Political Islam

A modern political and ideological movement that seeks to organize state and society according to Islamic principles, understood in the claims as a contemporary construct distinct from both traditional religious practice and medieval Islam. It emerged in response to modern crises such as capitalist upheaval and the failures of secularism and state socialism, and parallels other modern fundamentalist movements rather than reflecting an immutable essence of Islam.

Claims that use this term

• Political Islam is a contemporary construct, not a natural outgrowth of Muslim societies.
• Political Islam parallels other modern fundamentalisms rather than stemming from Islam’s essence
• Political Islam is a modern urban phenomenon born of capitalist crisis, not medieval revival
• Political Islam emerged from failures of secularism, Stalinism, and crises, aided by US sponsorship
• Political Islam is modern state criticism, not traditional rejection of change
• Political Islam filled the vacuum left by exhausted secular ideologies