Muslim and Catholic Experiences of National Belonging in France
Rethinking Boundaries, Inequities, and Faith in the Republic

By (author) Carol Ferrara

ISBN13: 9781350380448

Imprint: Bloomsbury Academic

Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing PLC

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Published: 05/09/2024

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Description
Through a comparative ethnographic analysis of divergent French Muslim and Catholic experiences of (non)belonging and civic engagement, this book offers new insights into the consequences of majoritarian national identity upon the lives of variously positioned pious citizens. Drawing upon 15 months of ethnographic fieldwork in Paris, Lille, and Lyon, France within spaces of religious education and interfaith dialogue, the book illustrates the constraints that Muslims face as compared to their more privileged Catholic co-citizens. The book demonstrates how the boundaries of French belonging are policed by francité. This is a tacit, majoritarian national imaginary ideal that draws upon complex narratives of colonialism, including conflations and deep-rooted stereotypes surrounding race, ethnicity, and religion; and normative shared cultural markers. The book reveals how some of the most prevalent political justifications for Muslim exclusion, especially those grounded in (non)adherence to French Republican principles like laïcité, become blurry, if not misleading when mapped onto Catholic inclusion. This reveals new insights for plural democracies everywhere regarding the importance of decoupling abstract notions of secular citizen making from the more practical limitations of majoritarian ideals within the national imaginary in policy making and civic engagement initiatives alike.
Acknowledgements Introduction 1. Imbricated Histories Of (Non)Belonging: Christendom, Colonialism, and The Construction Of Modern Francité 2. All Roads Lead To Rome?: Interfaith Initiatives In Secular France 3. Resilience Despite Division: Negotiating French Catholic Identity, Modernity, and Plurality 4. Finding the Straight Path: Negotiating Plurality Within and around French Islam 5. Transmitting Faith In The Republic: Learning To Be French In Muslim Schools 6. Quintessentially Catholic…and French: Majoritarianism and The Traditionalist French Catholic Minority Conclusion References Index
  • Religion: general
  • Islamic life & practice
  • Professional & Vocational
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List Price: £85.00