Plurality as a Matter of Course: The Islamic ''Culture of Ambiguity'' (Photo: Qantara.de)

Critics of Islam, Islamic fundamentalists, and even Islamic reformers all have something in common and could therefore profit from reading Thomas Bauer's book on "The Culture of Ambiguity". In their arguments and examples, the so-called critics of Islam as well as Islamic fundamentalists get caught up in kind of sophistry. They both search for verses in the Koran and writings of the Prophet and subsequently cite them out of context.

Fundamentalists then use the authority of the text to justify their authoritarian views. Critics of Islam do the same, although in the name of enlightenment and progress. Islamic reformers act no differently, as they also assert that they know what "Islam" is supposed to be. And as each of these three groups makes the claim to know the true nature of Islam, they lead to an essentialist characterization of the religion and merely reproduce the Orientalist narrative.

Coexistance of many truths

Critics and fundamentalists alike ignore not only the context under which the texts arose, but, above all, they also ignore the existence of alternative religious practices and lifestyles. It is in this respect that Thomas Bauer's book proves so illuminating.

Bauer shows how in the past, many truths coexisted side by side. There was the wine goblet and the ban on wine, painting and the ban on images. According to Bauer, Islamic culture was for centuries characterized by an extremely high degree of tolerance for ambiguity. Plurality was a matter of course.

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Reviewed by Katajun Amirpur; Translated by John Bergeron

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