Ma`rifat Kalami

The development of Islamic humanities, as one of the pillars of establishing a new Islamic civilization, faces fundamental theoretical challenges in the two domains of “possibility” and “scope.” These challenges stem from divergent views regarding the relationship between religion and human epistemic needs. With an analytical–argumentative approach and with the aim of contributing to the formation of Islamic humanities, this study examines the impact of extra-textual, intra-textual, and integrative methods of determining the scope of religion on the possibility and extent of producing Islamic humanities. The findings indicate that accepting or rejecting the possibility of developing Islamic humanities is directly linked to one's conception of the scope of religion— a conception shaped by the methodological approach employed in delineating that scope. Accordingly, perspectives that deny the possibility of Islamic humanities are typically based on a reductionist understanding of religion and reliance on inadequate methods of scope determination. In contrast, comprehensive approaches grounded in valid and wide-ranging methodologies not only affirm the possibility but also emphasize the necessity of developing such sciences. Furthermore, the scope of Islamic humanities that can be produced is likewise dependent on the adopted approach to defining the scope of religion. Thus, adopting a sound and comprehensive method in scope analysis of religion constitutes a fundamental prerequisite for advancing the formulation and development of Islamic humanities.