„Unparteilichkeit ist nie die Sache religiöser Polemik gewesen“: Wissenschaftlichkeit, Religion und „Islamfrage“ im Kontext der Kolonialkongresse in Berlin 1905 und 1910

Résumé

The negotiation of scientific rigor is by no means limited to intra-academic debates and theoretical literature. What is considered “scientific,” “factual,” or “impartial” comes to a head in the context of political, cultural, and religious questions about current events. The article traces the outlines and background of a debate that took place at the Colonial Congresses in Berlin in 1905 and 1910. This debate was primarily devoted to the question of how to assess Islam as a cultural factor. Important keywords in the debate were “Islam danger” and “Islam propaganda”.

Whether Islam was a religion in the modern sense was by no means a foregone conclusion. The demand for the separation of state and politics and for freedom of religion as a condition for the civilizing mission did not go unchallenged. Conversely, Islam was seen as an alternative to European civilization, which was considered decadent. The relationship between political, religious, and scientific interests in the debate was also controversial. Again, “unscientific” and “partisanship” were also used here as political battle concepts to discredit opposing arguments.