Disenchantment and the Environmental Crisis: Lynn White Jr., Max Weber, and Muhammad Iqbal

Abstract

“The Historical Roots of Our Ecological Crisis” by Lynn White Jr. poses specific challenges to Islamic metaphysics and theology that have yet to be adequately addressed by Muslim scholars. I argue that the transition from a panentheistic view of God to an increasingly supernaturalist one is indicative of a larger shift in worldview that White had failed to emphasize. Reading White’s essay in light of Weber and Iqbal, I argue that a worldview dominated by rational thought is consistent with supernatural theism. The challenges posed by White’s essay can be met through Iqbal’s postmodern reconstruction of Islamic theology in panentheistic terms.