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Islam and the Question of Reform (Islamic Studies Series)
by Benjamin MacQueen Kylie Baxter Rebecca BarlowReform, by definition, is not a complete break with tradition, but a determination by scholars, activists, politicians and critical thinkers to re-claim the tenets of their faith. Muslim communities have historically displayed a tendency to preserve the status quo. By contrast, the individuals and movements in Islam and the Question of Reform are determined; often at great personal risk; to push aside existing political and social elites and the historically accepted interpretations of Islam and its place in society. The perspectives examined in this volume avoid superficial or apologetic examinations of Islam's political and social role. Instead, they meticulously scrutinise the religion's public role, often questioning the validity of dogmas that have acted as tools of empowerment for existing elites for centuries. Islamic Studies Series - Volume 1
Islam and the Rule of Justice: Image and Reality in Muslim Law and Culture
by Lawrence RosenIn the West, we tend to think of Islamic law as an arcane and rigid legal system, bound by formulaic texts yet suffused by unfettered discretion. While judges may indeed refer to passages in the classical texts or have recourse to their own orientations, images of binding doctrine and unbounded choice do not reflect the full reality of the Islamic law in its everyday practice. Whether in the Arabic-speaking world, the Muslim portions of South and Southeast Asia, or the countries to which many Muslims have migrated, Islamic law works is readily misunderstood if the local cultures in which it is embedded are not taken into account. With Islam and the Rule of Justice, Lawrence Rosen analyzes a number of these misperceptions. Drawing on specific cases, he explores the application of Islamic law to the treatment of women (who win most of their cases), the relations between Muslims and Jews (which frequently involve close personal and financial ties), and the structure of widespread corruption (which played a key role in prompting the Arab Spring). From these case studie the role of informal mechanisms in the resolution of local disputes. The author also provides a close reading of the trial of Zacarias Moussaoui, who was charged in an American court with helping to carry out the 9/11 attacks, using insights into how Islamic justice works to explain the defendant’s actions during the trial. The book closes with an examination of how Islamic cultural concepts may come to bear on the constitutional structure and legal reforms many Muslim countries have been undertaking.
Islam and the Secular State: Negotiating The Future Of Shari`a
by Abdullahi Ahmed Na ʻAbd Allāh NaʻīmWhat should be the place of Shari'a - Islamic religious law - in predominantly Muslim societies of the world? In this book, a Muslim scholar and human rights activist envisions a positive and sustainable role for Shari'a, based on a profound rethinking of the relationship between religion and the secular state in all societies.
Islam and the State (Routledge Library Editions: Islam, State and Society)
by P. J. VatikiotisExamining the theoretical problems which arose when the modern European ideology of nationalism was adopted by Muslim societies organized into formally modern states, this book, first published in 1987, also deals with the practical difficulties arising from the doctrinal incompatibility between Islam and the non-Muslim concept of the territorial nation-state. It illustrates this conflict with a consideration of the record of several states in the Islamic world. It suggests that whereas the state, an organization of power, has been a most durable institution in Islamic history, the legitimacy of the nation-state has always been challenged in favour of the wide Islamic Nation, the "umma", which comprises all the faithful without reference to territorial boundaries. To this extent too, the more recent conception of Arab nationalism projects a far larger nation-state than the existing territorial states in the Arab world today. This title will be of interest to students of Middle Eastern studies.
Islam and the State in Ibn Taymiyya: Translation and Analysis (Culture and Civilization in the Middle East)
by Jaan S. Islam Adem Eryiğit"Proto-Salafist" 14th-century theologian Ibn Taymiyya is recognized as the intellectual forefather of contemporary Salafism and Jihadism. This volume offers a unique approach to the study of Ibn Taymiyya, by offering an English translation of his fundamental political treatise, The Office of Islamic Government, and shorter collections from The Collected Fatwas and The Prophetic Way, and Islamic Governance in Reconciling between the Ruler and the Ruled. The volume not only sheds light on these primary sources through translation and annotation, but also offers a theoretical analysis of Ibn Taymiyya’s thought and how his legal views can be reconciled with current trends in Islamic political theory. The analysis provides an overview of Ibn Taymiyya’s geopolitical context, and includes an original study of his normative political thought. In examining the contemporary implications of Ibn Taymiyya’s political theology, the authors explore his doctrine of the Islamic state in the context of Islamic decolonial theory. Islam and the State in Ibn Taymiyya will appeal to academics in the fields of political science and religious studies, particularly within the field of Islamic history.
Islam and the Third Universal Theory: The Religious Thought of Mu'ammar al-Qadhdhafi (Routledge Library Editions: Islam, State and Society)
by Mahmoud M. AyoubThis volume, first published in 1987, was the first to examine in depth the religious thought of Colonel Mu’ammar al-Qadhdhafi and its central place in his political, social and economic theories. The work is based on sources inaccessible except in the original Arabic. While drawn from Islamic concepts and sources, Qadhdhafi’s religious views were original. His religious openness and universal view of Islam and other monotheistic religions in particular will be surprising to those familiar with only the image associated with him in the Western mind. This title is a useful source for students of both politics and Islamic studies.
Islam and the Trajectory of Globalization: Rational Idealism and the Structure of World History (Routledge Open History)
by Louay M. SafiThe book examines the growing tension between social movements that embrace egalitarian and inclusivist views of national and global politics, most notably classical liberalism, and those that advance social hierarchy and national exclusivism, such as neoliberalism, neoconservatism, and national populism. In exploring issues relating to tensions and conflicts around globalization, the book identifies historical patterns of convergence and divergence rooted in the monotheistic traditions, beginning with the ancient Israelites that dominated the Near East during the Axial age, through Islamic civilization, and finally by considering the idealism-realism tensions in modern times. One thing remained constant throughout the various historical stages that preceded our current moment of global convergence: a recurring tension between transcendental idealism and various forms of realism. Transcendental idealism, which prioritize egalitarian and universal values, pushed periodically against the forces of realism that privilege established law and power structure. Equipped with the idealism-realism framework, the book examines the consequences of European realism that justified the imperialistic venture into Africa, the Middle East, and Latin America in the name of liberation and liberalization. The ill-conceived strategy has, ironically, engendered the very dysfunctional societies that produce the waves of immigrants in constant motion from the South to the North, simultaneously as it fostered the social hierarchy that transfer external tensions into identity politics within the countries of the North. The book focuses particularly on the role played historically by Islamic rationalism in translating the monotheistic egalitarian outlook into the institutions of religious pluralism, legislative and legal autonomy, and scientific enterprise at the foundation of modern society. It concludes by shedding light on the significance of the Muslim presence in Western cultures as humanity draws slowly but consistently towards what we may come to recognize as the Global Age. The Open Access version of this book, available at http://www.taylorfrancis.com/books/e/9781003203360, has been made available under a Creative Commons Attribution-Non Commercial-No Derivatives 4.0 license.
Islam and the West
by Ardavan Amir-AslaniThe Muslim world had long been dormant and was therefore almost ignored by the west. Since 9/11 there is a new awareness seeking multiple explanations of those events often in a distorted and simplified manner. Is there such a thing as the "clash of civilizations"? Or is the turmoil in the Muslim world rooted in a set of causes that are based on religious belief that remain deeply misunderstood?This overview of the state of the countries where Islam is the dominant faith offers new insights into the Arab Spring and the challenge of Iran. Taking on such historians as Samuel Huntington and Francis Fukuyama, Ardavan Amir-Aslani, an attorney and historian of Iranian descent living in Paris, argues persuasively for a different analysis and a fresh approach to what has become one of the major issues of the twenty-first century. How does religious faith intersect with geopolitics in the post Cold War period? America, Russia, Israel are all playing major roles amid the turmoil of the region but the great originality of this book is to show the complexity and sometimes baffling actions and reactions within Muslim societies and countries. Across Central Asia, the Middle East, and North Africa, from Pakistan to Morocco, the world of Islam remains in religious and geopolitical ferment. Amir-Aslani's authoritative voice suggests that western values may not apply neatly into the picture as many leaders would prefer. He offers a realistic and true understanding of this new reality.
Islam and the West Post 9/11
by Theodore Gabriel Jane Idleman SmithThis book offers a chance for greater understanding of the political and religious groups in Islam that have contributed to events pre and post September 11th, and clearer insights into Muslim/Christian relations today. Many books have focused on the events of September 11th but have been primarily journalistic. This book draws together both Muslim and non-Muslim scholars who have been studying Christian/Muslim relations for many years. They assess the impact of 9/11 on Islamophobia and antipathy towards Muslims. Providing insights into various multi-cultural communities whose relations with Islam have been affected, the authors look particularly at regions where there are large minority Muslim communities (US and UK) and large minority non-Muslim communities (Indonesia and Nigeria). Assessing a number of issues impacting upon the teaching of Islam, this book allows readers to assess the consequences of the event and develop a more critical understanding of its implications.
Islam and the West: A Conversation with Jacques Derrida
by Mustapha Cherif Teresa Lavender FaganIn the spring of 2003, Jacques Derrida sat down for a public debate in Paris with Algerian intellectual Mustapha Chérif. The eminent philosopher arrived at the event directly from the hospital where he had just been diagnosed with pancreatic cancer, the illness that would take his life just over a year later. That he still participated in the exchange testifies to the magnitude of the subject at hand: the increasingly distressed relationship between "Islam and the West", and the questions of freedom, justice, and democracy that surround it. As Chérif relates in this account of their dialogue, the topic of Islam held special resonance for Derrida -- perhaps it is to be expected that near the end of his life his thoughts would return to Algeria, the country where he was born in 1930. Indeed, these roots served as the impetus for their conversation, which first centers on the ways in which Derrida's Algerian-Jewish identity has shaped his thinking. From there, the two men move to broader questions of secularism and democracy; to politics and religion and how the former manipulates the latter; and to the parallels between xenophobia in the West and fanaticism among Islamists. Ultimately, the discussion is an attempt to tear down the notion that Islam and the West are two civilizations locked in a bitter struggle for supremacy and to reconsider them as the two shores of the Mediterranean -- two halves of the same geographical, religious, and cultural sphere.
Islam as Imagined in Eighteenth and Nineteenth Century English Literature (Routledge Interdisciplinary Perspectives on Literature)
by Clinton BennettSince medieval times, English literature has often demonized Muslims. The term ‘Islamophobia’ is recent, but the phenomenon is old. This survey of literature focusing on the modern period up to 1914 identifies negative ideas about Islam in novels and plays. Some works are iconic, some more obscure. However, the book highlights writers who challenged stereotypes and tended to see Muslims as equally capable of virtue and vice as Christians and others. The book deals with the role of the imagination in depicting others and how this serves authors’ agendas. The conclusion brings the book’s thesis into dialogue with the debate in the USA today between supporters of multiculturalism and its critics. Anyone interested in how stereotypes are formed, perpetuated and can be challenged will profit from this book. It is aimed at a non-specialist readership.
Islam as Imagined in Eighteenth and Nineteenth Century English Literature (Routledge Interdisciplinary Perspectives on Literature)
by Clinton BennettSince medieval times, English literature has often demonized Muslims. The term ‘Islamophobia’ is recent, but the phenomenon is old. This survey of literature focusing on the modern period up to 1914 identifies negative ideas about Islam in novels and plays. Some works are iconic, some more obscure. However, the book highlights writers who challenged stereotypes and tended to see Muslims as equally capable of virtue and vice as Christians and others. The book deals with the role of the imagination in depicting others and how this serves authors’ agendas. The conclusion brings the book’s thesis into dialogue with the debate in the USA today between supporters of multiculturalism and its critics. Anyone interested in how stereotypes are formed, perpetuated and can be challenged will profit from this book. It is aimed at a non-specialist readership.
Islam as Political Religion: The Future of an Imperial Faith
by Shabbir AkhtarThis comprehensive survey of contemporary Islam provides a philosophical and theological approach to the issues faced by Muslims and the question of global secularisation. Engaging with critics of modern Islam, Shabbir Akhtar sets out an agenda of what his religion is and could be as a political entity. Exploring the views and arguments of philosophical, religious and political thinkers, the author covers a raft of issues faced by Muslims in an increasingly secular society. Chapters are devoted to the Qur’an and Islamic literature; the history of Islam; Sharia law; political Islam; Islamic ethics; and political Islam’s evolving relationship with the West. Recommending changes which enable Muslims to move from their imperial past to a modest role in the power structures of today’s society, Akhtar offers a detailed assessment of the limitations and possibilities of Islam in the modern world. Providing a vision for an empowered yet rational Islam that distances itself from both Islamist factions and Western secularism, this book is an essential read for students and scholars of Islamic studies, religion, philosophy and politics.
Islam as Power: Shi‛i Revivalism in the Oeuvre of Muhammad Husayn Fadlallah (Routledge Studies in Middle Eastern Democratization and Government)
by Bianka SpeidlProviding an in-depth and extensive analysis of the concept of power as articulated by Muhammad Husayn Fadlallah (1935–2010), this case study analyses the systemic conceptualisation of power and his argumentation of sacralising Islamised power. The volume also offers a quick overview of how the concept was understood and articulated by other Shi‛ite jurists such as Ayatollah Khomeini. Examining Fadlallah’s oeuvre, in particular his seminal book Islam and the Logic of Power [ al-Islam wa-mantiq al-quwwa ], this book focuses on the narrative itself, which played a central role in the radical transformation that occurred in the Shi‛te concept of empowerment and its recognition as a necessity. The analysis of Fadlallah’s conceptualisation and argumentation illustrates the mechanism of sacralising righteous power as well as the means of gaining it. Fadlallah reinterpreted Shi‛sm as a project of empowerment to initiate and sustain an “impulse of power” amongst the Lebanese Shi‛tes in the most critical moment of modern Lebanese history. Dealing with the concept of power in Shi‛te political thought from a theoretical perspective, the study has an innovative approach that offers an insight into how the transformative narrative is constructed and what makes it convincing. Shedding light on the content and logical structure of Fadlallah’s argumentation, this volume will be of interest to scholars and students researching contemporary politics, Islam, and the Middle East.
Islam at the Cross Roads: A Brief Survey of the Present Position and Problems of the World of Islam
by De Lacy O'LearyThis title, first published in 1923, examines the historical development of the Islamic faith from its origins through to its position in the early twentieth century. It also examines the historical reactions of Islam to the West, including the Babist Movement in the nineteenth century. This title will be of interest to students of history and M
Islam for Children
by Ahmad Von DenfferThis popular classic is a must for all Muslim children, parents, and teachers. It covers the lives of the Prophets, faith, prayer, fasting, charity, pilgrimage, morals, and manners. Learning by doing is emphasized, with plenty of fun things to do for kids 6-12 years: picture puzzles, crossword puzzles, games, coloring, and crafts, making learning about Islam enjoyable and educational. Originally published in Germany, it has already been used successfully in both Muslim homes and weekend classes. The English version has been revised and carries new illustrations. Ahmad Von Denffer was born in Germany in 1949. He studied Islamics and Social Anthropology at the Universty of Mainz, where he also attended additional courses in the Department of Missiology. His special interests include Christian-Muslim relations. He has made a number of contributions to scholarly journals and has several publications to his credit. He joined the Islamic Foundation as Research Fellow in 1978 and is presently working with the Islamic Centre, Munich.
Islam from Scratch: A Guide for New Muslims
by Brandon RicheyIslam in practice can often seem opaque to the outside viewer. New Muslims and non-Muslims alike look on as believers offer salah, attend Friday prayer, wear the hijab, and fast during Ramadan, not knowing the particulars of why or how these acts of worship are performed. If you are a new Muslim, or just a curious observer wanting to know more about Islam, then this book is for you.Islam From Scratch attempts to bridge this wide gap in knowledge, helping readers understand the Islamic faith step by step, chapter by chapter. For new Muslims, this book hopes to provide you with the most critical information when taking your first steps into the faith in a way that won't overwhelm you. By the end, hopefully you will not only understand your newfound belief and the intricacies that thread it, but also appreciate the rituals and history that come with it.
Islam für Dummies (Für Dummies)
by Malcolm ClarkÜber 1,8 Milliarden Muslime leben auf allen Kontinenten. Doch was wissen wir über ihren Glauben? Häufig kaum mehr, als dass der Koran ihre heilige Schrift ist, Gläubige fünf Mal am Tag beten und sie zum Ramadan fasten. Dieses Buch ändert das. Malcolm Clark erzählt vom Leben des Propheten Mohammed, berichtet über die Entwicklung seiner Lehre über die Jahrhunderte und erklärt die Bedeutung des Koran. Er zeigt auf, welche Beiträge Muslime in den Naturwissenschaften, der Kunst und der Architektur geleistet haben. So hilft er, Vorurteile abzubauen und muslimische Mitbürger besser zu verstehen.
Islam für Dummies: Entdecken Sie Den Islam. Die Riten Und Die Geschichte (Für Dummies)
by Malcolm ClarkÜber 1,3 Milliarden Muslime leben auf allen Kontinenten. Doch was wissen wir über ihren Glauben? Kaum mehr, als dass der Koran ihre heilige Schrift ist, Gläubige fünf Mal am Tag zu Allah beten und sie zum Ramadan fasten. Aber wer kann schon den Unterschied zwischen Schiiten und Sunniten erklären und wer weiß, was es mit den mystischen Sufi auf sich hat? Malcolm Clark erzählt vom Leben des Propheten Mohammed, berichtet über die Ausbreitung seiner Lehre und deren Entwicklung über die Jahrhunderte und erklärt die Bedeutung des Koran. Er beschreibt das Leben der Muslime und zeigt auf, welche Beiträge sie in den Naturwissenschaften, der Kunst und der Architektur geleistet haben.Er hilft so, Vorurteile zu vermeiden und muslimische Mitbürger besser zu verstehen.
Islam in Africa (Africa: Progress and Problems #13)
by Hal MarcovitzIslam is considered the worlds fastest-growing religion, and today more than 420 million Africans follow the Islamic faith. Since Islam was introduced to the continent during the seventh century a.d., it has had a profound political and cultural influence on Africa. This book traces the historical spread of Islam throughout Africa. It also examines current issues and controversies surrounding the Muslim faith in Africa, including fundamentalist interpretations of Islam, efforts to impose Islamic law in countries with mixed Muslim and non-Muslim populations, and religious-based violence.
Islam in America (Columbia Contemporary American Religion Series)
by Jane SmithThis richly textured, critically acclaimed portrait of American Muslims introduces the basic tenets of the Muslim faith, surveys the history of Islam in North America, and profiles the lifestyles, religious practices, and worldviews of Muslims in the United States. The volume focuses specifically on the difficulty of living faithfully and adhering to tradition while adapting to an American way of life and addresses the role of women in Muslim culture, the raising and education of children, appropriate dress and behavior, and incidences of prejudice and unfair treatment. The second edition of Islam in America features a new chapter on post-9/11 realities, which covers infringements on civil rights and profiling, participation in politics, transformations in Islamic law, pluralism and identity issues, foreign influences, anti-Islamic sentiment, intra-Islamic tensions, and the quest for a moderate Islam. Source notes, glossary, and additional resources also reflect recent developments and scholarship.
Islam in Asia: Facts and Figures
by Dorothy KavanaughMany Westerners associate Islam primarily with the Middle East. But in fact, four countries have larger Muslim populations than Egypt, the largest Arab state. Those four countries-Indonesia, Pakistan, India, and Bangladesh-all like within Asia. This volume presents a wealth of statistical and background information on more than 20 Asian nations with significant Muslim populations. The book also provides a valuable overview of the Islamic faith and chronicles the history of Islam's spread into Asia.
Islam in Europe
by Spyros A. Sofos Roza TsagarousianouDrawing upon extensive fieldwork and suggesting novel ways of approaching the phenomenon of European Islam and the continent's Muslim communities, Islam in Europe examines how European Muslims construct notions or identity, agency and belonging, how they negotiate and redefine the notions of religion, tradition, authority and cultural authenticity.
Islam in German East Africa, 1885–1918: A Genealogy of Colonial Religion (Cambridge Imperial and Post-Colonial Studies)
by Jörg HausteinIn this rich and multi-layered deconstruction of German colonial engagement with Islam, Jörg Haustein shows how imperial agents in Germany’s largest colony wielded the knowledge category of Islam in a broad set of debates, ranging from race, language, and education to slavery, law, conflict, and war. These representations of ‘Mohammedanism’, often invoked for particular political ends, amounted to a serious misreading of Muslims in East Africa, with significant long-term effects. As the first in-depth account of the politics of Islam in German East Africa, the book makes an essential contribution to the history of religion in Tanzania before British rule. It also offers a template for re-reading the colonial archive in a manner that recovers Muslim agency beyond a European paradigm of religion.
Islam in Global Modernity: Sociological Theory and the Diversity of Islamic Modernities
by Dietrich JungThis book combines sociological theorising with studies on the Middle East and Islam. The diversity of modernities that can be observed in our world is linked to the claim of living in a global modernity, in a world society. The book underpins this claim with numerous excursions into Islamic history. It criticises the view that modernisation can be equated with westernisation and considers different projects of specifically Islamic modernities as integral parts of world society. From this perspective, the study contributes to the "provincialisation" of European history in contemporary social scientific thought. Contrary to the theories of postcolonialism associated with the call for the provincialisation of Europe, however, this book adheres to essential traditions of classical sociology. It thus aims to make a contribution to the social theoretical discussion on modernity, which is empirically underpinned with the help of data from the history of the Middle East and Islam.