The transaction of faith

Sha'rawi holds that the Qur'an uses the language of trade to show that faith is a profitable exchange, and that whoever reverses the exchange and takes a passing good for a small price loses ^{1 2}. See al-Tawba 111 and al-Saff 10.

He holds that bliss in this world is measured by human capacity and bliss in the Hereafter by God's capacity, so the profitable exchange is to give up passing pleasures for lasting ones ². He calls it a reversal when one makes God's signs the price for worldly gain ².

He says money is a loyal servant if spent, and a bad master if hoarded and grasped at ³. He holds that the centre of Jewish life was wealth and gold, and cites the prohibition of usury ³.

He holds that usury makes money a commodity, so that a hundred yields a hundred and fifty; money should grow through work, and when it grows without work the movement of life is corrupted ³. He gives the example of borrowing countries whose interest piles up ^{3 4}. See usury.

He distinguishes awe from taqwa: awe is a warning, while taqwa is putting between oneself and God's attributes of majesty a barrier, by acting by His method ⁴.

These are Sha'rawi's economic assessments, not checked against economic sources. The example about international debt has not been checked. No economic study of usury and no other school's view are set out here, and none is checked.