States that export their official religions compete with transnational alternatives in an unprecedentedly globalised market. In Europe, migrant-origin Muslims are approached by their countries of origin as relatives and networks and as means of influencing European politics. On the other hand, less hierarchical and more decentralised religiosities arise from Muslims' changing needs for meaning in liaison with their interlocution processes with non-Muslims and Muslims of different origins. Both patterns have been taken as threats in Europe: the former as a religious-nationalist foreign infiltration (e.g. “the Gray Wolf radicalisation”), and the latter as Pandora's box, including violent extremisms (e.g. “the ISIS radicalisation”). This dichotomy, however, does not capture the tensions individuals feel in the religious sphere. Drawing on 152 interviews conducted with young adults of Turkish and Moroccan origin in four EU countries, this chapter argues that socialisation at mosques/organisations funded by the country of origin does not necessarily serve the funders as religious diffusion. Rather than a clear-cut religious indoctrination, the gatherings include alternative knowledge claims over intergenerational and gender relations, nationalism and ethnocentrism, and traditions in the country of origin. In conclusion, the chapter offers policy advice other than aiming to decrease the saturation of this religious sphere.
CORE (COnnecting REpositories)
CORE (COnnecting REpositories)