Muhammad Shahrur
Muhammad Shahrour (April 11, 1938 – December 21, 2019) was a Syrian philosopher and author, and an emeritus professor of Civil Engineering at the University of Damascus. He trained as an engineer in Syria, the former Soviet Union, and Ireland, earning his Master’s and PhD from Trinity College Dublin in 1968 and 1972.
Shahrour wrote extensively about Islam and urged a reinterpretation of sacred texts. He referred to the Prophet Muhammad’s book as “The Book” rather than the Quran and did not view Hadith as a divine source. While his ideas were similar in spirit to Quranist thinking in some ways, he did not belong to the same group as Ahmed Subhy Mansour.
Born in Damascus, he finished high school in 1958 and studied civil engineering in Moscow until 1964, then worked at Damascus University. After years of study, he wrote his first book—a project that took more than twenty years and was sparked by the Arab world’s crisis after the 1967 Six Day War.
Shahrour argued that traditional Qur’anic scholarship is unscientific and that the Quran should be read in light of changing social realities. He believed that Islam sets limits (Hudud) rather than prescribing rigid laws, allowing a greater degree of personal freedom within those bounds. For example, he suggested that theft could be punished by community-based measures rather than by cutting off a hand, and that a judge could impose jail or community service.
His views challenged many traditional scholars, and his work sparked strong debate. Some supporters and opponents at Al-Azhar and among other scholars labeled him apostate, while Yusuf al-Qaradawi described his work as “a new religion.” Shahrour died in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, on December 21, 2019, and his body was returned to Damascus for burial.
He published many books in Arabic, with some translations into English. His first book circulated widely, while later works were banned in some countries and drew numerous critical responses.
This page was last edited on 2 February 2026, at 21:08 (CET).