Islam and Modernity: Coexisting Contradictions

This chapter first offers a brief overview of how the introduction of mass media in Arab-Islamic societies has strongly influenced the religious practice of Muslims. Subsequently, the focus shifts on the detailed analysis of an emblematic example: the televised fatwā on adult breastfeeding. This example allows us to outline in detail the dialectic between Islam and modernity in Arab-Islamic societies, showing how the supposed dichotomy of Islam versus modernity is actually a combination of the two due to the continuous attempt to adapt one to the other, resulting in a harmonious coexistence of contradictions that ultimately aims at finding a balance in one’s life between tradition and modernity, that is, religious texts and lived reality. This emblematic example also shows how the fatwā is an excellent indicator of the relationship between Muslims and modernity.