Kahina Bahloul (born 5 March 1979) is a French
imam
Imam (; ar, إمام '; plural: ') is an Islamic leadership position. For Sunni Muslims, Imam is most commonly used as the title of a worship leader of a mosque. In this context, imams may lead Islamic worship services, lead prayers, ser ...
and
Islamic academic. She is an advocate for
modernist reforms in Islam and is the first female imam in France.
Biography
Kahina Bahloul was born in France to a French mother and an Algerian father. Her family was
interfaith, with her father being Muslim and her mother coming from a Christian and Jewish family.
She was raised in the
Kabylia
Kabylia ('' Kabyle: Tamurt n Leqbayel'' or ''Iqbayliyen'', meaning "Land of Kabyles", '','' meaning "Land of the Tribes") is a cultural, natural and historical region in northern Algeria and the homeland of the Kabyle people. It is part of th ...
region of Algeria. Her father taught her to practice Islam in conjunction with
humanism
Humanism is a philosophical stance that emphasizes the individual and social potential and agency of human beings. It considers human beings the starting point for serious moral and philosophical inquiry.
The meaning of the term "humani ...
and
progressivism
Progressivism holds that it is possible to improve human societies through political action. As a political movement, progressivism seeks to advance the human condition through social reform based on purported advancements in science, tec ...
.
She returned to France in 2003.
Bahloul was educated as a lawyer, and she worked in insurance for 12 years.
She stopped attending mosques in 2014 due to
sex segregation that she said resulted in lower quality facilities for Muslim women.
The
November 2015 Paris attacks
The November 2015 Paris attacks () were a series of coordinated Islamist terrorist attacks that took place on Friday, 13 November 2015 in Paris, France, and the city's northern suburb, Saint-Denis. Beginning at 9:15p.m., three suicide bombers ...
convinced Bahloul that she should become involved in
Islamic reform. In response to the attacks, she founded the discussion group ().
The attacks also made her decide to become an imam,
and she attended the
École pratique des hautes études to obtain a doctorate in
Islamic studies
Islamic studies refers to the academic study of Islam, and generally to academic multidisciplinary "studies" programs—programs similar to others that focus on the history, texts and theologies of other religious traditions, such as Easter ...
.
Bahloul co-founded Fatma Mosque in 2018 as a
unisex
Unisex is an adjective indicating something is not sex-specific, i.e. is suitable for any type of sex. The term can also mean gender-blindness or gender neutrality.
The term 'unisex' was coined as a neologism in the 1960s and was used fairly inf ...
place of worship that allows men and women to pray and lead prayers together. Fatma Mosque operated online during the
COVID-19 pandemic
The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...
.
Political and religious views
Bahloul supports the
liberalization
Liberalization or liberalisation (British English) is a broad term that refers to the practice of making laws, systems, or opinions less severe, usually in the sense of eliminating certain government regulations or restrictions. The term is used m ...
of Islam and the acceptance of women in Islamic practices.
She is critical of mainstream Islamic scholarship, alleging that it "emanates from medieval thought".
She argues that conservative sects of Islam view the religion from a male perspective, promoting
patriarchy
Patriarchy is a social system in which positions of dominance and privilege are primarily held by men. It is used, both as a technical anthropological term for families or clans controlled by the father or eldest male or group of males a ...
and
misogyny
Misogyny () is hatred of, contempt for, or prejudice against women. It is a form of sexism that is used to keep women at a lower social status than men, thus maintaining the societal roles of patriarchy. Misogyny has been widely practiced fo ...
.
Bahloul advocates individual reading and interpretation of the
Quran
The Quran (, ; Standard Arabic: , Classical Arabic, Quranic Arabic: , , 'the recitation'), also romanized Qur'an or Koran, is the central religious text of Islam, believed by Muslims to be a revelation in Islam, revelation from God in Islam, ...
.
She does not wear a veil and does not believe that it is required by the Quran.
Bahloul supports the development of a
French Islamic religious identity distinct from that of
Muslim-majority nations. She is critical of the
French Council of the Muslim Faith
The French Council of the Muslim Faith (french: Conseil français du culte musulman, usually abbreviated to CFCM), is a national elected body, to serve as an official interlocutor with the French state in the regulation of Muslim religious activi ...
, arguing that it represents the Islamic governments of other nations rather than French Muslims.
See also
*
Women in Islam
References
External links
"Meet Kahina Bahloul, France's first female imam"– Interview by
euronews
Euronews (styled on-air in lowercase as euronews) is a European television news network, headquartered in Lyon, France. The network began broadcasting on 1 January 1993 and covers world news from a European perspective.
The majority of Eurone ...
on
YouTube
YouTube is a global online video platform, online video sharing and social media, social media platform headquartered in San Bruno, California. It was launched on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim. It is owned by ...
, English subtitles (9:37)
Living people
1979 births
French imams
French people of Jewish descent
20th-century French women
21st-century French women
French women academics
French Sufis
École pratique des hautes études alumni
Muslim reformers
Proponents of Islamic feminism
French Muslim activists
Female Islamic religious leaders
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