The next generation of imams fighting for a French Islam
A view from the courtyard of the Grand Mosque of Paris, one of the largest mosques in France opened in 1926. Photo by Meagan Clark.
PARIS — Five years after the terrorist attacks in Paris and in the city’s suburb that left 130 people killed, a new generation of imams is trying to fight extremism and fear by preaching a progressive Islam tied to French values.
“Muslims need to step into the twentieth century and find again a spiritual faith that doesn’t bear the weight of superfluous traditions,” says Mohamed Bajrafil, 42, a Muslim theologian, professor of literature and geopolitics in secondary schools and imam of the mosque of Ivry-sur-Seine in Paris’ suburbs.
The October murder of the teacher Samuel Paty by an 18-year-old radical Islamist of Chechen origin has reignited debates about the compatibility of Islam with French values like free speech. Even before the attack, French President Emmanuel Macron had revealed a fresh plan to root out radical Islam, one that involves raiding mosques with suspected links to radical Islam and facilitating more imam training within France.
French Muslims’ efforts to steer the faith towards a more modern approach are real. But unlike the Catholic Church that addressed how its followers should proceed in the modern world with the Second Vatican Council, there is no pope in Islam. No one body has the authority to legislate rules or act as God. There are only debates about interpretations and meanings of the words of God as recorded in the Quran.
Bajrafil is calling to reform the vision of Islam and the interpretation of its sacred texts, to show the diversity of perspectives about the Quran’s teachings.
In response to the 2015 terrorist attacks in France, he wrote an essay in order to enlighten Muslims about the authentic spirit of Islam. In his book called “Islam of France, year one” he demonstrates that Islam is a religion built upon autonomy, responsibility and permanent spiritual mobility. Through time and space, Islam has always adapted to suit the country where it went without giving up on its essence.
Bajrafil is digging into history to convince Muslims that being more open-minded and progressive won’t adulterate their faith. Quite the opposite, it will give back to Islam its universal value and highlight the ideas of love, peace and altruism at its core.
This is a very hard task, which is going to take time, even with other imams in France striving to fight radical ideas by preaching tolerance.
“Everyone at my level is trying to move things forward, step by step,” Bajrafil says. “Maybe… we will eventually manage to get rid of this backward-looking attitude that wants to restore the caliphate.”
Bajrafil is confident that a new France that gives an equal chance to everyone and stops whining about its identity will arise soon – because the French will understand that France’s identity is multiple, just like Islam.
His voice is rare in France, and his enthusiasm to preach a modern Islam means he has a lot of enemies.
“This is not easy to face criticisms,” he says. “I know people who share my ideas, but they are scared to raise their voices. We need to be confident and brave while defending our faith.”
Islam in the media
Islam is one the favorite topics of politicians and the media in France, although Muslims seldom get to have their say in the debate.
Bajrafil recommends more accuracy and rigor to the political class and the media when they talk about Islam, in order to fight against misrepresentations, hate and fear about his religion. Islam will genuinely be a religion of France only if everyone learns about it, about what it is and not what we would like it to be. It is at this condition that Islam will blossom peacefully across the country and beyond, he believes.
Amel Boubekeur, a researcher at the University of Grenoble who specializes in French Islam, says the lack of nuance and complexity in discussions about Islam is increasing tensions and heated exchanges.
“There’s a hyper-politicization of Islam in France, but Muslims are largely kept out of the conversation,” Boubekeur said. “And so are the academics who carry out real research but are chased away by the pundits.”
The consequence is a deadlock to understand the diversity of views and practices among the estimated 5 million Muslims who live in France – 8.8% of the country’s population and the largest Muslim population in Europe.
Political commentators who are not experts on religion are also spreading misconceptions of Islam in the media and sometimes are arguing that Muslims should choose between their religion and France despite the overwhelming majority of French Muslims who embrace and love the country’s values. This has paved the way for an increasing far right wing in French politics that fiercely criticizes Islam and immigration.
Clamping down on radicalization
On Oct. 2, Macron revealed his plan to fight “separatism,” which is aimed at rooting out those espousing radical Islam in France. He was careful to distinguish between the vast majority of Muslims who live peacefully in France and the small number of radicalized Islamists who foster hatred of the country and of the Western way of life.
“The problem is an ideology which claims its own laws should be superior to those of the Republic,” Macron said. In his solemn speech, he also described Islam as being “in crisis everywhere in the world,” which annoyed some Muslims well beyond France.
The French president later reiterated his stance on Oct. 21, when he paid tribute to Paty.
Macron defended France's strict brand of secularism and vowed that France would never give up freedom of speech and the right to mock religion, including the caricatures of the Prophet Mohammad that Paty had shown his pupils in class and which cost him his life.
In an effort to calm down increasing tensions, Imam Tareq Oubrou, who is known for his liberal stance on Islam, reminded the believers of his mosque in Bordeaux that the Prophet Mohammad was often mocked in his lifetime and preferred not to answer his detractors.
Two weeks later, as huge crowds took the streets against France and its president in several Muslim-majority countries, Islamist terrorism struck again on French soil with the deadly stabbing of three people in a church in Nice. The horrific attack, carried out by a 21-year-old Tunisian migrant, was swiftly condemned by France’s Muslim leaders, who called for Mawlid celebrations – marking the prophet’s birthday – to be cancelled.
“Nowadays, we jump from theology to ideology,” Oubrou says. “This is a dangerous path for Islam. The faith must be smart and developed with good sense and intelligence, otherwise it can lead to fanaticism and misdemeanor.”
In response to the attacks, French authorities have been clamping down on radicalization – raiding mosques and organizations with suspected links to radical Islam.
Training imams on French soil before they take the lead in mosques is also a priority for the French government.
Training imams on French soil
In the suburbs of Valenciennes, a young imam from the region is leading Friday prayer at the mosque.
Morgan Gallet converted to Islam ten years ago and decided to become an imam after the 2015 terrorist attacks in Paris.
During the sermon, he preaches in both Arabic and French, and says that the recent killing of French history teacher Samuel Paty horrifies him.
“Firstly it's a violation of the divine message. But it's also an insult to our faith and our religion,” Gallet says. It’s a peaceful message, in line with the imam training he received, not in France, but in Morocco.
“In every mosque we need a trained imam, a competent imam, who knows how to deliver these important messages,” he says.
Gallet spent three years training in an institution in Rabat – fully financed by the Moroccan government. “Everything related to what happens within the mosque; whether it's the call to prayer, leading prayers or the Friday sermon – that's what we're taught at the institute,” he says.
Many French students enroll in this institute as well. Morocco pays the full cost of their studies and gives them a small allowance. They learn what's known as “middle way” Islam, an Islam aimed at promoting tolerance and fighting radical Islam.
Over the past four years, the Mohammed Sixth Institute has trained some 50 French imams. It was supposed to be a temporary solution and only partly compensates for the shortage of imam training in France.
The country is home to only three Islamic institutes - too few to absorb demand.
Of the 3,000 imams practicing on French territory, the majority were trained abroad. Meanwhile, 300 of them are posted imams, dispatched and paid by nine countries including Algeria, Tunisia, Morocco and Turkey.
In February, Macron said he wanted to end this program created in 1977 as the imams and teachers sent to provide foreign language and culture classes are not subject to any supervision from French authorities.
“These imams, even though they are very knowledgeable about theology, they don't necessarily have that much contact with the younger generations who prefer to go online, where they come across fundamentalist speeches,” explains Bernard Godard, a specialist of French Islam.
The government has asked the French Muslim Council (CFCM), the body representing Islam in France, to find solutions to train imams on French soil instead and to ensure they can speak French and do not spread Islamist views.
“It's important for worshippers to know that their imam has been approved and has been trained to preach correctly... that they are protected from self-proclaimed imams, and those who have not met the required training standards,” says Mohammed Moussaoui, President of the CFCM.
‘Islam des Lumières’
The Foundation for Islam in France is a cultural and social institution founded by the French government funding imams to study for a university diploma of civil and civic training as well as to learn the French language.
By promoting education, culture and knowledge, the foundation aims to redact obscure and Salafist ideas, especially from young Muslims. The foundation strives to promote an ‘Islam des Lumières’: an Islam where the greatness of France and the ingenuity of its people go hand in hand with an Islam of intelligence, beauty and understanding.
However, these efforts to promote a progressive Islam will remain pointless if French people don’t overcome their own religious bigotry.
According to Razika Adnani from the foundation, the notion of a “fear of Islam” from French people has long been used by Islamists to curtail all criticism of the Islam they preach. In other words, Islamist radicals know how to exploit the discrimination and poverty many French Muslims suffer.
A good start would be to tackle the overlapping social, geographical, ethnic and religious discriminations suffered by many French Muslims living in the country’s most deprived suburbs.
On Dec. 9, a bill to crack down on Islamist extremism will be presented and examined in cabinet. The French government will have to convince Muslims that it is not aimed at reducing their liberties but at enforcing the fundamental purpose of Islamic morality: love.
By fighting hatred and radicalism, the new laws not only should stop the terrible pathway of terror, but also help Muslims to feel safer and confident in France while practicing their religion.
Muslims doesn’t quite experience “la vie en rose” in France. However, the majority of them acknowledges that life is better here than in most Muslim-majority countries. “It feels good to live in France,” says Mohamed Bajrafil.
In order to avoid any more civilian and community conflicts on its soil, the French Republic need to make the most of his core values: Liberté, Égalité, Fraternité – for everyone.
Jade Lévin is a French journalist who currently reports international news for France 24. She studied International Journalism at Cardiff University and her main areas of interest lie in geopolitics and human rights. She is also a former BMX-race athlete and is addicted to sports, which led her to cover women’s sports and the business of Mixed Martial Arts.