Egypt's Al-Azhar Association of Senior Scholars came into being in 1911, more than 700 years after the establishment of al-Azhar, and was replaced in 1961 by another entity called the Center for Islamic Research. It was only in 2012 with the modification of al-Azhar law that the association was resurrected.
According to the report presented by the committee that foresaw the establishment of the association, al-Azhar was not just a place of learning but also one from which knowledgeable scholars and reliable clerics were to emerge. This, the report added, was the purpose of establishing the Association of Senior Scholars. The association was comprised of 30 scholars who proportionally represented the four schools of Islamic thought in Egypt and started acquiring a special place in religious institutions and in the community in general. Members of the association, who were to remain in their jobs as long they were able to, ranked second after al-Azhar grand imam and the grand mufti.
In its first stage, the association was blamed for its clampdown on intellectuals and scholars who attempted to reach innovative interpretations of Islam. An example was the case of Sheikh Ali Abdel Razek, a religious judge, who was put on trial, dismissed from his job, and stripped of his academic degree for arguing in his book Islam and the Foundations of Governance (1925) that the concept of the Caliphate was not part of Islamic law but rather a political system that Muslims devised to manage the worldly affairs of their nascent nation. Another example was the case of intellectual and Arabic Literature professor Taha Hussein, who was accused the association’s scholars of deriding religion following the release of his book Pre-Islamic Poetry and was later referred to the prosecutor general. On the other hand, the association was credited for its part in the national struggle for freedom and its stance against foreign intervention.
The association entered its second stage in 2012 when on January 19 the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces – then the de facto ruler of Egypt – issued a modification of al-Azhar law based on the recommendation of Grand Imam Dr. Ahmed al-Tayeb. The new law re-established the Association of Senior Scholars in an attempt to revive the reputation of al-Azhar as the “beacon of the Muslim world.” The association was also tasked with electing the grand imam when the position became vacant and nominating a grand mufti as well as affirming al-Azhar’s independence. According to the new law, the association was to be headed by al-Azhar grand imam and to be comprised of 40 members from all four Islamic schools of thought, and its decisions were to be taken through majority voting. The law determined the main duties of the association, which included providing religious advice on contemporary issues both through its members as well as through the specialized committees of the Center of Islamic Research that remained in place after the association’s revival. The law also set personal and academic criteria based on which members of the association were to be chosen and gave the grand imam the right to choose the members of the first round, who were also to be appointed with a presidential decree.
On July 17, 2012, the Association of Senior Scholars was formed of 27 scholars, including ministers of Islamic endowments, rectors of al-Azhar University and current and previous muftis. The law stipulated the procedures to be taken in case a member left and in cases in which memberships were to be suspended.
The new law resulted in two important achievements. First, the Grand Imam Dr. Ahmed al-Tayeb was granted independence and made immune to impeachment and was given the chance to revive the association to which he can resort in a variety of political and intellectual issues related to religion, and which have abound lately. Second, al-Azhar was made the final reference on all Islamic affairs and would, therefore, be able to resolve religious disputes and have the final say on controversial issues.

Senior scholars and the new Egyptian constitution

Al Arabiya Institute for Studies
Thursday 10 January 2013
Last Update: Tuesday, 19 May 2020 KSA 12:35 - GMT 09:35
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