A fatwa and its dialectics: Contextualizing the permissibility of mortgages in Stockholm

In 1999, the European Council for Fatwa and Research issued a fatwa that legitimized mortgages for Muslims in Europe who are not homeowners. While this groundbreaking text gained some academic attention, little has been written about its reception and impact. Through a field study in three Islamic centers in Stockholm, this article examines the conflicting opinions about this religious decision among imams and mosque attendees and demonstrates that both the most ardent supporters of the European Council and its staunchest critics engage with the legitimization of mortgages in ways that are independent and original and correspond with their personal understanding of the situation of local Muslims.