The Islamic Reform Movement of the Association of Algerian ʿUlamaʾ, 1931-1954 : Between Politics and the Religious Sphere (Studies in the History and Society of the Maghrib)

How are we to understand the internal dynamics of an Islamic reform movement that calls for nationalist rallies and joins a delegation to meet with the French Prime Minister but denies that it 'does politics'? This book analyzes how the Association of Algerian ʿUlamaʾ, founded in 1931 as a league of Muslim scholars, addressed the peculiar situation of French laïcité in colonial Algeria and competed with Algeria's revolutionary nationalists. It also highlights the financial basis and the grassroots organizations of the movement, from which it brought about a 'passive' revolution against the colonial social order.