Abdennour Bidar is a French philosopher, writer and government official.After a short introduction by Prof. Suechika and Prof. Date from Tokyo University, the lecture started by introducing Prof. Bidar’s most famousbook Open Letter to the Muslim World written in the aftermath of the Charlie Hebdo shooting. France has an ideology of secularism withvery strict separation between religion and politics. As a French and aMuslim, Dr. Bidar attempts to reconcile those tendencies. He is often invited to the French television to talk about Islam. Some people question the possibility of being a Muslim and a philosopher, associating philosophy with exercise of critical thinking. Dr. Bidar thinks it is possible based on the teachings of the French philosopher Blaise Pascale who mentions the mysteries of the Universe that exceed the power of reason and the Pakistani philosopher Mohamed Iqbal talking about “insights” or “inner intuition” which is close to silence or faith. Following this logic, it becomes possible to be a Muslim philosopher.

Islam in Europe, in particularly in France stands onthe crossroads of many issues related to the French identity and encompasses political, religious and social issues. First, Islam forces France to ask itself questions regarding religion. The French society today is very secularized and lost the capacity to ask itself questions about religion and spirituality. Secularism is defined by the French historian and sociologist Marcel Gauchet as the loss of influence of religion on the consciousness and society. In that sense, Islam could bean opportunity for France.

Despite the considerable number of Muslim residents in France, their social integration remains a problem, not just because of the culture but because of political structure of the French society. In France, integration does not mean the same thing as in other Western countries having an ideology of multiculturalism. Politically, French are republicans in the sense that they attempt to build a united community of citizens based not only on the rule of law but also on shared values. This task is much more ambitious and there isa risk of the value conflict. Islamist terrorist attacks became a real shock for the French society, and since then, Muslims are generally perceived as a threat. General worry keeps increasing reaching at times the level of madness.

Some of the common fears around Islam include:

1) The loss of traditional identity. This fear led to forming the “theory of great replacement” of white and Christian population in France and “demographic mutation” of the French society. Deconstructing fears around Islam has become Dr. Bidar’s daily work.

2) Neglecting social and economic dimension of the problem. Most Muslims in France live in ethnic and social ghettos and they belong to disadvantageous class. Their faith becomes a refuge for them and the only way to reaffirm their human dignity. They do not have a feeling of belonging tothe mainstream French society in terms of space, financial resources orvision of the future. They are often victims of racism and discrimination, stigmatization, they constantly experience hostile staring in the streets, subway and other public spaces. Dr. Bidar believes that the French society does not have to fall in the trap of the cultural war if all the parties have enough intelligence and tolerance.

3) Inequalities in terms of religious attitudes. Some Muslims are more observant than others. While most understand that they need to adapt their practices and behavior in the country where they area minority, others do not want to adjust. They believe that their faithis created by God who is a founder of the Sharia, Muslim law. As Frenchlaw is constructed only by humans, they believe that Sharia is inherently superior. Dr. Bidar believes we need to make mutual efforts to achieve understanding, otherwise a truly multicultural society would be impossible. Multiculturalism does not occur automatically, simply because we come from different cultural backgrounds.

An example of misunderstanding is the law of 2004 prohibiting wearing the veil in schools. For most Muslims, this law is a proof that the French society is in war with religion in general and Muslims in particular, and they consider this law as oppression of their individual freedom. However, for the French, this law is understood differently based on the history of schools in France. Schools do not treat their students based on theirfamily background; they consider them as autonomous persons. As a result, there is a complete misunderstanding.

For the French society, the Muslim presence in the country constitute a double challenge. It calls to an exercise of self-criticism and self-examination. For Islam as well, the Muslim presence in France is a great opportunity of renewal. If a phenomenon wants to stay alive, it has to renew itself periodically since “intelligence is adaptation”. TheMuslim presence in France obliges individuals to reconsider their most personal values and beliefs. The idea of renewal of Islam comes from classical works of Arabic philosophers such as Ahmad Al Ghazzali (died in 1111) and is continued by Souleymane Bachir Diagne, professor at Columbia University, NYC. Building on their work, Dr. Bidar created a concept of “Islamic existentialism”. While existentialism dates back to 1960s and J.-P. Sartre saying that our life is our responsibility, Dr. Bidar disagrees with Sartre who thought that an existentialist cannot bea believer. Dr. Bidar thinks that God do not want slaves, that is why human beings are created free to choose their own destiny. It correlateswith Islamic notion of “amanah” (personal responsibility or trustworthiness). His recent book is titled as “Islam without submissionfor Muslim existentialists” (not yet translated into English).

Thanksto Muslims, the French society get a rendez-vous with their own consciousness and equilibrium of shared values is now needed. How to realize this unity in diversity? How to recognize minorities’ rights without renouncing the idea of forming a coherent society? Dr. Bidar sees two major risks here. First, abandoning the idea of unity can lead the society to its atomization and ultimately, explosion. The second risk is not recognizing the minorities’ rights, and this could lead to anew totalitarianism, new fascism.

Muslims become the scapegoats for the French society. It’s the favorite argument of populist politicians saying that once we close the door to migrants and particularly Muslims, we will naturally regain our equilibrium and our former greatness. Muslim presence in France is the best mirror for the French society, showing its healthy and unhealthy aspects.

Anotherpotentially problematic idea of the French society is their belief thatall the problems can be resolved by the law. However, Dr. Bidar thinks that without parallel efforts in education, the law cannot succeed. He also uses Habermas’ term “discourse ethics” to reach the situation when no one claims to have the ultimate truth in an argument but listens carefully to others’ viewpoint. In practice, it is difficult to really accept that our own beliefs may not superior. Dr. Bidar finds much immaturity in the contemporary French society, in both political and spiritual aspects and thinks we need to learn to accept differences to finally become adults and achieve a peaceful and harmonious coexistence on this planet. He believes in the universal brotherhood, regardless of religion and other factors.

The audience asked Dr. Bidar a numberof questions about French republicanism, discrimination against Muslimsin France and also Christian and Jewish minorities in Africa, perceivedthreats of ethnic replacement of white populations in Europe by the people of color.