A plea for a pluralistic Islam

Does Islam, the religion, belong to Germany? Or just Muslims, the people? Is it even possible to separate the two? And what forms of Islam do we want in Germany? A debate that is as old as the first encounter between German non-Muslims and the Muslim world has, in recent decades, gained momentum and grown ever more explosive. The questions are polarising.

In a new, non-fiction book, "Die fehlgeleitete Islamdebatte und ihre Folgen" ["The Misguided Islam Debate and its Consequences"], Austrian journalist, Teseo La Marca, takes a closer look at the Islam debate as it plays out in Germany, subjecting it to what he describes in the book's subtitle as "a necessary reality check".

According to La Marca, much gets lost in this debate. With discourse tending towards two extremes, on the one hand, Islamophobic prejudice, on the other, well-intentioned trivialisation, the middle ground is lost. This, in turn, provides an optimal breeding ground for Islamic fundamentalism: thoughtful voices are silenced while radical ideologues dominate debate within the Muslim world.

Germany, La Marca argues, has not yet learned to "talk about Islam critically and at the same time, respectfully". He issues a rallying call for a third way and a more nuanced approach, one that is "benevolent, and as unbiased as possible, but also not blind to threatening realities within Islam".

Old questions, familiar answers

La Marca, who writes that he himself converted to Islam for somewhat pragmatic reasons, takes a personal approach. In vivid scenes, at times narrated with humour, he describes his own encounters with the Islamic world, and offers impressions and reflections sparked by his research, which took him to Iran, on a pilgrimage to Iraq and into mosques across Germany.

The book, which is divided into six chapters, consists of two main strands. In the first part, the author sets himself the task of finding historical and theological answers to the questions which concern him. These questions are not new to Islamic discourse nor to Islamic studies. 

Does Islamist fundamentalism have nothing to do with Islam itself? Why is Islam so susceptible to interpretations incompatible with democracy and secularism? Can Islam, as it is actually practised, and an open society be compatible?

La Marca's answers break no new ground either. He maintains that, contrary to the opinion of many moderate Muslims, and pro-Islam non-Muslims in Europe, Islamist fundamentalism does indeed have something to do with Islam.

Globally, fundamentalist interpretations of Islam dominate: according to La Marca, who draws on the work of sociologist Ruud Koopmans, immigrants bring the injustices of their countries of origin with them to the West.

Lack of nuance

La Marca rightly criticises the dire human rights situation, lack of press freedom and democratic deficit suffered by people in countries with a Muslim majority.

When it comes to Germany, however, his argument falls short. Rather than looking at political or sociological developments, or at patriarchal structures, he attributes the problems and radicalisation of Muslims in Germany primarily to religion. The Qur'an translation he uses is unnamed, and he does not refer to the Tafsir tradition or exegesis of Islamic sources.

While La Marca rightly criticises the lack of nuance in German discourse on Islam, he fails to live up to his own standards. Fundamentalism in Pakistan, Iran, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, Nigeria and Afghanistan is referenced in a single sentence, without addressing the different forms it takes in each of those countries.

La Marca's plea for a more nuanced view of Islam is also at odds with his references to a generalised "Islamic mentality" to which he attributes characteristics such as hospitality, generosity, tolerance and charity.

Call for a Euro-Islam

La Marca's rallying call for a kind of Islamic enlightenment, based on the European model, is neither new nor uncontroversial. Many, such as British journalist Christopher de Bellaigue, argue that this modernisation of the Islamic world has already taken place, but that it exists in a blind spot of the Western view of history.

Equally unoriginal is La Marca's insistence that Muslim debate is at such a standstill that a social and liberal Islam can only emerge in Europe, as the German-Syrian sociologist, Bassam Tibi, suggested in the 2000s. The notion of this happening, in our time, in the historical homelands of Islam, seems unimaginable to La Marca.

While it is true that Algerian-French philosopher Mohammed Arkoun developed his "critique of Islamic reason" in France, there are also significant movements taking place in predominantly Muslim countries. The Turkish theologian and sociologist Ali Bulaç and his supporters are attempting to unite Islam and modernity. Also notable: the Turkish movement of "anti-capitalist Muslims"; the current commitment of Indonesian imams to environmental protection and the Islamic feminist movement in Turkey, all of which are part of an internal Muslim debate in Islamic countries. 

De-Islamising the immigration debate

In the second part of "Die fehlgeleitete Islamdebatte und ihre Folgen", La Marca gets into why the internal Muslim debate in Germany is not nearly as lively as it could be. Here, the book's thesis grows more concrete and more relevant.

In vivid prose, La Marca describes the challenges facing Muslims in Germany: the often one-sided media coverage of the issue; problems related to the Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution, including structural racism; the universal narrowing of discourse; and the shortcomings and absurdities of a debate in which extreme left-wing and extreme right-wing positions converge.

La Marca rightly calls for the "de-Islamisation of the immigration and integration debate and a focus on political, not religious, differences", but the reader may wonder whether he has followed his own prescription in his introductory chapter.

Yet overall, La Marca has enriched the debate in Germany with this book. The issues highlighted in the first section remain relevant and can only benefit from their repeated exposure. In the second section, La Marca's proposals offer a clear roadmap sketching out what he calls a path of "vigilant serenity" towards a pluralistic Islam.

As La Marca rightly criticises a dogmatic, political—one might add patriarchal—understanding of religion, he calls for a broader, deeper knowledge of Islam in Germany, for both Muslims and non-Muslims.

Translated from German by Louise East.