A Study of the Reasons for Opposition to Religious Science

Today, the idea of production of religious science is a well-known idea in the world of Islam. Extensive discussions have been carried out about this issue since the victory of the Islamic Revolution in Iran and particularly in recent years. Despite strong tendency towards production of religious science, there are hard-line oppositions to this issue, specially by some Iranian professors including Abdul Karim Soroush, Ali Paya, and Mostafa Malekian. The opponents of religious science forward the following four statements: production of religious science is not necessary; production of religious science is not possible; production of religious is not desirable; and production of religious science is not ethical. The present article is an attempt to study the above mentioned four contentions. It is argued that none of the above contentions could be a theoretical obstacle in the way of religious science idea. However, the viewpoints of the opponents should be taken into consideration so that educational, research, planning and policymaking activities in the field of religious science remain free from the shortcomings mentioned by the opponents.