The Arabic word ulama (singular, alim) is used to describe people who have knowledge (ilm) of Islamic tradition, history and law. It literally means 'the ones who know.' The normal translation in English is 'scholar.' Usually therefore when Muslim religious leaders refer to 'scholarly consensus' it is the ulama they are referring to, not to European university academics.
There are a number of similar terms used to describe an individual who is qualified to interpret Islamic norms and values, and understand Islamic text. Among these are faqih (a jurist), mujtahid (a person who undertakes ijtihad), and mufti (a person who gives fatawa). The term ulama is obviously closely related to these, but it has a broader scope, potentially encompassing all of the Islamic sciences. The term thus suggests not just authority in religious matters, but also has connotations of reverence, as they are well-respected for their knowledge.
Indeed, historically the ulama were responsible for giving the Islamic faith its shape and structure. During the classical period of Islamic history a number of prominent ulama were involved in the slow process of establishing a common way for interpretation of the Quran and Sunnah
. This not only led to the establishment of a basic Islamic orthodoxy, setting out the moral and ritual norms for all Muslims to follow, but it also provided a framework for negotiating disagreements between religious thinkers, thus ensuring Islam’s continued stability.[1]
In terms of differences appearing in religious scholarship, Shaykh Faraz Rabbani explains:
"There are some matters of religion that require interpretation; and there’s absolute agreement that in such matters you cannot just take on the law by yourself. The question then is: when qualified religious scholarship differs how do you deal with that difference, both on an individual level, and as a community? What we find is that the way of traditional Islamic scholarship in dealing with differences of opinion within Islam has been to tolerate those differences. We cannot seek to impose our difference of opinion on others - both within mainstream scholarship and even outside that framework."[2]
[1] See Abdal-Hakim Murad, 'Understanding the four madhabs: the problem with anti-madhabism,' available online.
[2] Faraz Rabbani in a talk entitled 'Is there a crisis of authority in Islam?,' available online.
