Modernism's Clash With Islam

The fact is that modern Islamic society is seen by most Westerners as a continuation of medieval fanaticism, with conservative views of women and diet, prayer and social obligations that are, at best, “odd”. Other than oil, and middle eastern antagonism and anti-Western hatred by some Islamic groups, modern Islam is not well understood by the average citizen. Yet, it is obvious that religion and nationalism do mix, to some degree. As Max Weber pointed out in his introduction to Sociology of World Religions (1920) “No economic ethic has ever been determined solely by religion…The religious determination of life-conduct, however, is also one…only one, of the determinants of the economic ethic.” (Weber 1 1958)

What needs to be addressed, as well as sociological and economic commentary is the question: “In a world of rapidly developing technology and radically changing social and political institutions, is religion in peril?” (Firth 1996 1) And, if it is, should we be concerned? Is religion still an important part of the world’s civilizations? Islam, it seems, may be the strongest in terms of holding reins on its Muslim followers.

Actually, “The meaning of ‘Islam’ even when used to denote the religion of Islam is too general and imprecise to be useful in an analytical argument.” (Shalguni 2001 2) In other words, we must differentiate between religion and nationalism, and between nationalism and the economy of Islamic nations.