Justice in Islamic Discourse
Abstract
Published in the edited volume Discourses of Justice. Indicators of Crises?, edited by Werner Gephart (Klostermann, “KrisenAnalysen” series, 2026, pp. 253-272), this chapter by Raja Sakrani, senior researcher at the University of Bonn, examines how justice is articulated in Islamic discourse.
The author’s starting point is that injustice comes first. While we may not all be able to say clearly what is just, or what a just world would look like, we do know what is unjust, and why. Drawing on Luc Boltanski and Laurent Thévenot’s sociology of justification, she asks whether the sense of justice is universal or local, and how justice can be understood in cultures with different legal systems without reducing it to procedures valid at all times and in all places, or falling into relativism.
These questions have taken on particular significance since the popular uprisings that swept many Arab countries from December 2010 onwards and the overthrow of several totalitarian regimes, the most recent being the Syrian regime in December 2024.
Stemming from a conference held at the University of Bonn, the volume observes that the vocabulary of the just and the unjust has spread through political debate and the world religions alike, from gender to climate, from restorative justice to memory. This spread appears to be both an expression and a harbinger of crisis. Raja Sakrani’s chapter is part of the section devoted to the relationship between legal pluralism, justice culture and religion.
The chapter is available (subscription or purchase) on the Nomos eLibrary (DOI 10.5771/9783465147626-253).
Résumé
Paru en anglais sous le titre « Justice in Islamic Discourse » dans le volume collectif Discourses of Justice. Indicators of Crises?, dirigé par Werner Gephart (Klostermann, collection « KrisenAnalysen », 2026, p. 253-272), ce chapitre de Raja Sakrani, chercheuse senior à l’Université de Bonn, examine la manière dont la justice se dit dans le discours islamique.
L’auteure part d’un constat : l’injustice est première. Chacun ne sait pas forcément dire ce qu’est la justice, ni à quoi ressemblerait un monde juste, mais chacun sait reconnaître ce qui est injuste, et pourquoi. En s’appuyant sur la sociologie de la justification de Luc Boltanski et Laurent Thévenot, elle demande si le sens de la justice est universel ou local, et comment comprendre la justice dans des cultures dotées de systèmes juridiques différents sans la réduire à des procédures valables en tout temps et en tout lieu, ni tomber dans le relativisme.
Ces questions prennent un relief particulier depuis les soulèvements populaires qui ont touché de nombreux pays arabes à partir de décembre 2010 et la chute de plusieurs régimes totalitaires, dont le dernier en date est le régime syrien, en décembre 2024.
Issu d’un colloque organisé à l’Université de Bonn, le volume observe que le vocabulaire du juste et de l’injuste s’est répandu dans le débat politique comme dans les religions, du genre au climat, de la justice restaurative à la mémoire. Cette diffusion apparaît à la fois comme l’expression et l’annonce d’une crise. Le chapitre de Raja Sakrani prend place dans la partie consacrée aux relations entre pluralisme juridique, culture de la justice et religion.
Le chapitre est accessible, en accès payant, sur la Nomos eLibrary (DOI 10.5771/9783465147626-253).
ملخّص
صدر هذا الفصل بالإنكليزية في كتاب جماعي أشرف عليه فيرنر غيبهارت (دار كلوسترمان، سلسلة «تحليلات الأزمة»، 2026، ص 253-272)، وعنوانه:
Justice in Islamic Discourse, in Werner Gephart (ed.), Discourses of Justice. Indicators of Crises?, Klostermann, 2026, pp. 253-272
وفيه تدرس رجاء سكراني، الباحثة الأولى في جامعة بون، الطريقةَ التي يُعبَّر بها عن العدالة في الخطاب الإسلامي.
تنطلق المؤلّفة من فكرة أنّ الظلم أسبقُ من العدل في الإدراك. فليس كلّ واحد منّا قادراً على أن يقول بوضوح ما العدل، ولا كيف يبدو العالم العادل، لكنّه يعرف الظلم حين يراه، ويدرك لماذا هو ظلم. وبالاستناد إلى سوسيولوجيا التسويغ عند لوك بولتانسكي ولوران تيفنو، تتساءل: هل الإحساس بالعدالة كونيّ أم محلّيّ؟ وكيف نفهم العدالة في ثقافات ذات أنظمة قانونية مختلفة من دون اختزالها في إجراءات صالحة لكلّ زمان ومكان، ومن دون الوقوع في النسبية؟
وتكتسب هذه الأسئلة أهمية خاصة منذ الانتفاضات الشعبية التي شهدتها بلدان عربية كثيرة ابتداءً من ديسمبر/كانون الأول 2010، وسقوط أنظمة شمولية عدّة، آخرها النظام السوري في ديسمبر/كانون الأول 2024.
أمّا الكتاب، الذي انبثق من ندوة عُقدت في جامعة بون، فيلاحظ أنّ مفردات العدل والظلم انتشرت في النقاش السياسي كما في الأديان، من قضايا النوع الاجتماعي إلى المناخ، ومن العدالة التصالحية إلى الذاكرة. ويبدو هذا الانتشار تعبيراً عن أزمة وإنذاراً بها في آن. ويندرج فصل رجاء سكراني في القسم المخصّص للعلاقة بين التعدّدية القانونية وثقافة العدالة والدين.
والفصل متاح لقاء اشتراك أو شراء على منصة نوموس الإلكترونية.
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