Conflicting Paradigms of Religious and Bureaucratic Authority in a British Mosque
This article analyses an on-going conflict between two groups (Bargil and Kardal) over the management of a mosque located in an area near London. Based on fourteen months of intensive fieldwork, including participant observation, informal chats and semi-structured interviews, this article offers an...
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doaj-e710bfbc50104afea3a0f6d8143a56b12020-11-25T01:11:53ZengMDPI AGReligions2077-14442019-09-01101056410.3390/rel10100564rel10100564Conflicting Paradigms of Religious and Bureaucratic Authority in a British MosqueAmin El-Yousfi0University of Cambridge, Cambridge CB2 1TN, UKThis article analyses an on-going conflict between two groups (Bargil and Kardal) over the management of a mosque located in an area near London. Based on fourteen months of intensive fieldwork, including participant observation, informal chats and semi-structured interviews, this article offers an in-depth and original account of the transformations taking place in mosques concerning the role of imams and mosque committee members. By analysing the object of conflict, the organisational structure, the dynamic of the groups and its leaders, as well as the process of bureaucratisation of mosques as a material condition, I intend to scrutinise the role and status of the imam and mosque committee members. The primary aim of this article is to re-examine and challenge the narrative of decline in religious authority (in Western mosques) propounded by some scholars as being the result of individualisation and the rise of new religious figures outside traditional institutions. I suggest that rather than experiencing a decline in imams’ religious authority, mosques have become controlled by the bureaucratic authority of the committee members. In other words, imams’ religious authority is still exercised, yet only within the bureaucratic framework set by the committee members.https://www.mdpi.com/2077-1444/10/10/564mosqueconflictimamcommittee membersreligious/bureaucratic authority |
collection |
DOAJ |
language |
English |
format |
Article |
sources |
DOAJ |
author |
Amin El-Yousfi |
spellingShingle |
Amin El-Yousfi Conflicting Paradigms of Religious and Bureaucratic Authority in a British Mosque Religions mosque conflict imam committee members religious/bureaucratic authority |
author_facet |
Amin El-Yousfi |
author_sort |
Amin El-Yousfi |
title |
Conflicting Paradigms of Religious and Bureaucratic Authority in a British Mosque |
title_short |
Conflicting Paradigms of Religious and Bureaucratic Authority in a British Mosque |
title_full |
Conflicting Paradigms of Religious and Bureaucratic Authority in a British Mosque |
title_fullStr |
Conflicting Paradigms of Religious and Bureaucratic Authority in a British Mosque |
title_full_unstemmed |
Conflicting Paradigms of Religious and Bureaucratic Authority in a British Mosque |
title_sort |
conflicting paradigms of religious and bureaucratic authority in a british mosque |
publisher |
MDPI AG |
series |
Religions |
issn |
2077-1444 |
publishDate |
2019-09-01 |
description |
This article analyses an on-going conflict between two groups (Bargil and Kardal) over the management of a mosque located in an area near London. Based on fourteen months of intensive fieldwork, including participant observation, informal chats and semi-structured interviews, this article offers an in-depth and original account of the transformations taking place in mosques concerning the role of imams and mosque committee members. By analysing the object of conflict, the organisational structure, the dynamic of the groups and its leaders, as well as the process of bureaucratisation of mosques as a material condition, I intend to scrutinise the role and status of the imam and mosque committee members. The primary aim of this article is to re-examine and challenge the narrative of decline in religious authority (in Western mosques) propounded by some scholars as being the result of individualisation and the rise of new religious figures outside traditional institutions. I suggest that rather than experiencing a decline in imams’ religious authority, mosques have become controlled by the bureaucratic authority of the committee members. In other words, imams’ religious authority is still exercised, yet only within the bureaucratic framework set by the committee members. |
topic |
mosque conflict imam committee members religious/bureaucratic authority |
url |
https://www.mdpi.com/2077-1444/10/10/564 |
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