Abstract
Since the dissolution of the Ottoman Empire, secularism and nationalism have been regarded as the only means to religious coexistence in Egypt, home to various religious minorities, including Coptic Christians. However, the religious resurgence beginning in the 1970s and the increase in sectarian conflicts shows that religiosity in the Middle East has not necessarily faded and that coexistence through secularism has already reached its limit. While Islamic political movements are regarded as the main factor reigniting sectarian conflict, no attention has been paid to the movements within Islamic forces, which seek coexistence while respecting Egyptian religiosity.
Based on this recognition, this paper is intended to shed light on the debates on religious coexistence under an Islamic state by a reformist group of Islamic intellectuals called the Islamic Centrist Trend. The author focuses in particular on the ideas of Salīm al-‘Awwā, an international lawyer belonging to this current.
While advocating the values of Islamic civilization as the authoritative source of Egyptian state and society, al-‘Awwā argues the need for a liberal government under the rule of law and highlights the importance of human rights from an Islamic perspective. In conclusion, constructing the concepts of civilizational Islam and citizenship, Islamic centrist intellectuals have made efforts to theorize a more inclusive Islamic state that respects religious autonomy.
