Typology of caliphate-centrism in the contemporary Islam; A comparative study of the ideas of Rashid Reza, Hassan al-Banna, and Ali Abd Al-Raziq

Abstract

The purpose of the present study was to study the theoretical dimensions of the challenges posed in the aftermath of the Ottoman caliphate in 1924, and provide a typology of different types of ideas about Islamic caliphate in three forms—“traditionalist, modernist, and modernist”. In this regard, the political ideas of the most prominent representatives of each of the spheres namely Rashid Reza, Hassan al-Banna, and Ali Abd Al-Raziq, concerning politics and caliphate, were studied. The research method was descriptive-analytical, and the data were gathered in library fashion. The results indicated that Muslim thinkers’ viewpoints are at odds over the question of “caliphate”. Thinkers generally find themselves on common ground on the idea that caliphate in the Muslim world is a form of state for the protection of the laws of Sharia. Traditionalists and modernists argue that human problems can be solved by referring to the holy texts, but Ali Abd Al-Raziq argues for the ability of human mind in making sense of the world and managing personal and collective affairs in life. In this regard, there is a consensus between him and modernists like Hassan al-Banna. Modernists mostly vouch for the separation of state from religion and the theory of world-centrism. The consensus on the idea of the need for the involvement of religion in politics has led the two schools, traditionalist and modernist, to consider the need for reviving caliphate. The two intellectual orientations, traditionalist and modernist, believe that the unity between Muslims is the essential condition for caliphate.

Keywords

• caliphate
• muslim thinkers
• traditional
• modern
• modernized
• ottoman caliphate
• rashid reza
• hassan al-bana and ali abd al-raziq