Abstract
The term marginalization is often used for a community or group which is pushed to the edges of the society throughcertain social, political, and/or religious restrictions. The history of German Jews and Muslims of the Indian subcontinent stands witness that,to varying degrees over time, they were bound to liveon the edgesof their respective societies.This discriminationwas not justbecause of their different social, cultural, and political status but religion was also a major factor behind it.In such conditions,Moses Mendelssohn and Syed Ahmad Khanworkedfor the betterment of theirrespective Jewish and Muslim communities. Although the workof bothscholarsisa recurring theme of discussionin the academicworld, stillthere is no study available in which their efforts have beencompared. By presenting a feature by feature comparison of theworks of both scholars, the currentpaper first figures out theirmethodology and then explorestheirmotive behindusingpure reason to interpret sacred scriptures.It is also argued that there are fewer differences and more commonalitiesin their works. Theirprimary aim was to equip their people withmodern education,sincethey thought that through educational reformthey wouldbe able to improvethe social, political, and economic conditionsof their people.Although they achievednoteworthy success, their efforts changed the religious directionof their people.Especially after the reform of Mendelssohn, a significant number of Jews distanced themselves from their ancestral religion.
Zohaib Ahmad. (2019) Marginalization and Reform of Religion: A Comparative Study of Moses Mendelssohn and Syed Ahmad Khan, Journal of Islamic Thought and Civilization, Volume IX, Issue 2 .
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