1. Religion in Politics
 

• Egypt is a case study involving Islam
• Religion shapes culture, which shapes political culture:
• Key issue for this course: relationship of church and state:
• Theocracy.  Theos = God, theocracy= rule by God

• acknowledges separation of church and state
• succession after Moses to military general, not priest
• later King Samuel, a regular king
• Jesus: render unto to Caesar and God....
• historical reality more complicated:
• Catholic church made compacts with states resulting battles over clericalism (in France)
• Puritans in US
• Israel, role of orthodox rabbinate

• emphasizes individuality, literacy
• historically linked to emergence of democracy (Scandinavia, England)

• stress hierarchy; control and obedience; rule of man, not law.
• difficult to form democracy

•  historically, has argued that there should be NO SEPARATION of church and state.
• religion should control state, state should use religious law ("shari'a")
• conversion away from Islam is against shari'a and law, and is apostasy, a crime punishable by execution  Malaysia example
• In Somalia, chairman of a local Islamic court plans to behead people who do not pray five times
• state borders are temporary administrative boundaries, subject to rearrangement
• involvement/interference/invasion of other countries is OK
• When there is separation, religious leaders often criticize the state for not meeting religion standards; this often weakens state legitimacy, and state responds by being more dictatorial.
• in practice, there is a continuum of relationships between state and mosque.
• The key political issue is whether to to become more "Islamic" or more secular.  There is much tension (and violence) about this.
• In practice, Islamic countries are also shaped by their indigenous culture, and there are important differences between Arab, South Asian, and Southeast Asian Islamic countries.  excellent article on this theme

5. Issue areas where religious values often intersect with state policy:

• family law: marriage, divorce, child support
• birth control
• abortion
• inheritance practices
• gender issues in property ownership/passports
• rape, marital rape laws/definitions
• education curriculum
• gender issues in education and work place
• alcoholic beverages
• sabbath practices

Contrasting patterns of states in Islamic cultural places:
 
 

note: generation gap and possible change in Iran coming?
        Is secular Turkey becoming more religious?
        Turkey's military threatens coup to block Islamicists.
 

2. Charismatic Leadership

Gamal Abdel Nasser (ruled 1952-70) considered a "Charismatic Leader"

• charismatic leader provides personal link between state leader and citizens citizens have great faith in leader
• provides one path of transformation from traditional society to modern society
• charismatic leader often has personalized political party
• charisma can not be tranferred to successor,  and when the leader dies, charisma evaporates
• often replaced by corruption and patron client systems

Garibaldi (Italy)
Bismarck (Germany)
Sukarno (Indonesia)
Lenin (USSR)
Mao (China)
Nkrumah (Ghana)
Gandhi (India)
Nyerere (Tanzania)
Nelson Mandela (South Africa)

  Mubarak makes change in election laws, Feb, 2005 link
 
 

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