Open AccessOur Bodies Belong to God, So What?
Author(s) -
Mansur Ali
Publication year - 2019
Publication title -
journal of arabic and islamic studies
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
ISSN - 0806-198X
DOI - 10.5617/jais.7642
Subject(s) - dignity , transplantation , organ transplantation , sovereignty , nothing , meaning (existential) , subject (documents) , focus (optics) , epistemology , environmental ethics , law , sociology , philosophy , medicine , political science , politics , surgery , physics , optics , library science , computer science
Organ transplantation is a morally challenging subject. It gives rise to several ethical dilemmas which question the very meaning of what it means to be a human being. For some Muslims, organ transplantation impinges on God’s claim to ownership. Research reveals that proponents of organ transplantation focus on the benefits afforded to the recipient, while opponents highlight the situation of the donor. For them the entire focus on the health benefits to the recipient turns a blind eye to the dignity of the donor who is viewed as nothing more than a repository for organs, to be extracted and then forgotten. After a brief survey of the different opinions on organ transplantation, I present a translation and commentary of an article written by the former grand-mufti of Lebanon, Muḥammad Rashīd Qabbānī which attempts to research the issue of whether organ transplantation impinges on God’s sovereignty over the human body or not.