Globalized Islam The Search for a New Ummah by Olivier Roy (New York: Columbia University Press, 2004. 349 pages.)

Abstract

This book analyzes core issues of Islamic thought in the modern era by
examining Islam as both the dominant religion in the Middle East and a
minority religion in the West. By considering a wide range of ideological, spiritual, and non-violent or violent events, Roy posits that contrary to popular
(and erroneous) assumptions, Islamic fundamentalism derives from
globalization, not from a clash of civilizations or religions.
Roy claims that both liberalism and fundamentalism arise from globalization
and deterritorialization (i.e., the spread of Muslims and Islam beyond
the traditional Muslim world). He views neo-fundamentalists, Islamists,
born-again Muslims, and radical violent groups as bit players in Islam’s continuing
efforts to come to terms with western values. For example, Islamic
movements in Europe seem to be fundamentalist on the surface; but upon
closer examination, they display western values (e.g., individualization, selfrealization,
spirituality, and the weakening of traditional ties and sources of
authority). With one-third of all Muslims living outside Muslim-majority
lands, Roy believes that modern manifestations of Islam in the West (e.g.,
radicalism, neo-fundamentalism, Sufism, nationalism, re-Islamization, neo-
Islamic brotherhoods, and anti-westernism) evolve from globalization
instead of a desire to return to orthodox religious practices or the allegedly
“pure” Islam of an earlier time. He tells us that Islam is no longer only the
traditional faith of the Salaf (i.e., the three first and most pious generations
of Muslims), but also a mixture of modern sociological and cultural – even
western – elements, regardless of what modern-day Salafis claim ...