The Ash’arite dogma: the root of the Arab/Muslim absolutism

This paper intends to initiate a serious step towards a critical investigation of the discourse of absolutism. This paper suggests that this discourse finds its most profound roots in the dogmatic system of the Ash’arites. Taking for granted that this system is not only theological, the thesis argues that it was vulnerably usable for ideological and political purposes. The analysis particularly focuses on tracing the deep structure of the Ash’arite system that regulates some specific issues in a hope to touch some of its ideological functions.