Islam in Europe and the relations with the European national communities are very much defined and regulated by the policies of the contemporary states toward religion in general. This presentation will demonstrate how an understanding of Islam and Muslim identity can be distilled from questioning the perception of Islam of the European states and governments. By seeing Islam in the distinct logic of government and regulation, as suggested in the idea of governmentality by Michel Foucault, a specific method or strategy for understanding the relationship between Islam and the State can be developed.

The epistemological point origin is that the state both in itself and as an analytical category is empty and therefore to analyse the state is to analyse government and how well government has mastered the art of governing. This is what Foucault calls ‘governmentality', and he defines it both as ‘the conduct of conduct' which suggests centralised power and management, but also as ‘the institutions, procedures, analyses, reflections, calculations and tactics' in society understood as manifestations of power. These techniques and strategies are not unilaterally imposed by the state, but negotiated in the encounter with Islam and Muslim organisations. Thus the role and future of Islam in Europe is currently and continuously being reshaped by both Muslims and by the discourses in the European communities.

Ultimately, this presentation gives to interrelated examples to show the changing identity of Muslims and rephrased norms of Shari'a in a current British context. Firstly, multiculturalism - as the framework for understanding religious plurality and diversity within liberal societies - is shown to be an ongoing examination and evaluation of Islamic norms. Secondly, within this frame, specific institutions and measures of government are investigated to see how the techniques and strategies of the art of government are applied in the encounter with Islam