Annelle Sheline, GWU
Annelle Sheline, GWU
Islam with Adjectives: Nation-building and the Construction of Official Religious Identity
Islam with Adjectives: Nation-building and the Construction of Official Religious Identity
Most observers claim that Arab states use religion and religious institutions to serve regime interests, but lack credibility to shape religious identity. The article finds that states can shape religious identity so long as they do so in accordance with narratives implemented during the process of nation-building. Using comparative historical analysis of the early 20th century, the article examines the top-down construction of an official religious identity in three cases: Jordan in the Levant, Oman in the Gulf, and Morocco in North Africa. Comparison of early national religious discourses to state-led discourses promoted during the contemporary context of the War on Terror shows variation in political elites’ ability to draw on national religious identity for the purpose of producing a brand of national Islam suitable for international consumption. Interviews with members of political opposition groups reveal that in Morocco, French colonial narratives about moderate Islam remain salient, as does the national narrative of religious toleration in Oman, whereas in Jordan the regime’s efforts to promote religious toleration are seen as a disingenuous attempt to appease Western allies. The findings are drawn from interviews with religious establishment officials, clerics, educators, as well as members of Islamist groups, university students, and journalists. Primary materials, both archival and contemporary, include government documents, sermons, school textbooks, and newspaper articles. The ability of states to influence their population’s religious identity has implications for reducing political violence, and for the legitimacy of regime elites.