Politics as Worship (S. 13, Ep. 9)

On this week's episode of the podcast, Sumita Pahwa of Scripps College, joins Marc Lynch to discuss her new book, Politics as Worship: Righteous Activism and the Egyptian Muslim Brothers. Sumita Pahwa explores the question of why leading Islamist movements like the Egyptian Muslim Brothers embrace electoral politics while insisting that their main goal is “working for God,” and how they reconcile political with spiritual goals. She examines the movement’s internal debates on preaching, activism, and social reform from the 1980s through the 2000s. She explains how framing political work as ethical conduct, essential for building pious Muslim individuals as well as an Islamic political order, became central to the organization’s functioning. Use the code 05PAW23 for 40% off through Nov 15 when purchaisng the book through the linked press site. Music for this season’s podcast was created by Malika Zarra. You can find more of her work on Instagram and Linktree.