The Necessity of Preserving the Order and Preventing Disorder in Imamiyya Jurisprudence

Based on the Quranic verses and traditions as well as the definite intellectual reasons concomitant to legal reasons, we may say that one of the important obligations and absolute necessities is preserving the social order and the people’s life. Although the Muslim jurists have not presented this discussion independently, we may infer from their sayings on different occasions that preserving the social order is among the jurisprudential presuppositions, and what leads to disorder is forbidden and what leads to preserving the social order is obligatory. If there is a contrast between preserving the order and other personal and social precepts, the former would be superior. This is because preserving the social order is among those obligations that the Holy Legislator never neglects. Therefore, the Islamic government has the duty to give priority to preserving the social order when there is a contrast between it and the people’s subsistence. This must be to the extent that is not inconsistent with Justice. Disorder in any spheres of economic, political and social life would lead to a disorder in normal life, and it must be hindered to preserve the order.