. First, an examination of the classical exegesis of Q 5.48 will be reviewed in order to discover the teaching of the classical authorities on Islamic scripture about these issues of modern concern. Second, the verse will be analysed in light of modern debate on whether or not Islam advocates religious pluralism. Finally, possible explanations as to why these three Muslim scholars differ in their approach to what may be referred to as the ‘conservative legacy’ of the classical exegeses will be discussed.