Organ Donation in Islam

This book tackles the thorny issue of organ donation and Islam through a multidisciplinary lens giving voice to the various stakeholders involved, including potential donors and Islamic scholars. The collection provides fresh ethical, empirical and sociological insights into the engagement of the Islamic tradition with modern biomedicine.

Organ Donation in Islam: The Interplay of Jurisprudence, Ethics, and Society delves into the complexities and nuances of organ donation in Muslim communities. A diverse group of authors including Muslim jurists, academic researchers, clinicians and policy stakeholders engage with the multi-faceted topic. Contributions from Sunni and Shia scholars are positioned alongside each other, giving the reader an appreciation of the different Islamic traditions and legal methodologies; and qualitative research examining the views and potential concerns of Muslim families towards donating organs of loved ones is juxtaposed with the work of academicians and community advocates engaging diverse Muslim communities to equip them with the knowledge and tools to make informed donation decisions. Taken together the collection yields new ethical, empirical and sociological insights into how issues of body ownership, the definition of death, and community engagement interface with the act of donation. Accordingly, this wide-ranging volume represents a invaluable resource for religious leaders, healthcare professionals, social scientists, policy makers, researchers, and others interested in the interplay between contemporary healthcare, religious tradition, health policy and the topic of organ donation.

Introduction by Aasim I. Padela, Mahdiyah Jaffer and Gurch Randhawa

Part I: Jurisprudential and Theological Discourses

1. Our Organs Belong to God: Sunni Islamic Legal Perspective to Property in the Body by Rafaqat Rashid

2. Shiʿi Juristic Perspectives on Bodily Ownership, Autonomy and the Prohibition of Self-Harm by Mahdiyah Jaffer

3. Organ Donation in Islamic Juridical Ethics by Abdulaziz Sachedina

4. Soul-Searching: Organ Donation, Death and the Social Construction of the Soul by Mansur Ali

5. Islamic Normativity Regarding Brain Death: Implications for Organ Donation by Arif Abdul-Hussain

Part II: Ethical Perspectives and Lived Experiences

6. ‘You can Receive but not Give’: The Ethical Dilemma of Organ Donation by Liyakat Takim

7. ‘Muslims do not Donate Organs’: A Qualitative Inquiry into Perspectives Towards Organ Transplantation Among Muslims in India by Aasia Qayium and Ankita Mukherjee

8. Are ‘Brain-Dead’ Patients Really Cadavers? ‘Brain Death’ from the Viewpoint of Iranian Shiʿi fiqh and Culture in Iran by Veronika Sobotková

Part III: Multidisciplinary Analysis and Multistakeholder Engagement

9. The Interplay Between Religious Leaders and Organ Donation Among Muslims by Shoaib A. Rasheed and Aasim I. Padela

10. The Need for a Pragmatic, Multidisciplinary, Evidence-Based Approach to Seeking a Fatwa on the Issue of Organ Donation After Death by Zain Abbas Syed

11. Transplantation within the Framework of Shariah (Islamic Ethics): Lessons from a Public Engagement Programme within the UK by Amjid Ali, Gurch Randhawa and Mansur Ali

12. Muslim Attitudes and Islamic Perspectives on Organ Donation: Righting the Social Narratives and Designing Ethical and Effective Educational Interventions by Aasim I. Padela, Mohammad Titi, Aliyah Keval and Mohamed T. Abdelrahim

Part IV: Stakeholder Informed Islamic Juristic Output

13. Organ Donation and Transplantation in Islam: An Opinion by Mohammed Zubair Butt