Morality and Revelation in Islamic Thought and Beyond

This brilliant book is almost unique in combining profound erudition in the history of Islamic theology and philosophy with a mastery and rigorous application of the methods of contemporary analytic philosophy. These virtues shine forth in Saemi’s comprehensive analysis of a rarely discussed problem of evil: conflicts between moral injunctions in a text believed to be divinely inspired, and thus infallible, and the deeply held moral convictions of believers. Saemi critically examines a virtually exhaustive range of possible resolutions of this conflict, finding only one that is reasonably satisfactory. Although he discusses the problem primarily with reference to Islamic scriptures, his arguments apply, with relevant adjustments, to the problem as it arises in other religions, including Christianity. This is a tour de force in both the philosophy of religion and moral philosophy.

Jeff McMahan, Sekyra and White’s Professor of Moral Philosophy, University of Oxford

Morality and Revelation in Islamic Thought and Beyond, New York: Oxford University Press (2024)