The Political Effects of Wahhabi Religious Authorities in the Gulf

• In Event: Religious Authority, Religiosity, and Political Competition in the Middle East

Abstract

When it comes to understanding Islamic authority in the Middle East, Wahhabi structures in the Gulf perhaps remain the opaquest. Saudi Arabia and Qatar are the world’s only official Wahhabi states yet present vastly different models of religious authority. While Saudi Arabia features an institutionalized Wahhabi clergy employed by the state, Qatar lacks a state-linked or even institutionalized religious clergy, with most clerics coming from outside the country. This paper examines the political consequences of and reasons for these differences and, using results from a comprehensive cross-national survey, compares responses in these states with non-Wahhabi countries in the region to assess the extent to which Wahhabism influences political outcomes and religious decisions. We seek to understand who speaks for Islam in Wahhabi countries and the efficacy of state-linked versus independent sources of religious inspiration in the rentier environments of the Gulf.

Author

• Courtney Freer, London School of Economics