Abdessamad Belhaj

Authority in Contemporary Islam

Structures, Figures and Functions

The limit imposed by executive powers in Europe following the wave of terrorist attacks (2015–2020)

Another limit to this religious authority is the one imposed by the executive powers in Europe mainly for security reasons (see the cases of Austria, Germany, France and Belgium in particular). Countries such as France intend to go further in this security approach, notably by trying to combat “Muslim separatism” out right and to make Islamic leadership accept “secularism from above” at all costs.1 Countries such as Austria, Germany, France and Belgium are expelling imams and closing down Salafist mosques and publishing houses.2 Security measures are not only aimed at Salafist mosques and associations, but also at Shīʿī ones, as is the case in Münster, Germany in connection with Hezbollah.3 These security measures will certainly have an effect on religious action although these measures will be unsustainable in the long term, especially in liberal political systems that will have to deal with significant demographic and political changes in the near-future.

Tartalomjegyzék

Kiadó: Akadémiai Kiadó – Ludovika Egyetemi Kiadó

Online megjelenés éve: 2024

ISBN: 978 963 454 960 4

Authority is a key question in Islamic studies and beyond. This book examines the nature, figures, structures and functions of religious authority in contemporary Islamic ethics. It also discusses how Islamic authority and political power compete and/or cooperate in Muslim contexts and Europe. Moreover, it provides a coherent framework to understand authority as a moral foundation in relation to community, power, tradition and subversion. Various cases from Europe and the Muslim world are studied here to showcase the claims and practices of authority in their contexts. Despite its active role and resourcefulness in contemporary Islam, religious authority has to confront many limitations, including the dynamics of secularisation and individualisation. The author is a senior researcher at the Religion and Society Research Institute of the Eötvös József Research Centre at the University of Public Service (Budapest).

Hivatkozás: https://mersz.hu/belhaj-authority-in-contemporary-islam//

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