Tout Entries Atenn Avèk: "Islam"

The Securitisation of Islam in Europe

Jocelyne Cesari

Islam and the West

Preface

Jan J.. DeGioia

The remarkable feeling of proximity between people and nations is the unmistakable reality of our globalized world. Encounters with other peoples’ ways oflife, current affairs, politics, welfare and faithsare more frequent than ever. We are not onlyable to see other cultures more clearly, butalso to see our differences more sharply. The information intensity of modern life has madethis diversity of nations part of our every dayconsciousness and has led to the centrality ofculture in discerning our individual and collectiveviews of the world.Our challenges have also become global.The destinies of nations have become deeply interconnected. No matter where in the world we live, we are touched by the successes and failures of today’s global order. Yet our responses to global problems remain vastly different, not only as a result of rivalry and competing interests,but largely because our cultural difference is the lens through which we see these global challenges.Cultural diversity is not necessarily a source of clashes and conflict. In fact, the proximity and cross-cultural encounters very often bring about creative change – a change that is made possible by well-organized social collaboration.Collaboration across borders is growing primarily in the area of business and economic activity. Collaborative networks for innovation,production and distribution are emerging as the single most powerful shaper of the global economy.

To Be A Muslim

Fathi Yakan

All praises to Allah, and blessings and peace to His Messenger.This book is divided into two parts. The first part focuses on the characteristics that every single Muslim should portray in order to fulfill the conditions of being a Muslim in both belief and practice. Many people are Muslim by identity,because they were ”born Muslim” from Muslim parents. Theymay not know what Islam really means or its requirements, an dso may lead a very secular life. The purpose of this first partis to explain the responsibility of every Muslim to become aknowledgeable and true believer in Islam.The second part of this book discusses the responsibility to become an activist for Islam and participate in the Islamic Movement. It explains the nature of this movement and its goals, philosophy, strategy, and tactics, as well as the desirable characteristics of it members.The failure of various movements in the Islamic world, and especially in the Arab countries, result from a spiritual emptiness in these movements as well as in society generally. In sucha situation the principles and institutions of Islam are forgotten.The westernized leaders and movements collapse when they encounter serious challenges. These leaders and movements and the systems of government and economics they try to imposehave fallen because they lacked a solid base. They fell becausethey were artificial constructs copied from alien cultures anddid not represent the Muslim community. Therefore they wererejected by it. This situation is comparable to a kidney transplantin a human body. Although the body is able to tolerate it painfully for a short period of time, eventually the kidney willbe rejected and die.When the sickness of the Muslim Ummah became acute few Muslims thought of building a new society on Islamic principles.Instead many tried to import man made systems and principles, which looked good but really were grossly defectiveand so could be easily toppled and crushed.

The Political Evolution of the Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt

Stephen Bennett

“Allah is our objective. The Prophet is our leader. Qur’an is our law. Jihad is our way. Dying in the way of Allah is our highest hope.”

Since its early days in Egypt the Muslim Brotherhood has created much controversy, as some argue that the organization advocates violence in the name of Islam. According to Dr. Mamoun Fandy of the James A. Baker III Institute of Public Policy, “jihadism and the activation of the views of the world of the house of Islam and the house of war are the ideas that emerged from the writings and the teachings of the Muslim Brotherhood” (Livesy, 2005). The primary evidence for this argument is notable member of the Brotherhood, Sayeed Qutb, who is credited with developing the revisionist and controversial interpretation of jihad that provided religious justifications for violence committed by offshoot organizations of the Brotherhood like al-jihad, al-Takfir wa al-Hijra, Hamas, epi al-Qaeda.

Yet that is still a debatable position, because despite being the ideological parent of these violent organizations, the Muslim Brotherhood itself has always maintained an official stance against violence and instead has promoted Islamic civil and social action at the grassroots level. Within the first twenty years of its existence the Muslim Brotherhood gained status as the most influential of all major groups in the Middle East through its popular activism. It also spread from Egypt into other nations throughout the region and served as the catalyst for many of the successful popular liberation movements against Western colonialism in the Middle East.

While it has retained most of its founding principles from its inception, the Muslim Brotherhood has made a dramatic transformation in some crucial aspects of its political ideology. Formerly denounced by many as a terrorist organization, as of late the Muslim Brotherhood has been labeled by most current scholars of the Middle East as politically “moderate”, “politically centrist”, and “accommodationist” to Egypt’s political and governmental structures (Abed-Kotob, 1995, p. 321-322). Sana Abed-Kotob also tells us that of the current Islamist opposition groups that exist today “the more ‘radical’ or militant of these groups insist upon revolutionary change that is to be imposed on the masses and political system, whereas… the new Muslim Brotherhood of Egypt, call for gradual change that is to be undertaken from within the political system and with the enlistment of the Muslim masses”

Egypt’s Local Elections Farce Causes and Consequences

Mohammed Herzallah

Amr Hamzawy

Egypt’s local elections of April 8, 2008 were a confirmation of a backwardslide in Egyptian politics. They were plagued by social unrest and politicaldiscord. In the weeks prior to the elections, labor protests escalated,precipitating a harsh crackdown that resulted in at least two fatalities and many injuries.The country’s largest opposition force, Frè Mizilman yo, decided at the last minute to boycott the elections. Voter turn out did not exceed 5 percent and the ruling National Democratic Party (NDP),facing virtually no competition, landed a sweeping victory—winning roughly95 percent of the seats at stake.These developments bring to light a broader deterioration in Egyptian politics.Three elements of this process stand out and deserve careful attention:•

Premye, the burgeoning social crisis caused by out of control inflation, acrippled welfare system, and persistent unemployment;

• Second, a return to the old authoritarian practices of the rulingestablishment; epi

• Third, worrying signs that call into question the very existence of aviable opposition capable of advancing reform through the political process.

Muslim Americans Middle Class and Mostly Mainstream

Syèj Rechèch Sant

Muslims constitute a growing and increasingly important segment of American society.Yet there is surprisingly little quantitative research about the attitudes and opinions of thissegment of the public for two reasons. Premye, Etazini. Census is forbidden by law from askingquestions about religious belief and affiliation, epi, as a result, we know very little about thebasic demographic characteristics of Muslim Americans. Second, Muslim Americans comprisesuch a small percentage of the U.S. population that general population surveys do not interview asufficient number of them to allow for meaningful analysis.This Pew Research Center study is therefore the first ever nationwide survey to attempt tomeasure rigorously the demographics, attitudes and experiences of Muslim Americans. It buildson surveys conducted in 2006 by the Pew Global Attitudes Project of Muslim minority publics inGreat Britain, Lafrans, Germany and Spain. The Muslim American survey also follows on Pew’sglobal surveys conducted over the past five years with more than 30,000 Muslims in 22 nationsaround the world since 2002.The methodological approach employed was the most comprehensive ever used to studyMuslim Americans. Nearly 60,000 respondents were interviewed to find a representative sampleof Muslims. Interviews were conducted in Arabic, Urdu and Farsi, as well as English. Subsamplesof the national poll were large enough to explore how various subgroups of thepopulation — including recent immigrants, native-born converts, and selected ethnic groupsincluding those of Arab, Pakistani, and African American heritage — differ in their attitudesThe survey also contrasts the views of the Muslim population as a whole with those ofthe U.S. general population, and with the attitudes of Muslims all around the world, includingWestern Europe. Finalman, findings from the survey make important contributions to the debateover the total size of the Muslim American population.The survey is a collaborative effort of a number of Pew Research Center projects,including the Pew Research Center for the People & the Press, the Pew Forum on Religion &Public Life and the Pew Hispanic Center. The project was overseen by Pew Research CenterPresident Andrew Kohut and Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life Director Luis Lugo. ThePew Research Center’s Director of Survey Research, Scott Keeter, served as project director forthe study, with the close assistance of Gregory Smith, Research Fellow at the Pew Forum. Manyother Pew researchers participated in the design, execution and analysis of the survey.

Towards Understanding Islam

SAYYID MAWDUDI

THE MEANING OF ISLAM

Every religion of the world has been named either after its founder or after the community ornation in which it was born. For instance, Christianity takes its name from its prophet JesusChrist; Buddhism from its founder, Gautama Buddha; Zoroastrianism from its founderZoroaster-, and Judaism, the religion of the Jews, from the name of the tribe Judah (of thecountry of Judea) where it originated. The same is true of all other religions except Islam, whichenjoys the unique distinction of having no such association with any particular person or peopleor country. Nor is it the product of any human mind. It is a universal religion and itsobjective is to create and cultivate in man the quality and attitude of Islam.Islam, in fact, is an attributive title. Anyone who possesses this attribute, whatever race,community, country or group he belongs to, is a Muslim. According to the Qur’an (the HolyBook of the Muslims), among every people and in all ages there have been good and righteouspeople who possessed this attribute – and all of them were and are Muslims.Islam – What Does it Mean?Islam is an Arabic word and connotes submission, surrender and obedience. As a religion,Islam stands for complete submission and obedience to Allah.1Everyone can see that we live in an orderly universe, where everything is assigned a place in agrand scheme. The moon, the stars and all the heavenly bodies are knit together in amagnificent system. They follow unalterable laws and make not even the slightest deviation fromtheir ordained courses. Menm jan an tou, everything in the world, from the minute whirling electron tothe mighty nebulae, invariably follows its own laws. Matter, energy and life – all obey their lawsand grow and change and live and die in accordance with those laws. Even in the human worldthe laws of nature are paramount. Man’s birth, growth and life are all regulated by a set ofbiological laws. He derives sustenance from nature in accordance with an unalterable law. Allthe organs of his body, from the smallest tissues to the heart and the brain, are governedby the laws prescribed for them. In short, ours is a law-governed universe and everything in it isfollowing the course that has been ordained for it.

Islamic Banking and the Politics of International Financial Harmonization

Kristin Smith

In the mid-1970’s, the Arab Gulf made a dramatic entrance onto world financialmarkets. In one year, oil prices quadrupled, precipitating the fastest transfer of wealth inthe twentieth century. Many Gulfis who previously had no dealings with financialinstitutions had their first introduction to banking. It quickly became apparent howeverthat there was a tension between the institutions and norms underlying Western financeand the prevailing belief amongst many Gulfis that earning interest is forbidden by Islam.Throughout the Gulf, and particularly in Saudi Arabia, religiously observant individualschose to leave their money in non-interest bearing accounts rather than contraveneIslamic law.This cultural difference opened up the space for entrepreneurs to mediate betweenthe global system and local beliefs and customs. The result was the creation of Islamicbanks: financial intermediaries that offer services similar to those of conventional banks,but through financial instruments legally structured to comply with Islamic religious law(Shariah). The entrepreneurs behind this institutional innovation have been able to createa profitable niche for themselves amongst the religiously conservative populations of theGulf. Beyond their marketing advantage, they have likewise used demands for paritywith conventional banks to receive government contracts, and the desire of foreigninvestors to present a “local” face on their business to market themselves for jointventures. Their advantages are not strictly economic, sepandan, as my research into theIslamic finance industry in Kuwait, Bahrain, and the UAE has shown.

Fanm, work, and Islam in Arab societies

Yusuf Sidani

Arab societies are currently in a state of confusion. Problems of underdevelopment,inequity, institutional deficiencies, and illiteracy are rampant (Arab HumanDevelopment Report, 2002). Arabs seem to be in a futile search for a new identity ina world that is transforming: power structures are shifting, societal expectations arechanging, and male-female relations are developing. The Arabs seem to yearn for anew identity that does not displace them from their roots, and at the same timeconnects them to the future; the search seems incessantly fruitless. Even non-Arabsseem to be confused about the issue. Vivid movie images mostly portray the Arab maleas a primitive, fanatic, brutal, lunatic, vicious, and splendidly prosperous individualwhile the Arab woman is portrayed as a belly dancer or whore, a veiled submissivemember of a luxurious harem, or a speechless oppressed character with no identity(Boullata, 1990). The political developments of the past few years did not help bringabout a better image. The rise of Islamic activism, end of the cold war, Huntington’s“clash of civilizations” supposition, and the events of 11th September only reinforcedthe bewilderment and confusion.In addressing the notion of women’s participation in the business and politicalarenas in Arab societies, conflicting remarks are brought forward. Some refer to therole of culture and the prevailing religion in the area – Islam and interpretations ofIslam – as possible reasons for such lack of participation (El-Saadawi, 1997; Mernissi,1991). Islam, it is asserted, is not merely a set of beliefs and rituals but is also a socialorder that has an all-pervading influence on its followers (Weir, 2000). This essayattempts to present varying discourses pertaining to women’s work and how it isimpacted by interpretations of Islam. We present current discourses from variousviewpoints including Muslim scholars on the one hand and active feminists on theother hand. We address the disagreements that exist in the camps of the religiousscholars in their interpretations of religious texts impacting women and their work. Inaddition, we tackle the feminist discourse pertaining to the role of Islam, orunderstandings of Islam, in their participation and development.

The future of Islam after 9/11

Mansoor Moaddel

There is no consensus among historians and Islamicists about the nature of theIslamic belief system and the experience of historical Islam, on which one couldbase a definitive judgment concerning Islam’s compatibility with modernity. Nonetheless,the availability of both historical and value survey data allow us to analyzethe future of Islam in light of the horrific event of 9/11. The key factor that woulddetermine the level of societal visibility necessary for predicting the future developmentof a culture is the nature and clarity of the ideological targets in relation towhich new cultural discourses are produced. Based on this premise, I shall try toilluminate the nature of such targets that are confronted by Muslim activists inIran, Peyi Lejip, and Jordan.

ISLAMIC MODERNITIES: FETHULLAH GULEN and CONTEMPORARY ISLAM

FAHRI CAKI

The Nurju movement1, being the oldest moderate Islamist movement which is probably peculiar to Modern Turkey, was broken into several groups since Said Nursi, the founder of the movement, passed away in 1960. At the present time, there are more than ten nurcu groups with different agendas and strategies. Despite all their differences, today the Nurju groups seem to acknowledge each other’s identity and try to keep a certain level of solidarity. Theplace of the Fethullah Gulen group within the Nurju movement, sepandan, seems to be a bit shaky.Fethullah Gulen (b.1938) split himself, at least in appearance, from the overall Nurju movement in 1972 and succeeded in establishing his own group with a strong organizational structure in the 1980’s and the 90’s. Due to the development of its broad school network both in Turkey and abroad2, his group attracted attention. Those schools fascinated not only Islamist businessmen and middle classes but also a large number of secularist intellectuals and politicians. Although it originally emerged out of the overall Nurju movement, some believe that the number of the followers of the Fethullah Gulen group is much larger than that of the total of the rest of the nurju groups. Poutan, there seems to be enough reason to think that there was a price to pay for this success: alienation from other Islamist groups as well as from the overall Nurju movement of which the Fethullah Gulen group3 itself is supposed to be a part.

Bati pon pa mi

Alex Glennie

Depi atak laterè yo nan 11 Septanm 2001 te gen yon eksplozyon enterè nan Islamis politik nan Mwayen Oryan ak Afrik Dinò (MENA) rejyon an. Jiska san patipri dènyèman,analis yo te konprann byen konsantre sou aktè sa yo ki opere nan fen vyolan nan spectre Islamis la, enkli Al-Qaeda, Taliban yo, kèk nan pati yo sektè nan Irak ak gwoup politik ki gen zèl ame tankou Hamas nan teritwa palestinyen yo okipe yo. (OPT)ak Hezbollah nan peyi Liban.Sepandan, sa te kache lefèt ke atravè rejyon MENA an politik kontanporen ap kondwi ak fòm pa yon koleksyon pi divèsifye nan 'endikap' mouvman islamis.. Nou defini kòm gwoup sa yo ki angaje oswa k ap chèche angaje yo nan pwosesis politik legal peyi yo epi ki te evite itilize vyolans piblikman pou ede reyalize objektif yo nan nivo nasyonal la., menm kote yo diskriminasyon kont oswa reprime. Definisyon sa a ta enkli gwoup tankou Frè Mizilman an nan peyi Lejip., Pati Jistis ak Devlopman (PJD) nan Maròk ak Fwon Aksyon Islamik la (IAF) nan lòt bò larivyè Jouden. Mouvman oswa pati islamis san vyolans sa yo souvan reprezante eleman ki pi byen òganize e ki pi popilè nan opozisyon an kont rejim ki egziste yo nan chak peyi., epi kòm sa, gen yon enterè ogmante sou pati nan fè politik lwès yo nan wòl yo ta ka jwe nan pwomosyon demokrasi nan rejyon an.. Men, diskisyon sou pwoblèm sa a sanble yo te bloke sou kesyon an si li ta apwopriye pou angaje ak gwoup sa yo sou yon baz pi sistematik ak fòmèl., olye ke sou pratik ki genyen nan aktyèlman fè sa., pliryalis politik ak yon seri de lòt pwoblèm. Li reflete tou konsiderasyon pragmatik sou enterè estratejik pouvwa lwès yo nan rejyon MENA yo ke yo pèrsu yo dwe menase pa popilarite a k ap monte ak enfliyans nan Islamis.. Pou pati yo, Pati ak mouvman islamis yo te montre yon repiyans klè pou yo tabli lyen pi sere ak pisans lwès sa yo ki gen politik nan rejyon an yo opoze fòtman., pa pi piti paske yo te pè ki jan rejim represif yo opere nan yo ta ka reyaji. Konsantre pwojè sa a sou mouvman islamis politik ki pa vyolan pa ta dwe mal entèprete kòm sipò implicite pou ajanda politik yo.. Angajman nan yon estrateji plis angajman ekspre ak pati islamis endikap yo ta enplike gwo risk ak konpwomi pou mizisyen politik Amerik di Nò ak Ewopeyen yo.. Sepandan, nou pran pozisyon ke tandans tou de bò yo wè angajman kòm yon sòm zewo jwèt "tout oswa anyen" pa itil., ak bezwen chanje si yon dyalòg pi konstriktif alantou refòm nan Mwayen Oryan an ak Afrik Dinò se parèt.

The Muslim Brotherhood in Syria and the concept of Democracy

Radwan Ziadeh

The relation between the Syrian state and Islam, as represented in its governmental or non governmental establishments or through the discourses of the people who believe in the role of religion in people’s lives, goes back to a period previous to Syria political independence in 1946.1 Since then, the religious institutions existed in Syria have developed and been affected by the nature of their relation with the different government establishments according to the political party in power.Since it came to rule in 1963, the Ba’ath Party has adopted a secular stance, though not necessarily opposed to religion, and when President Hafiz al Assad came to power in 1970, he aimed to incorporate the religious movement to a great extent, because he believed that by doing so he could gain the trust of the Sunni population, who make up the majority in Syria. Thus, he extended his hand to the religious scholars, and took every opportunity to show his respect for them and his concern for their causes, and gave several highranking Islamic figures seats in the People’s Assembly appointed in 1971, including the Mufti of the Republic, Sheikh Ahmad Kuftaro, and the Mufti of Aleppo, Sheikh Mohammed Al Hakim2. Assad was generally striving for widening the ground for his rule, so he restructured the political framework on new foundations, which differed from the original structure when the Ba’ath party had come to power in 1963.

ISLAMIC MOBILIZATION

Ziad Munson

This article examines the emergence and growth of the Muslim Brotherhood inEgypt from the 1930s through the 1950s. It begins by outlining and empirically evaluatingpossible explanations for the organization’s growth based on (1) theories of politicalIslam and (2) the concept of political opportunity structure in social movementtheory. An extension of these approaches is suggested based on data from organizationaldocuments and declassiŽed U.S. State Department Žles from the period. Thesuccessful mobilization of the Muslim Brotherhood was possible because of the wayin which its Islamic message was tied to its organizational structure, activities, andstrategies and the everyday lives of Egyptians. The analysis suggests that ideas areintegrated into social movements in more ways than the concept of framing allows.It also expands our understanding of how organizations can arise in highly repressiveenvironments.

Qutbism: An Ideology of Islamic-Fascism

DALE C. EIKMEIER

The recently published National Military Strategic Plan for the War onTerrorism (NMSP-WOT) is to be commended for identifying “ideology”as al Qaeda’s center of gravity.1 The identification of an ideology as thecenter of gravity rather than an individual or group is a significant shift froma“capture and kill” philosophy to a strategy focused on defeating the rootcause of Islamic terrorism. Accordingly, the plan’s principal focus is on attackingand countering an ideology that fuels Islamic terrorism. Unfortunately,the NMSP-WOT fails to identify the ideology or suggest ways tocounter it. The plan merely describes the ideology as “extremist.” This descriptioncontributes little to the public’s understanding of the threat or to thecapabilities of the strategist who ultimately must attack and defeat it. The intentof this article is to identify the ideology of the Islamic terrorists and recommendhow to successfully counter it.Sun Tzuwisely said, “Know the enemy and know yourself; in a hundredbattles you will never be in peril.”2 Our success in theWar on Terrorismdepends on knowingwho the enemy is and understanding his ideology.While characterizing and labeling an enemymay serve such a purpose, it is only usefulif the labels are clearly defined and understood. Otherwise, overly broadcharacterizations obscure our ability to truly “know the enemy,” they diffuseefforts, and place potential allies and neutrals in the enemy’s camp. Unfortunately,theWar on Terrorism’s use of labels contributes a great deal to themisunderstandingsassociated with the latter. The fact is, five years after 9/11 theNMSP-WOT provides little specific guidance, other than labeling the enemyas extremist.3 This inability to focus on the specific threat and its supportingphilosophy reflects our own rigid adherence to political correctness and is beingexploited bymilitant Islamists portraying these overly broad descriptionsas a war against Islam.As David F. Forte states “Wemust not fail . . . to distinguishbetween the homicidal revolutionaries like bin Laden and mainstreamMuslim believers.

Lanmò Islam politik la

Jon B. Alterman

Nekroloji pou Islam politik yo te kòmanse ekri. Apre ane nan kwasans san pèdi enstopab, Pati Islamik yo te kòmanse bite. Nan Maròk, Pati Jistis ak Devlopman an (oswa PJD) te fè pi mal pase sa te espere nan eleksyon septanm pase yo, ak Fwon Aksyon Islamik Jordan la pèdi plis pase mwatye syèj li yo nan biwo vòt mwa pase a. Manifesto fratènite Mizilman peyi Lejip la te espere anpil, yon bouyon ki te parèt nan mwa septanm pase a,pa te montre ni fòs ni kouraj. Olye de sa, li sijere ke gwoup la te anvayi pa kontradiksyon entelektyèl ak boule nan batay entèn. Li twò bonè pou deklare lanmò Islam politik la., kòm li te twò bonè pwoklame therebirth nan liberalis nan mond lan Arab nan 2003-04, men kandida li yo sanble miyò dimmer pase yo te fè menm yon ane de sa.Pou kèk, tonbe nan favè Bondye te inevitab; Islam politik te tonbe anba pwòp kontradiksyon li yo, yo di. Yo diskite sa, an tèm objektif, Islam politik pa t janm plis pase lafimen ak miwa. Relijyon se sou lafwa ak verite, ak politik yo se sou konpwomi ak aranjman. Wè konsa, Islam politik pa t janm yon antrepriz sen, men senpleman yon efò pou ranfòse kandida politik yon bò nan yon deba politik. Te sipòte pa otorite relijye ak lejitimite, opozisyon ak volonte Islamis yo te sispann jis politik-li te vin erezi-e Islamis yo te benefisye.,bèf ènmi politik, ak rasanbleman sipò. Kòm yon estrateji gouvène, sepandan, yo diskite ke Islam politik pa te pwodwi okenn siksè. Nan de zòn kote li dènyèman leve topower, Otorite Palestinyen an ak Irak, gouvènans te anemik. Nan Iran, kote molla yo te sou pouvwa pou prèske twa deseni, relijye yo ap lite pou respè epi peyi a ap bay lajan nan Doubay ak lòt mache lòt bò dlo yo ak règ pi previzib ak plis retounen pozitif.. Eta ki pi avowedly relijye nan Mwayen Oryan an, Arabi Saoudit, gen mwens libète entelektyèl pase anpil nan vwazen li yo, ak gadyen orthodoxi la ak anpil atansyon sikonskri panse relijye yo. Kòm savan franse nan Islam,Olivier Roy, obsève memorab plis pase yon dekad de sa, fusion relijyon ak politik pa t sanktifye politik, li politize relijyon.Men, pandan ke Islam pa te bay yon teyori aderan nan gouvènans, se pou kont li yon apwòch inivèsèl aksepte nan pwoblèm yo nan limanite, sayans nan relijyon kontinye ap grandi nan mitan anpil Mizilman., which have become more conservative for both women and men in recent years, andbeyond language, which invokes God’s name far more than was the case a decade ago. It also goes beyond the daily practice ofIslam—from prayer to charity to fasting—all of which are on the upswing.What has changed is something even more fundamental than physical appearance or ritual practice, and that is this: A growingnumber of Muslims start from the proposition that Islam is relevant to all aspects of their daily lives, epi pa sèlman pwovens teyoloji oswa kwayans pèsonèl. Gen kèk ki wè sa kòm yon retou nan tradisyonèlis nan Mwayen Oryan an., lè diferan mezi sipèstisyon ak espirityalite gouvène lavi chak jou. Plis presizyon, menm si, sa n ap wè se monte "neo-traditionalism,"nan ki senbòl ak slogan nan tan pase yo te enskri nan pouswit prese antre nan tan kap vini an.. Finans Islamik-ki vle di, finans ki depann sou aksyon ak retounen olye ke enterè-ap en, ak branch labank dous yo genyen antre separe pou gason ak fanm. Slick jenn televangelists konte sou twop yo nan sanktifye chak jou a ak chèche padon., atire dè dizèn de milye nan reyinyon yo ak odyans televizyon yo nan plizyè milyon. Music videos—viewable on YouTube—implore young viewers to embrace faith and turn away froma meaningless secular life.Many in the West see secularism and relativism as concrete signs of modernity. Nan Mwayen Oryan an, many see them as symbols ofa bankrupt secular nationalist past that failed to deliver justice or development, freedom or progress. The suffering of secularism ismeaningless, but the discipline of Islam is filled with signficance.It is for this reason that it is premature to declare the death of political Islam. Islam, increasingly, cannot be contained. It is spreadingto all aspects of life, and it is robust among some of the most dynamic forces in the Middle East. It enjoys state subsidies to be sure,men eta yo pa gen anpil pou wè ak kreyativite ki fèt nan domèn relijye a. Danje a se ke Islamizasyon lavi piblik sa a pral jete ti tolerans ki rete nan Mwayen Oryan an., apre plizyè syèk asa—fondamentalman Islamik—entrepôt miltikiltirèl. Li difisil pou imajine ki jan sosyete Islamize yo ka fleri si yo pa anbrase inovasyon ak kreyativite, divèsite ak diferans. "Islamik" se pa yon konsèp ki evidan, jan zanmi m nan Mustapha Kamal Pasha te obsève yon fwa, men li pa kapab yon sous fòs nan sosyete modèn yo si li mare ak nosyon osifye ak pawasyal sou nati li. Fè fas ak diferans se fondamantalman yon travay politik., epi se isit la ke Islam politik pral fè fas a vrè tès li yo. Estrikti fòmèl gouvènman an nan Mwayen Oryan yo te pwouve dirab, epi yo pa gen anpil chans tonbe anba yon vag nan aktivis Islamik. Pou Islam politik yo reyisi, li bezwen jwenn yon fason pou ini divès kowalisyon divès kalite lafwa ak degre lafwa, pa sèlman pale ak baz li. Li poko jwenn yon fason pou fè sa, men sa pa vle di ke li pa kapab.