الإسلام السياسي في الفكر الحداثي: مؤسسة مؤمنون بلا حدود نموذجا

Political Islam in Modernist Thought: A Case Study of Mominoun Without Borders Foundation

Abstract

This study aims to shed light on the thorny relationship between the “Mominoun Without Borders” (Believers Without Borders) Foundation and political Islam, clarify the Foundation’s most important ideas regarding political Islam, and identify the real reason behind its intense attacks on political Islam movements. The Foundation has dedicated the majority of its articles and research to criticizing political Islam, highlighting its negative aspects and shortcomings in Islamic work, and examining its perspective on heritage—considering Islamic heritage a rich material from which the Mominoun Without Borders Foundation launched its critique of religion. What is apparent from the Foundation’s articles and research dedicated to criticizing political Islam is that it does not mean by “political Islam” that there is an Islam that calls for politics; rather, its target is the Islamic movements operating in Arab and Islamic societies. The strange thing is that the institution itself falls into the exact same criticisms it directs at political Islam. The institution accuses Islamic movements of hiding behind religion, using religion as a tool to cover up their shortcomings, personal goals, and material interests, and being subordinate to external parties. This research followed the descriptive methodology by describing the ideas of modernists—represented by the Mominoun Without Borders Foundation—regarding political Islam and the movements that represent this trend. This was followed by an analysis of the texts presented by the Foundation concerning political Islam on its website, as well as in the books it publishes in public libraries and on electronic websites. This research relied directly on the Foundation’s publications on the internet, whether readable or audiovisual. This research did not rely on interviews due to the geographical distance between the Foundation's location and the State of Qatar, nor did use questionnaires because data on the research topic is abundantly available on the Foundation’s website. Through this approach, the researcher arrived at the desired results of the research.