Religion and Power in Morocco Review- Molly Mansfield

Henry Munson Jr.’s 1993 book Religion and Power in Morocco seeks to discuss the relationship between Islam and politics throughout Morocco’s history. Most of his argument is situated in opposition to anthropologist Clifford Geertz’s 1968 study Islam Observed: Religious Development in Morocco and Indonesia. Munson criticizes Geertz’s work for focusing too heavily upon personal accounts and ignoring other historical and political contexts surrounding Morocco. Munson examines the political influence of religion and religious figures in Morocco during various moments in Morocco’s political history such as the precolonial era, during the French protectorate, and following decolonization and the restoration of the monarchy. Having never traveled to Morocco before and never having studied Morocco exclusively, I was excited to learn more about the history and culture of the country. Although Religion in Power did provide much historical and religious context concerning Morocco, the book’s confusing organization as well as Munson’s hyper-focus on Geertz’s and others’ work makes it somewhat hard to follow and inaccessible to those less familiar with Morocco’s history or the outside sources Munson references. Munson’s attempt to link his academic argument that historical and anthropological research must be more closely intertwined to create a clearer picture of religion and politics and his individual arguments concerning specific elements of Moroccan religion and politics become muddled together and do not always build upon each other in a constructive way.

Religion and Power in Morocco is mostly organized chronologically and is paired with a timeline at the beginning of the book. However, the book sometimes becomes confusing to read when Munson jumps back and forth between years or frames a discussion from certain lenses. For example, in Chapter 4: “Popular Religion, Orthodoxy, and Salafi Scripturalism,” Munson considers the relationship of Salafi reformists and nationalist movements in Morocco as well as between popular and orthodox Islam in the early 1900s. He frames this chapter from the perspectives of different Salafi and Sufi figures, introducing each, then relating a short account about their religious and political views and intersections. These brief anecdotes do not always flow chronologically, and Munson relates them back to a few different points, some of which are discussed at the beginning of the chapter, and some of which are discussed at the end. Thus, it is difficult for the reader to follow his argument and pinpoint the key messages of this chapter.

Aside from organizational flaws, Munson loses the attention and understanding of the reader when he frames each point in the context of another author’s perspective. Munson himself admits that much of Religion and Power in Morocco is centered around his criticism of Clifford Geertz’s Islam Observed. While he provides some information about Geertz’s specific arguments, he never provides the broad overview of Geertz’s approach to this study that is necessary to fully understand the critical differences in the two books. Anyone wishing to read Religion and Politics would likely gain much more from the book having previously read Islam Observed, since Munson’s explanation alone is not sufficient for a robust understanding.

By mentioning Geertz and other authors so often in his book, it seems that Munson is attempting to make two different arguments at once. First, he does, as stated in the title, examine the relationship between Islam and political power in Morocco, and makes many original arguments on this topic. Second, he argues that Geertz’s approach to studying Islam in Morocco does not accurately reflect historical contexts, finishing the book by asking “If all we write is fiction, why not leave the task to those who do it well?” (Munson 185), driving home the While is it extremely important to criticize academia and the ways that research is conducted, it appears that Munson was attempting to write two different works that instead became merged into one. As a reader, I would have been more compelled by a book written more directly about Munson’s own findings on the role of Islam in Moroccan politics paired with the historical and symbolic contexts that he finds necessary to accurately cover the topic, and perhaps with a foreword regarding Geertz’s and others’ works on the same issues, and the necessary academic differences between them. When almost all of Munson’s points reference another author’s flaws, his own arguments become lost in his criticism that focuses more on Geertz’s academic approach than the content of either book itself. For this reason, Munson’s thoughts on the accuracy of different research approaches would have been better suited for a short paper more focused on that specific topic and perhaps using the example of Geertz’s inaccuracies to support Munson’s idea that varied academic approaches are necessary to achieve a thorough grasp of a subject. His attempt to merge these two topics unfortunately results in a confusing book that does not convincingly make either point.

The aspects of Munson’s book that were the most engaging and informative were those that spoke broadly about aspects of religion in Morocco or gave straightforward information about its history. In chapter 5, “Holy and Unholy Kingship in Twentieth-Century Morocco,” Munson gives adequate context and information about traditions of daily prayer in Islam prior to relating this to his argument about the lack of concrete religious links to the Moroccan monarchy. Similarly, when discussing the reigns of Mohammed V and Hassan II, Munson gives enough historical context without being bogged down by reference to Geertz that as the reader I gained a lot more memorable information that will inform my further study of Morocco.

For these reasons, Religion and Power in Morocco is not likely to capture a wide audience and is not a book I would recommend to most people, especially those looking for an introductory text about Morocco’s history However, it could serve as a valuable reference text for individuals researching specific topics such as al-Yusi, the relationship between Morocco’s different political movements and its religious elite, or the Moroccan monarchy, or for those who are more familiar with Morocco’s history or the work of Geertz. To the every day reader seeking to learn more about Morocco, or even to delve deeply into its religious and political history, other resources might be more concise, informative, and engaging.