Comparative Analysis of Feghhi Theories about the basis of the Legitimacy of the Theory of Religious Democracy

Abstract

Religious democracy is considered to be the most important basic theory or doctrine in contemporary political Islam, which was gradually formed with the victory of the Islamic Revolution and the formation of the Islamic Republic system and is on the way to implementation and evolution. Religious democracy has entered the political scene of the Islamic society in a situation where it has to compete with the liberal democracy system that has gained significant popularity in the world. The categories of "democracy" among political thinkers have a variety of interpretations; When this category is combined with religion and gives rise to a new definition called religious democracy, the amount of diversity, multiplicity and difference of views regarding its concept, basis, and possibility is increased. One of the main causes and foundations of this multiplicity and difference is the different views that have been formed about the legitimacy of the religious democratic government among experts including jurists and religious scholars. Based on this, the main question of this research, which has been written using a descriptive-inferential and comparative approach, is what theories and views do jurists and religious scholars emphasize regarding the basis of the legitimacy of a religious or Islamic democratic government. Also, what position do they have regarding the concept and rank of religious democracy and especially the position of the people in this type of Islamic system. The results and findings indicate the presentation of three theories of "divine installation or legitimacy"; The theory of "choice or popular legitimacy" and the theory of "combination or divine-popular legitimacy" by Foghaha are about the legitimacy of religious democracy in Islamic society.