Elements of the Issue

(6) – Secularism (Neutrality of the State)  
The "Islamic reformist secularism" has not exceeded the framework of defending the civil nature of authority and the political system without clashing with religion. We refer to it as "secularism" by extension because it opposed the principle of religious authority, undermined its legitimacy, and excluded it from Islam, as it challenged religious tyranny, viewing it as a strong foundation for generating political tyranny. However, if we consider its actual content, we realize that it is a political stance devoid of any ideological content similar to that which established the idea of secularism in Europe, where a modern state derived its legitimacy from public opinion.

Thus, Islamic discourse appears to be divided between two logics in understanding the concept of secularism. The first seeks to reduce it to the saying "separation of religion and state," while the second calls for "Islamic secularism," which does not aim at abolishing or excluding religion but is based on the historical experience and moral framework of Islamic societies. This means striving to adapt faith to the needs of Islamic societies in establishing political, economic, and social systems in light of the will of the people and the protection of their fundamental rights. 

Therefore, the distribution between the two logics raises more than one methodological and epistemological question regarding the rooting of the concept of secularism and its settlement in the Arab political domain; indeed, the greater effort returns to the Islamic movements themselves, which are demanding, before anyone else, to clarify a pivotal concept in shaping a political space equipped for plurality, the right to differ, competition, and equal opportunities, all of which fall within the framework of a civil state.

(7) – Democracy 
Since the nineteenth century, religious reformers found a form of consensus regarding modern political concepts, linking **Shura** (consultation) and democracy, where they viewed the latter as the modern translation of the former or the suitable tool and mechanism to apply the principle of **Shura**, an effective means to express it realistically.

Since the 1990s, the idea that the reference to Sharia does not contradict procedural democracy concerning people's governance of their affairs through elections has resurfaced. There has been renewed communication between the **Shura** system and the democratic system, heralding the opening of a new political decade for Arabs, centering the people, the nation, and the community in a crucial and determinative position.

**Programs of Contemporary Islamic Movements**  
At the outset, it is essential to distinguish between political Islam as a political-religious phenomenon and Islam as a set of beliefs, rituals, and cultural heritage. Here, we can start with a definition of political Islam as the resort to Islamic lexicon as a religion to express a political project, with the pivotal point in political Islam being its pursuit of power, as this is essential for establishing its project.

The violent trend is manifested in closed Islamic groups whose religious reference provides them with absolute certainty not found elsewhere, along with a simplified ideology that resolves all contradictions around them, granting them feelings of martyrdom, transcendence, and superiority over the social conditions they live on the margins of. Finally, it provides them with legitimacy for the deep animosity they harbor towards their surroundings. The fundamental issue for these groups is that their final hostility towards societal institutions extends to the entire social reality, causing them to isolate from it. (We will return at the end of the discussion to some transformations witnessed by some of these movements).

In the context of our exploration of the issue of the state in the political thought of non-violent contemporary Islamic movements, it is useful to address it as follows:

**(1) - Enlightened Islam**  
A term common for more than four decades, referring to an intellectual current that bridges Islam and modernity. In fact, enlightened Islam has been a cultural current present in every era throughout the long history of Islam, signifying a certain interpretation of texts and a specific collective choice. It represents one of the modern theological sects and jurisprudential schools and philosophical movements, capable of serving as a bridge between the conflicting currents of our present age, and able to contribute to reducing strife between brothers/enemies (secularists and Salafists), partisans of the material world and partisans of religion, liberals and conservatives.

In fact, there are three issues that Islamic revivalists share: First, the source of authority, where they have reached a distinction between the supreme authority and the administrative authority. The supreme authority of Sharia—what are the administrative details in the colon? The authority that enables it. Second, the nature of political policy, which they say is civil, meaning that it does not provide it with the sanctity or decision-making related to religious policy, and that people are the ones who choose it, and they choose freely and competitively to participate in it, to discuss it, and to enact the structural, even founding, laws that govern it. Third, the functions of authority, where reformers say they address the management of the general issue, including everything that is necessary, and to protect national existence and national interests, after the political community has determined it through negotiation, competition, and participation, and has identified the various methods and means for achieving it. (3) - Parties of the Islamic Movement
Over the past four decades, there has been a significant presence of moderate Islamist movements with popular democracy in the Arab political arena. These include, for example, the Ennahda Party in Tunisia, founded in 1981 under the name "Islamic"; the Justice Party in Morocco, which includes a majority of members from the Popular Constitutional Democratic Movement, founded in 1967, and members from the Algerian Reform and Renewal Movement; the Jordanian Center Party, founded in 2001; and the New Center Party in Egypt.

There is a focus on objectivity that compels us to study the phenomenon of one of the comprehensive Islamic movements, which could contribute to its consolidation and the intensification of its political presence in the Arab world. This focus could also lead to the belief and management of the official religious problem, which continues to be a vital and influential force in the Arab world.

For this reason, it expresses an advanced vision of Islamic political awareness that has long been lacking in the Arab arena since the emergence of the nation-state. This awareness has been largely distorted by the fierce cooperation between the state and violent movements that has persisted for decades, raising questions about the prospects for "maturing" a civil Islamic political experience. On the other hand, this court represents a departure from the traditional classification of political Islamic movements as moderate and acquiescent, in order to impose a new criterion for classification in the political struggle: the ability of these groups to absorb and engage with democratic and liberal concepts, favoring their liberal practices. This means that although these movements do not enjoy a religious authority that governs their own vision and that of others, and that what is related to other Islamic movements is widespread, they do not base their political sovereignty on a religious background. For them, this authority represents nothing more than a "civilizational incubator" that accommodates all categories that differ from Yemen within a single nation. Thirdly, this vision arrives at a different vision of the nature of harmony between the state and the rest of the world. It aims to resolve this historical dilemma, which has long dogged Islamic movements in Poland and transcended the propositions of many other Islamic movements, particularly with regard to issues related to gender and women. Fourthly, these projects present a "modernist" approach to empowering Arabs, and thus offer a solution that could be considered a "salvation" for the dilemma that has historically characterized Islamic thought for the twentieth century. This solution is represented by resolving the differences between religion and modernity, and the contentious issues related to identity, cultural identity, and the formation of consensus with others.

Finally, this Supreme Court has obtained a patent for its invention, allowing it to innovate its ideas and mechanisms, making them fluid and resilient to contemporary issues. This is in contrast to Islamic movements that are confined within the walls of "the text," unable to transcend these boundaries. This leads to their political and political demise and reduces their chances of integration into civil life.

In fact, a group of Islamic centrist movements can be viewed as having established the Arab Renaissance, which was planned by the government: Tahtawi, al-Tunisi, Afghani, Muhammad Abduh, Rashid Rida, and al-Hadara. Since the 1930s, it has been shunned by ideas and projects planned by corporations and radical movements in their Marxist, nationalist, and religious forms.

(*) – Paraphrasing of a paper presented at the symposium "An Islamic System Governing Democracy: Experiences and Trends," organized by the Arab Center for Innovation and Continuing Studies in Doha, October 6-8, 2012.

Levant: Dr. Abdullah Turkmani