The questioner says: I read in your recently published fatwas that the term "Islamic thought" is not permissible because it implies that Islam may consist of ideas that may be correct or may not be correct, and so on.

The questioner : The questioner says: I read in your recently published fatwas that the term "Islamic thought" is not permissible because it implies that Islam may consist of ideas that may be correct or may not be correct, and so on. However, you stated that using the term "Islamic thinker" is permissible because a person's thought changes and may be correct or the opposite. But the people who use the term "Islamic thought" say: We mean the thought of individuals, and we are not speaking about Islam as a whole or specifically about the Islamic Shari'ah. We do not mean the things revealed by Allah (Glorified and Exalted is He), but rather the ideas of individuals which may change with time and may be wrong, turning into what you believe to be correct. Is this term "Islamic thought" permissible with this interpretation or not? And what is the alternative?

The Shaykh : Yes, I say that it is established from the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) that he said: And we do not judge words except by what appears from them. If "Islamic thought" is said, this means that the thought itself is what is attributed to Islam, making Islam a thought. If the person using this expression intends the thought of the Islamic man, let him say "the thought of the Islamic man" or "the Islamic thinker," as in the second expression. Instead of saying "Islamic thought," we should say "Islamic ruling," because Islam is a ruling, and the Noble Qur'an is either a report or a ruling, as Allah the Exalted said: