The circumstances and social developments in the Renaissance era led to the distancing of the Christian religious institution from the management of societal affairs in all fields on one hand, and the remarkable progress of experimental sciences and industry on the other hand. This gave rise to a philosophical trend in Europe that called for limiting the role of religion to the personal relationship between the individual and their Lord, without assigning any other role to religion in organizing human life, whether in the political, social, economic, or other dimensions. Western individuals felt capable of meeting all their material needs and desires for luxury and well-being through experimental sciences and reason, as if they were the ultimate purpose of life. Humans no longer needed religion except in the realm where science and reason were unable to fulfill this role, which is the realm of spiritual and individual relationship with God Almighty. It is not permissible for religion to exceed this limit by taking control over political, economic, social, or cultural affairs in society.

        And there is a renewed need to discuss this issue due to the presence of some modern secular trends in Islamic societies that attempt to limit the role of religion to this narrow framework, which is individual worship and rituals, and exclude it from its role in important areas of life.

        Besides, there are several other theories which have emerged from within the spaciousness of the Islamic thought and on the hands of some intellectual Moslems out of whom a group has emerged that has called for restricting the role of religion in achieving the hereafter happiness only, whereas the others have gone towards another direction where the original purpose of religion is to achieve the eternal hereafter happiness, but because this temporal world is the sole way that leads to the hereafter; therefore, religion interferes with it as much as necessity demands through restricting the objectives of the general origins which enfold the human intellect such as social justice or equality, rationalism and the like.

        This trend focuses on the idea that religion provides us with a framework of values, principles, and general guidelines, but it does not provide us with the methodology to solve worldly issues. The responsibility of providing a specific system lies solely with knowledge. One adherent of this approach states, "Religion has no role in a person's material life except for determining general principles, guidelines, and moral values that direct and frame human activities in a general sense[...]. It is not the role of religion to determine the methods of life, its aspects, and the planning of lifestyles and livelihoods. Rather, this responsibility falls upon individuals to discover through their intellect, knowledge, and experience, but within the framework of general religious guidelines and values."[1]

         This trend can be referred to as the minimalist doctrine, while in contrast, there is a current that advocates for the possibility of deriving all human sciences from religious texts. According to this perspective, religion has comprehensive teachings that encompass both worldly and spiritual realms, allowing humans to derive all physical sciences such as physics, chemistry, mathematics, engineering, medicine, and others from religious texts.

        One follower of this approach is Abu Hamid al-Ghazali, who believes that the Qur’an is the vast ocean from which the knowledge of the ancients and moderns branches out. He states, "All human sciences such as medicine, astronomy, the structure of the world, the structure of the body, anatomical organs, and others, whether discovered or to be discovered by humans, are not beyond the Qur’an. They are all derived from one ocean of Allah's knowledge."[2]

       Similarly, Badr al-Din Muhammad al-Zarkashi expresses his view, saying, "Every knowledge, if not extracted from the Quran, lacks evidence." [3]Their theory can be called the theory of the utmost limit.

Between the previous two theories, the minimalist and the utmost limit, there is another theory that is considered a middle ground. Some refer to it as the inclusive theory. Due to the limitations of our discussion, we will not critique the previous theories but rather present the selected theory, which is renowned among scholars.

         The inclusive theory differs from the utmost limit theory by including religion in the details of empirical sciences such as medicine and physics. According to this theory, religion is concerned with everything that contributes to achieving the purpose of human creation. Anything beyond that falls under the responsibility of the individual.

       The supreme religious authority of the sect, Es-Sayyid Abul-Qasim Al-Khoei (May Allah be pleased with him) comments on that by saying: "The greatness of the Qur’an is sufficient, and it suffices in its status and honor as the speech of the Almighty God, and the miracle of His noble Prophet. Its verses are responsible for guiding humanity in all their affairs and stages, throughout generations and roles. They guarantee their attainment of the ultimate goal and the greatest happiness in both the worldly life and the hereafter."[4]

       Surah An-Nahl: 89, "And We have revealed to you the Book as a clarification for all things and as guidance and mercy and good tidings for the Muslims", does not imply that the Qur’an encompasses all scientific knowledge, including natural sciences like chemistry, physics, and astronomy. Rather, the intended meaning is that the Qur’an has not neglected any matter concerning human happiness and guidance towards the ultimate purpose for which they were created.

      In his interpretation, the esteemed scholar At-Tabataba'i (may he rest in peace) states, "Since the Qur’an is a book of guidance for all people, it is evident that 'all things' mentioned in the verse refer to everything related to guidance that people need in their quest for true knowledge, including matters related to principles, the afterlife, virtuous ethics, divine laws, stories, and admonitions. The Qur’an clarifies all of these aspects."[5]

       Just as the inclusive theory rejects the excesses of the utmost limit theory, it also rejects the deficiencies of the minimalist theory, which limits the role of religion to establishing general frameworks without the presence of practical systems that help humans lead a happy life in harmony with the hereafter.

       One contemporary scholar expresses his view on this theory, saying: "Religion is a comprehensive system for human life in various fields, including politics, ethics, economy, and society. Religion provides guidance and addresses each of these fields. However, this does not mean that religion discourages thinking and planning in these areas, turning humans into blind imitators without any foresight. Rather, it means that the general principles that lead to happiness in both the worldly life and the hereafter are clarified by religion, while leaving the details of planning to individuals in light of these established principles."[6]

        Indeed, those who narrow the scope of religion to a mere connection between the Creator and the creation and call upon humans to pray and supplicate in churches and temples while leaving other matters to human whims, such a religion has a narrow and non-comprehensive scope, similar to contemporary Christianity. In this context, churches have reduced the religious duty of humans to prayer and supplication to God for just one hour on one day of the week. The mentioned scholar suggests that the narrow scope of religion mentioned above serves as a criterion for its judgment. However, if one were to consider the obligations and prohibitions mentioned in the Torah and the thousands of rulings in the Islamic Shari'ah that cover various fields, they would reconsider such thinking.

How Can Religion Achieve Happiness for Man in Different Fields?

       The nature of the religious system, like any other system, even technological systems, consists of three elements: inputs, processing, and outputs. The system's founder organizes the information and internal components in a way that they interact in a proper manner, leading to the desired outcomes.

        Religion has fulfilled all of this. It has provided a significant number, reaching thousands, of rulings, laws, and commands that address human problems and meet their needs at both the personal and social levels (inputs). It has also established the goals and objectives that these rulings should serve (outputs). The only remaining task is to discover the system that processes this data of rulings by establishing a structure that aligns and harmonizes them, leading humans towards the intended goals. The proponents of religion and the scholars of the community have undertaken this task in the best possible way. A glance at the efforts of some of them in deriving these systems in various human domains, such as politics, economics, society, education, and others, is sufficient evidence of their endeavors.

       The school of Ahl al-Bayt (peace be upon them) is distinguished by a rich modern heritage in various fields of knowledge. It begins with the tradition of the Prophet (peace be upon him and his pure progeny), followed by the traditions of Ahlul Bayt, and culminates in narrations from Imam Al-Mahdi (may Allah's blessings be upon him). Living this heritage is an experience that spans over 250 years. This heritage demonstrates the scope of religion and its extension to various aspects of individual and societal life.

       In addition, the practical and governmental biography of the Noble Prophet Muhammed (peace be upon him and his pure progeny) in Medinah, as well as the biography of the Commander of the Faithful, Imam Ali and Imam Hasan (peace be upon them), narrate the experience of applying religion in various aspects of life. It was manifested in various cultural, political, economic, educational, social, and other fields. The best evidence of the vast scope of religion is this practical experience. Sayyid Muhammad Baqir Es-Sadr (may Allah be pleased with him) referred to this when discussing the economic system in Islam, saying:

 I don't know what those who complain about the existence of an Islamic economy or the treatment of economic problems in Islam have to say! What do they say about the era of application in Islam? Didn't the Muslims live the early period of Islamas a society with its economic and social lives in all aspects? Wasn't the leadership of the Islamic community in the hands of the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him and his pure progeny)? Weren't there specific solutions available to this leadership to address the community's issues of production, distribution, and various economic problems? So, what if we claim that these solutions reflect the Islamic approach to organizing economic life and thus represent an Islamic economic doctrine?[7]

       The great scholar Al-Tabatabaei (may his soul rest in peace) also says in this regard: "Islam has proven this in the short period of time when the ruler of the Muslim community was religion. It has also proven this by raising individuals who have reformed themselves and reformed the souls of others. This is because the aspects of perfection […] in the structure of civil society today, which guarantee the life of civilization and progress, are dependent on Islamic progress and its spread in the worldly world[...]"[8]

         And among the texts that illustrate the comprehensiveness and wide scope of the religion is what has been narrated from Imam Abu Abdullah EsSadiq (peace be upon him) who said, "Verily, Allah, the Blessed and Exalted, has revealed in the Qur'an the clarification of everything. By Allah, He has not left anything that the servants are in need of, such that a servant would say: 'If only this was revealed in the Qur'an,' except that Allah has revealed it therein.[9]

         Ali ibn Ibrahim has narrated from Muhammad ibn ‘Isa from Yunus from Husayn ibn al-Mundhir from ‘Umar ibn Qays from Imam Abu Ja‘far Al-Baqir (a.s.) who has said the following:

"I heard Imam Abu Ja‘far Al-Baqir (a.s.) saying, ‘Allah, the Almighty, has not left untold anything that the ’ummah would need except that He has revealed in His book and has explained them to His messenger. He has made a limit for everything and an indication for it to point forwards to it and He has made a limit for those who would trespass those limits."[10]

        On the authority of Hammad, on the authority of Abu Abdullah Imam EsSadiq (peace be upon him), he said: “I heard him say, ‘There is no case for which there is not a law in the book or the Sunnah.’”[11]

        It becomes evident that the religion, represented by the Book and the Sunnah, is sufficient to fulfill the needs of humanity in all areas pertaining to guiding human beings towards the goals for which they were created.

Esh-Shaykh Muqdad El-Robai‘i

A researcher and an Instructor at Hawza

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