Islam and the state: the case of Wael Hallaq

Abstract

This article presents a critical analysis of the concept of the Islamic state developed by an American scholar of Islamic studies, PhD in Islamic law, and Columbia University professor Wael Hallaq, in his work The Impossible State: Islam, Politics, and Modernity’s Moral Predicament”. Hallaq’s central thesis—the incompatibility of fundamental Islamic principles with modern forms of societal organization—has sparked extensive debates and garnered significant interest among researchers studying the role of state authority in Sharia. The article addresses the potential for interaction between diverse sociocultural systems, highlighting the limitations of Hallaq’s nominalist position through the lens of communicative practices and historical borrowings. The object of this study is Hallaq’s postulated fundamental incompatibility between the “paradigmatic modern state” and the “paradigmatic Islamic form of governance”. The research’s relevance lies in its contribution to understanding the intercultural dialogue and the borrowing of political practices in the context of globalization, which is crucial for comprehending contemporary challenges in governance and integration. The article offers a sociological perspective for analyzing universal and contextual aspects of statehood, enriching discussions on Islamic law, state theory, and global processes of cultural interaction.