Muslim Civilization Confronts the West; A Tale of Transformation (Interaction, Disagreement, and Rereading)

The confrontation between Islamic and Western civilizations has several turning points: 1. the translation movement in the seventh century AD, 2. the outbreak of the Crusades from the late eleventh to late thirteenth centuries, and 3. the colonial era from the eighteenth century onward. This article examines the intellectual developments of the eighteenth century and beyond, as well as their effects on Muslim civilization. During this time period, the identity and lived experience of Muslims (Eastern, Islamic, and modern identities) were heavily influenced by the West; to the point where it sparked a tide of diverse thought patterns in Islamic societies. These schools of thought have developed in response to two major issues: first, modernity implies the abandonment or reinterpretation of religion, which necessitated the determination of religion’s position in the sociopolitical life of Muslims. Second, is secularization the prerequisite for development and progress, or, more philosophically, is the nature of development secular? What effect has confrontation with the West had on Muslim civilization, is the central query of the article. It appears that Muslims not only perceived and conceptualized each other (the West) differently, but also discovered distinct identities in another mirror. Faced with the West, various currents of thought have emerged in the Islamic world since the eighteenth century, which can be categorized into five distinct groups. 1) Following the Western direction; 2) Religious reform; 3) Nationalistic sentiments; 4) TraditionalismIslam; 5) Rethinking. In the era of multiculturalism, a rethinking approach based on critical acceptance rather than just confrontation or acceptance is one of the sensible ways to preserve the identity of Muslims. Consequently, reading the Islamic tradition and rebuilding its epistemological foundation, maintaining interactions in the field of needs without further rejection, and strengthening the foundations of understanding and thought can be a means of escaping the crises resulting from the confrontation between Islam and the West. The present investigation will employ qualitative content analysis.