Nasr Hamid Abu Zayd represents modernist Islamic thought, a growing trend among Muslim intellectuals. Modernists’ most distinctive feature is a call from within the Islamic tradition to separate religion from politics. In practice, this means the independence and autonomy of political and legal institutions from religious influence and interference. The demand to separate religion from the public sphere is coupled in modernist thought with an effort to subject religious knowledge and institutions to modern academic standards. This critical inquiry, they suggest, should not only include religious thought and history, but also the Qur’an itself, believing Islam to be conducive to modern values such as academic inquiry and secularism. Modernists see in their perceived understanding of modernity the means of salvation from political tyranny and religious backwardness. Abu Zayd advocated for this reform throughout his work. Understanding his thought on this issue not only highlights the contribution of a prominent intellectual in contemporary Arab thought but it also sheds light on his wider intellectual family. My presentation will start by defining in depth the terms “modernist” and “secularism.” This is significant because Arab intellectuals appropriated these terms and detached them from their Western roots. I will then proceed to list and analyze the arguments according to which Abu Zayd determined that Islam is not only compatible with secularism but it is rather a secular religion by its very nature. His reasons include his assertion that secularism is compatible with the diversity of interpretations that has been the historical reality of Islam. It also ensures the right to choose faith or disbelieve freely as mandated by Islam and is evident in the lack of a penalty for apostasy in the Qur’an. Furthermore, according to Abu Zayd, secularism enables the freedom to conduct research on religious matters without persecution from the state or those claiming monopoly on religious thought. The paper will examine the strengths and weaknesses of Abu Zayd’s arguments as well as the reaction among traditional and Islamist intellectuals.