You are using an outdated browser.
Please upgrade your browser
and improve your visit to our site.

What is ISIS all about, really?

Ahmad Al-Rubaye / Getty Images

Back in March, The Atlantic’s Graeme Wood published a long feature aiming to dissect the true nature and goals of the so-called Islamic State. From Wood’s view, ISIS is both unlike terror syndicates of the recent past (like Al Qaeda) and yet just as fervently, intensely religious. “The reality is that the Islamic State is Islamic,” Wood wrote. “Very Islamic.”

Naturally, detractors disagreed. Writers at ThinkProgress and Salon pointed out that ordinary Muslims do not see their faith reflected in the brutality of ISIS, and that the group is not an inevitable outgrowth of Islam itself. Critics were especially emphatic that the theology of ISIS, however intently the group avers its authenticity, should not be imputed onto all Muslims. Here at the New Republic, Mehdi Hasan explored the idea that while religion has a role in ISIS, it may not be foundational.

Indeed, for all the general discussion of ISIS’s fundamentals, it is a remarkably fluid organization. It has had many names, many commanders, and only officially decided it is a caliphate last June. It also appears to be caught in the same struggle all believers always are: trying to claim and source authority for the idea that it is the only authentic expression of its faith. These debates exist within every faith, where boutique strands of belief tend to arise and dissolve with surprising frequency, with some surviving the trial of history and becoming obviously legitimate. It’s hard to predict which strands will make it and which will die out.

But one thing is constant: Religious organizations are always about more than religion.

Logo

Independent journalism matters

×

Ads help fund our journalism. Please disable your ad blocker so that we can continue striving to be the most influential magazine in Washington, D.C., with our breaking news coverage, in-depth political features, and much more.

Continue without disabling

Choose your Ad Blocker

  • Adblock Plus
  • Adblock
  • Adguard
  • Ad Remover
  • Brave
  • Ghostery
  • uBlock Origin
  • uBlock
  • UltraBlock
  • Other
  1. In the extension bar, click the AdBlock Plus icon
  2. Click the large blue toggle for this website
  3. Click refresh
  1. In the extension bar, click the AdBlock icon
  2. Under "Pause on this site" click "Always"
  1. In the extension bar, click on the Adguard icon
  2. Click on the large green toggle for this website
  1. In the extension bar, click on the Ad Remover icon
  2. Click "Disable on This Website"
  1. In the extension bar, click on the orange lion icon
  2. Click the toggle on the top right, shifting from "Up" to "Down"
  1. In the extension bar, click on the Ghostery icon
  2. Click the "Anti-Tracking" shield so it says "Off"
  3. Click the "Ad-Blocking" stop sign so it says "Off"
  4. Refresh the page
  1. In the extension bar, click on the uBlock Origin icon
  2. Click on the big, blue power button
  3. Refresh the page
  1. In the extension bar, click on the uBlock icon
  2. Click on the big, blue power button
  3. Refresh the page
  1. In the extension bar, click on the UltraBlock icon
  2. Check the "Disable UltraBlock" checkbox
  1. Please disable your Ad Blocker
  2. Disable any DNS blocking tools such as AdGuardDNS or NextDNS

If the prompt is still appearing, please disable any tools or services you are using that block internet ads (e.g. DNS Servers).