Muhammad Yusuf 

Universitas Islam Negeri Alauddin Makassar, Indonesia 

Abstract

The ecological crisis has become one of the most pressing moral, political, and civilizational challenges of the twenty-first century. Within Islamic studies, this crisis invites a serious rethinking of tafsir, particularly its anthropocentric tendencies and its limited engagement with ecological responsibility. This article proposes contextual ecotheology as a hermeneutical framework for reconstructing Qur’anic interpretation toward ecological justice. The study employs qualitative library research and conceptual analysis to examine Qur’anic concepts such as khalīfah, amānah, mīzān, fasād, and taskhīr in light of Islamic ecotheology, environmental ethics, and maqāṣid al-sharī‘ah. The argument advanced here is that tafsir must move beyond human-centered dominion and toward a model of interpretation grounded in trusteeship, balance, restraint, and moral accountability. Recent scholarship on Islamic ecotheology and maqāṣid-ecological interpretation confirms that environmental preservation is not an external concern but an intrinsic dimension of Islamic moral reasoning. The article concludes that contextual ecotheology provides both a normative and methodological basis for integrating revelation, ecological science, and public ethics in addressing environmental degradation.

Keywords: contextual ecotheology; tafsir; ecological justice; Islamic environmental ethics; maqāṣid al-sharī‘ah; Qur’anic hermeneutics

Introduction

The accelerating ecological crisis has transformed environmental degradation from a technical matter into a profound ethical and civilizational problem. Climate change, deforestation, biodiversity loss, ocean pollution, and extractive capitalism have together exposed the fragility of human stewardship over the earth. In Muslim intellectual discourse, this situation has generated renewed interest in Qur’anic environmental ethics and Islamic ecotheology as frameworks capable of responding to the crisis from within the tradition itself �. Yet despite growing attention to environmental themes, much tafsir literature still reflects interpretive habits that center human privilege without adequately theorizing ecological responsibility.

This article begins from the premise that tafsir must be reconstructed if it is to address the ecological realities of the present age. The issue is not merely whether the Qur’an mentions nature, but how its moral vocabulary is interpreted, organized, and applied. Concepts such as khalīfah and taskhīr have too often been read as affirmations of unrestricted human authority, while fasād has been confined to moral or social corruption rather than extended to ecological destruction. Such readings are no longer sufficient in a world marked by climate instability and environmental injustice �.

Contextual ecotheology offers a way forward. It reads the Qur’an in dialogue with the contemporary ecological situation, recognizing that revelation must be interpreted in relation to the historical conditions of its reception and the moral demands of the present. Recent studies have shown that a maqāṣid-based ecological interpretation can integrate Qur’anic teachings with the protection of life, wealth, and future generations, thereby placing environmental preservation inside the normative architecture of Islamic law �. Other scholarly work argues that ecotheology and maqāṣid al-sharī‘ah can provide a philosophical foundation for environmental justice and sustainable Islamic legal reasoning �.

The central question of this article is therefore: how can tafsir be reconstructed so that it becomes a source of ecological justice rather than a passive witness to environmental collapse? To answer this, the paper reexamines key Qur’anic concepts, critiques anthropocentric interpretive patterns, and proposes a contextual ecotheological model grounded in responsibility-centered exegesis.

Methods

This study uses a qualitative library research design combined with conceptual and hermeneutical analysis. The primary sources are Qur’anic passages related to human trusteeship, ecological balance, corruption, and the moral order of creation. The secondary sources include classical tafsir, contemporary ecological exegesis, Islamic ecotheology studies, maqāṣid literature, and environmental ethics scholarship �. The method is appropriate because the research problem is interpretive and normative rather than empirical.

The analysis is conducted in three stages. First, the study identifies the semantic and ethical fields of the Qur’anic concepts relevant to ecology. Second, it examines how these concepts have been interpreted in classical and contemporary tafsir traditions, with particular attention to anthropocentric assumptions. Third, it reconstructs the concepts within a contextual ecotheological framework oriented toward ecological justice. This approach follows recent scholarship showing that Qur’anic environmental interpretation gains strength when integrated with maqāṣid reasoning and ecological accountability �.

The paper is conceptual in character, but it aims to provide a rigorous theoretical contribution. Rather than compiling an exhaustive history of environmental thought in Islam, it focuses on interpretive reconstruction: how the Qur’an can be read as a normative resource for ecological justice in the present historical moment.

Results

The study finds that the Qur’an contains a coherent ethical grammar for ecological responsibility. The concept of khalīfah is central. In many interpretations, it has been used to affirm human status and authority. However, the contextual ecotheological reading emphasizes not sovereignty but trusteeship. A khalīfah is not a master of creation but a responsible agent under divine accountability. This reading is strengthened by recent scholarship that places khalīfah within a broader ecological ethics of responsibility and environmental stewardship �.

The concept of amānah further supports this conclusion. Amānah signifies trust, burden, and moral obligation. In ecological terms, it implies that the earth is not a possession to be exploited but a trust to be preserved. Human beings are answerable not only for relations among themselves but also for their conduct toward the broader community of life. This interpretation aligns with the growing view that Islamic environmental ethics must be grounded in accountability rather than entitlement �.

The principle of mīzān is equally significant. The Qur’an portrays creation as ordered balance, and this balance constitutes a normative horizon for human action. Environmental destruction can thus be understood as a violation of divinely instituted equilibrium. Deforestation, pollution, and climate destabilization are not just material disruptions; they are moral transgressions against the order of creation. Recent maqāṣid-ecological scholarship explicitly identifies environmental preservation as essential to the protection of life and future generations �.

The study also finds that fasād should be read in ecological terms. Classical and modern exegesis often associate fasād with social injustice, moral decline, or political corruption. These meanings remain valid, but they are incomplete. In contexts of climate emergency, fasād must also include the destruction of habitats, the contamination of water, the depletion of forests, and the destabilization of ecosystems. This broader reading is supported by recent ecological tafsir that connects Qur’anic critique with extractive capitalism and environmental harm �.

Finally, taskhīr must be reinterpreted carefully. If understood as the subjection of nature for human benefit without limits, it becomes a theological justification for exploitation. A contextual ecotheological approach rejects this reading. Instead, taskhīr should be understood as the enablement of responsible use within limits established by divine balance. Human benefit is legitimate only when it respects the integrity of creation. This is consistent with contemporary scholarship that frames Qur’anic ecology in terms of accountability, sustainability, and justice �.

Discussion

The findings point to a deep problem in much environmental discourse within Islamic studies: the persistence of anthropocentric interpretation. Anthropocentrism becomes problematic not because humans lack dignity, but because human dignity is detached from ecological responsibility. Classical tafsir has often affirmed the nobility of humanity while leaving underdeveloped the moral standing of non-human creation. In a period of planetary crisis, such an imbalance is no longer adequate.

Contextual ecotheology responds to this limitation by refusing to separate the text from the ecological conditions in which it is read. It does not deny the authority of tafsir tradition; rather, it reorients that tradition so that it can speak to contemporary crises. This move is crucial because ecological degradation is not simply a scientific problem. It is a failure of moral imagination, political will, and interpretive responsibility. The Qur’an, when read ecotheologically, can contribute to restoring this moral imagination �.

One of the strongest contributions of contextual ecotheology is its alignment with maqāṣid al-sharī‘ah. Recent studies have argued that environmental preservation should be recognized as integral to the higher objectives of Islamic law, especially through the protection of life, wealth, and lineage �. Philosophical work on maqāṣid and ecotheology has gone further by proposing the protection of the environment itself as a normative objective, often described as hifz al-bi’ah �. This is an important development because it moves ecological concern from the margins to the center of Islamic legal and ethical reflection.

From a hermeneutical perspective, contextual ecotheology requires a shift from atomistic to integrative reading. Rather than isolating single verses, the interpreter must consider the semantic network that connects khalīfah, amānah, mīzān, and fasād. These concepts form a moral ecology within the Qur’an. Human beings are entrusted with a world that is balanced, vulnerable, and morally charged. Their task is not to dominate but to maintain justice in the order of creation. Such a reading resonates with contemporary ecological ethics, which emphasizes interdependence, restraint, and responsibility.

Ecological justice must also be understood in distributive, procedural, and intergenerational terms. Distributive justice concerns who suffers most from environmental harm. Poor communities often bear the greatest burden while benefiting least from resource extraction. Procedural justice concerns who participates in decisions about land, water, and energy. Intergenerational justice concerns the rights of future human beings and other forms of life to inherit a livable planet. Contextual ecotheology offers a Qur’anic basis for all three dimensions by linking environmental degradation to fasād and ecological balance to mīzān �.

The article therefore proposes four methodological principles for reconstructing tafsir for ecological justice. First, text-context integration: interpretation must connect the Qur’anic message with present ecological realities. Second, ethical productivity: tafsir should generate actionable responsibility, not only semantic explanation. Third, maqāṣid sensitivity: ecological preservation should be understood as part of the higher objectives of Islamic law. Fourth, transformative orientation: tafsir must inform education, public ethics, and policy advocacy. These principles create a hermeneutical bridge between revelation and sustainability �.

This reconstruction also helps Islamic studies engage productively with environmental humanities and sustainability discourse. It demonstrates that theology can function as a source of ecological critique and not merely as a repository of spiritual consolation. In an age of climate crisis, believers need interpretive frameworks that can connect devotion with responsibility, ritual with restraint, and theology with justice. Contextual ecotheology provides such a framework by redefining tafsir as a mode of ecological accountability.

Conclusion

This article has argued that contextual ecotheology offers a strong framework for reconstructing tafsir in the service of ecological justice. By rereading khalīfah, amānah, mīzān, fasād, and taskhīr through a responsibility-centered lens, the Qur’an can be understood as a source of ecological ethics rather than as a text of human entitlement �. The central insight is that ecological justice is not an external theme added to Islamic interpretation; it is a constitutive dimension of the Qur’anic moral vision.

The implications are both theoretical and practical. Theoretically, the study enriches Islamic hermeneutics by demonstrating that contextual reading is necessary for environmental relevance. Practically, it supports the development of Islamic environmental education, green public theology, and maqāṣid-based environmental policy. The article concludes that reconstructing tafsir for ecological justice is not optional but necessary if Islamic scholarship is to speak credibly in the age of ecological crisis.

References

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Rohman, M. F., & Kholid, A. (2026). Constructing a Maqāṣid-Ecological Interpretation Paradigm: Integrating Islamic Ecotheology and Qur’anic Environmental Ethics in Indonesia. AL QUDS: Jurnal Studi Alquran Dan Hadis, 10(1), 176–186. https://doi.org/10.29240/alquds.v10i1.15346