Islamic law is a particularly instructive example of "sacred law".
Islamic law is a phenomenon so different from
all other forms of law—notwithstanding, of course,
a considerable and inevitable number of coincidences
5 with one or the other of them as far as subject matter
and positive enactment are concerned—that its study
is indispensable in order to appreciate adequately
the full range of possible legal phenomena. Even the
two other representatives of sacred law that are historically and
10 geographically nearest to it, Jewish law and Roman
Catholic canon law, are perceptibly different.
Both Jewish law and canon law are more uniform
than Islamic law. Though historically there is
a discernible break between Jewish law of the sovereign
15 state of ancient Israel and of the Diaspora (the dispersion
of Jewish people after the conquest of Israel), the spirit
of the legal matter in later parts of the Old Testament
is very close to that of the Talmud, one of the primary
codifications of Jewish law in the Diaspora. Islam, on the
20 other hand, represented a radical breakaway from the
Arab paganism that preceded it; Islamic law is the result of
an examination, from a religious angle, of legal subject matter
that was far from uniform, comprising as it did the various
components of the laws of pre-Islamic Arabia and
25 numerous legal elements taken over from the non-Arab
peoples of the conquered territories. All this was unified
by being subjected to the same kind of religious scrutiny,
the impact of which varied greatly, being almost
nonexistent in some fields, and in others originating novel
30 institutions. This central duality of legal subject matter
and religious norm is additional to the variety of legal,
ethical, and ritual rules that is typical of sacred law.
In its relation to the secular state, Islamic law differed
from both Jewish and canon law. Jewish law was
35 buttressed by the cohesion of the community, reinforced
by pressure from outside; its rules are the direct
expression of this feeling of cohesion, tending toward
the accommodation of dissent. Canon and Islamic law,
on the contrary, were dominated by the dualism of religion and
40 state, where the state was not, in contrast with Judaism,
an alien power but the political expression of the same
religion. But the conflict between state and religion took
different forms; in Christianity it appeared as the struggle
for political power on the part of a tightly organized
45 ecclesiastical hierarchy, and canon law was one of its
political weapons. Islamic law, on the other hand, was
never supported by an organized institution; consequently,
there never developed an overt trial of strength. There
merely existed discordance between application of the
50 sacred law and many of the regulations framed by Islamic
states; this antagonism varied according to place and time.
For the following question, consider each of the choices separately and select all that apply
3. The passage provides information to answer which of the following questions EXCEPT?
□A Does Islamic law depend on sources other than Arab legal principles?
□B What secular practices of Islamic states conflicted with Islamic law?
□C Is Jewish law more uniform than canon law?
4. It can be inferred from the passage that the application of Islamic law in Islamic states has
(A) systematically been opposed by groups who believe it is contrary to their interests
(B) suffered irreparably from the lack of firm institutional backing
(C) frequently been at odds with the legal activity of government institutions
(D) remained unaffected by the political forces operating alongside it
(E) benefited from the fact that it never experienced a direct confrontation with the state
5. Which of the following most accurately describes the organization of the passage?
(A) A universal principle is advanced and then discussed in relation to a particular historical phenomenon.
(B) A methodological innovation is suggested and then examples of its efficacy are provided.
(C) A traditional interpretation is questioned and then modified to include new data.
(D) A general opinion is expressed and then supportive illustrations are advanced.
(E) A controversial viewpoint is presented and then both supportive evidence and contradictory evidence are cited.
6. The passage suggests that canon law differs from Islamic law in that only canon law
(A) contains prescriptions that nonsacred legal systems might regard as properly legal
(B) concerns itself with the duties of a person in regard to the community as a whole
(C) was affected by the tension of the conflict between religion and state
(D) developed in a political environment that did not challenge its fundamental existence
(E) played a role in the direct confrontation between institutions vying for power
答案：3. BC 4. C 5. D 6. E
以上即是阅读练习题，对于新gre考试逻辑阅读，考生除了采取题海战术，其实更应该做的就是总结。如果能从平日的练习中找到解新gre考试逻辑阅读题的思路，那么，要比采取题海战术更好。
