How has Wikipedia's Ali Abdel Raziq article changed?

Wikipedia's first sentence called it "egyptian islamic scholar and sharia judge". Today it says "egyptian scholar of islam". We saved the article's opening at 5 moments between 2010 and 2025, and every claim links the exact revision.

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The opening as it read in 2010

Ali Abdel Raziq (1888-1966) was an Egyptian Islamic scholar and sharia judge.¹ He can be regarded as the intellectual father of Islamic laicism or secularism (the separation of state and religion , not the secularization of society). His main work is called " Islam and the Foundations of Governance " ( Al-Islam Wa Usul Al-Hukm ) and was first published in 1925. Due to its controversial standpoints regarding the necessity of the caliphate and religious government, the book triggered an intellectual and political battle in Egypt . In essence the author claims that the Muslims may agree on any kind of government, be it religious or worldly, as long as it serves the interest and common welfare of their society. The two main sources of Islamic law ( sharia ), the Quran and the Sunnah (Tradition of Messenger Muhammad), neither demand nor reject the rule of a caliph (caliphate) or imam (imamate). 2. There is no real ijma (consensus) on the necessity of the caliphate. 3. Experience shows that the caliphate entailed a series of disasters for the Muslim community, and there is no single rational argument for the (re-)establishment of the caliphate. As Abdel Raziq recounts the horrors of the caliphate, among other things, one can conclude that he advocated a humanist kind of governance, probably a democratic state. This assumption is supported by the fact that his father Hassan Abdel Raziq and his oldest brother, the philosopher Mustafa Abdel Raziq , were also liberal activists. In Abdel Raziq's opinion, the separation of Islam and state is supposed to protect Islam and the Muslims from the political abuse of Islam. Ali Abdel Raziq also wrote "Consensus in Islamic Law" ( Al-Ijma´ Fi Ash-Shari´ah Al-Islamiyyah ) which was published in 1947. He later served as Minister of Endowments (twice), one of the three highest positions in religious learning and administration (beside the Rector of al-Azhar and the Grand Mufti) before he died in December 1966.²

This is Wikipedia's own text, saved in our repository. Their copy of it is revision 352795336.

The opening as it stood in 2015 12 passages from the previous snapshot no longer appear

Ali Abdel Raziq ( ) (1888-1966) was an Egyptian scholar of Islam, religious judge, and government minister. His writings—some controversial at the time—debated the role of religion and Islamic history in 20th century politics and government. While the implication of his arguments still remain a point of debate, his 1925 book Islam and the Foundations of Governance argued against a role for religion in politics or the political prescriptive value of religious texts. He argued that Islamic texts were and should remain neutral in political debate and civil institution building. He attended Oxford University and was a scholar and jurist at al-Azhar in Cairo . A religion, not a state: Ali 'Abd al-Raziq's Islamic justification of political secularism.

Red text was written in or rewritten since the previous snapshot. Their copy is revision 660095576.

The opening as it stood in 2020

Ali Abdel Raziq Ali Abdel Raziq ( ) (1888–1966) was an Egyptian scholar of Islam, religious judge and government minister. His writings, some then controversial, debated the role of religion and Islamic history in 20th-century politics and government. While the implication of his arguments still remain a point of debate, his 1925 book Islam and the Foundations of Governance argued against a role for religion in politics or the political prescriptive value of religious texts. He argued that Islamic texts were and should remain neutral in political debate and civil institution building. He attended Oxford University , and he was a scholar and jurist at Al-Azhar , Cairo . A religion, not a state: Ali 'Abd al-Raziq's Islamic justification of political secularism.

Red text was written in or rewritten since the previous snapshot. Their copy is revision 962232624.

The opening as it stood on October 6, 2023

Egyptian Islam scholar, judge and government minister Ali Abdel Raziq Ali Abdel Raziq ( ) (1888–1966) was an Egyptian scholar of Islam, judge and government minister. His writings, some controversial, debated the role of religion and Islamic history in 20th-century politics and government. While the implication of his arguments still remain a point of debate, his 1925 book Islam and the Foundations of Governance argued against a role for religion in politics or the political prescriptive value of religious texts. He argued that Islamic texts were and should remain neutral in political debate and civil institution building. He attended Oxford University , and he was a scholar and jurist at Al-Azhar , Cairo . A religion, not a state: Ali 'Abd al-Raziq's Islamic justification of political secularism.

Red text was written in or rewritten since the previous snapshot. Their copy is revision 1104716451.

The opening as it stood in 2025

Egyptian Islam scholar, judge and government minister Ali Abdel Raziq Ali Abdel Raziq ( Arabic : ﻋﻠﻲ ﻋﺒﺪ ﺍﻟﺮﺍﺯﻕ ) (1888–1966) was an Egyptian scholar of Islam, judge and government minister. His writings, some controversial, debated the role of religion and Islamic history in 20th-century politics and government. While the implication of his arguments still remain a point of debate, his 1925 book Islam and the Foundations of Governance argued against a role for religion in politics or the political prescriptive value of religious texts. He argued that Islamic texts were and should remain neutral in political debate and civil institution building. He attended Oxford University , and he was a scholar and jurist at Al-Azhar , Cairo . A religion, not a state: Ali 'Abd al-Raziq's Islamic justification of political secularism.

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