This study attempts to assess the different ways through which Islam as a
religion can impact politics. In fact, the notion that is collectively labeled
as Islam and its re-interpretation as an escalating presence of religion in
politics in today’s world has deep layers. To distinguish a variety of these
layers, each with different characteristics, they should be defined, and the
type of contributions they can make to politics should be examined one
by one. Mixing up the layers with each other and employing
characteristics of one for another can result, and in fact has resulted in
many misunderstandings in political discussions. In order to show how to
distinguish the layers and how to find the dominant layer of religion in
each case, the role played by Islam in three important Islamic countries:
Iran, Saudi Arabia and Turkey will be examined. Comparing and
contrasting these cases, this paper will conclude that only through
identifying layers of religion in force and distinguishing the dominant
ones can the actual role of religion be examined in each case study.
Source: Journal of WORLD SOCIOPOLITICAL STUDIES
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