An Integrative Model of Civilizational Da'wa: The Dialectic of Tradition and Renewal in Islamic Thought

Abstract

This article examines the relationship between Islamic da’wa and civilization-building through a comparative perspective involving classical and contemporary scholars. Employing a qualitative approach based on library research with hermeneutic and comparative-historical analysis, this study scrutinizes the works of classical figures (Ibn Khaldun, Al-Mawardi, and Al-Ghazali) as well as contemporary scholars, Yusuf al-Qaradawi, Tariq Ramadan, Azyumardi Azra, and Taqiyuddin An-Nabhani. Findings reveal a strong epistemic continuity wherein tawhid as a foundation and social justice as an objective are preserved across generations. Nevertheless, significant paradigmatic discontinuities are evident, manifesting in a shift from state-centric to society-centric da’wa, and from monological to dialogical inter-civilizational approaches. An-Nabhani’s contribution is particularly significant in reintroducing the normative-systemic dimension of civilization through the concept of nidzam al-Islam (the Islamic system), which envisions da’wa as a comprehensive structural project encompassing political, economic, and social orders grounded in divine sovereignty (al-hakimiyyah). This study proposes a new theoretical construction termed the “Integrative Civilizational Da’wa Model,” bridging classical intellectual heritage with the demands of twenty-first-century global Islam. The theoretical implications extend da’wa scholarship beyond the dichotomy of individual and collective da’wa, while practical implications offer policy guidance for contemporary da’wa institutions.