Ali Abdel Raziq

Who was Ali Abdel Raziq?

Ali Abdel Raziq was an Egyptian scholar of Islam, religious judge, and government minister. His writings—some controversial at the time—debated the role of religion and Islamic history in 20th century politics and government. While the implication of his arguments still remain a point of debate, his 1925 book Islam and the Foundations of Governance argued against a role for religion in politics or the political prescriptive value of religious texts. He argued that Islamic texts were and should remain neutral in political debate and civil institution building. He attended Oxford University and was a scholar and jurist at al-Azhar in Cairo.