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Muslim Ethics
Studies of Religion – Depth
Study (Islam)
Ethical Dilemmas
Should I donate a kidney so that another may live?
 Should I turn off life support for my brain-dead child?
 Should I mercifully end the suffering of my terminally ill,
elderly mother?
 If I am pregnant with quintuplets, should I abort one or
more so that the others have a better chance of
surviving?
 If I face infertility, how far should I go in treatment so that
I might have a child?
As medical treatment continues to expand and advance,
more ethical questions come up.
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Four Sources for Islamic Ethics
1.
2.
3.
4.
The Qur’an
The sunna of the Prophet– details some
of the concepts, laws & practical matters
stated in the Qur’an.
Ijma (consenus of Muslim Scholars)
Legal precedents or Qiyas.
The overriding concept of Muslim ethics is
tawhid, the absolute oneness of God.
Diversity of Views

Despite the promotion of unity of God and
community (umma), a diversity of views
exist. The reasons for this include:
 Various
schools of jurisprudence
 Different sects within Islam
 Differences in cultural backgrounds
 Different levels of religious observance
Sunni vs Shi’i Jurisprudence

Main difference starts in the sunna of the
Prophet.
 Sunni’s:
believe everything narrated by the Prophet
as long as transmittors are trustworthy. To develop
Shari’a, ijma and qiyas are required – hence the four
schools of jurisprudence.
 Shi’ites: developed their own system. They believe
that until Mahdi returns, the twelve Imams instructed
believers to follow the instructions or judgements of
the mujtahid.
Islam and Sexual Ethics

Preconceived ideas:
 Marriage
& Sexuality
 Homosexuality
 Gender Issues
Marriage and Sexuality
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It is encouraged for Muslims to marry and not
stay single. Follows the life of the Prophet.
Purpose for marriage:

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To restrain sexual passion.
The ordering of domestic life.
The care and responsibility towards children.
The expansion of the family.
Islamic jurists have traditionally held that
Muslim women may only enter into marriage
with Muslim men.
Polygamy is permitted under restricted
conditions - up to 4 wives with first wife’s
consent.
Marriage and Sexuality
Contraception with the aim of having a
permanently child-free marriage is not
accepted. So sterilisation is wrong - partly
because it prevents children permanently.
 Islam is strongly pro-family and regards
children as a gift from God.
 Muslim sexual ethics forbid sex outside
marriage – adultery is punishable (home
detention, whipping, even death).

Qur’an
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And among His signs is this, that He created for you
mates from among yourselves, that you may dwell in
tranquillity with them, and He has put love and
mercy between your hearts. Undoubtedly in these
are signs for those who reflect. Qur’an 30:21
Option = Marriage or abstain
And let those who do not find the means to marry
keep chaste until Allah makes them free from want
out of His grace. (Qur’an 24:33)
"O you young men! Whoever is able to marry should
marry, for that will help him to lower his gaze and
guard his modesty." (Al-Bukhari)
Choice

Women can choose

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“Do not prevent them from marrying their husbands when
they agree between themselves in a lawful manner.” (Qur’an
2: 232)
However, Imam Malik, one of the four great Imams of the
Sunni schools of Islamic jurisprudence, gives a slightly
restrictive interpretation to this verse and makes the
choice of partner by a Muslim girl subject to the overruling power or ijbar of her father or guardian in the
interests of the girl herself.
Marry a Muslim

Do not marry unbelieving women (idolaters), until they
believe: A slave woman who believes is better than an
unbelieving woman, even though she allures you. Nor marry
(your girls) to unbelievers until they believe…” Qur’an 2:221
Divorce
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Divorce is taken to be a last resort in Islam. The Prophet
Muhammad said:
"Of all the things Allah has permitted, the one He most
dislikes is divorce". Qur’an 2:226-227
If the estranged couple chooses separation they must go
through with it equitably. There must be two equitable
witnesses witness the divorce before GOD.
Sunni Muslim law allows a man to say Talaaq three
times (meaning I divorce you) and they are divorced.
The Muslim dowry is a gift from the bridegroom to the
bride and it becomes her exclusive property. (It remains
her property even if she is later divorced.)
Homosexuality
Consensus amongst scholars that we are
naturally heterosexual.
 The Qur’an refers to Lot where Allah
destroys those practising homosexual
activity.
 Hadiths – state homosexuality as a grave
sin. Equivalent to adultery and deserving
of the same punishment.

Gender Issues
In Islam, relations between the sexes are
governed by the principle of
complementarity rather than the principle
of equality.
 In many Islamic societies, there is a
division of roles creating a woman’s space
in the private sphere of the home and a
man’s in the public sphere.

Gender Issues

Dress Code
– Hijab, Burkas.
 Men – cover navel to knee
 Women
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Worship
 Women

separate to men
Roles
 Men
work - finances
 Women – Household & Family
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v
=Z2Oi3reniwA
Question
Explain how the sexual ethics of Muslims
express Islamic beliefs?
 2007 HSC Essay Question 4 — Islam
(20 marks)

 Discuss
Islamic ethical teachings in ONE
area. Choose from: bioethics; environmental
ethics; sexual ethics.