Islam and Liberal Citizenship

Abstract

In Islam and Liberal Citizenship: The Search for an Overlapping Consensus,Andrew March asks if Muslims can draw on Islamic doctrinal resources tosupport living as a minority in secular liberal democracies? His answer is athoroughly researched and argued “Yes.” This work of political philosophyprovides a cogent rebuttal to the Islamophobic narrative common in certaincircles that Muslims are a fifth column – cuckoo hatchlings waiting for demographicdominance before Islamizing their host nations.The author’s detailed and critical analysis is long overdue, particularlygiven the debates about Muslims in western countries that have polarizedopinions on such issues as France’s “burqa-bans” or the United States’ “waron terror.” There is also a wider context: addressing how religious doctrinescan be subordinated to secular authority, which is asked by others with sacredlaw-based religions, among them Orthodox Jews, Catholics, and Baha’is. Further,for those interested in strengthening commitment to civil society, Marchpresents belief-sourced reasons for supporting the argument that liberaldemocracy can shore up support among the religious faithful who are not necessarilyswayed by secular arguments ...