Mehmet Özay 16.07.2025
In this article, we argue that Muslim societies have been characterized by resurrectionism (revivalismI will share some insights into their great desire and enthusiasm for the subject (and how it corresponds to social reality).
I would say that it is possible to consider these views on two main axes.
The first is the context of revivalist efforts in relation to the second half of the 19th century and the two main and famous actors that emerged at that time.
Second, despite the demands and desires for revivalism, there is the question of whether there is a social reality that would allow for such a revivalism.
Continuity
The phenomenon of resurrectionism in Muslim societies from East to West, with all its elements, has been presented as a prescription for salvation - or, perhaps, repeatedly (recurring) corresponds to a process that is still waiting to be presented.
Here, it would be useful to clarify the following point.
The concept of resurrectionism is not a phenomenon that emerged at one moment or period in Islamic history and then was forgotten and lost its importance.
In addition to this, it must be said that grounding the phenomenon of resurrectionism in 19th century high colonialism also corresponds to a significant mistake.
On the contrary, there is no doubt that the phenomenon of resurrectionism and the ideas developed on this phenomenon have always been current and on the agenda in almost every important period of Islamic history, due to the changes brought about by the specific socialization of each period.
19th century obsession
However, the very act of attributing the emergence of this phenomenon to the conditions of the second half of the 19th century and grounding it in the relevant actors of that period, namely Jamal al-Din Afghani and his student, and then Muhammad Abduh, whom we can somehow call his opponent, and from whom there is no doubt that he differed at least methodologically, itself requires reconsideration and evaluation.
In addition to these two names, in the same period, in different geographies, there are names who put forward the phenomenon of religious revivalism with different sociological and religious phenomena.
It is possible to consider first-hand that the efforts of the religious-political actors Afghani and Abduh - and others - in the context of resurrectionism can be considered as the views they produced in the face of the dilemmas, crises and problems of the period they lived in.
However, in the face of both geographical and cultural differentiation of Muslim societies, there is no doubt that the efforts to ground revivalism, especially through two religious-political actors such as Afghani and Abduh, have brought about a significant conflict with divergent social realities.
At this point, even the attempt to treat 'colonialism' as a central development and to draw parallels in the efforts made towards it is, in my opinion, the product of a wrong perspective.
What I mean by this is that the processes of colonialism manifested themselves in different ways in different Muslim geographies.
Generalization
To what extent it is possible to say that these two actors - with a great deal of generalization - understood the problems of all Muslim societies of their time, observed and analyzed the causes of these problems, reached an agreement with the political, religious and intellectual actors in these societies on the basis of a common mind, etc., is open to debate.
Rather than speaking of such a consensus, on the contrary, one witnesses the diffusion of these two actors' reflections on the social and political reality that came to the fore in their time and which revealed itself as 'high colonialism' in several stages or processes.
The first is their close circle of followers, disciples, etc.
Secondly, the newspapers that were available at the time, and which had the opportunity to be borrowed from the West and even published - for a very short period of time - in Paris, the heart of Western modernization (urvat'ul vuska) is the acceptance and reaction it creates in the geographies it reaches.
This social and political reality that these two actors are dealing with is also an elitist (electiveIt should also be emphasized that they have made approaches.
In particular, in the context of Afghani, it is the development of a kind of Pan-Islamist stance in response to the expanding colonial process.
In the case of Abduh in particular, the backwardness of Muslim societies - and it should not be underestimated that this emerged as an important reason for colonialism - is the conviction that everything will be put in its place through 'education' processes.
What is meant by 'education' here is that Islam and science and education in Muslim societies, especially 'modern' education, have a dominant place, although we should not ignore that there are also classical Islamic sciences that can be reconsidered.
Social reality
From here, it is useful to look at the other side of the issue...
First of all, it should be remembered that there is no doubt that the concept of 'social reality' has an uncomfortable aspect for certain groups of people.
However, if we take into account all the conditions that constitute the circumstances of the human societies to which religion is directed, it will be understood that 'social reality' is not a negligible aspect.
I mean the other side...
The second of the points I mentioned in the Introduction, namely, the demands and desires for resurrectionism and whether there is a social reality that would allow for a possible resurrectionism...
This is closely linked to what I tried to point out in the first section above in the framework of Afghani and Abduh.
We can raise this issue in the form of a hypothetical question.
If, let's say, the conditions of 'high colonialism' had not developed in the 19th century, and through this colonialism, the encounter of Muslim societies with 'colonial modernization' had not come to the fore, can it be said that the Muslim societies concerned would not have needed 'revivalism'?
What I mean by this question - and a series of questions that can be articulated with it - is whether there are other phenomena, such as internal causes, other than the fact that the obstacle to the revivalism of Muslim societies corresponds to an external factor, in this case colonialism?
I think we have a lot of material to substantiate this...
Despite the 19th century social reality of the ulema class and their views and even claims that "Islam is not an obstacle to progress and reform", the question of why Muslim societies have not been able to put forth a similar effort and result in the face of Western modernization, which Afghani and especially Abduh wanted to take as a model, still occupies an important place on our agenda.
In fact, it is necessary to say that the reasons for the lack of a process similar to Western modernization, despite the end of the 19th century period of 'high colonialism', the achievement of national independence, the existence of tools and institutions that would help establish the political, economic and cultural unity of Islam, etc., can be understood not only by returning to the discourses of the 19th century, but also by seriously reconsidering the previous processes.
Period Islamic World The magazine states that "... the late Sheikh Muhammad Abduh and Qasim Amin from the Egyptian Ulema Islamiyya have done a great deal of work. Egypt's progressive press plays the role of a guide in the whole world of Islam" ... and in addition to this, a thinker who has an important place among the Muslims of Russia, "... Islam and Progress "In his Russian-language treatise, he proved with verses and verses that Islam is not an obstacle to progress and science."[1] Despite their approaches, it is an important research question that Western modernization, which is opposed on the one hand and desired to be achieved on the other, has not been realized in Muslim societies.
[1] "New Movement in the Islamic world". (1913). Islamic World, 6 Rabiul Ahir 1331, Saturday, Aded 1, p. 15
English and Indonesian versions translated with DeepL AI
