Search results for ""Author Christopher Melchert""

In this pioneering biography, Christopher Melchert examines the forefather of the fourth of the four principal Sunni schools of jurisprudence, the Hanbali. Upholding the view that the Qur’an was uncreated and the direct word of God, Ahmad ibn Hanbal (780-855) thought that the holy text should be read literally, rejecting any possibility for metaphorical or revisionist interpretation. Showing that even in his own lifetime, ibn Hanbal’s followers were revising his doctrines in favour of a more commodious Islam, Melchert assesses the importance of ibn Hanbal’s teachings and analyses their relevance in modern Sunni Islam.

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The publication of The Formation of the Sunni Schools of Law, Ninth-Tenth Centuries C.E., first as a University of Pennsylvania doctoral dissertation in 1992, and subsequently as a monograph in 1997 (Studies in Islamic Law and Society, Brill), established Christopher Melchert as a pre-eminent scholar of the history of Islamic law and institutions. Through close readings of works on fiqh, meticulous unpacking of data in biographical dictionaries, and careful attention to curricular, pious, pedagogical, and scholarly practices, Melchert has subsequently illuminated the processes and procedures that undergirded the development of Islamic movements and institutions in the formative period of Islam. The present volume brings together sixteen of his articles, including those considered his most important as well as ones that are difficult to access. Originally published between 1997 and 2014, they are arranged chronologically under three rubrics - hadith, piety and law. The material is presented in a new format, updated by Melchert where appropriate, and indexed. The appearance of these articles together in a single volume makes this book a highly significant and welcome contribution to the field of classical Islamic Studies.

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Scholars from Europe, the Middle East and North America explore medieval and modern approaches to the study of HadithExamining and exemplifying the latest methods and trends in Hadith Studies, this book treats scholarship from the early Middle Ages to the 21st century. It looks at how hadiths were transmitted and organised by Muslim scholars to give us the collections we use today, and how hadiths were used to define the life of pietyas well as to tell us the revealed law. Some chapters seek to overturn, refine or reaffirm dominant paradigms within the field. Others look to expand our horizons in new directions. Comprising studies from the Middle East, Europe and North America, this book makes a major contribution to a controversial and challenging field.

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