M A S T E R T H E S I S , R E S E A R C H M A S T E R R E L I G I O U S S T U D O I E S - U N I V E R S I T Y O F A M S T E R D A M
Contemporary marriage practices of
Moroccan Muslims in the Netherlands today:
e-dating
FEBRUARY
18
08
Lisanne Kalverdijk (10000332)
Supervised by: Dr. R.L.A. van Leeuwen, dr. U.L Popp-BaierTable of Contents
Relevance ... 5 Method ... 6 1. Living as a Muslim in the Netherlands: the construction of identity ... 7 1.1 Definition of identity ... 7 1.2 Developing a Muslim identity in the west ... 8 1.3 The current climate: living in a world of globalization ... 10 1.4 Negotiation strategies ... 11 1.5 Conclusion ... 12 2. The development and practice of Islamic Law and Islamic marriages: can it be applied in the West? ... 13 2.1 Sharia or fiqh: is there a difference? ... 13 2.2 The development of Islamic law ... 14 2.3 Fiqh al-aqalliyat ... 15 2.4 Islamic Marriages: choosing a spouse and dealing with Islamic rulings ... 17 2.4.1 Choosing a spouse ... 17 2.4.2 Dealing with Islamic rulings when it comes to marriage ... 19 2.5 Islamic marriages in the Netherlands ... 20 2.6 Conclusion ... 22 3. Digitalization of religion: digitalizing the Islamic Marriage process ... 23 3.1 General digital developments in the religious field ... 23 3.2 Finding a partner with digital help: a review of online dating ... 25 3.3 Digitalizing the Islamic Marriage Process: Islamic dating apps 3.3.1 Reviewing Muslim marriage ... 28 3.3.2 Islamic etiquettes and the use of modern means of communication ... 31 3.4 Conclusion ... 32 4. Methodological considerations ... 33 4.1 Method of qualitative research ... 33 4.2 Recruiting the target group ... 34 4.3 Interview questions ... 35 4.4 Interview guide ... 36 5. How do Moroccan Muslim youngsters in the Netherlands meet their partner for marriage? ... 38 5.1 Online discussions on partner choices in the Netherlands ... 38 5.2 Interviews with Dutch Moroccans about marriage practices ... 40 5.2.1 Interviews with six random interviewees ... 40 5.2.2 Interviews through Islamic dating app Muzmatch ... 46 5.3 Conclusion ... 51 9. Conclusion and further research ... 52 9.1 Conclusion ... 52 9.2 Remarks and further research ... 54 Appendix ... 61 1. Interview 1 | 13-12-17, 8PM | Man (32) | Got in contact via Facebook group ‘Marriage in Islam’ | Interview via telephone | (A) . ... 61 2. Interview 2 | 15-12-17 2PM | Woman (22) | Got in contact via own social network | Interview at her university | (B). ... 643. Interview 3 | 17-12-17, 7PM | Man (28) | Got in contact via own social network | Interview in a café | (C). ... 68 4. Interview 4 | 29-12-17, 5PM | Woman (23) | Got in contact via own social network | Interview at her house | (D). ... 70 5. Interview 5 | 30-12-17, 5PM | Woman (21) | Got in contact via Facebook group ‘Marriage in Islam’ | Interview via telephone | (E). ... 74 6. Interview 6 | 02-01-18, 5PM | Man (21) | Got in contact via Facebook group ‘Marriage in Islam’ | Interview at his university | (F). ... 77 7. Interview 7 | 28-01-18, 5PM | Man (31) | Got in contact via Muzmatch | (G). ... 80 8. Interview 8 | 30-01-18, 11AM | Man (34) | Got in contact via Muzmatch | (H). ... 83 9. Interview 9 | 2-2-18, 5PM | Man (27) | Got in contact via Muzmatch | (I). ... 85
Introduction
More than 40% of the Muslim world population consists of Muslims who live as minorities in non-Islamic countries. Especially Muslims who live in western countries have to deal with complex debates about the core and the boundaries of their faith.1 Subjects such as heritage, identity, and loyalty towards their home
countries play an important role in growing up as a Muslim in a western context. Many Muslims experience difficulty in balancing their heritage, faith and modern western norms.2 The differences among the successive generations with regard
to worldview, culture, and religion lead to more complications in finding a balance.3 The development of the identity of young Muslims and the choices they make in life are further influenced by the access they have to technology. As Bart Barendreft said in 2002: “Muslim youngsters are adopting technology to distance themselves from older, traditional practices while also challenging western “models”.4 The Internet, with its options to worldwide access to different ideas and different kinds of people, led to an increasing awareness of the multiple identities that exist throughout the world. The diversity in how religious identities are understood and presented through modern media channels eventually contributed to more fluidity in how religious identities are developed.5 This has an impact on how people interact with each other. The Internet thus provided new options to explore a person’s personal version of religion, and how he wants to live his religious life. Since the Internet gives rise to disseminating decisions on all aspects of life, it also gave rise to a growth in the use of individual ijtihad. Websites can extend forms of Islamic knowledge, establish networks and different ways of authority.6 Anyone who considers himself as some kind of authority can make a pronouncement and publish it online.7 Traditionally, consulting a shaykh, ‘alim or imam was needed in order to get knowledge about religion. Nowadays there are many alternative opportunities to get information, and this keeps expanding through the Internet.8 Muslims can find information about their faith anywhere on the Internet, and derive personal conclusions from it by themselves. Technology is shaped to fit the wishes of customers, for example costumers with certain religious values. This led to developments as applications that focus 1 Ayesha Ahmed,.“E-Arranged Marriages: How have Muslim matrimonial websites affected traditional Islamic courting methods?” (Ph.D. diss., University of London, 2013), 3. 2 Ahmed, “E-Arranged Marriages,” 4. 3 Ahmed, “E-Arranged Marriages,” 3. 4 Ahmed, “E-Arranged Marriages,” 5. 5 Heidi A. Campbell, Digital Religion: Understanding Religious Practice in New Media Worlds (Oxon: Routledge, 2013), 46. 6 Gary R. Bunt, iMuslims: Rewiring the House of Islam, (Chapel Hill: The University of North Carolina Press, 2009), 22. 7 Bunt, iMuslims, 278. 8 Bunt, iMuslims, 279.
on religious behaviour or smartphones that do not give access to websites that are at odds with correct religious behaviour. Technology is a strong source, but can challenge current structures and beliefs. The Internet especially provides new ways of thinking, communicating and networking. It reshapes the boundaries of set communities, which also shows in the way social relationships are constructed and maintained. Generally speaking, social relationships are nowadays dominated by the use of online social media.9 It is quite well known that the access to technology and the Internet in particular influences the establishment of social relationships among individuals. Dating apps such as ‘Tinder’ seem to be the modern solution for individuals who are looking for a suitable partner. Minority groups anticipate to this development by designing apps that focus specifically on singles with a certain religious or cultural background. Sharing a common background usually results in a higher degree of convenience, which eventually may lead to a deeper connection between potential partners.10 However, with developments as this one a greater emphasis
is placed on the individual responsibility of the user of such methods. Especially when it comes to religious or cultural traditions, the Internet can bring advantages but also disadvantages. The development within this area, and the awareness among individuals when it comes to using modern technology is an interesting field. It combines dynamics of identity development in modern times, tradition, technological developments and globalization.11
Relevance
The development of modern communication methods and dating apps is especially interesting for individuals who live in a context where their tradition is not the dominant one. Matrimonial or dating apps present efficient platforms for minorities to find a suitable partner.12 In 2013 Ayesha Ahmed published a
research in which she studied the influence that Islamic matrimonial websites have on traditional Islamic methods when it comes to finding a life partner. Her research focused on Pakistani-British youngsters, who interestingly attempted to reconcile the seemingly conflicting western values and practices, and Islamic principles through Islamic matrimonial websites.
There is very little literature available about the dynamics of the Islamic marital process among Muslims living in western countries. Bajnad and Elyas (2017) stated that there is a scarcity in the academic literature when it comes to 9 Ahmed, “E-Arranged Marriages,” 4. 10 “New ‘Christian Tinder’ App Seems to Miss the Point of Religious Dating,” last modified June 3, 2017, https://mic.com/articles/117814/new-christian-tinder-app-seems-to-miss-the-point-of-religious-dating#.N74p5lur6. 11 Ahmed, “E-Arranged Marriages,” 2. 12 Ahmed, “E-Arranged Marriages,” 12.
Islamic matrimonial websites.13 Those websites receive up to a million users a
month. The large amount of members of Islamic matrimonial websites emphasizes the importance of more empirical research about the usage of those websites and the influence they have on traditional procedures.14 The current social climate in the Netherlands concerning Muslims and Dutch Moroccans combined with their identity development and the access to communication with little boundaries forms an open and dynamic field for research. I will try to contribute to this field through studying the dynamics between traditional processes of finding a partner in Islam and modern practices of Dutch Moroccan Muslims with their greater access to technology.15 I will focus on the following research question: “What is the impact of social media with their dating facilities
on the practices and attitudes of Moroccan Muslims in the Netherlands who are looking for a suitable partner for marriage?”
Method
I will use methods of qualitative research in order to answer the research question. In the first part of this study I will analyse literature. In the first chapter I will focus on identity construction and especially on how Muslim minorities in the West develop their identity. The second chapter focuses on how Islamic Law is developed and practiced in a western context. Whether these practices influence Islamic marriages in the West will also be part of this chapter. In the third chapter the central aspect is the digitalization of religion. General developments in the field of religion and digitalization will be studied. How digitalization shapes communication with others and especially meeting a life partner are two important topics that will be discussed in this chapter. The last paragraph of this chapter focuses on the Islamic marriage process and Islamic ethics when it comes to digital developments. This chapter will be followed by a methodological chapter, which will introduce the second part of this research. In this fourth chapter I will explain the methods that are used in more depth. The second part of this study is based on semi-structured interviews that provide data about the relation between the interviewee and a number of relevant social actors. The interviews sketch the way Moroccan Muslim youngsters in the Netherlands meet their partner. This chapter will be followed by an analysis of the research and a general conclusion. 13 Ayman Naji Bajnaid and Tariq Elyas, “Exploring the Phenomena of Online Dating Platforms Versus Saudi Traditional Spouse Courtship in the 21st Century,” Digest of Middle East Studies 26 (2017): 76, accessed June 3, 2017, doi: 10.1111/dome.12104. 14 Bajnaid and Elyas, “Exploring the Phenomena,” 86. 15 Ahmed, “E-Arranged Marriages,” 4.
1. Living as a Muslim in the Netherlands: the construction of
identity
Living as a Muslim in the west can be challenging in various ways. European Muslim communities experience complex debates about their faith, heritage, identity, and loyalty. These concepts are likely to have an impact on the way a person establishes his identity and social relationships, including marriage.16 This chapter discusses the context of Muslims in the Netherlands and the various aspects of (re)constructing identity and social relationships. This will shed light on the complexity of Western Muslim identities and eventually the way Western Muslims find a life partner. The subjects central in this chapter are the way narratives and discourses affect an individual’s notion of the self and the way such discourses influence the construction of identity among minority groups.
1.1 Definition of identity
The term identity can be defined as a “phenomenon that emerges from the dialectic between the individual and society.”17 Manuel Castells stated that identity should be seen as an individual’s experience and his associations with his historical roots, education, political and economic systems, geographical environment, religious understanding, practices, and beliefs. 18 However, personal identity is often treated as one single facet. This leads to a simplification of the complexity of identity as a concept, and consequently the multiplicity of identities that a person may have. Someone can, for example, be a devout Muslim, an advocate for democracy and a Dutch citizen, while at the same time being really proud of their Turkish heritage. Recognizing the multiple identities that an individual may have contributes to recognizing diversity among human beings.
Dutch citizens who have a non-Dutch cultural background are considered as being “allochthonous” within the Dutch society.19 This term emphasizes a difference between them and the majority. This leads to the categorization of people by their ‘original’ culture and neglects the fact that identity is much broader than that. In this chapter, we will discuss the construction of Muslim identity in the West. Neither identity nor culture will be approached as static 16 Ahmed, “E-Arranged Marriages,” 4. 17 Ahmed, “E-Arranged Marriages,” 6. 18 Ahmed, “E-Arranged Marriages,” 6. 19 “Allochtonous” can literally be understood as “being different in relation to.” – Saba Ozyurt, “Negotiating Multiple Identities, Constructing Western-Muslim Selves in the Netherlands and the United States,” Political Psychology 34, no. 2 (2013): 249, https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-9221.2012.00924.x.
concepts, but rather as being fluid concepts that evolve and are continuously negotiated over time.20 Collective struggles with regard to power, knowledge and discourse21 will be taken into account. As we will see later on, those subjects are important in the (re)construction of personal identity.22 1.2 Developing a Muslim identity in the west The sense of identity influences personal behaviour, and is in turn influenced by many different facets of life. Identity is not merely a psychological concept. Thus, considering identity as strictly psychological can be problematic. In this paragraph, we will distinguish some consequences that a western Muslim might have to deal with when constructing his or her identity.
The culture attributed to a person is important for constructing his identity. Culture can be defined as a set of values, beliefs, and symbols that is socially constructed and shared by individual members of a particular group. Culture in this definition, is transmitted across different generations or formed by the individual himself.23 A large number of Muslims in the Netherlands, and in Europe in general, consider themselves as bicultural. When a person is embedded in western and eastern cultures, he might find himself having difficulty in finding harmony between both cultural backgrounds. The results of cross-cultural research on the self and identity show that cultures vary in the way they shape personal identity and look at individuality and autonomy. Western cultures generally value autonomy and freedom, and focus on independent achievement and individuality. Meanwhile, non-Western cultures are more likely to see identity formation as more connected and socially embedded. This results in having more focus on harmony with the individual’s surroundings. Collective needs and expectations take an important role. This difference between eastern and western cultures and the constructing of the self results in different forms of social roles and relationships. In non-Western cultures, the self is an agreed concept. This implies that social roles are often constructed according to the expectations that exist within the society. Individuals are likely to follow these expectations. In western cultures the self is thought to be acquired, so-called self-made. The way one values social relationships, marriage, and family influences a certain set of norms and customs, which shapes the identity and practices of an individual.24 20 Anna M. McGinty, Becoming Muslim: Western Women’s Conversions to Islam (New York: Palgrave Mcmillan, 2006), 13. 21 Discourse entails a system of knowledge that “conveys the widely accepted generalizations about how the society operates” and “the social norms and cultural values where most of the people appeal to when discussing their social and political problems and proposed solutions.” (Kinvall and Nesbitt-Larking, 2011). 22 Catarina Kinvall and Paul Nesbitt-Larking, The Political Psychology of Globalization: Muslims in the West (Oxford: Oxford Scholarship Online, 2011), introduction. doi: 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199747542.003.0009. 23 Ozyurt, “Negotiating Multiple Identities,” 241. 24 Ahmed, “E-Arranged Marriages,” 9.
Bicultural identities are complex and multidimensional phenomena. There are multiple ways of dealing with bicultural identities and finding a way of negotiating, but they can roughly be subdivided into two categories. A person with a bicultural background may be able to find harmony between them both, or he may experience conflicts and try to keep the dual cultures separate.
Religion is one of the most important markers of group identity.25 Religious identities entail religious principles, ideas, and characteristics in someone’s behaviour and practice.26 Most Muslim migrants become more religious than they were back home.27 It is striking that this is not necessarily the case in the Netherlands, where ethnicity is the most salient identifier. Islamic identities in the Netherlands are engrained in ethnic identities and the cultural traditions that Dutch Muslims hold. This resulted, for example, in the establishment of different mosques based on ethnicity. Turkish and Moroccan women rarely pray in the same mosque, neither do they form co-ethnic organizations. This constructed a schism in the Dutch Muslim community with no strong common religious identity.28 However, this situation might change during the succession of generations.
The ‘othering’ discourse in politics and public life with regard to Islam and Muslims has shifted the focus of individual Muslims towards their religious identity. The current discourse views Muslims and their religion in general quite negative. When individuals feel rejected, alienated or marginalized in their society they develop an increased feeling of solidarity with their in-group.29 Imam Sadullah Khan, of the Irvine California Mosque, analysed that religion is being forced upon American Muslims since they find themselves having to defend their religion.30 This may be the case as well in other countries with the presence of a similar discourse and will eventually result in a stronger identification with religion. The sense of community and social belonging with other Muslims strengthens the sense of self as a Muslim. This is also the case when countries emphasize the assimilation of migrants. Turning to the in-group can reduce uncertainty and provides a source of identification.31
When comparing the role that ethnicity and religion have in the process of identity construction among successive generations, we see that especially second-generation migrants hold on to their religion. Their religion provides clarity in the disorientation and identity crisis that they may experience and it gives them a sense of belonging to a larger global society of the Muslim ummah.32 25 Syed M. Murshed, and Sara Pavan, “Identity and Islamic Radicalization in Western Europe” (Working paper, European Security Economics, 2009), 13. 26 Ahmed, “E-Arranged Marriages,” 6. 27 Ozyurt, “Negotiating Multiple Identities,” 252. 28 Ozyurt, “Negotiating Multiple Identities,” 250. 29 Ozyurt, “Negotiating Multiple Identities,” 253. 30 Ozyurt, “Negotiating Multiple Identities,” 253. 31 Murshed and Pavan, “Identity and Islamic Radicalization,” 13. 32 Ozyurt, “Negotiating Multiple Identities,” 253.
Their religious identity gives them meaning in a society where they not immediately fit in. Besides this, young Muslims seem to distinguish religion and ethnicity as two separate sources of identity while this is not necessarily the case for older Muslims.33 Islam provides the most important identity marker for them. Islam is seen as being central to their ‘essence’ and plays a prominent role in all spheres of life. Ethnicity, on the other hand, is often not seen as a frame of reference that is present in all spheres when reconsidering identity. Muslim thinker and preacher Tariq Ramadan referred to the tension that generations may experience between them as an ‘intergenerational conflict’.34
1.3 The current climate: living in a world of globalization
The increase in Internet usage provided new means for rethinking personal identity. The Internet makes global news easily accessible, which leads to a rising awareness of global events that contain issues as inequality, local hatred and cultural blindness. This makes it easy to identify with other world citizens.35 The current discourse about Islam and Muslims in European societies is predominantly negative. There is an increase in violence and racist harassment against Muslims.36 This, especially as a result of events such as 9/11 and the Paris attacks, also resulted into problematizing the constitution of social Islamic groups.37 Within this framework, Islam is emphasized as an irrational and barbaric religion that is not open to change and contradicts the western society. In this argumentation, Islam is seen as inferior to western cultures. The Internet creates an extended awareness of such events, especially within the in-group, which leads to a broader identification.
Muslims in Europe experience systematic disadvantages, which are visible in economic discrimination. It is, compared to other citizens, more difficult for western Muslims to get a job and they generally receive lower incomes. The majority of the Dutch Muslims are of Turkish or Moroccan descent. They constitute roughly 6,5% of the overall Dutch population. The first generations predominantly took low skill jobs and thus maintained a lower socioeconomic status than the general Dutch population. Nowadays most Muslims belong to the second or third generation but the social status of their families as low skill guest workers is still entailed upon them.38 In 2008 more than 50% of the Turks and more than 60% of the Moroccans in the Netherlands had unskilled jobs. This is an alarming percentage compared to the 30% of the native Dutch citizens. When 33 Ahmed, “E-Arranged Marriages,” 6. 34 Ahmed, “E-Arranged Marriages,” 7. 35 Kinvall and Nesbitt-Larking, The Political Psychology of Globalization, introduction. 36 Michael Lavalette, and Laura Penketh, Race, Racism and Social Work: Contemporary issues and debates (Bristol: Policy Press, 2014), 155, https://policypress.universitypressscholarship.com.vu- nl.idm.oclc.org/view/10.1332/policypress/9781447307082.001.0001/upso-9781447307082-chapter-9?print. 37 Kinvall and Nesbitt, The Political Psychology, introduction, doi. 38 Ozyurt, “Negotiating Multiple Identities,” 244.
someone has a foreign or Islamic-sounding name he is less likely to be invited for a job interview even when his experience and education are the same.39
The relationship between the Muslim community and the larger society is shaped by the public discourse and the socioeconomic status of the citizens. Islam is negatively constructed as an ideology that limits the psychological, cultural and political space that is available in the country and thus makes it hard to negotiate cultural and religious differences among citizens.40 Migrants in the Netherlands have to fight against a thick notion of Dutch identity. As mentioned before, the term “allochthonous” is clearly present and used for people with a different colour, ethnicity or religion.41 Muslims in the Netherlands mention that they experience a feeling of non-belonging to the society while, for example, Muslims in the United States experience a shared area of having multiple cultures and belongings.42
1.4 Negotiation strategies
The way someone deals with multiple identities, and especially having a dual cultural background, differs from person to person. The negotiation strategy that is used largely depends on the personality and experience of the individual self, but also on the socio-political context that the individual lives in. A distinction can be made between incompatible and compatible socio-political contexts. Incompatible contexts are situations where a dominant discourse with negative views on migrant groups is present in the society. This discourse is based on an assumption of incompatibility between the dominant culture and minority groups. Having a compatible context means that there is a form of harmony and compatibility between the majority culture and the minority.43 This is manifested in the socio-political and cultural discourse. In order for an individual to achieve a coherent sense of self, he has to be able to find a balance between his ideal and the pragmatic limitations that living in a society that is potentially prejudiced against them entails.44 Ozyurt (2013) argues that there is a remarkable conclusion in the comparison she made between the Netherlands and the United States. The majority of her research participants in the Netherlands experience a narrative of incompatibility between their home country and their cultural or religious identity. They developed identities that undermined their bicultural existence.45 Her research shows that it is not really a problem to have integrated and hybrid identities in the United States, while this is not yet possible in the Netherlands. 39 Murshed and Pavan, “Identity and Islamic Radicalization,” 27. 40 Ozyurt, “Negotiating Multiple Identities,” 249. 41 Ozyurt, “Negotiating Multiple Identities,” 249. 42 Ozyurt, “Negotiating Multiple Identities,” 249. 43 Ozyurt, “Negotiating Multiple Identities,” 244. 44 Ozyurt, “Negotiating Multiple Identities,” 244. 45 Ozyurt, “Negotiating Multiple Identities,” 245.
1.5 Conclusion
This chapter focused on the context that Dutch Muslims live in and the various aspects of (re)constructing identity and social relationships. First of all, this chapter elaborated the complexity of identity and the fact that it cannot be seen as one single facet but entails many different aspects. Identity is not set, but a project where an individual continuously works on. 46 Identity entails psychological aspects, an individual’s culture and religion, and depends on the context where he lives in as well. For Muslims in the Netherlands ethnicity is one of the most salient identifiers, whereas Islamic identities are engrained in ethnic identities and cultural traditions. A large number of Dutch Muslims considers themselves as bicultural, which is a complex and multidimensional phenomenon. However, religious identity seems to be one of the most important identities of Dutch Muslims. Religion provides clarity and meaning in a society where Muslims might experience a feeling of non-belonging and economic discrimination. The Internet provides new means for rethinking personal identity. Chapter 3 will focus more on Muslim identities and having access to the global Internet network. 46 Ozyurt, “Negotiating Multiple Identities,” 241.
2. The development and practice of Islamic Law and Islamic
marriages: can it be applied in the West?
Islamic law, often referred to with the term ‘sharia’, is a widely discussed topic in the contemporary western society. Sharia is likely to be associated with barbaric practices such as cutting off the hands of thieves, stoning and the suppression of women. This idea of sharia is at odds with the vision that many Muslims have about it. To them, sharia is a system of rules that create a framework where social acts are regulated.47 Social contact among people and the concept of marriage are part of this extensive system. From an Islamic point of view, marriage is a highly recommended commitment. The importance to get married is emphasized by the ulama based on Islamic sources of law. Muslims see marriage, founding and having a family, as being of great significance since it contributes to happiness, safety and eventually is the foundation of the society. Marriage helps families to keep their faith and focus on the important aspects of life.48 However, discourses in western societies depict a different idea of Islamic marriages and associate subjects such as subservient positions of women, forced marriages, and radicalization with Islamic marriages.49 This chapter starts with a focus on the concept of Islamic law and how it is developed and used in the west. It will be followed up by an investigation on marriages from an Islamic point of view and the way that Islamic marriage is concluded in the Netherlands. The earlier mentioned negative assumptions that may arise when focusing on marriage within an Islamic context won’t be part of the main focus since it passes the topic of research. 2.1 Sharia or fiqh: is there a difference? Islamic law is often thought of to be the same as the sharia. However, there is an important distinction to be made between those terms. To begin with, the law as a system with precisely regulated rules is not present in Islam. The sharia can be understood as the totality of divine categorizations of human acts, based on the Quran and the Hadith. Sharia becomes law through a process of humN interpretation and legislation.50 There is no difference of opinion regarding the 47 Tariq Ramadan, Radical Reform: Islamic Ethics and Liberation (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2009), 32. 48 Göran Larsson, Muslims and the New Media: Historica land Contemporary Debates (New York: Routledge, 2016), 137. 49 Rob Pietersen, “As-Soennah-moskee stopt het sluiten islamitische huwelijken,” Trouw, August 1, 2008, accessed June 3, 2017, https://www.trouw.nl/home/as-soennah-moskee-stopt-met-sluiten-islamitisch-huwelijk~a41b9d57/. 50 Maliha Masood, “Untangling the Complex Web of Islamic Law: Revolutionizing the Sharia,” Al-Nakhlah 4 (2003): 1.divine origin, of the sharia, but sharia as a total codified body of law does not exist.51 Thus, the law has to be extrapolated through Muslim jurists who mediate between the current context and the divine law.52 In order to do this, the Muslim jurist uses the science of fiqh. Fiqh can be linguistically understood as “deep understanding” or “full comprehension”.53 The science of fiqh derives specific rules and values out of the sharia sources, as a form of jurisprudence.54 The ultimate goal of the fiqh is to reach an understanding of God’s articulation of the sharia.
In this understanding, the sharia is infallible and unchangeable, while fiqh develops new guidelines once new circumstances occur. In this definition fiqh is a science to get to know the sharia.55 The fiqh is focused on specific cases, where the sharia is more general.
2.2 The development of Islamic law
Islamic law originates from before the dawn of modernity. The people who were involved in Islamic law were not subjected to the authority of a state simply because states, as we know them today, did not yet exist. Until the 19th century, when the modern state was introduced to the Muslim world, Muslims lived under diverse conceptions and practices of a government. Their rulers did not have pervasive powers such as the modern state has. Bureaucracy and state administration were limited and affairs were managed through self-rule.56 The sharia was not a product of an Islamic government, as modern law is the product of the state. Muslim jurists were appointed by the Muslim ruler to administer justice, but the ruler could not influence which rule was applied. Thus, the Muslim jurists had a certain amount of independence.57
The first 150 years of Islam are characterized by a great individual freedom in legal reasoning based on the divine revelation. When new circumstances did occur it was widely accepted to use personal opinion (ra’y) in legal reasoning.58 This open attitude towards personal reasoning changed due to increasing complexity of theological and philosophical research and political divisions within Islam.59 One of the most present views held that the legal sovereignty of God was comprehensive. Permitting human reasoning in jurisdiction was thought of as tantamount to heresy.60 Human reasoning should not compete with 51 Masood, “Revolutionizing the Sharia,” 1. 52 Masood, “Revolutionizing the Sharia,” 2. 53 Ahmed Akgunduz, Islamic Law in Theory and Practice: Introduction to Islamic Law (Rotterdam: IUR Press, 2010), 21. 54 Akgunduz, Islamic Law, 21. 55 Akgunduz, Islamic Law, 19. 56 Wael B. Hallaq, An Introduction to Islamic Law (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2009), 8. 57 Hallaq, Introduction to Islamic Law, 8. 58 Masood, “Revolutionizing the Sharia,” 2. 59 Masood, “Revolutionizing the Sharia,” 2. 60 Masood, “Revolutionizing the Sharia,” 2.
God. A method of reasoning was developed in order to solve this issue. This method functioned within the parameters of divine will through human legal authority. This legal authority was addressed to implement and develop the sharia. In this manner, humankind could be fully surrendered to the divine revelation.61
Around the 8th century, an increased feeling of dissatisfaction arose in the Islamic world. Citizens were not satisfied with their rulers and had the feeling that courts failed in implementing Quranic reformism in their law. As a consequence different law schools arose. The schools developed in the biggest cities of the Muslim empire: Mecca, Medina, Kufa and Baghdad.62 These
madhahib attracted many followers who associated themselves with the imams
of the law schools. In fact, there were many different law schools but the four schools of Abu Hanifa, Malik ibn Anas, Muhammad al-Shafi’i and Ahmad ibn Hanbal are still followed today by sunni Muslims. The madhahib functioned within different (cultural) circumstances, which led to differences in the legislative methods that were being used, and eventually in differences in the law that was developed.63 Imam al-Shafi’i tried to systematize the methodology of the law schools to limit the increasing diversity within Islamic law. This resulted in the establishment of a common methodology for all law schools through basing the classical legal theory on four Islamic legislative sources: the Quran, the Sunnah, ijma’ and qiyas. The Quran is seen as the most sacred source of law, the central pillar of the Islamic religious experience.64
Today these sources of law are still used by Islamic scholars. However, the way that religious texts are approached today differs greatly from the way early scholars did, who had a chronological proximity to the revelation. Consciousness and knowledge about the era when the Quran is disclosed, and especially the social context, has disappeared throughout the centuries. Early scholars had the opportunity to approach and interpret religious texts with more thoroughness and certainty. Awareness about the uses and habits were naturally integrated. Today this has become a secondary element that is not naturally present but has to be studied when conducting Islamic law.65
2.3 Fiqh al-aqalliyat
Normative Islamic discourses developed on the assumption that Islam is the state religion and the law of the majority of citizens.66 The minority position that Muslims obtained in the West and the new issues that occurred were not present in classical Islamic jurisprudential texts. This led to fundamental questions about 61 Masood, “Revolutionizing the Sharia,” 2. 62 John I. Esposito, Women in Muslim Family Law (New York: Syracuse University Press, 1982), 2. 63 Esposito, Muslim Family Law, 2. 64 Esposito, Muslim Family Law, 3. 65 Ramadan, Radical Reform, 85. 66 Said Fares Hassan, “Fiqh al-Aqalliyyāt: Negotiating Discourse of Tradition, Modernity and Reform,” Faculty of Languages and Translation’s Journal 5 (2013): 7.
living as a Muslim minority in a western context. Worries about consuming interest, participation in politics and social relationships with non-Muslims are some of the numerous subjects that came forth. Since early immigrants did not have the qualifications to answer such religious questions, imams and muftis who were living in Arabic Muslim countries were consulted. The answers that were given were not satisfying for most immigrant Muslims. The muftis based their answers upon traditional positions, which were influenced by hostile historical relations between the East and the West. The answers were based on the underlying idea that the western civilization was corrupt and immoral.67The presence of Muslims in the West became increasingly visible as the generations progressed and second and third generations emerged. Islamic projects were no longer limited to founding mosques but focused more on developing social organizations, academic institutions, and business enterprises. Given this change towards a pro-active life in the West, Muslim leaders and Muslim jurists who lived for a while in the West argued for a new perspective of an epistemology of minority rights.68 They called for a fiqh al-aqalliyat: jurisprudence for minorities. The appearance of fiqh al-aqalliyat is an example of a result of the interaction between liberal thought and Islamic norms.69 Social cohesion and the dignity of the tradition are paramount in this interaction. Understanding life in the West, as well as respect for Islam, are both very important in fiqh al-aqalliyat. Consequently, this can lead to more understanding and appreciation for as well Muslims as non-Muslims who are living in the West.70
The European Council for Fatwa and Research (ECFR), established in 1977, is a transnational institution involved with elaborating fiqh al-aqalliyyat. The ECFR produces and disseminates fatwas for European Muslims.71 The inquiries are regulated in interaction with the European society. The fatwas protect the identity of Muslims while allowing them to participate in the societies they live in.72 The ECFR aims to become a reference for various institutions, both Muslim and non-Muslim, including state authorities.73 The ECFR as an institution is quite equivalent to the Fiqh Council of North America (FCNA).74 Both institutions share members and work together on various issues. Most questions that are addressed towards the ECFR are related to the position of women, such as whether she can marry without a male guardian or attend Islamic circles in the mosque. Women mostly bring those questions up.75 In such instances, fatwas 67 Hassan, “Fiqh al-Aqalliyyāt,” 9. 68 Hassan, “Fiqh al-Aqalliyyāt,” 9. 69 Hassan, “Fiqh al-Aqalliyyāt,” 13. 70 Hassan, “Fiqh al-Aqalliyyāt,” 15. 71 Alexandre Caeiro, “The Power of European Fatwas: The Minority Fiqh Project and the Making of an Islamic Counterpublic,” International Journal of Middle East Studies 42 (2010): 435. 72 Caeiro, “Islamic Counterpublic,” 436. 73 Caeiro, “Islamic Counterpublic,” 137. 74 Caeiro, “Islamic Counterpublic,” 134. 75 Caeiro, “Islamic Counterpublic,” 141.
take the role of internal interventions. The fatwas distinguish matters between religious and cultural, a distinction that is entrenched in second and third generations of European Muslims. Other questions that are brought forth contain matters of repentance or misdeeds that are performed in the past, for example when a young Muslim had an illicit relationship with a girl. In this instance, the council advises to perform prayers and steadfastness.76 Also financial questions about whether it is legitimate to buy a house when mortgage is involved are addressed towards the council.
The ECFR also functions as an authority of opinions towards different European Muslim organisations. The Islamic Council of Norway did send a request to the ECFR to provide a fatwa on homosexuality and the position that European Muslims should have regarding this.77 However, the fatwas that are issued by the ECFR are not always authoritative and final. Marriage is an important topic within the ECFR. According to the ECFR the constitution of families has a profound impact on preserving the Muslim identity. However, the yearly sessions that the ECFR shifted their focus when it comes to this. During the 15th session in 2005 the topic of the session focussed on marriage and families, an extension of the 13th session. The ECFR considers family affairs of utmost importance in social life in general, but especially for Muslims in the west since there are many threats for them such as casual dating.78 These sessions dealt with topics such as the aims of marriage, the role of a walī and Islamic rulings regarding civil marriage and traditional marriage. The last sessions focus more on topics that play a role within different European countries, such as the prohibition on ritual slaughtering.
Although there is a legal framework that is partly practically applicable, the things that exactly happen in daily life also depend on social conventions. Interactions between friends and families influence how an individual approaches different situations.
2.4 Islamic Marriages: choosing a spouse and dealing with Islamic rulings
2.4.1 Choosing a spouse
We live in a time where people in Western societies generally have the freedom to choose who they want to marry. However, the ideal way to get to know someone and the idea about qualities that a potential partner must have differ from person to person. Getting to know a potential spouse is in some cultures a family affair, while this is an individual matter in other cultures. In the Islamic community norms are often shaped through family values and values in the
76 Caeiro, “Islamic Counterpublic,” 142. 77 Caeiro, “Islamic Counterpublic,” 144.
78 “The Thirteenth Ordinary Session of the ECFR,” accessed February 2, 2018, https://www.e-cfr.org/thirteenth-ordinary-session-european-council-fatwa-research/.
religious community. Islam gives people the right to get married with free consent. In some cases this right is being threatened by custom and traditional practices. There are instances where families have the opinion that the parents have the right to choose a spouse for their daughter.79 In such situations, it is the community that deepens the gap between the individual and the society, by strengthening the standards from the country of origin.80 Such ideas that
eventually may result in forced marriages are perceived to be a traditional or a cultural practice rather than a religious one.81 The findings of Al-Johar (2005), who studied the influence of personal identity constructions on partner selection among American Muslims, show three patterns of initiation of marriages. The first finding is that when marriages are arranged through families they mostly are unions between people from the same linguistic or ethnic community.82 Researchers as Grewal (2009) show that nowadays there is a higher rate of interracial marriage when it comes to children of immigrant Muslims. Those children also challenge the ideas about qualities that a potential spouse must have. They state new ideas on topics as skin colour and cultural backgrounds.83
The selection criteria of a potential spouse are influenced by the way someone constructs his personal identity and consequently, whether the marriage is endogamous84 or exogamous.85 This comes back in Al-Johar’s second finding: self-initiated unions that follow Islamic principles are generally unions between Muslims from different linguistic or ethnic communities. Muslims who highlight their Islamic identity instead of their cultural identity consider this as a legitimation for an increase in individual control of marriage decisions.86 The third finding focuses on marriages where people meet and date prior to getting married. This generally involves a union between Muslims and non-Muslims.87
Arranged marriages are marriages where a third party such as parents, relatives or family friends, find someone a partner for marriage. They make it known that they are seeking a suitable partner for their child. In Al-Johar’s data, 79 Shamreeza Riaz, “Shariah Perspective on Marriage Contract and Practice in Contemporary Muslim Societies.”International Journal of Social Science and Humanity 3 (2013): 263, accessed June 3, 2017, doi: 10.7763/IJSSH.2013.V3.241. 80 Sarah Carol, Social Integration and Intermarriage in Europe: Islam, Partner-Choices and Parental Influence (New York: Routledge, 2016), 4. 81 Ahmed, “E-Arranged Marriages,” 8. 82 Denise Al-Johar, “Muslim Marriages in America: Reflecting New Identities,” The Muslim World 95 (2005): 558. 83 Manijeh Daneshpour, and Elham Fathi, “Muslim Marriages in the Western World: A Decade Review,” Journal of Muslim Mental Health 10, no. 1 (2016): 57, https://dx.doi.org/10.3998/jmmh.10381607.0010.105. 84 Within one’s own community 85 Al-Johar, “Muslim Marriages,” 557. 86 Al-Johar, “Muslim Marriages,” 557. 87 Al-Johar, “Muslim Marriages,” 558.
one-third of the marriages she revised are arranged.88 Arranged marriages value cultural viability to a high degree. Islam is increasingly a choice that Muslims in the West can make, since the disconnection with home countries increases.89 Several researchers in both the United States and the United Kingdom show that often the second generation of western Muslims become more orthodox than is the case in the country of origin.90 The second generation can put pressure on the first generation to follow them in religiosity. This also results in the view they may have on marriage: some Muslims govern their marriages rather by religious values than cultural values or traditions. This leads to more self-initiated marriages, where emphasis is put on religious identity. In self-initiated marriages, individuals meet their partner prior to informing their parents. Islamic requirements are followed during the contact and meetings. This also means that the potential spouses are probably chaperoned by friends or family members until marriage.91As mentioned before, self-initiated marriages are mainly marriages between Muslims of different linguistic or ethnic communities. Muslims justify those inter-ethnic marriages referring to equality in the Quran and thus motivate young Muslims to marry beyond their own communities.92In self-achieved marriages, the partners place a greater importance on their own personal desires than on religiosity or cultural traditions. The family plays a less important role in such marriages; little regard is given to their preferences.93 Thus, the aspects where a person identifies himself with at the time of marriage influences the type of marriage that a person will be involved in.
2.4.2 Dealing with Islamic rulings when it comes to marriage
Islam considers marriage, nikah, as a religious sacred commitment. Islamic law classifies marriage as a civil contract that provides a legal framework for intercourse and reproduction of children.94 Marriage is often considered to be a religious duty, unless someone is physically, mentally or financially not able to comply with the rights and duties that a marriage entails.95 The family of the man and the family of the woman are generally involved in the process prior to the conclusion of marriage. It is important that both consent to a marriage. Hence, marriage from an Islamic perspective does not solely depend on the potential partners. Islamic law recommends potential spouses to get engaged prior to marriage.96 Two conditions should be met in order to make a proposal. First of 88 Al-Johar, “Muslim Marriages,” 562. 89 Al-Johar, “Muslim Marriages,” 566. 90 Al-Johar, “Muslim Marriages,” 567. 91 Al-Johar, “Muslim Marriages,” 568. 92 Al-Johar, “Muslim Marriages,” 570. 93 Al-Johar, “Muslim Marriages,” 571. 94 Esposito, Muslim Family Law, 16. 95 Seyyed Hossein Nasr, Traditional Islam in the Modern World (London: Kegan Paul International, 1987), 52. 96 Nathal M. Dessing, Rituals of Birth, Circumcision, Marriage and Death among Muslims in the Netherlands (Leuven: Peeters, 2001), 80.
all, there cannot be a permanent or temporary barrier between both parties. This can be the case when the woman is a widow who has not yet finished her waiting period, iddah. Secondly, it is not possible to propose when there already is an accepted proposal or when there is a proposal of a different party that is currently being considered. The marriage itself does not require a specific ceremony where the contractual agreement is concluded. According to Islamic law, marriage is conducted through agreeing upon a contract, where both man and woman agree to the marriage in the presence of two witnesses. The presence of a religious authority is not required.97 In former times it was quite common to have verbal contracts. However, the Quran recommends written contracts.98 In order for the contract to be valid, the Shafi’I, Maliki and Hanbali
madhahib consider the consent of the custodian of the bride obligatory. The
Hanafi madhhab recommends the consent of the custodian but does not consider it to be mandatory.99
There are specific guidelines in Islamic law about how to take the steps to get married to interact with someone of the opposite sex.100 Interaction before marriage should not contain any flirtation or physical contact between the prospective partners. A chaperone, mahram, should be present in meetings and modesty should be observed in the interaction. Islamic scholars and sheikhs stress on those rules through making various statements. Muhammed Abdul-Rauf classifies the modern custom of dating not only as harmful and dangerous but also reprehended and prohibited.101 In order to substantially make such statements, there is made reference to the ahadith. Abdul-Rauf uses the hadith that condones unrelated men and women who meet in private: “a man and a woman never meet alone except that Satan becomes their third party.”102 The general sense of conservatism in interactions between both sexes is often emphasized by the ulama. They see this conservatism as essential and a requirement to preserve Islamic ethics.103
2.5 Islamic marriages in the Netherlands
Religious marriages that are concluded prior to marriage according to civil law are not acknowledged by the Dutch state. Despite this, it happens quite often that religious marriages are concluded without any proceedings as required by civil law.104 Such marriages are considered to be informal and would mainly be
97 Dessing, Rituals of Birth, 85. 98 Quran 2:282. 99 Dessing, Rituals of Birth, 87. 100 Ahmed, “E-Arranged Marriages,” 7. 101 Ahmed, “E-Arranged Marriages,” 7. 102 Ahmed, “E-Arranged Marriages,” 7. 103 Ahmed, “E-Arranged Marriages,” 8. And Göran Larsson, Muslims and the New Media: Historical and Contemporary Debates (New York: Routledge, 2016), 158. 104 Maurits Berger, “Sharia in Nederland is vaak keurig Nederlands,” Mens en Maatschappij 506 (2007): 506.
concluded within Islamic surroundings.105 In 2006 the National Coordinator for
Counterterrorism linked such informal Islamic marriages to diverse safety concerns such as polygamy, benefit frauds and bringing women into contact with terrorist networks. In the society at large, there would be a fear that those informal marriages violate the democratic legal order and thus reject the national law for the sake of religion.106 Research shows that informal religious
marriages are not only concluded within Islamic surroundings but also happen within other religious and philosophical traditions.107 One of the motives that
Muslim youngsters have with regard to getting married religiously before getting married in civil law is that in this way they can get to know each other better in a ‘right way’ according to their religious understanding.108
Since most Muslims in the Netherlands have a migration background, not only the Dutch law plays a role in their marriages but also the law of the country of origin. The Dutch law takes nationality as the basis for marriage legislation.109 More than 50% of the Moroccans and 30% of the Turks that live in the Netherlands do not have the Dutch nationality. One of the reasons for this is that, in the case of Moroccans, Moroccan law states that Moroccans in the Netherlands cannot renounce their Moroccan nationality.110 Since Dutch registrars can conclude marriages between two Dutch citizens in the Netherlands, other steps must be taken when one of the potential spouses does not have the Dutch nationality. To further elaborate this, I will focus on specifically the influence of Moroccan law on marriages among Moroccans in the Netherlands. Those marriages are largely determined by marriage legislations of the country of origin. The Moroccan government considers Moroccans in the Netherlands, even when they have the Dutch nationality, as Moroccans. This means that Moroccan laws are not only applicable to Moroccans that live in Morocco, but also to Moroccans that live in other countries.111 A Moroccan-Dutch married couple should take certain steps in order to be acknowledged as married by the Moroccan state. This is generally important for them, since proof for their civil status might be asked when travelling in Morocco. When they both have a Moroccan passport, they can get married at the Moroccan consulate. If one of the two only has a Dutch nationality, they can marry for civil registry and submit their civil forms to the Moroccan consulate. This briefly explains the complexity of Dutch citizens with dual nationalities or dual belongings. 105 Joanne van der Leun and Avalon Leupen, “Informele huwelijken in Nederland: in het echt verbonden?” Tijdschrift voor Criminologie 55 (2013): 191. 106 Leun, and Leupen, “echt verbonden?”, 191. 107 Leun, and Leupen, “echt verbonden?”, 203. 108 Leun, and Leupen, “echt verbonden?”, 203. 109 Dessing, Rituals of Birth, 90. 110 Dessing, Rituals of Birth, 90. 111 “De Mudawannah,” Naar Maroc, accessed January 4, 2018, https://naarmaroc.com/de-mudawannah/.
Besides getting married for Dutch civil law, it is also possible to contract cohabitation. Cohabitation gives partners ample freedom to decide, for example, how their contract can be rescinded. This way justice can be done to both rights and obligations, which are given to the spouses by Islamic law.112 2.6 Conclusion Islamic discourses developed with the idea that Islam is the state religion and the religion of the majority of citizens. The minority position of Muslims in the west let new questions arise, questions that could not be found in classical Islamic jurisprudence. With obtaining a pro-active life in the west, Muslims leaders argued for a jurisprudence for Muslim minorities that live in the west,. This fiqh
al-aqalliyat places great importance on understanding life in the west and having
respect for Islam. The ECFR, involved with fiqh al-aqalliyat in Europe, produces and disseminates fatwas for European Muslims. The fatwas protect the identity of Muslims while allowing them to participate in the societies they live in. It is also involved with the topic of Islamic marriages in the west, and answers questions of as well individual Muslims as Islamic organisations.
In this chapter we have seen that the aspects where an individual identifies himself with at the time that he meets someone for marriage influence the way of initiation. Roughly Muslims can choose for an arrange marriage, a self-initiated marriage or a self-achieved marriage. In the following chapters we will take a look at the meeting patterns of young Muslims who live in the Netherlands and their potential spouses.
112 Berger, “keurig Nederlands,” 506.
3. Digitalization of religion: digitalizing the Islamic Marriage
process
The rapidly changing nature of the Internet improves the freedom of movement that world citizens have.113 The presence of the Internet led to societal changes through facilitating globalization. The Internet facilitates easy access to communicating with citizens all over the world. This led to relationships that are increasingly formed across space and time.114 Besides this, information about happenings and opinions throughout the world are no longer limited to certain borders but can be accessed anywhere. Through this development specific local traditions are deterritorialized and deculturalized. In this chapter we will evaluate the influence of digital developments on lived religion today. Since the process of finding a suitable partner intensively changed through the appearance of the Internet, we will study in which way the Internet shapes relationships among believers today. A focus will be put on minority groups, and especially Muslims, who live in the West.
3.1 General digital developments in the religious field
The development of user-friendly Internet services has led to numerous developments. With the rise of various Internet services individuals not only have the opportunity to access information anywhere and to easily find different views on certain topics, but also to present their own views through starting a website or creating a blog. This development resulted in a wider access to various religious ideas. Within the study of religion, identity and digital media, three different phases can be distinguished. These phases indicate how people (re)present religion and religious ideas.115 The first phase mainly represents aspects as plurality and experimenting. A fascination for plurality in different religious symbols and narratives play a central role. Through the access to online communication and the plurality of religious identities that can be found here, more fluid forms of religious identity evolved.116 Thus in this phase, traditional forms of religious identity were reconstructed. The second phase involved critical empirical studies. The start of this phase was marked by Dawson’s (2000) review of research on religion in cyberspace.117 Dawson named the most popular online religious activities: collecting information, exchanging requests for prayer, and seeking individual advice. He further identified various online religious identities that focused on devotion, common history and affiliation. 113 Kristin Zahra Sands, “Muslims, identity and multimodal communication on the internet,” Contemporary Islam 4, (2010): 141, https:/doi.org/10.1007/s11562-009-0105-z. 114 Ahmed, “E-Arranged Marriages,” 11. 115 Campbell, Digital Religion, 45. 116 Campbell, Digital Religion, 46. 117 Campbell, Digital Religion, 46.
After 2000 the focus shifted to individual experiences and identity formation among minority groups and youngsters.118 The Internet provided new possibilities to explore one’s personal version of religion. Believers could establish connections with other believers in similar or different contexts and find support in handling tensions within diaspora situations.119 Thus, through being able to identify with each other across time and space, the Internet contributed to the establishment of new networks. However, in this phase researchers and religious leaders also realized that the ability to publish and access information on the Internet could lead to diminishing the authority of religious leaders. Furthermore, having an online and offline religious identity can create a schism among individuals, since those two identities may differ and create a crisis of authenticity.120 These issues set the agenda for the last and third phase, which focused more on the use of new media as an integrated aspect in everyday life. Topics such as the use of Internet representation as a religious practice were studied. Religion is nowadays being personalized through social media devices and used as a means to reflect on individual spiritual journeys.121 This also resulted in reshaping technology to fit certain religious values. An example of this is the development of kosher cell phones.122 Those kosher cell phones are modified to suit kosher values, and thus do not have average access to the Internet. The kosher phones have a special application store that only shows applications that rabbis have deemed appropriate.123
The widespread access that people have to the Internet creates a certain amount of worry among different religious groups. The Internet can contribute to positive developments but also challenge current structures and beliefs. The information that people can get through the Internet can be used to maintain and extend religious traditions but also creates the possibility to erode authority. Since the Internet can present different values on a global scale, negative connotations can be brought forth with regard to the ethical or moral value systems that are set in a certain society.124 Within the Islamic community, the development of the Internet shifted the framework of authority. The opportunity to present or disseminate decisions based on individual ijtihad grew with the rise of the Internet.125The rise of Internet has positive effects for Muslims since it provides the opportunity to access websites about contemporary religious
118 Campbell, Digital Religion, 47. 119 Campbell, Digital Religion, 47. 120 Campbell, Digital Religion, 48. 121 Campbell, Digital Religion, 48. 122 Campbell, Digital Religion, 48. 123 “Kosher Smart Phone Arrives as Ultra-Orthodox Tech Taboo,” Forward, accessed December 21, 2018, https://forward.com/news/184099/kosher-smart-phone-arrives-as-ultra-orthodox-tech/. 124 Bunt, iMuslims, 278. 125 Bunt, iMuslims, 278.
concerns and ask ulama personal questions.126 Although traditionally speaking accessing knowledge required human intermediary, nowadays this opportunity is not only limited to ulama.127 Websites such as “Tumblr” are used by religiously uneducated Muslims to answer religious questions of other individuals based on their own experiences. The Internet plays a central role in the structures of Muslim networks, through providing a broad range of diverse databases for Islamic knowledge. Data can always be accessed with the use of a smartphone, and thus religion is always ‘on’. Smartphones can give you notifications when it is time for prayer, give you access to countless opinions about Islamic matters and thus may create an overload of information through the unlimitedness of the Internet.128
Another consequence of digital developments in the religious field is the possibility to set-up a connection between individuals, some sort of social security, through the use of smartphone apps. An example of this is the Bible app ‘YouVersion’, which records when, where and what you read of the Bible. The app invites you to read more, tries to keep you to your reading plan and sends you reminders when you do not read. Through the option to publish your activity on social media, others can keep track of your activity too. Hence, the larger community can use the app as a means of social control.129 The Internet provides new experiences for communication and networking within different religious communities. It reshapes boundaries of community networks and gives room to new subjects of dialogue through the ability to respond quickly to worldwide happenings.130
3.2 Finding a partner with digital help: a review of online dating
Within many traditions, romantic relationships do not merely arise from just chance but are set up through the intervention of third parties, as is the case with Jewish shadchan and other arranged marriages. Those interventions can only be successful with qualitative resources such as a broad social network and the willingness to spend time and thoughts on the attempt to bring people together as couples.131 Interventions like this are generally not present in contemporary
western societies. It is usually expected that individuals find their partner on their own. Since this requires a great amount of time, effort and also on average some missteps, it is obvious that people try to find easier solutions. This development of finding an easier solution in meeting a potential partner is not 126 Ahmed, “E-Arranged Marriages,” 11. 127 Bunt, iMuslims, 279. 128 Bunt, iMuslims, 277. 129 Charles Melvin Ess, “Can we say anything ethical about Digital Religion? Philosophical and methodological considerations,” New Media and Society 19, no. 1 (2017): 39, https://doi.org/10.1177/1461444816649914. 130 Bunt, iMuslims, 276. 131 Eli J. Finkel, et al., “Online Dating: A Critical Analysis From the Perspective of Psychological Science,” Psychological Science in the Public Interest 13, no. 1 (March 2012): 4, doi: 10.1177/1529100612436522.
