The Role of Negative Theology in Humanistic Explanations of Revelation in Islam

In the present article, through a discussion on the different models of humanistic explanations of revelation which are specifically referred to in the Orientalists’ works, seven models are presented. The author tries to show that the common origin in all these explanations is a kind of negative approach in theology in the new era. According to this approach, God is a transcendental being beyond man and the world with no interference in history and nature. With this explanation, revelation which is a special kind of relationship between man and God would receive a humanistic justification instead of a divine one. The article also examines the relationship between negative theology and humanistic explanations of revelation with reference to verses from the holy Quran. Then the major argument of the article which is the relationship between humanistic explanations of revelation and a special kind of negative theology in the new era is presented and finally it is shown that the moderation between anthropomorphism and deanthropomorphism (purification) in Islamic knowledge reach at no such conclusions.