Islam and Secularism in the Middle East

Islam and Secularism in the Middle East

Western civilization tends to view secularism as a positive achievement. From this perspective, benefits of secularizing trends include the separation of church and state, the rule of law, and freedom from organized religion.

In the Arab Middle East, however, Islamist intellectuals increasingly cite Western-inspired secularism as the source of the region's social dislocation and political instability. While secularism in the West led to the spread of democratic values, in the Muslim world it has been associated with dictatorship, the violation of human rights, and the abrogation of civil liberties.

Islam and Secularism in the Middle East examines the origins and growth of the movement to abolish the secularizing reforms of the past century by creating a political order guided by Shariah law. Contributors explain the Islamic rejection of secularism as a failed Western Christian ideal and also discuss how secularization was pioneered by those who thought Muslims could only advance politically by emulating Western practices, including the renunciation of religion.

User Ratings and Reviews

3 Stars Mixed Bag
Some these essays are great and others are absurd. Esposito is incredible as usual, and the the other contributors shine at time as well. However, some contributors (e.g., Elmessiri of Cairo Universiry who expands his definition of secularism so far as to render the word utterly meangingless) spout nonsense and seem to have a total lack of comprehension of what secularism means. Indeed, if there would be one major flaw of the work, it would be the lack of a working definition of secularism throughout. This makes it a frustrating read at times, but nonetheless, its a rewarding effort and a worthy buy.

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