ABSTRACT

The question about religion and modernisation may be designated “Weberian”, because Max Weber developed a most coherent approach to the analysis of modernity focusing upon the religious element in the major civilisations of humanity. The Muslim civilisation may be divided into two worlds, on the one hand the Arab world and on the other hand the non-Arab Muslim world. This distinction is not merely based upon the historical emergence of the Muslim civilisation over time, but it retains its relevance today in view of the ethnic composition of Muslims. Internally, several Muslim countries operate on the border of anarchy, as political violence results in numerous deaths every year. A few Muslim countries have suffered from civil war for a long period of time, for example, Sudan, Algeria and Afghanistan.