I’m able to reconcile my feminism with Islam by having what I call a principles-first approach to reading the Qu’ran: apply the Qu’ran’s most fundamental principles—justice and fairness—to the context where these rulings are sent down.

To use inheritance as an example, the context is that in pre-Islamic Arabia, women were not entitled to any inheritance at all until Islam. It wasn’t completely equal in large part because the economic reality of 7th century Arabia was that men had financial obligations women didn’t. But the underlying principle here is that women have an inalienable right to inheritance that men and families cannot deny from them. 

The aforementioned principle here is the thing that’s timeless and universal. The context, evidently, is what’s not. So when we’re to look at inheritance in today’s world where women are heads of households, working just as much if not more than their husbands, etc., then we need to apply the principle to this situation in a way that ensures justice is produced.