Dr. Elkhosht receives a visit from the head of the African Scholars Forum and the head of the Islamic Cultural Association in Mauritania and West Africa; they discuss many issues related to renewing religious discourse

The discussions focused on the necessity of cultivating an open mind and sowing it with the seeds of modern science, as well as adapting Islamic jurisprudents’ thought to the social situation and the surrounding environment.

Restoring the spirit of the jurisprudence of objectives as one of the sciences most prone to renewal; confirming that our inherently flawed human understanding of the texts of the Qur’an and Sunnah is subject to renewal without violating the constants of our religion, while avoiding placing inherited traditions on a pedestal or considering them sacrosanct.

The head of the Mauritanian delegation praised Dr. Elkhosht, describing him as an enlightened thinker and innovative innovator.

Dr. Mohamed Othman Elkhosht, President of Cairo University, welcomed to his office a delegation led by Sheikh Muhammad Al-Hafiz Al-Nahwi, President of the Forum of African Scholars and President of the Islamic Cultural Association in Mauritania and West Africa, with a view to exchanging various visions and viewpoints in many areas related to the renewal of religious discourse.

At the beginning of the meeting, the two parties discussed ancient science, concluding that it comprises two distinct currents: the open mind, based on the latest developments of the times and the general interest of humanity, and the closed mind, based on narrow-mindedness, which results in extremism.

The two parties stressed the need to inoculate the open mental stream of thinking with contemporary sciences such as the humanities and social sciences, and for Islamic jurists to study psychology and social sciences, taking into account the social circumstances and environment in their jurisprudence.

The two parties also discussed theories of the development of religions through different eras. They also discussed the theory of the development of religions proposed by Dr. Elkhosht, which confirms that religions have a divine source but develop because they take into account the development of human consciousness and the extent to which human understanding of them has advanced through different eras.

Dr. Elkhosht emphasized the need for restoring the spirit of the jurisprudence of objectives and applying it to all other fields of Islam, especially since the jurisprudence of objectives is one of the branches of science most prone to renewal. Our human understanding of the meanings of the Holy Qur’an and the authentic Sunnah of the Prophet can be constantly renewed without desecrating religious constants, he emphasized, as well as saying that the science of objectives must shape our ways of thinking. Both parties rejected the idea of blindly worshipping inherited mores and traditions; there is the jurisprudence of objectives, and inversely, there is the jurisprudence of imitation that creates extremism.

Sheikh Muhammad Al-Hafiz Al-Nahwi praised the thought of Dr. Elkhosht and described him as an enlightened thinker imbued with creativity and innovation. He also praised the legacy of Cairo University as “the most radiant beacon that excels in various fields.” He invited Dr. Elkhosht to visit Mauritania to see its progress in action.

At the end of the meeting, Dr. Mohamed Othman Elkhosht presented the Cairo University shield to Sheikh Muhammad Al-Hafiz Al-Nahwi.

Sheikh Muhammad Al-Hafiz had previously held the position of Minister of Information and Deputy Speaker of the Mauritanian House of Representatives. He played distinguished national and international roles as well as a fundamental role in resolving the Senegalese-Mauritanian crisis after the events of 1989, by coordinating scholars and imams in the two countries.

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