Organizing Civility: Bridging Practices in Islamic Welfare Organization

Faith-based organizations (FBOs) occupy an ambivalent position in civic life, often bridging divides while also reproducing boundaries. This study examines how Saylani Welfare Trust, a major Islamic welfare organization in Pakistan, organizes civility through the Sufi-inspired ethics of Adab. Drawing on practice theory, participant observation and interviews, we analyze how Saylani translates virtues of patience, humility and sincerity into routine practices of food provision and fundraising. These practices act as cultural anchors and boundary objects that foster reciprocity and inclusion across class and sectarian lines, while remaining shaped by gendered exclusions. In this way, Adab functions not as abstract doctrine but as a repertoire of ethical behaviors embedded in organizational routines. The case contributes to debates on civil repair by showing how universalizing norms are enacted through socio-material practices that manage, rather than erase, difference, thereby expanding our understanding of how civility is organized in diverse contexts.