European Muslim leaders reject the Dar al-Harb binary as obsolete for settled communities

Evidence

In recent years, Ramadan has become one of the most prominent and articulate proponents of a new identity for European Muslims, based on the recognition that Muslims have become a permanent presence in Europe. Among other things, Ramadan has called for a reformulation of the whole concept of the Dar al-Harb, claiming that such an anachronistic ‘binary’ framework is inadequate to explain the situation of contemporary Muslims living in a non-Islamic Europe. The grand mufti of Marseilles, Soheib Bensheikh, has similarly criticised the ‘flagrant anachronism separating religious thought and Muslims’ real life experience’, claiming that ‘reform of Islam has to begin with an urgent desacralization of the whole of Islam’s texts, commentaries, and the theological work around the texts’. — Matt Carr, You Are Now Entering Eurabia, 64

Categorization

• DEFINE: Dar al-Harb (the ‘abode of war’) is the classical legal category being declared anachronistic here.
• XREF: Connects to debates on Muslim minority jurisprudence (fiqh al-aqalliyyat) and to The Reluctant Fundamentalist’s concern with belonging in the West.