Bint Al-Shati’ Critical Thematic Method and the Difference with Others

Abstract

Bint al-Shaṭi' is one of the few modern Muslim female figures who developed Islamic scholarship, especially interpretation of the Al-Qur'an. Issa J Boullata praised the Bint al-Shaṭi’ method as a modern interpretation method that has many advantages. The first objective is to identify the background and principles of the Bint al-Shati' method of interpretation. The second objective, to find the peculiarities and advantages of the method compared to others. The third objective is to find important things as a logical consequence of the method of interpretation. This study uses content analysis and comparison method. The author calls the Bint al-Shati' method the term critical thematic method, developed based on the weaknesses of the classical interpretation method. This method has its uniqueness even though it was adopted from the method of interpretation of Amin al-Khuli. The Bint al-Shati’ method, compared to several other methods, appears to be more complete and relatively more guarantees that the Qur'an is able to speak for itself. In the end, the principle of no synonym in the Bint al-Shati' method can strengthen the dictum of Abu Abbas Tsa'lab, can provide certainty about the stages of a legal process, and can strengthen certain theological understandings