Formulation of the Claim
The problem of the Qur’an’s divine veracity is a central entry point for renewing religious thought in Arkoun.
Explanation
Arkoun links the question of the Qur’an’s divine veracity to the need to open religious thought to a broader reconsideration of its premises. For him, the issue is not raised as a passing objection, but as a starting point for a deeper understanding of how religious discourse takes shape and of the limits of its reception.
This centrality takes on its meaning within his critical project because Arkoun makes the Qur’an and its place in Islamic consciousness a field for reexamining the tools of understanding and interpretation. The problem thus appears here as an entry point to renewing thought, not as an isolated inquiry into a theological issue.
Its Place in the Book’s Argument
This atom belongs in the context of the chapter “On the Problem of the Divine Veracity of the Qur’an,” where the issue is presented as a pivotal question in the course of renewing religious thought. It is linked to nearby theses that make the critique of premises and the opening of foundational questions a condition for a broader understanding of the religious heritage.
Limits of the Claim
This atom does not mean that Arkoun settles the theological issue itself or reduces his entire project to this one question alone. Nor should it be read as a direct rejection of the Qur’an, since it concerns the place of the problem within critical thinking more than any final judgment on the text.
Brief Evidence
as this problem is central to renewing religious thought
the chapter “On the Problem of the Divine Veracity of the Qur’an” opens by treating this problem as central