Arab West Report Egyptian press summaries and media research for dialogue

Fawzī highlights the paradox in Egypt when he compares the stabilization of religious institutions to the disassociation of the Egyptian people, resulting in confusion and deterioration of society. He casts light on some studies that dealt with the relationship between the political regime and religious institutions, and concludes that the more the political regime makes use of religious institutions to obtain legitimacy, the weaker these institutions are in making social change. He refers to a similar situation in Egyptian society where the religious institutions increasingly have importance but the societal components break apart. He gives an example and refers to political movement in the society, and although many components have already participated in such a movement, the religious institutions had little to no effect. The speech of such institutions calls for inclusive development, and moreover, this type of speech may help consolidate the existent disturbed social situation of the society. In short, such institutions no longer urge social change at its political and sociological levels. The question here is: why do these institutions take root in Egyptian society while their followers, religious people, suffer disassociation and confusion? The answer may be simple if religion is the source of political legitimacy and the relationship remains between the state and religious institutions, not the citizens. Therefore, while the society is tottering gradually, religion has no role in pushing social change.