La discussion sur la modernité, ses caractéristiques et les défis a été un des thèmes majeurs dans la poésie, la littérature et la philosophie pendant des deux derniers siècles. Muhammad Iqbal [m. 1938] a aussi contribué à cette discussion mais sa pensée reste, en grande partie, inconnue en dehors du monde musulman. L`étude actuelle n`est qu`un petit pas pour redresser cette lacune. La première partie cherche à identifier les caractéristiques de la modernité et les défis qu`elle pose au bien-être de l`humanité par rapport aux idées de penseurs occidentaux réputés [notamment Goethe et Blake]. A cet égard, la quantification, l`objectivité détachée, la dépendance excessive sur la technologie, et la subjugation des autres pour des gains économiques sont les facteurs clés. La section suivante décrit l`analyse et la critique d`Iqbal sur la modernité par rapport à ces quatre caractéristiques avec référence aux œuvres poétiques qui sont l`expression la plus succincte de sa pensée. Iqbal se sert des diverses ressources de l`Orient ainsi que de l`Occident - la poésie, la littérature, la philosophie, la théologie, et la science moderne. Aussi vaste que les ressources dont il se sert, l`analyse de la modernité chez Iqbal s`attache sciemment au Coran et à la tradition prophétique. Cette étude expose aussi comment les idées d`Iqbal sont développées dans une partie du monde musulman - l`Iran de post indépendance, à travers les œuvres de deux penseurs modernes de l`Iran, Ali Shariati et Jalāl Al-e Ahmad. Cette recherche montre que l`analyse d`Iqbal est encore pertinente aujourd'hui hui pour tous ceux qui sont confrontés à la modernité en Orient ainsi qu`en Occident. / Discussion about the characteristics, opportunities and challenges of modernity has been a prominent theme in Western and Eastern poetry, literature and philosophy over the past few centuries. Muhammad Iqbal [d. 1938] has also contributed to this discussionŕbut his thought remains largely unknown outside the Muslim world. The present inquiry will be a small step in redressing this shortcoming. The first part of the inquiry seeks to identify the defining characteristics of modernity and the challenge that they pose to human well-being, with reference to the ideas of well-known Western thinkers [most notably Goethe and Blake]. Quantification, detached objectivity, excessive reliance on technology, and subjugation of others for economic gain are the key factors in this regard. The next part describes Iqbalřs analysis and critique of modernity with respect to these four characteristics using his poetical works where his position is most succin! ctly expressed. Iqbal uses a wide range of sources from both the East and the Westŕpoetry, literature, philosophy, theology, and modern science. As wide ranging as his use of different sources is, Iqbalřs analysis of modernity remains self-consciously attached to the Qurřan and the prophetic tradition. This analysis also shows how his ideas have been expanded upon in one part of the Muslim world Ŕ post-independence Iran, using the works of two modern Iranian thinkers, Ali Shariati and Jalāl Al-e Ahmad. The inquiry seeks to demonstrate that Iqbalřs insights remain relevant even today for all those experiencing modernityŕwhether in the East or in the West.

The purpose of this study is to investigate how religious ethics, while retaining its identity, can contribute to political debate and to the understanding of justice. The inquiry addresses these issues by focusing on theological perspectives which challenge the solutions offered to these questions by the liberal paradigm. Three kinds of challenges are studied, each of which is represented by one thinker from the Islamic tradition and one from the Christian tradition, in order to enable a comparative perspective on the contributions of religious traditions. The thinkers studied are: 1) modified liberalism, represented by Abdullahi Ahmed An-Na’im and Duncan B. Forrester; 2) liberationism, represented by Ali Shariati and Gustavo Gutierrez; and 3) radical traditionalism, as developed by Tariq Ramadan and John Milbank. The study is organized around three main questions. First, how can innovative interpretations of religious tradition be plausibly justified? Second, what role should religious arguments and reasons play in the political sphere? Third, what can religious ethics and theological thought contribute to the understanding of social justice? The questions are engaged by means of a critical and reconstructive engagement with the six thinkers. The suggested solutions are assessed in terms of the criteria of authenticity, communicability, and potential for transformation. It is argued that a religious ethic can rely on a tradition without accepting conservative understandings of that tradition. Furthermore, it is argued that the coherence of religious ethics can be made available for public discourse but that the hospitability of the public forum to such contributions needs to be realized through a deepened democratic culture and a critique of power structures which condition perceptions of rationality. While religious ethics do not articulate complete alternative understandings of justice, they articulate contributions by relating justice to human sociality and to transcendence.