Guiding the Pious to Practice: Islamic Magazines and Revival in Egypt, 1976-1981

Abstract

Scholars struggle to make sense of the relationship between religion and politics in contemporary Egypt. What are the ties that bind and divide Islamism and alternative religious visions, Islamist organizations and state institutions, and their respective constituencies? These questions cannot be answered without appreciating the centrality of the emergence of the Islamic Revival under the rule of Anwar al-Sadat (1970-1981). This dissertation uses a variety of mass media from this period as cultural artifacts that reveals both ties and tensions among religious elites and the key sites at which they mobilized their constituencies. Centering on four Islamic periodicals representing Muslim Brothers, Salafis, State-affiliated scholars and religious bureaucrats, this project charts the battle for Egypt’s middle class through articles, letters to the editor and fatwa requests. It situates these projects in relation to a longer history of religious contestation within Egyptian history and further teases out their commonalities and conflicts by exploring over 130 pamphlets, sermons and television programs of leading religious figures of this period. Whereas previous research perpetuates a narrative of separation and ideological division by focusing exclusively on either Islamist or state sites, this study emphasizes the intellectual cross-pollination among competing religious elites and the social ties among their constituencies who were employed within state offices or enrolled in public educational institutions. It highlights three particular shifts in practice: the redefinition of religious literacy, the proliferation of modest dress and conservative gender relations, and the increased performance of the early afternoon Zuhr prayer. By tracing the emergence of the Islamic Revival through these practices, this dissertation offers an alternative template for understanding the roots of competing contemporary claims to piety, whether Muslim Brotherhood, Salafis, or ‘Abd al-Fattah al-Sisi’s government.