Political Quietism in Islam

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Publisher : Bloomsbury Publishing
ISBN 13 : 183860765X
Total Pages : 280 pages
Book Rating : 4.8/5 (386 download)

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Book Synopsis Political Quietism in Islam by : Saud al-Sarhan

Download or read book Political Quietism in Islam written by Saud al-Sarhan and published by Bloomsbury Publishing. This book was released on 2019-12-26 with total page 280 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In recent years, Islam – whether via the derivatives of 'Political Islam' or 'Islamism' – has come to be seen as an 'activist' force in social and political spheres worldwide. What such representations have neglected is the strong countervailing tradition of political quietism. Political quietism in Islam holds that it is not for Muslims to question or oppose their leaders. Rather, the faithful should concentrate on their piety, prayer, religious rituals and personal quest for virtue. This book is the first to analyze the history and meaning of political quietism in Islamic societies. It takes an innovative cross-sectarian approach, investigating the phenomenon and practice across both Sunni and Shi'i communities. Contributors deconstruct and introduce the various forms of political quietisms from the time of the prophetic revelations through to the contemporary era. Chapters cover issues ranging from the politics of public piety among the women preachers in Saudi Arabia, through to the legal discourses in the Caucasus, the different Shi'i communities in Iran, Lebanon, Iraq and Pakistan, and the Gülen movement in Azerbaijan. The authors describe a wide range of political quietisms and assess the continuing significance of the tradition, both to the study of Islam and to the modern world today.

Political Quietism in Islam

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Publisher :
ISBN 13 : 9781838607678
Total Pages : 280 pages
Book Rating : 4.6/5 (76 download)

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Book Synopsis Political Quietism in Islam by : Saud Al-Sarhan

Download or read book Political Quietism in Islam written by Saud Al-Sarhan and published by . This book was released on 2019 with total page 280 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "In recent years, Islam - whether via the derivatives of 'Political Islam' or 'Islamism' - has come to be seen as an 'activist' force in social and political spheres worldwide. What such representations have neglected is the strong countervailing tradition of political quietism. Political quietism in Islam holds that it is not for Muslims to question or oppose their leaders. Rather, the faithful should concentrate on their piety, prayer, religious rituals and personal quest for virtue. This book is the first to analyze the history and meaning of political quietism in Islamic societies. It takes an innovative cross-sectarian approach, investigating the phenomenon and practice across both Sunni and Shi'i communities. Contributors deconstruct and introduce the various forms of political quietisms from the time of the prophetic revelations through to the contemporary era. Chapters cover issues ranging from the politics of public piety among the women preachers in Saudi Arabia, through to the legal discourses in the Caucasus, the different Shi'i communities in Iran, Lebanon, Iraq and Pakistan, and the Gulen movement in Azerbaijan. The authors describe a wide range of political quietisms and assess the continuing significance of the tradition, both to the study of Islam and to the modern world today."--

Shia Islam and Politics

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Publisher : Rowman & Littlefield
ISBN 13 : 1793621365
Total Pages : 252 pages
Book Rating : 4.7/5 (936 download)

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Book Synopsis Shia Islam and Politics by : Jon Armajani

Download or read book Shia Islam and Politics written by Jon Armajani and published by Rowman & Littlefield. This book was released on 2020-05-20 with total page 252 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book argues that ever since Iran’s Islamic Revolution in 1979, which established a Shia Islamic government in Iran, that country’s religious and political leaders have used Shia Islam as a crucial way of expanding Iran’s objectives in the Middle East and beyond. Since 1979, Iran’s religious and political leaders have been concerned about Iran’s security in the face of the hostility and expansionism of the United States and other western countries, and the threats from powerful neighboring Sunni leaders and countries. While Iran’s government has attempted to align itself with Shia Muslims in various countries, such as Iraq and Lebanon, against American and Sunni expansionism, the Iranian government has attempted to religiously nourish and politically mobilize those Shias as a matter of principle, not only because of the Iranian government’s desires to protect Iran from external threats. The book analyzes Shia Islam and politics in Iran, Iraq, and Lebanon which have among the largest proportional Shia populations in the Middle East and are vibrant centers of Shia intellectual life. The book's clear and jargon-free approach make it especially accessible for students and general readers who would like an introduction to the book's topics.

Religion and State

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Publisher : Columbia University Press
ISBN 13 : 0231529376
Total Pages : 265 pages
Book Rating : 4.2/5 (315 download)

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Book Synopsis Religion and State by : L. Carl. Brown

Download or read book Religion and State written by L. Carl. Brown and published by Columbia University Press. This book was released on 2001-08-20 with total page 265 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: If Westerners know a single Islamic term, it is likely to be jihad, the Arabic word for "holy war." The image of Islam as an inherently aggressive and xenophobic religion has long prevailed in the West and can at times appear to be substantiated by current events. L. Carl Brown challenges this conventional wisdom with a fascinating historical overview of the relationship between religious and political life in the Muslim world ranging from Islam's early centuries to the present day. Religion and State examines the commonplace notion—held by both radical Muslim ideologues and various Western observers alike—that in Islam there is no separation between religion and politics. By placing this assertion in a broad historical context, the book reveals both the continuities between premodern and modern Islamic political thought as well as the distinctive dimensions of modern Muslim experiences. Brown shows that both the modern-day fundamentalists and their critics have it wrong when they posit an eternally militant, unchanging Islam outside of history. "They are conflating theology and history. They are confusing the oughtand the is," he writes. As the historical record shows, mainstream Muslim political thought in premodern times tended toward political quietism. Brown maintains that we can better understand present-day politics among Muslims by accepting the reality of their historical diversity while at the same time seeking to identify what may be distinctive in Muslim thought and action. In order to illuminate the distinguishing characteristics of Islam in relation to politics, Brown compares this religion with its two Semitic sisters, Judaism and Christianity, drawing striking comparisons between Islam today and Christianity during the Reformation. With a wealth of evidence, he recreates a tradition of Islamic diversity every bit as rich as that of Judaism and Christianity.

Princeton Readings in Islamist Thought

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Publisher : Princeton University Press
ISBN 13 : 1400833809
Total Pages : 536 pages
Book Rating : 4.4/5 (8 download)

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Book Synopsis Princeton Readings in Islamist Thought by : Roxanne L. Euben

Download or read book Princeton Readings in Islamist Thought written by Roxanne L. Euben and published by Princeton University Press. This book was released on 2021-06-08 with total page 536 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The most authoritative anthology of Islamist texts This anthology of key primary texts provides an unmatched introduction to Islamist political thought from the early twentieth century to the present, and serves as an invaluable guide through the storm of polemic, fear, and confusion that swirls around Islamism today. Roxanne Euben and Muhammad Qasim Zaman gather a broad selection of texts from influential Islamist thinkers and place these figures and their writings in their multifaceted political and historical contexts. The selections presented here in English translation include writings of Ayatollah Khomeini, Usama bin Laden, Muslim Brotherhood founder Hasan al-Banna, and Moroccan Islamist leader Nadia Yassine, as well as the Hamas charter, an interview with a Taliban commander, and the final testament of 9/11 hijacker Muhammad Ata. Illuminating the content and political appeal of Islamist thought, this anthology brings into sharp relief the commonalities in Islamist arguments about gender, democracy, and violence, but it also reveals significant political and theological disagreements among thinkers too often grouped together and dismissed as extremists or terrorists. No other anthology better illustrates the diversity of Islamist thought, the complexity of its intellectual and political contexts, or the variety of ways in which it relates to other intellectual and religious trends in the contemporary Muslim world.

Islam Instrumentalized

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Publisher : Cambridge University Press
ISBN 13 : 1107155444
Total Pages : 547 pages
Book Rating : 4.1/5 (71 download)

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Book Synopsis Islam Instrumentalized by : Jean-Philippe Platteau

Download or read book Islam Instrumentalized written by Jean-Philippe Platteau and published by Cambridge University Press. This book was released on 2017-06-06 with total page 547 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book challenges the widespread view that Islam is a reactionary religion that defends tradition against modernity and individual freedom. Jean-Philippe Platteau shows how Islam is vulnerable to political manipulation and how the threat of religious extremism is especially high because Islam is not organized as a centralized church.

A Quietist Jihadi

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Publisher : Cambridge University Press
ISBN 13 : 1139510894
Total Pages : 315 pages
Book Rating : 4.1/5 (395 download)

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Book Synopsis A Quietist Jihadi by : Joas Wagemakers

Download or read book A Quietist Jihadi written by Joas Wagemakers and published by Cambridge University Press. This book was released on 2012-06-11 with total page 315 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Since 9/11, the Jordanian Abu Muhammad al-Maqdisi (b. West Bank, 1959) has emerged as one of the most important radical Muslim thinkers alive today. While al-Maqdisi may not be a household name in the West, his influence amongst like-minded Muslims stretches across the world from Jordan - where he lives today - to Southeast Asia. His writings and teachings on Salafi Islam have inspired terrorists from Europe to the Middle East, including Abu Mus'ab al-Zarqawi, the former leader of al-Qa'ida in Iraq, and Ayman al-Zawahiri, Osama Bin Laden's successor as the head of al-Qa'ida Central. This groundbreaking book, which is the first comprehensive assessment of al-Maqdisi, his life, ideology, and influence, is based on his extensive writings and those of other jihadis, as well as on interviews that the author conducted with (former) jihadis, including al-Maqdisi himself. It is a serious and intense work of scholarship that uses this considerable archive to explain and interpret al-Maqdisi's particular brand of Salafism. More broadly, the book offers an alternative, insider perspective on the rise of radical Islam, with a particular focus on Salafi opposition movements in Saudi Arabia and Jordan.

Shi'ism and Social Protest

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Publisher : Yale University Press
ISBN 13 : 9780300035537
Total Pages : 340 pages
Book Rating : 4.0/5 (355 download)

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Book Synopsis Shi'ism and Social Protest by : Juan Ricardo Cole

Download or read book Shi'ism and Social Protest written by Juan Ricardo Cole and published by Yale University Press. This book was released on 1986-01-01 with total page 340 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This timely and important book presents the first overview of Shi'i political activism in the countries where it has been most significant-from Iran and Lebanon to Saudi Arabia and Egypt. The contributors present up-to-date information on the factors involved in Shi'ism's recent movement away from quietism and toward an active involvement in politics. They also discuss how Shi'i political activism will affect the struggle in and for Lebanon; the Iran-Iraq war; Soviet attitudes toward Afghanistan and Iran; and U.S. policies toward the Middle East.

Compulsion in Religion

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Publisher : Oxford University Press
ISBN 13 : 0190843314
Total Pages : 305 pages
Book Rating : 4.1/5 (98 download)

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Book Synopsis Compulsion in Religion by : Samuel Helfont

Download or read book Compulsion in Religion written by Samuel Helfont and published by Oxford University Press. This book was released on 2018 with total page 305 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book draws on newly available archives from the Iraqi state and Ba'th Party to present a revisionist history of Saddam Hussein's religious policies. The point of doing this, other than to correct the current understanding of Saddam's political use of religion through his presidency, is to argue that the policies promoted then directly contributed to the rise of religious insurgencies in post-2003 Iraq as well as the current and probably future crises in the country. In looking at Saddam's policies in the 1990s, many have interpreted his support for state religion as evidence of a dramatic shift away from Arab nationalism, toward political Islam. But this book shows that the 'Faith Campaign' he launched during this time was the culmination of a plan to use religion for political ends, begun upon his assumption of the Iraqi presidency in 1979. At this time, Saddam began constructing the institutional capacity to control and monitor Iraqi religious institutions. The resulting authoritarian structures allowed him to employ Islamic symbols and rhetoric in public policy, but in a controlled manner. By the 1990s, these policies became fully realized. Following the American-led invasion of Iraq in 2003, religion remained prominent in Iraqi public life, but the system that Saddam had put in place to contain it was destroyed. Sunni and Shi'i extremists who had been suppressed and silenced were now free. They thrived in an atmosphere where religion had been actively promoted, and formed militant organizations which have torn the country apart since.

Political Islam in Algeria

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Publisher : CEPS
ISBN 13 : 9290797215
Total Pages : 14 pages
Book Rating : 4.2/5 (97 download)

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Book Synopsis Political Islam in Algeria by : Amel Boubekeur

Download or read book Political Islam in Algeria written by Amel Boubekeur and published by CEPS. This book was released on 2007 with total page 14 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Islam: A Very Short Introduction

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Publisher : OUP Oxford
ISBN 13 : 0199642877
Total Pages : 201 pages
Book Rating : 4.1/5 (996 download)

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Book Synopsis Islam: A Very Short Introduction by : Malise Ruthven

Download or read book Islam: A Very Short Introduction written by Malise Ruthven and published by OUP Oxford. This book was released on 2012-01-26 with total page 201 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Islam features widely in the news, often in its most militant forms, but few people in the non-Muslim world really understand its nature. Malise Ruthven's Very Short Introduction, offers essential insights into the big issues, provides fresh perspectives on contemporary questions, and guides us through the complex debates.

Salafism in Jordan

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Publisher : Cambridge University Press
ISBN 13 : 1316776816
Total Pages : 313 pages
Book Rating : 4.3/5 (167 download)

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Book Synopsis Salafism in Jordan by : Joas Wagemakers

Download or read book Salafism in Jordan written by Joas Wagemakers and published by Cambridge University Press. This book was released on 2016-09-15 with total page 313 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Since the events of 9/11, Salafism in the Middle East has often been perceived as fixed, rigid and even violent, but this assumption overlooks the quietist ideology that characterises many Salafi movements. Through an exploration of Salafism in Jordan, Joas Wagemakers presents the diversity among quietist Salafis on a range of ideological and political issues, particularly their relationship with the state. He expounds a detailed analysis of Salafism as a whole, whilst also showing how and why quietist Salafism in Jordan - through ideological tendencies, foreign developments, internal conflicts, regime involvement, theological challenges and regional turmoil - transformed from an independent movement into a politically domesticated one. Essential for graduate students and academic researchers interested in Middle Eastern politics and Salafism, this major contribution to the study of Salafism debunks stereotypes and offers insight into the development of a trend that still remains a mystery to many.

Sunnis and Shi'a

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Publisher : Princeton University Press
ISBN 13 : 0691234507
Total Pages : 236 pages
Book Rating : 4.6/5 (912 download)

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Book Synopsis Sunnis and Shi'a by : Laurence Louër

Download or read book Sunnis and Shi'a written by Laurence Louër and published by Princeton University Press. This book was released on 2022-05-03 with total page 236 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A compelling history of the ancient schism that continues to divide the Islamic world When Muhammad died in 632 without a male heir, Sunnis contended that the choice of a successor should fall to his closest companions, but Shi'a believed that God had inspired the Prophet to appoint his cousin and son-in-law, Ali, as leader. So began a schism that is nearly as old as Islam itself. Laurence Louër tells the story of this ancient rivalry, taking readers from the last days of Muhammad to the political and doctrinal clashes of Sunnis and Shi'a today. In a sweeping historical narrative spanning the Islamic world, Louër shows how the Sunni-Shi'a divide was never just a dispute over succession—at issue are questions about the very nature of Islamic political authority. She challenges the widespread perception of Sunnis and Shi'a as bitter enemies who are perpetually at war with each other, demonstrating how they have coexisted peacefully at various periods throughout the history of Islam. Louër traces how sectarian tensions have been inflamed or calmed depending on the political contingencies of the moment, whether to consolidate the rule of elites, assert clerical control over the state, or defy the powers that be. Timely and provocative, Sunnis and Shi'a provides needed perspective on the historical roots of today's conflicts and reveals how both branches of Islam have influenced and emulated each other in unexpected ways. This compelling and accessible book also examines the diverse regional contexts of the Sunni-Shi'a divide, examining how it has shaped societies and politics in countries such as Iraq, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Iran, Yemen, and Lebanon.

The Islamic Shield

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Publisher : Universal-Publishers
ISBN 13 : 1599424118
Total Pages : 250 pages
Book Rating : 4.5/5 (994 download)

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Book Synopsis The Islamic Shield by : Elie Elhadj

Download or read book The Islamic Shield written by Elie Elhadj and published by Universal-Publishers. This book was released on 2006 with total page 250 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: While politicians and media pundits debate the success of U.S. attempts to instill a democratic government in Iraq, author and social scientist Elie Elhadj, Ph.D., explains why thoughts of a democratic Arab-Muslim nation are nothing but fantasy."Arab people are characterized by obedience to a hierarchical authority, Syrian-born Elhadj states. Western-style democracy can never fill this cultural mandate."Elhadj explains how Muslim Arab political and religious leaders raise the tenets of Islam in a shield against democracy in order to protect their power. Constant preaching by Islam's religious leaders, instructing Muslims to blindly obey their leaders, has created an attitude of political quietism in regard to the tyranny of Arab rulers and ambivalence towards democracy, Elhadj says in his book.Using Syria and Saudi Arabia as the archetypal Arab governments, The Islamic Shield outlines the numerous reasons why genuine democratic reforms are not likely to emerge in Arab countries for a very long time. Instead, Elhadj proposes that a benevolent dictatorship may be a more hopeful and realistic expectation, especially since democratic elections are likely to result in the election of a theocratic dictator rather than a secular democratic one. A benevolent dictatorship would fulfill the goal of reducing Arab rulers' cruelty, which fans the flame of Islamic extremism and Jihadism, he states.Jihadism and its causes are examined in detail by Elhadj. He makes the case that Jihadist terrorism is fueled by the oppression and frustration of the Arab masses that results not only from tyrannical Arab rule, but also from the perception of biased American policies in the Middle East. Combined with the growing influence from extremist factions within Islam, these oppressions form a vicious cycle of violent confrontation, Elhadj says."Islamist extremism alone does not cause terrorism," Elhadj states: "What Islamist extremism does is to turn political frustrations into religious crusades."The United States may even have created a set-back for themselves in the effort to democratize the Middle East, Elhadj says. As the United States deposed the Arab World's most secular regime in Iraq, a theocratic leadership aligned to Tehran emerged with potentially far-reaching regional political and religious consequences.

Misquoting Muhammad

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Publisher : Simon and Schuster
ISBN 13 : 1780744218
Total Pages : 384 pages
Book Rating : 4.7/5 (87 download)

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Book Synopsis Misquoting Muhammad by : Jonathan A.C. Brown

Download or read book Misquoting Muhammad written by Jonathan A.C. Brown and published by Simon and Schuster. This book was released on 2014-08-07 with total page 384 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: AN INDEPENDENT BEST BOOKS ON RELIGION 2014 PICK Few things provoke controversy in the modern world like the religion brought by Prophet Muhammad. Modern media are replete with alarm over jihad, underage marriage and the threat of amputation or stoning under Shariah law. Sometimes rumor, sometimes based on fact and often misunderstood, the tenets of Islamic law and dogma were not set in the religion’s founding moments. They were developed, like in other world religions, over centuries by the clerical class of Muslim scholars. Misquoting Muhammad takes the reader back in time through Islamic civilization and traces how and why such controversies developed, offering an inside view into how key and controversial aspects of Islam took shape. From the protests of the Arab Spring to Istanbul at the fall of the Ottoman Empire, and from the ochre red walls of Delhi’s great mosques to the trade routes of the Indian Ocean world, Misquoting Muhammad lays out how Muslim intellectuals have sought to balance reason and revelation, weigh science and religion, and negotiate the eternal truths of scripture amid shifting values.

Mugabe

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Publisher : Bloomsbury Publishing
ISBN 13 : 1838608877
Total Pages : 288 pages
Book Rating : 4.8/5 (386 download)

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Book Synopsis Mugabe by : Stephen Chan

Download or read book Mugabe written by Stephen Chan and published by Bloomsbury Publishing. This book was released on 2019-04-18 with total page 288 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: On 21st November 2017 Robert Mugabe resigned as President of Zimbabwe after 37 years in power. A week earlier the military had seized control of the country and forced him to step down as leader of the ruling Zanu-PF party. In this revised and updated edition of his classic biography, Stephen Chan seeks to explain and interpret Mugabe in his role as a key player in the politics of Southern Africa. In this masterly portrait of one of Africa's longest-serving leaders, Mugabe's character unfolds with the ebb and flow of triumph and crisis. Mugabe's story is Zimbabwe's - from the post-independence hopes of idealism and reconciliation to electoral victory, the successful intervention in the international politics of Southern Africa and the resistance to South Africa's policy of apartheid. But a darker picture emerged early with the savage crushing of the Matabeleland rising, the elimination of political opponents, growing corruption and disastrous intervention in the Congo war, all worsened by drought and the HIV/AIDS crisis. Stephen Chan's highly revealing biography, based on close personal knowledge of Zimbabwe, depicts the emergence and eventual downfall of a ruthless and single-minded despot amassing and tightly clinging to political power. We follow the triumphant nationalist leader who reconciled all in the new multiracial Zimbabwe, degenerate into a petty tyrant consumed by hubris and self-righteousness and ultimately face an ignominious endgame at the hands of his own army.

The Many Faces of Political Islam

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Publisher : University of Michigan Press
ISBN 13 : 0472025384
Total Pages : 228 pages
Book Rating : 4.4/5 (72 download)

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Book Synopsis The Many Faces of Political Islam by : Mohammed Ayoob

Download or read book The Many Faces of Political Islam written by Mohammed Ayoob and published by University of Michigan Press. This book was released on 2009-12-21 with total page 228 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Analysts and pundits from across the American political spectrum describe Islamic fundamentalism as one of the greatest threats to modern, Western-style democracy. Yet very few non-Muslims would be able to venture an accurate definition of political Islam. Mohammed Ayoob's The Many Faces of Political Islam thoroughly describes the myriad manifestations of this rising ideology and analyzes its impact on global relations. "In this beautifully crafted and utterly compelling book, Mohammed Ayoob accomplishes admirably the difficult task of offering a readily accessible yet nuanced and comprehensive analysis of an issue of enormous political importance. Both students and specialists will learn a great deal from this absolutely first-rate book." ---Peter J. Katzenstein, Walter S. Carpenter, Jr. Professor of International Studies and Stephen H. Weiss Presidential Teaching Fellow, Cornell University "Dr. Ayoob addresses the nuances and complexities of political Islam---be it mainstream, radical, or militant---and offers a road map of the pivotal players and issues that define the movement. There is no one as qualified as Mohammed Ayoob to write a synthesis of various manifestations of political Islam. His complex narrative highlights the changes and shifts that have taken place within the Islamist universe and their implications for internal Muslim politics and relations between the world of Islam and the Christian world." ---Fawaz A. Gerges, Carnegie Scholar, and holds the Christian A. Johnson Chair in International Affairs and Middle Eastern Studies, Sarah Lawrence College "Let's hope that many readers---not only academics but policymakers as well---will use this invaluable book." ---François Burgat, Director, French National Centre for Scientific Research (CNRS) and the Institute for Research and Study on the Arab and Muslim World (IREMAM), Aix-en-Provence, France "This is a wonderful, concise book by an accomplished and sophisticated political scientist who nonetheless manages to convey his interpretation of complex issues and movements to even those who have little background on the subject. It is impressive in its clarity, providing a badly needed text on political Islam that's accessible to college students and the general public alike." ---Shibley Telhami, Anwar Sadat Professor for Peace and Development, University of Maryland, and Senior Fellow, Brookings Institution Mohammed Ayoob is University Distinguished Professor of International Relations with a joint appointment in James Madison College and the Department of Political Science at Michigan State University. He is also Coordinator of the Muslim Studies Program at Michigan State University.