An Evaluation of the Theological Presuppositions of Mohammad Mojtahd Shabastri in His Perception of the Holy Qur'an (The Case Study: Proving the Existence, Identity and Speech of God)

The interpreter's presuppositions and mental beliefs directly or indirectly influence his interpretation of the texts. Some commentators do not accept the influence of presuppositions in the interpretation of texts, while some others consider it as being unavoidable. Based on philosophical hermeneutics, Mr. Mojtahdshabastri considers the existence of a presupposition to be necessary in the interpretation of the Qur'an and believes that without it, the understanding of any text cannot be achieved. One of the most important presuppositions of Mujtahad Shabastri in understanding the Qur'an is his theological presuppositions. With three basic presuppositions about God, he went to understand the Qur'an. These consist in: God is unprovable, Man is facing an unknown God and Due to the lack of God`s language, one cannot believe in any linguistic revelation. This research examines the criticisms of the three presuppositions of Mojtahedshabastri's theology with a descriptive, analytical and critical method. The findings of this research show that his presuppositions cannot be accepted and generalized to the correct interpretation of the Holy Quran due to internal contradictions and opposition to reason.