In Fundamentalism and Secularization, Egyptian philosopher Mourad Wahba traces the historical origins of fundamentalism and secularization as ideas and practices in order to theorize their symbiotic relationship, and how it is impacted by global capitalism and, more recently, postmodernism. This gives voice to an argument from within the Islamic world that is very different to that given platform in the mainstream, showing that fundamentalism does not arise normally and naturally from Islam but is a complex phenomenon linked to modernization and the development of capitalism in dependent countries, that is, tied to imperialism. Wahba's central argument concerns the organic relationship between fundamentalism and parasitic capitalism. Wahba is equally critical of religious fundamentalism and global capitalism, which for him are obstructions to secularization and democracy. While the three Abrahamic religions are examined when it comes to fundamentalism, Wahba deconstructs Islamic fundamentalism in particular and in the process reconstructs an Islamic humanism. Including a new preface by the author and translator, Fundamentalism and Secularism provides invaluable insights into how Middle Eastern philosophies open up new lines of thought in thinking through contemporary crises.

In Fundamentalism and Secularization, Egyptian philosopher Mourad Wahba traces the historical origins of fundamentalism and secularization as ideas and practices in order to theorize their symbiotic relationship, and how it is impacted by global capitalism and, more recently, postmodernism. This gives voice to an argument from within the Islamic world that is very different to that given platform in the mainstream, showing that fundamentalism does not arise normally and naturally from Islam but is a complex phenomenon linked to modernization and the development of capitalism in dependent countries, that is, tied to imperialism. Wahba's central argument concerns the organic relationship between fundamentalism and parasitic capitalism. Wahba is equally critical of religious fundamentalism and global capitalism, which for him are obstructions to secularization and democracy. While the three Abrahamic religions are examined when it comes to fundamentalism, Wahba deconstructs Islamic fundamentalism in particular and in the process reconstructs an Islamic humanism. Including a new preface by the author and translator, Fundamentalism and Secularism provides invaluable insights into how Middle Eastern philosophies open up new lines of thought in thinking through contemporary crises.

In a sweeping reconsideration of the relation between religion and modernity, Jose Casanova surveys the roles that religions may play in the public sphere of modern societies. During the 1980s, religious traditions around the world, from Islamic fundamentalism to Catholic liberation theology, began making their way, often forcefully, out of the private sphere and into public life, causing the "deprivatization" of religion in contemporary life. No longer content merely to administer pastoral care to individual souls, religious institutions are challenging dominant political and social forces, raising questions about the claims of entities such as nations and markets to be "value neutral", and straining the traditional connections of private and public morality. Casanova looks at five cases from two religious traditions (Catholicism and Protestantism) in four countries (Spain, Poland, Brazil, and the United States). These cases challenge postwar—and indeed post-Enlightenment—assumptions about the role of modernity and secularization in religious movements throughout the world. This book expands our understanding of the increasingly significant role religion plays in the ongoing construction of the modern world.

In Conjectures and Controversy in the Study of Fundamentalism, W. Paul Williamson takes a critical look at the sociohistorical emergence of fundamentalism and examines how historians constructed popular, though questionable, conceptions of the movement that have dominated decades of empirical research in psychology. He further analyzes the notions of militancy and anti-modernity as valid characterizations of fundamentalism and examines whether fundamentalism, as a Christian Protestant phenomenon, is useful in labelling global forms of religious extremism and violence. In observing the lack of theory-driven research, the publication offers theories that situate fundamentalism as a social psychological phenomenon as opposed to some personal predisposition. Students and scholars of fundamentalism will discover Conjectures and Controversy in the Study of Fundamentalism to be a provocative study on the topic.

‘Secularization’ sounds simple, a decline in the power of religion. Yet, the history of the term is controversial and multi-faceted; it has been useful to both religious believers and non-believers and has been deployed by scholars to make sense of a variety of aspects of cultural and social change. This book will introduce the reader to this variety and show how secularization bears on the contemporary politics of religion. Secularization addresses the sociological classics’ ambivalent accounts of the future of religion, later and more robust sociological claims about religious decline, and the most influential philosophical secularization thesis, which says that the dominant ideas of modern thought are in fact religious ones in a secularized form. The book outlines some shortcomings of these accounts in the light of historical inquiry and comparative sociology; examines claims that some religions are ‘resistant to secularization’; and analyzes controversies in the politics of religion, in particular over the relationship between Christianity and Islam and over the implicitly religious character of some modern political movements. By giving equal attention to both sociological and philosophical accounts of secularization, and equal weight to ideas, institutions, and practices, this book introduces complicated ideas in a digestible format. It will appeal to students and scholars interested in making unusual connections within sociology, anthropology, philosophy, theology, and political theory.

Since the end of the Cold War fundamentalism has been seen as the major threat to world peace and prosperity, a concern that was exacerbated by the events of 9/11, and the 'War against Terrorism'. But what does 'fundamentalism' really mean? Since it was coined by American Protestant evangelicals in the 1920s, the word has expanded its meaning to include radical conservatives or ideological purists in many spheres of activity, not all of them religious. Modern applications of fundamentalism include Islamist radicals in the Muslim world, the militant Israeli settlers who oppose them as well as Sikh, Hindu and even Buddhist nationalists who seek to justify their political agendas by reference to divine edicts or religious tradition. This exciting new book tackles the polemic and stereotypes surrounding this fascinating subject.

Olivier Roy, world-renowned authority on Islam and politics, finds in the modern disconnection between faith communities and socio-cultural identities a fertile space for fundamentalism to grow. Instead of freeing the world from religion, secularization has encouraged a kind of holy ignorance to take root, an anti-intellectualism that promises immediate, emotional access to the sacred and positions itself in direct opposition to contemporary pagan culture. The secularization of society was supposed to free people from religion, yet individuals are converting en masse to fundamentalist faiths, such as Protestant evangelicalism, Islamic Salafism, and Haredi Judaism. These religions either reconnect adherents to their culture through casual referents, like halal fast food, or maintain their momentum through purification rituals, such as speaking in tongues, a practice that allows believers to utter a language that is entirely their own. Instead of a return to traditional religious worship, we are now witnessing the individualisation of faith and the disassociation of faith communities from ethnic and national identities. Roy explores the options now available to powers that hope to integrate or control these groups; and whether marginalisation or homogenisation will further divide believers from their culture.

This book examines how the competition between religious and secular forces influenced state religion policy between 1990 and 2008. While both sides were active, the religious side had considerably more success. The book examines how states supported religion as well as how they restricted it.

The place of religion in society has changed profoundly in the last few centuries, particularly in the West. In what will be a defining book for our time, Taylor takes up the question of what these changes mean, and what, precisely, happens when a society becomes one in which faith is only one human possibility among others.