Secularisation,Wales, and Islam

Islam has a long, albeit hidden history in Wales. Traditionally, studies of Welsh religion have focused on Christianity so that little has been written about non-Christian religions in Wales. Moreover, general theoretical debates about secularisation have tended to be overly Christocentric in their focus, with the experiences of non-Christian faith groups conspicuous by their absence in most studies of modern urban societies and secularisation. Similarly, most academic studies emanating from Islam, while they have much to say on liberal secular societies, have yet meaningfully to engage with the secularisation thesis. This article explores the relationship between classical theories of secularisation, historical processes of secularisation in Wales, and the contemporary experience of Muslim groups operating within a highly secularised environment. The article argues that there is a need in multi-cultural societies to develop a theory of secularisation that can incorporate a non-Christian dimension. Recent theoretical writing by Steve Bruce (Politics) and David Martin (Revised Theory) offers a promising route in this direction.