The Quandary of Modernity: Islam and civility

This chapter investigates the relationship of Islam to the modern condition of civility. It argues civility to be absent from the project of early Islamic revelationism and therefore an issue in modern Islamic socio-political consciousness. The chapter brings forth the original and innovative interpretations of civility in the modern context and takes as a case study the work of Abdullahi Ahmad an-Naim. Being a student of Sudanese modernist reformist Mahmoud Muhammad Taha, an-Naim potently argues for a fundamentally ethical/spiritual understanding of the Prophetic Event that allows for a genuine socio-political Islamic contribution to civil society. His work is explored especially in relation to issues such as civil liberties, the public sphere, religion versus secularism, and political culture.