The papers in this panel explore the authenticity and construction of Muslim spaces and Islamic traditions in diverse contexts. One paper looks at Google reviews of mosques in the Persian Gulf, analyzing how both Muslims and non-Muslims (as tourists) search for and recommend mosques based on aesthetic and spiritual values. Another examines the intersection of Islam and Saminism in the North Kendeng Mountains, proposing a shared earth-centered worldview that challenges colonial concepts of humanity. A third paper on Palestinian ulama during the Ottoman period reasserts distinct Palestinian intellectual traditions to counter the erasure often caused by Ottoman-centric narratives. Finally, a paper on post-2011 Egypt explores the role of Sufism in offering solace amid societal upheaval. Together, these papers present a range of contemporary questions within Islamic Studies, reflecting on how history, religion, and culture shape Muslim identities and spaces today.
This paper analyzes the use of Google Reviews in the Persian Gulf to search for, rate, and review mosques and other Muslim houses of worship. Focusing on mosques in four cities – Abu Dhabi, Doha, Kuwait City, and Riyadh – it uses Google review recommendations to identify five mosques in each city, examining the posted ratings and reviews. The analysis shows how reviews braid together religious users’ goals of finding a location for prayer and of providing guidance to fellow believers; and with religious and non-religious users’ reflections on visiting these mosques as tourists. it argues that reviews form a communal space of shared belief as well as a space that reflects and amplifies the importance of ‘mosque tourism’ as a pious and cultural practice. More broadly, it sheds light on broader trends in Gulf Muslim religious life-worlds, and how they take shape across a continuum of online and offline experiences.
Heeding Sylvia Wynter’s call to go beyond the contemporary “descriptive statement” of being Man that stands on the racist/classist/patriarchal/colonial/White-Christian centric ontology (Wynter, 2003), this paper analyzes the sociopolitical and religious perspectives of the indigenous community in North Kendeng Mountains of Central Java Province that stand at the intersection of Islam and Saminism (an indigenous religion established within the crucible of anti-colonial struggles in 19th century Indonesia). The paper proposes to see the Islam/Saminism matrix in the life of the North Kendeng indigenous community. It looks at how Islam/Saminism is an affirmation of being human – instead of the hegemonic “descriptive statement” of Man - that is always in relation with Ibu Bumi (lit. Mother Earth). In this way, the paper argues that the Islam/Saminism matrix provides an ontotheological conception of ‘human’ in opposition to what Wynter called as the master code of “Man2,” and serves as an epistemological foundation for being human.
Scholarship on modern Islam has largely focused on Egypt and South Asia, overlooking Palestine’s intellectual history. This paper integrates Palestine into broader Islamic networks by examining three late Ottoman Nabulsi ulama: Yousef al-Nabahani, Bakr al-Tamimi, and Abdullah Sufan al-Qaddumi. These scholars, rooted in established religious lineages, defended traditionalist thought against reformist, missionary, and Wahhabi challenges during Sultan Abdulhamid II’s reign. Their efforts centered on preserving Ash‘ari and Maturidi theology, traditional four schools of law, and Sufi traditions. Applying network theory, this study demonstrates that their discourse evolved through intellectual exchanges across Istanbul, Damascus, Aleppo, and Cairo, though Palestinian ulama placed unique emphasis on countering Christian missionary activities. By positioning them within the Hamidian traditionalist network, this paper argues that Palestinian scholars were not passive provincial figures but active participants in shaping Ottoman religious and political discourse, contributing to a more nuanced understanding of Islamic traditionalism in the Ottoman empire.
This paper investigates the growing interest in Sufism among young Egyptians after the 2011 uprising. It is based on 63 interviews with middle-class Muslim Egyptians in 2018 and 2019 and ethnographic research from 2021 to 2023. Most interlocutors believed that the revolution failed to bring about the political and socioeconomic goals they hoped to achieve. Despair became the norm amongst these youth. As a result, while some started questioning religious authorities and practices and others turned to nonbelief, several interviewees turned to Sufism to maintain a relationship with God that was not reliant on external markers of piety that others can judge. Some followed a traditional Sufi path, while others followed practitioners who incorporated teachings from Eastern wisdoms and New Age teachings. This paper explores how religious sensibilities change due to political upheaval, with Sufism being seen, by some, as a last recourse before losing faith in God or Islam.