In an era where global movements for gender equality are reshaping societal norms, Islamic feminism stands at a fascinating crossroads: it seeks to reconcile the time-honored teachings of Islam with the ideals of contemporary feminism.
By Dr. Tim Orr
As an evangelical scholar steeped in the study of Islamic feminism, I feel compelled to address the movement’s core tensions—its ambition to align Islam with feminist ideals and the price it pays by concealing or softening Islam’s traditional teachings about women. Islamic feminism claims to seek justice and equality within Islam, yet to achieve these ends, it often downplays, reinterprets, or even obscures clear Qur’anic directives on gender roles. This raises fundamental questions: Is Islamic feminism a genuine pursuit of truth within Islam, or is it an attempt to selectively reshape Islamic principles to mirror modern Western values? From a polemical standpoint, one could argue that Islamic feminism does not engage with Islam on its own terms but rather seeks to mold it into something unrecognizable by traditional standards.
Islamic feminism begins with a premise that feels foreign to traditional Islam: that patriarchy underpins Islamic teachings about gender. This premise conflicts directly with the Qur’an’s portrayal of gender roles as divinely ordained, with women and men created for complementary functions, each assigned distinct responsibilities. By starting from the feminist conviction that gender roles are social constructs, Islamic feminism risks overriding the Qur’anic worldview and replacing it with a secular one that views equality in terms of identical roles and authority. For evangelical Christians who uphold the Bible’s teachings on gender, this is familiar territory—a reminder of the compromises that arise when sacred texts are approached with modern assumptions.
One of Islamic feminism’s boldest moves is its attempt to redefine qiwamah (a husband’s authority) and wilayah (male guardianship) to align with feminist ideals of equality. Scholars like Ziba Mir-Hosseini argue that these concepts are rooted in historical, patriarchal contexts rather than in the divine wisdom of the Qur’an. But this reinterpretation feels less like respectful inquiry and more like an intentional sidestep, skirting the Qur’an’s actual prescriptions. The Qur’an, for instance, in Surah An-Nisa (4:34), explicitly states that “men are in charge of women by right of what Allah has given one over the other.” To reinterpret qiwamah as mere “financial responsibility” or “moral support,” as some Islamic feminists do, seems to ignore the plain meaning of the text.
For critics, Islamic feminism’s attempts to redefine these terms are not enlightening but evasive. The movement sidesteps the fact that the Qur’an’s view of women assigns them a different, often subordinate, role. This isn’t just a matter of “contextualizing” scripture; it is a refusal to engage honestly with what the Qur’an actually says. To those who believe the Qur’an is a divinely ordained text, as most Muslims do, this approach is troubling. It replaces divine wisdom with contemporary egalitarian ideals, compromising the integrity of Islamic teachings to make them more palatable to modern sensibilities.
Islamic feminism often relies on a “hermeneutic of suspicion,” questioning whether traditional interpretations of the Qur’an were influenced by male biases. But this attitude of suspicion often borders on cynicism, leading Islamic feminists to assume that male authority structures are inherently flawed rather than divinely guided. By defaulting to skepticism, Islamic feminists frame traditional interpretations as relics of misogynistic times rather than products of sincere engagement with divine revelation.
To claim, for example, that wilayah was merely a product of its time—rooted in “pre-modern patriarchal society”—is to overlook the fact that the Qur’an itself mandates this structure. Islamic feminism’s hermeneutic of suspicion seems less like a quest for truth and more like a tool to dismiss teachings that conflict with contemporary standards of equality. Critics argue that this approach ultimately disguises the Qur’an’s clear message about gender, reframing the text through the lens of feminism while sidelining its original meaning. This is not respectful engagement with the faith but a calculated reformulation to serve an ideological agenda.
The movement’s critics see Islamic feminism as less about understanding Islam than about reshaping it to fit a preexisting ideological framework. Islamic feminists often claim that their approach brings intellectual rigor to understanding the Qur’an, but one might ask: Is this intellectual rigor or ideological manipulation? By presuming that Islam must align with secular feminist values, Islamic feminists implicitly suggest that the Qur’an’s teachings are only valuable if they conform to modern ideals. In the evangelical tradition, we understand the dangers of reshaping scripture to fit societal norms rather than allowing it to challenge us. Islamic feminism’s critics argue that the movement does not seek understanding but rather selective adaptation, filtering Islamic teachings through the sieve of secular values and discarding what does not align.
One of the most concerning aspects of Islamic feminism is its reliance on Western feminist frameworks. By uncritically importing secular ideas about equality into an Islamic context, Islamic feminists risk erasing the cultural and theological uniqueness of Islam. Critics view this as a kind of ideological imperialism, where the values of Western feminism are treated as universal truths that Muslim societies must adopt to be “just” or “moral.” This overlooks the fact that Islamic values were not designed to mirror secular Western ideals. By prioritizing Western views on gender, Islamic feminism subtly pressures Muslims to conform, suggesting that Islam’s teachings on women are inadequate unless reformed by feminist theory.
Evangelicals familiar with the pitfalls of Western-centric missions understand the risks of importing foreign values into distinct cultural and religious contexts. Islamic feminists may believe they are promoting progress, but they risk erasing the identity of the very faith they aim to “liberate.” This imposition is a form of cultural imperialism that disregards Islam’s unique principles, turning it into a shadow of Western secularism rather than a distinct worldview grounded in divine revelation.
Islamic feminism claims it is “modernizing” Islam, but critics argue it is diluting the authority of the Qur’an in the process. By reinterpreting concepts like qiwamah and wilayah to fit feminist ideals, Islamic feminism effectively places human judgment above divine wisdom. The Qur’an is clear in its delineation of gender roles, yet Islamic feminists attempt to soften these directives, suggesting that they are flexible guidelines rather than divine commands. To say that qiwamah does not imply male authority but only mutual responsibility ignores the text’s explicit instruction and assumes that contemporary understanding supersedes divine revelation.
Evangelicals who hold scripture as the ultimate authority recognize the dangers of reshaping sacred texts to fit human ideals. When Islamic feminists reinterpret the Qur’an’s view of women to align with feminist standards, they risk making the faith conform to society rather than standing as a challenge to it. If sacred texts are continually modified to align with each era’s moral preferences, then where does the authority of the text reside? Islamic feminism’s critics argue that, by modernizing gender roles, the movement erodes the very foundation upon which the faith is built.
Islamic feminism presents itself as a faithful reinterpretation of Islam, yet critics argue that it is, at its core, a secularizing project. Rather than engaging with the Qur’an as a timeless revelation, Islamic feminism filters the text through a feminist lens, judging its teachings against contemporary values. This approach does not liberate the Qur’an; it confines it within the boundaries of secular thought. The result is not a reimagined Islam but a diluted one—where divine wisdom is reshaped to fit a human agenda.
For those who hold a high view of scripture, Islamic feminism’s approach raises a critical issue: Is it truly honoring the faith, or is it bending the Qur’an to conform to the spirit of the age? To prioritize feminist ideals over divine guidance is, from a polemical perspective, an act of secularization disguised as reform. Rather than allowing the Qur’an to challenge contemporary values, Islamic feminism makes Islam a mirror reflecting those values, stripping the faith of its transformative power.
The polemic against Islamic feminism is that it does not grapple honestly with the Qur’an’s view of women. Instead, it evades, obscures, and reinterprets traditional gender roles to fit a modern ideal that may feel more palatable but ultimately compromises the integrity of Islamic teaching. By prioritizing feminist values, Islamic feminism risks turning Islam into a reflection of the modern world rather than a divinely inspired tradition that stands apart from it.
In the end, the question remains: Is Islamic feminism a faithful engagement with Islam, or is it a reformulation driven by an ideological agenda? For those who view the Qur’an as a transcendent, unalterable guide, Islamic feminism’s selective reinterpretation of gender roles feels less like an effort to understand the text and more like an attempt to rebrand it. From a Christian evangelical perspective, the cost of reshaping divine revelation to fit human ideals is profound—it risks the very soul of the faith, transforming it from a call to submission into an echo of contemporary culture.
Tim Orr is a scholar of Islam, Evangelical minister, conference speaker, and interfaith consultant with over 30 years of experience in cross-cultural ministry. He holds six degrees, including a master’s in Islamic studies from the Islamic College in London. Tim taught Religious Studies for 15 years at Indiana University Columbus and is now a Congregations and Polarization Project research associate at the Center for the Study of Religion and American Culture at Indiana University Indianapolis. He has spoken at universities, including Oxford University, the University of Tehran, and mosques throughout the U.K. His research focuses on American Evangelicalism, Islamic antisemitism, and Islamic feminism, and he has published widely, including articles in Islamic peer-reviewed journals and three books.