Jonathan Laurence, joined by José Casanova, Pasquale Ferrara, and Nilüfer Göle will discuss his most recent publication, Coping with Defeat: Sunni Islam, Roman Catholicism and the Modern State, which argues that both Roman Catholicism and Sunni Islam suffered major defeats at the hands of the modern state in the 19th and 20th centuries. Roman Catholicism lost its temporal power to the secular state; while Sunni Islam suffered the loss of the Caliphate due to the power of European empires. Catholicism retained and regained influence by accepting its loss and focusing on its religious mission; Sunni Islam has yet to make such a turn and suffers as a consequence.
Featured Speakers:
- José Casanova (Georgetown University)
- Pasquale Ferrara (Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation)
- Nilüfer Göle (EHESS, Paris)
- Jonathan Laurence (Boston College)
Chair: Giancarlo Bosetti
Jonathan Laurence is professor of political science and director of the Clough Center for Constitutional Democracy at Boston College. He is the author of The Emancipation of Europe’s Muslims (Princeton) and his work has appeared in such venues as the New York Times and The Economist. Twitter @jonathanlauren6