An Analysis on the Concept Of God in Kalam Schools in the Context Of Quranic Verses

In the assessment of concept of god in the kalam (Islamic theology) schools, it is remarkable that the Ashariyya focuses on the concept of Allah that is “all-willing and absolute possessor (Malik),” while Mu’tazilis are based on the concept of god that is “all just and omnipotent,” and other kalam issues are interpreted from those perspectives by those schools. The Maturidiyya embraces an approach underlining Allah’s attribute of “all-wise,” and makes interpretations on other kalam issues from that perspective. According to those advocating the principled and liberal opinion, the actions of Allah emerge as a natural reflection of His principles and attributes. In other words, Allah acts in accordance with His attributes and principles He revealed us. The passages which steer the concept of Allah in the aforementioned schools and kalam trends and in which the actions and attributes attributed to Allah in the Quran exist can be assessed in conceptual and thematic aspects within the integrity of Quran. In another expression, the Quranic scriptures can be evaluated by considering the essential parameters to comprehend properly the Quran scripture such as siyaq-sibaq (whole context) and asbab al-nuzul (causes of revelation), history, socio-cultural circumstance, and maqasid (objectives) of verses. This analysis indicates that Allah acts neither in an understanding of god “all-willing and absolute possessor” acknowledged by the Ashariyya nor in an understanding of god “all just and omnipotent” claimed by Mutazilis. Regarding the concept of “all wise” god in Maturidiyya, it is reasonable to claim that the actions of Allah are wise. However, this opinion vests effort to give all the beings meaning over a unique attribute of Allah (hikmat). Therefore, I suggest that the hikmat concept embraced by Maturidi should be elaborated in order to reach a proper concept of Allah. Indeed, the examination of divine messages from thematic and contextual aspects shows that Allah performs his actions within the framework of certain principles and causes. In other words, Allah carries out His actions in accordance with His attributes and principles He revealed us. It means that Allah performs His acts within the framework of His principles, rules, or divine rules (sunnatullah)