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The Ottomans ruled much of the Arab World for four centuries. Bruce Masters's work surveys this period, emphasizing the cultural and social changes that occurred against the backdrop of the political realities that Arabs experienced as subjects of the Ottoman sultans. The persistence of Ottoman rule over a vast area for several centuries required that some Arabs collaborate in the imperial enterprise. Masters highlights the role of two social classes that made the empire successful: the Sunni Muslim religious scholars, the ulama, and the urban notables, the acyan. Both groups identified with the Ottoman sultanate and were its firmest backers, although for different reasons. The ulama legitimated the Ottoman state as a righteous Muslim sultanate, while the acyan emerged as the dominant political and economic class in most Arab cities due to their connections to the regime. Together, the two helped to maintain the empire.

This paper chronicles KUPI’s collective claim to religious authority for women ulama in Indonesia, from the perspective of the initiators of this movement. It reveals some of the thought process behind key actions taken by KUPI during its first decade in making this collective claim, particularly on how KUPI locates itself in Indonesia’s multiple histories of struggle towards social justice, how it constructs its broad-based and inclusive movement in order to make its bold claim, and how recognition of religious authority takes form at the community level and in the personal lives of KUPI’s women ulama. This chronicle draws on the authors’ engagements, analysis, and reflections as part of the initiators and leadership of KUPI.

Most In the post-apartheid landscape of South Africa, the constitutional promise of equality continues to challenge traditional power structures, particularly within religious institutions. This article critically examines the systematic exclusion of women from leadership roles in Muslim ulama bodies, despite significant advancements in religious education and scholarly achievements by Muslim women. The research argues that the exclusion of women from ulama bodies is neither theologically justified nor practically defensible. By drawing on egalitarian interpretations of Islamic traditions, historical examples of women's scholarly contributions in Islam, and contemporary global practices of women's religious leadership, the article challenges entrenched patriarchal interpretations that restrict women's roles. Specifically, this study explores the historical context of the Muslim community in South Africa, the current composition of ulama bodies, and the extensive scholarly achievements of Muslim women. It highlights how these bodies wield considerable authority in matters of marriage, divorce, inheritance, and issuing religious legal opinions, yet remain exclusively male-led. The article reveals that Muslim women in South Africa are now extensively educated in Islamic sciences and are fully capable of occupying leadership positions. By advocating for gender diversity in religious leadership, the research proposes a path towards more inclusive, representative, and equitable religious governance that aligns with both Islamic principles and South Africa’s constitutional values of gender equality.

From the cleric-led Iranian revolution to the rise of the Taliban in Afghanistan, many people have been surprised by what they see as the modern reemergence of an antimodern phenomenon. This book helps account for the increasingly visible public role of traditionally educated Muslim religious scholars (the `ulama) across contemporary Muslim societies. Muhammad Qasim Zaman describes the transformations the centuries-old culture and tradition of the `ulama have undergone in the modern era--transformations that underlie the new religious and political activism of these scholars. In doing so, it provides a new foundation for the comparative study of Islam, politics, and religious change in the contemporary world. While focusing primarily on Pakistan, Zaman takes a broad approach that considers the Taliban and the `ulama of Iran, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, India, and the southern Philippines. He shows how their religious and political discourses have evolved in often unexpected but mutually reinforcing ways to redefine and enlarge the roles the `ulama play in society. Their discourses are informed by a longstanding religious tradition, of which they see themselves as the custodians. But these discourses are equally shaped by--and contribute in significant ways to--contemporary debates in the Muslim public sphere. This book offers the first sustained comparative perspective on the `ulama and their increasingly crucial religious and political activism. It shows how issues of religious authority are debated in contemporary Islam, how Islamic law and tradition are continuously negotiated in a rapidly changing world, and how the `ulama both react to and shape larger Islamic social trends. Introducing previously unexamined facets of religious and political thought in modern Islam, it clarifies the complex processes of religious change unfolding in the contemporary Muslim world and goes a long way toward explaining their vast social and political ramifications.

The current research analysed the role of Indonesian Council of Ulama in halāl certification after the enactment of Law No. 33 of 2014. The Indonesian Council of Ulama is Indonesia’s peak clerical body with the authority to specify halāl and Harām fatwas of a product. It plays a crucial role in helping the government to assure halāl certification of the product before it is consumed. According to publicly available data, there are 85 percent of food, beverages, and cosmetic products with unidentified halāl certification circulating in Indonesia. Moreover, there are foods and beverages that put halāl label illegally without any halāl testing on the products. This issue may cause concern for Indonesian people, as majority of them are Muslims. The current study applied library research method to retrieve secondary data on halāl certification of food and beverages, which was in accordance with the Law No. 33 of 2014 on Halāl Product Guarantee. The study determined that the involvement of the Indonesian Council of Ulama to establish legal certainty for halāl and Harām food and beverage products after the enactment of Law No. 33 of 2014 for Guaranteed Halāl Products (JPH) was critical. Even though, the halāl certification procedure is handled by BPJPH, the Indonesian Council of Ulama has a role to play in halāl certification by issuing a halāl fatwa for a product. It also helps to accredit Halāl Inspection Agency and certifying halāl auditors.

Political wisdom in Indonesia has long held that its large mass-based Muslim organizations, Nahdlatul Ulama (NU) and Muhammadiyah, are politically influential. Within the current democratizing environment ulama have faced many challenges to their social standing and it is our contention in this article that their socio-political role has been diminished in this environment. In order to gauge this situation, the Asia Foundation, working with Indonesian research organizations, conducted a nation-wide survey to explore the changing ways that these Muslim organizations wield political influence, especially at the local level. The survey results confirm that religious figures, or ulama, within NU and Muhammadiyah, do not wield the same kind of direct political influence as they have historically, but this article also highlights how these leaders are still important power brokers at the local level.

The ratification of the Sexual Violence Crime Bill in May 2022 reflects the collective efforts of diverse actors advocating for gender justice in Indonesia, including women ulama from the Congress of Indonesian Women Ulama (Kongres Ulama Perempuan Indonesia/KUPI). Central to this achievement is the KUPI’s pioneering 2017 fatwa condemning sexual violence, which empowered women ulama to mobilize support for the bill. This article explores how KUPI’s fatwa galvanized support for the Bill, helped to overcome resistance, and built lasting coalitions, thereby drawing attention to the overlooked role of women in issuing fatwas and in navigating and reshaping traditional religious frameworks to address gender-based violence. Using qualitative methods—including online observation, textual analysis, and interviews—I examine how women ulama challenge patriarchal interpretations of Islamic law and assert their authority in public religious discourse. I argue that, in social movements, fatwas can serve as internal innovations that offer shared moral guidance, unite actors, and act as mobilizing tools to drive policy change. This study contributes to a deeper understanding of female religious authority in Islamic jurisprudence and highlights shifting gender dynamics in contemporary Muslim societies, with a specific focus on Indonesia.

The focus of this study is to identify cohung (peacock carcass) sale by dadak merak reog craftsman in Ponorogo and to analyse the view of Indonesian Council of Ulama (Majelis Ulama Indonesia) at Ponorogo Regency on cohung transaction. This empirical study used qualitative method. Data sources cover interview with dadak merak craftsman and MUI at Ponorogo Regency as well as documentation and literature to answer the research problem. It results in two findings. First, cohung transaction by the craftsman is done to create the fierce of dadak merak and got on agreed price. Secondly, cohung sale according to MUI at Ponorogo regency has different reasons. It is permitted because the sale practice depends on the context that is to be used not for consumption, and assumed that it is not only as transaction but also as wage. It is forbidden to buy the carcass since peacock is preserved animal.

This research aims to examine the role of Nahdlatul Ulama’s (NU) diplomacy in spreading the values of Islam Rahmatan Lil ‘Alamin to strengthen the conceptions of state and religion in Indonesia. This study is beneficial in understanding the fundamental religious organization (NU) that can contribute to interfaith and international dialogue and cooperation, support social harmony, and reinforce an inclusive and tolerant national foundation in Indonesia. Therefore, the current study deployed a qualitative research methodology. The analysis was conducted using data collected through a literature review, in-depth interviews with leaders and members of NU, and a content analysis of videos and netizen comments on the NU Online YouTube channel regarding discussions by Gus Dur about the formation of an Islamic state. This study also explores the genealogy of NU, the state and religious conceptions advocated by NU, and the biography and views of Gus Dur on the topic. The findings indicate that NU, through Gus Dur's thinking and an inclusive diplomatic approach, has actively promoted an interpretation of Islam oriented towards universal values such as justice, peace, and tolerance. NU reflects this by actively promoting Islam Rahmatan Lil ‘Alamin as the foundation for a stronger, pluralistic, and democratic state. The study also examined the polemics of state and religious conceptions that trigger public discussions and explores the NU differences through cross-faith dialogue and understanding.

This research examines the conflicts of natural resources in Kendeng Rembang, Central Java and how the position of ulama in the conflict. This study is a field research with a qualitative approach. Data was collected by interview, observation, and document study methods. Documents stored on the internet are widely quoted sources. The analysis uses qualitative descriptive. The results of the research show that the conflict occurred because residents refused limestone mining carried out by PT. Semen Indonesia (PT. SI) in the Kendeng Mountains which are rich in natural resources. Residents are concerned that mining limestone - as a raw material for making cement - can damage the environment. This conflict is a vertical and structural conflict. The main actor is a citizen dealing with PT. SI and the government. Restu and ulama support are contested by both parties. As a result, the ulama's view of the conflict was divided into two parts.