The Formative Period of Twelver Shīʻism

Download The Formative Period of Twelver Shīʻism PDF Online Free

Author :
Publisher : Psychology Press
ISBN 13 : 9780700712779
Total Pages : 264 pages
Book Rating : 4.7/5 (127 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!


Book Synopsis The Formative Period of Twelver Shīʻism by : Andrew J. Newman

Download or read book The Formative Period of Twelver Shīʻism written by Andrew J. Newman and published by Psychology Press. This book was released on 2000 with total page 264 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Machine generated contents note: CHAPTER ONE: The View from Baghdad: The ShT'a in the Early -- Third/Ninth Century -- The ShT'i/Mu'tazili and Court Alliance During the Caliphate of -- al-Ma'mun -- Shl'ism and 'Popular' Rebellion in the Umayyad and Early -- Abbasid Periods -- The Anarchy of the Second Civil War and Further ShT'i Uprisings -- CHAPTER TWO: The View from Baghdad: The ShT'a at the Turn -- of the Third/Ninth Century -- The Shi'i Resurgence -- The Shi'i Vizierates and the Rise of the Banu Nawbakht -- The Conditionality of ImamT Rationalism: The Achievements of -- the BanO Nawbakht -- Summary and Conclusion -- CHAPTER THREE: Pockets of Believers: The View from the ShT'T -- City-State of Qum -- Sunnism in Iran: Traditionism and Egalitarianism -- The Sht'a in Third/Ninth Century Iran -- The Twelver Sht'a in Iran: Between Centres and Peripheries -- A Shi'i Haven: Qum and the Ash'art Tribe -- Tribe and City -- Ash'ari Qum and Abbasid Baghdad -- CHAPTER FOUR: Al-Barqi and the Beginnings of the QummT/ -- Ash'arT Association with the Traditions -- Ahmad b. Muhammad al-Barqi: the Mawla Traditionist -- Al-Barqi and al-Mahsin -- Summary and Conclusion -- CHAPTER FIVE: Al-Saffar's Basa'ir al-Darajat: Theological -- Discourse As Encouragement -- Basa'ir as Qummi Discourse -- The Importance of 'Ilm and Its Possessors -- The Miraculous Nature, Substance and Transmission of the Imams' 'Ilm -- The Unique Nature of the Imams and their Sht'a -- The Unique Abilities of the Imams -- Summary and Conclusions -- CHAPTER SIX: Al-KulaynT's al-Kaff: The Qummi Response to -- Baghdadi Rationalism -- Al-KulaynT on al-Kafti2 Baghdad's Rationalist Discourse on the Edge -- The Centrality of al-'Aql and al-'Ilm: the Repudiation of Rationalism -- The Grace of al-'Ilm -- Summary and Conclusion -- CHAPTER SEVEN: Al-Saffar and al-KulaynT on the Imams and the -- Imamate: Twelver Theology Between Qum and Baghdad -- The Qummi/Ash'ari Connection to Twelver Traditionist Theology -- The Theology of al-Kafi Kitab al-Tawhfd -- Twelver Theology Between Qum and Baghdad: Al-Kaft's Kitab al- Hujja -- The Imamology in Basa'ir and al-Kaft's Kitab al-, Huja: a Comparative -- Approach -- Special Effects and Possessions Possessed by the Imams -- Their Special Personages -- The Unique Abilities of the Imams -- Al-Kulayni's Excisions -- CHAPTER EIGHT: AI-Kafi From Theology to Practice -- The Practical Nature of al-Usil's Traditions -- The Traditions of al-Furd' as QummT Discourse on Points of Practice -- The Collection and Obligations of al-Khums -- The Collection and Distribution of Alms -- 'Fle Obligation and Conduct of Congregational Prayer -- Overt Confrontation with Authority -- Al-Amr and al-Nahy -- The Permitted Scope of Personal Relations, and Confrontation, -- With Authority -- The Implementation of al-. Hudzud During the Occultation -- Judicial Arbitration in the Absence of the Imam -- The Imams and al-Jawr in al-Kafi -- CHAPTER NINE: Summary and Conclusions -- Bibliography -- Index of Qur'anic verses cited -- Index.

The Formative Period of Twelver Shi'ism

Download The Formative Period of Twelver Shi'ism PDF Online Free

Author :
Publisher : Routledge
ISBN 13 : 1136837124
Total Pages : 264 pages
Book Rating : 4.1/5 (368 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!


Book Synopsis The Formative Period of Twelver Shi'ism by : Andrew J Newman

Download or read book The Formative Period of Twelver Shi'ism written by Andrew J Newman and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2013-10-18 with total page 264 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Shows how the frictions and disparities between the different pockets of believers scattered throughout the Eastern Islamic world in the late ninth and tenth centuries, the relations between each of these and the Abbasid political institution favoured the narration of different bodies of the Imams' traditions

Walāya in the Formative Period of Shi'ism and Sufism

Download Walāya in the Formative Period of Shi'ism and Sufism PDF Online Free

Author :
Publisher : Taylor & Francis
ISBN 13 : 1000842835
Total Pages : 195 pages
Book Rating : 4.0/5 (8 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!


Book Synopsis Walāya in the Formative Period of Shi'ism and Sufism by : Shayesteh Ghofrani

Download or read book Walāya in the Formative Period of Shi'ism and Sufism written by Shayesteh Ghofrani and published by Taylor & Francis. This book was released on 2023-03-31 with total page 195 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Focused on Shi’ism and Sufism in the formative period of Islam, this book examines the development of the concept of walāya, a complex term that has, over time, acquired a wide range of relationships with other theological ideas, chiefly in relation to the notion of authority. The book offers a textual and comparative analysis of walāya based on primary sources in the ninth and tenth centuries, from both Shi’i and Sufi circles. The starting point is one of the oldest surviving Shi’i sources, Kitāb Sulaym. Alongside this, the author analyses al-Īḍāḥ of Faḍl Shādhān al-Nishābūrī, Kitāb al-Maḥāsin of al-Barqī and Kitāb al-Kāfī of al-Kulaynī. Three major texts in Sufism are considered: Kitāb al-Ṣidq by Abū Saʿīd al-Kharrāz, Tafsīr al-Qurʾan al-ʿAẓīm by Sahl al-Tustarī, and Al-Tirmidhī’s Kitāb Sīrat al-Awliyāʾ. Together, these sources highlight the doctrinal aspects of walāya, exploring the identity, function, appointment, and description of those considered 'walī'. The author ultimately argues that walāya is a cluster of rich, deep-rooted responses to the question of authority, developed within both Shi’ism and Sufism after the death of the Prophet. The book is much-needed reading for students and scholars interested in Shi’i and Sufi studies and Islamic philosophy.

Shi'i Islam

Download Shi'i Islam PDF Online Free

Author :
Publisher : Cambridge University Press
ISBN 13 : 1107031435
Total Pages : 267 pages
Book Rating : 4.1/5 (7 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!


Book Synopsis Shi'i Islam by : Najam Haider

Download or read book Shi'i Islam written by Najam Haider and published by Cambridge University Press. This book was released on 2014-08-11 with total page 267 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book examines the development of Shi'i Islam through the lenses of belief, narrative, and memory.

Twelver Shiism

Download Twelver Shiism PDF Online Free

Author :
Publisher : Edinburgh University Press
ISBN 13 : 0748678336
Total Pages : 288 pages
Book Rating : 4.7/5 (486 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!


Book Synopsis Twelver Shiism by : Andrew J. Newman

Download or read book Twelver Shiism written by Andrew J. Newman and published by Edinburgh University Press. This book was released on 2013-11-20 with total page 288 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Charts the history and development of Twelver Shi'ismAs many as 40 different Shi`i groups existed in the 9th and 10th centuries; only 3 forms remain. Why is Twelver Shi`ism one of them? As the established faith in modern Iran, the majority faith in Iraq and areas in the Gulf and with its adherents forming sizeable minorities elsewhere in the region, it is arguably the most successful branch of Shi'ism. Andrew Newman charts the history Twelver Shi'ism, uncovering the development of the key distinctive doctrines and practices which ensured its survival in the face of repeated challenges. He argues that the key to the faith's endurance has been its ability to institutionalise responses to the changing, often localised circumstances in which the community has found itself, thereby remaining remarkably resilient in the face of both internal disagreements and external opposition.

Exploring the Mind of God: An Introduction to Shiʿite Legal Epistemology

Download Exploring the Mind of God: An Introduction to Shiʿite Legal Epistemology PDF Online Free

Author :
Publisher : BRILL
ISBN 13 : 9004544003
Total Pages : 162 pages
Book Rating : 4.0/5 (45 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!


Book Synopsis Exploring the Mind of God: An Introduction to Shiʿite Legal Epistemology by : Hashim Bata

Download or read book Exploring the Mind of God: An Introduction to Shiʿite Legal Epistemology written by Hashim Bata and published by BRILL. This book was released on 2023-05-25 with total page 162 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book introduces readers to the legal epistemology that is advocated within Twelver Shiʿite uṣūl al-fiqh (legal theory). It critically surveys the epistemological underpinnings upheld by post-19th century Uṣūlī clerics that impel them to mainly deduce and interpret Sharia using scripture and literalist hermeneutical methods. An evaluation of these underpinnings uncovers the important juxtaposition that exists between the seminarian discourses of uṣūl al-fiqh and philosophy. The book hypothesises that uṣūl al-fiqh has both space and historical precedence to accept alternative epistemological theories that may enable orthodox Shiʿite clerics to display greater dynamism in deducing and interpreting Sharia.

Shi'i Islam

Download Shi'i Islam PDF Online Free

Author :
Publisher : Simon and Schuster
ISBN 13 : 1780747888
Total Pages : 198 pages
Book Rating : 4.7/5 (87 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!


Book Synopsis Shi'i Islam by : Moojan Momen

Download or read book Shi'i Islam written by Moojan Momen and published by Simon and Schuster. This book was released on 2015-11-05 with total page 198 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: From infallible Imams to Ayatollahs in Iran, Shi’ism has long been a prominent, if misunderstood, branch of Islam. It regards Ali, Muhammad’s son-in-law, as the Prophet’s legitimate successor. But theological differences between the Shi’ah and Sunni Muslims have led to sectarian violence, massacres and the desecration of holy sites. In this Beginner’s Guide, Dr Moojan Momen offers an accessible and comprehensive overview of Shi’ism, tracing the history of the community, its leadership and doctrines, from its inception to modern times. Packed with useful tables, family trees and text boxes, this engaging and up-to-date guide is a perfect introduction to the historical and geopolitical causes of religious tensions still troubling the Middle East today.

Sociology of Shiʿite Islam

Download Sociology of Shiʿite Islam PDF Online Free

Author :
Publisher : BRILL
ISBN 13 : 9004326278
Total Pages : 498 pages
Book Rating : 4.0/5 (43 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!


Book Synopsis Sociology of Shiʿite Islam by : Saïd Amir Arjomand

Download or read book Sociology of Shiʿite Islam written by Saïd Amir Arjomand and published by BRILL. This book was released on 2016-07-18 with total page 498 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Sociology of Shiʿite Islam is a comprehensive study of the development of Shiʿism. Its bearers first emerged as a sectarian elite, then a hierocracy and finally a theocracy. Imamate, Occultation and the theodicy of martyrdom are identified as the main components of the Shiʻism as a world religion. In these collected essays Arjomand has persistenly developed a Weberian theoretical framework for the analysis of Shiʿism, from its sectarian formation in the eighth century through the establishment of the Safavid empire in the sixteenth century, to the Islamic revolution in Iran in the twentieth century. These studies highlight revolutionary impulses embedded in the belief in the advent of the hidden Imam, and the impact of Shiʻite political ethics on the authority structure of pre-modern Iran and the constitution of the Islamic Republic of Iran.

Shi'ism

Download Shi'ism PDF Online Free

Author :
Publisher : Harvard University Press
ISBN 13 : 0674064283
Total Pages : 449 pages
Book Rating : 4.6/5 (74 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!


Book Synopsis Shi'ism by : Hamid Dabashi

Download or read book Shi'ism written by Hamid Dabashi and published by Harvard University Press. This book was released on 2012-05-07 with total page 449 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: For a Western world anxious to understand Islam and, in particular, ShiÕism, this book arrives with urgently needed information and critical analysis. Hamid Dabashi exposes the soul of ShiÕism as a religion of protestÑsuccessful only when in a warring position, and losing its legitimacy when in power. Dabashi makes his case through a detailed discussion of the ShiÕi doctrinal foundations, a panoramic view of its historical unfolding, a varied investigation into its visual and performing arts, and finally a focus on the three major sites of its contemporary contestations: Iran, Iraq, and Lebanon. In these states, ShiÕism seems to have ceased to be a sect within the larger context of Islam and has instead emerged to claim global political attention. Here we see ShiÕism in its combative modeÑreminiscent of its traumatic birth in early Islamic history. Hezbollah in Lebanon claims ShiÕism, as do the militant insurgents in Iraq, the ruling Ayatollahs in Iran, and the masses of youthful demonstrators rebelling against their reign. All declare their active loyalties to a religion of protest that has defined them and their ancestry for almost fourteen hundred years. ShiÕsm: A Religion of Protest attends to the explosive conflicts in the Middle East with an abiding attention to historical facts, cultural forces, religious convictions, literary and artistic nuances, and metaphysical details. This timely book offers readers a bravely intelligent history of a world religion.

Medieval Islamic Civilization: L-Z, index

Download Medieval Islamic Civilization: L-Z, index PDF Online Free

Author :
Publisher : Taylor & Francis
ISBN 13 : 9780415966924
Total Pages : 544 pages
Book Rating : 4.9/5 (669 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!


Book Synopsis Medieval Islamic Civilization: L-Z, index by : Josef W. Meri

Download or read book Medieval Islamic Civilization: L-Z, index written by Josef W. Meri and published by Taylor & Francis. This book was released on 2006 with total page 544 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Publisher description

Political Thought in Contemporary Shi‘a Islam

Download Political Thought in Contemporary Shi‘a Islam PDF Online Free

Author :
Publisher : Springer Nature
ISBN 13 : 3030280578
Total Pages : 245 pages
Book Rating : 4.0/5 (32 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!


Book Synopsis Political Thought in Contemporary Shi‘a Islam by : Farah W. Kawtharani

Download or read book Political Thought in Contemporary Shi‘a Islam written by Farah W. Kawtharani and published by Springer Nature. This book was released on 2019-11-11 with total page 245 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book offers an intellectual history of one of the leading Shi’i thinkers and religious leaders of the 20th-century in Lebanon, Shaykh Muhammad Mahdi Shams al-Din. The author examines his role as the foremost figure of Shi’i intellectual life, a key associate of Musa al-Sadr, and president of the Islamic Shi‘i Supreme Council of Lebanon, having maintained the independence of this institution until his death from the domination of Shi‘i political parties. The core of the book consists of three interrelated main themes that constitute the major threads of Shams al-Din’s intellectual legacy: a discussion of Islamic government involving a critique of Khomeini’s theory of wilāyat al-faqīh, the role of Islam within civil government, and the necessity for political integration of the Shi‘a in their Arab nation-states to protect them from policies that raise doubts over their political allegiance to their respective countries. The project will appeal to scholars, students, academics, and researchers in Middle Eastern politics and history.

Shi'ism

Download Shi'ism PDF Online Free

Author :
Publisher : Routledge
ISBN 13 : 1351900285
Total Pages : 408 pages
Book Rating : 4.3/5 (519 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!


Book Synopsis Shi'ism by : Etan Kohlberg

Download or read book Shi'ism written by Etan Kohlberg and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2016-12-05 with total page 408 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This volume brings together seventeen articles reflecting the wide range of scholarly interest in early Shi`ism over the past half century. All major branches of Shi`ism are covered. Some studies are historical in nature, whether dealing with specific events or offering a broad historical perspective. Others focus on literary issues, on the development of doctrine or on the relations between the Shi`a and the non-Shi`i world. The studies have been selected because they represent the best of current scholarship, or are classic works with continuing significance; six appear for the first time in English translation. The editor's introduction reviews the historiography of the field and highlights directions and trends in research and is followed by a bibliography of key further reading.

Shi'ism Revisited

Download Shi'ism Revisited PDF Online Free

Author :
Publisher : Oxford University Press
ISBN 13 : 0197606571
Total Pages : 273 pages
Book Rating : 4.1/5 (976 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!


Book Synopsis Shi'ism Revisited by : Liyakat Takim

Download or read book Shi'ism Revisited written by Liyakat Takim and published by Oxford University Press. This book was released on 2021-11-15 with total page 273 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "Contemporary Muslims face the challenge of how can a legal system that was formulated in the classical period of Islam respond to the multitudinous challenges that present-day Muslims encounter? Is there a need for reformation in Islam? If so, where should it begin and in which direction should it proceed? Addressing this gap in Western scholarship, and contributing to the ongoing debate in Islamic scholarship, Shi'ism Revisited: Ijtihad and Reformation in Contemporary Times will: (i) explore how modernity has impinged on the classical formulation of Islamic law, and (ii) analyse how Shi'i jurists have responded to the intersection of shari'a (Islamic law) and modernity. The study is original and ground-breaking in that it seeks to tackle issues such as how Islamic law is being revised by Shi'i scholars on cases such as human rights, gender equality, the rights of non-Muslim minorities, and reconfiguring the rational and moral basis of Islamic law. Such questions have required scholars to apply ijtihad (independent reasoning) in providing solutions to the pressing questions in the religious and social fields. By examining the principles and application of Islamic legal theory (usul al-fiqh) and reformation in Shi'ism, as well as the current discourse on juristic hermeneutics and the basis of a new ijtihad, this research will address topics that have attracted much public attention. Since such issues have been largely neglected by Western scholarship, this book will provide a unique analysis of ijtihad and reformation in the Shi'i world"--

Vanguard of the Imam

Download Vanguard of the Imam PDF Online Free

Author :
Publisher : Oxford University Press
ISBN 13 : 0190491701
Total Pages : 321 pages
Book Rating : 4.1/5 (94 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!


Book Synopsis Vanguard of the Imam by : Afshon Ostovar

Download or read book Vanguard of the Imam written by Afshon Ostovar and published by Oxford University Press. This book was released on 2016-03-03 with total page 321 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Iran's Revolutionary Guards are one of the most important forces in the Middle East today. As the appointed defender of Iran's revolution, the Guards have evolved into a pillar of the Islamic Republic and the spearhead of its influence. Their sway has spread across the Middle East, where the Guards have overseen loyalist support to Bashar al-Assad in Syria and been a staunch backer in Iraq's war against ISIS-bringing its own troops, Lebanon's Hezbollah, and Shiite militias to the fight. Links to terrorism, human rights abuses, and the suppression of popular democracy have shrouded the Revolutionary Guards in controversy. In spite of their prominence, the Guards remain poorly understood to outside observers. In Vanguard of the Imam, Afshon Ostovar has written the first comprehensive history of the organization. Situating the rise of the Guards in the larger contexts of Shiite Islam, modern Iranian history, and international affairs, Ostovar takes a multifaceted approach in demystifying the organization and detailing its evolution since 1979. Politics, power, and religion collide in this story, wherein the Revolutionary Guards transform from a rag-tag militia established in the midst of revolutionary upheaval into a military and covert force with a global reach. The Guards have been fundamental to the success of the Islamic revolution. The symbiotic relationship between them and Iran's clerical rulers underpins the regime's nearly unshakeable system of power. The Guards have used their privileged position at home to export Iran's revolution beyond its borders, establishing client armies in their image and extending Iran's strategic footprint in the process. Ostovar tenaciously documents the Guards' transformation into a power-player and explores why the group matters now more than ever to regional and global affairs. The book simultaneously serves as a history of modern Iran, and provides a crucial and engrossing entryway into the complex world of war, politics, and identity in the Middle East.

Routledge Handbook of Middle East Politics

Download Routledge Handbook of Middle East Politics PDF Online Free

Author :
Publisher : Routledge
ISBN 13 : 1351692593
Total Pages : 834 pages
Book Rating : 4.3/5 (516 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!


Book Synopsis Routledge Handbook of Middle East Politics by : Larbi Sadiki

Download or read book Routledge Handbook of Middle East Politics written by Larbi Sadiki and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2020-03-31 with total page 834 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Drawing on various perspectives and analysis, the Handbook problematizes Middle East politics through an interdisciplinary prism, seeking a melioristic account of the field. Thematically organized, the chapters address political, social, and historical questions by showcasing both theoretical and empirical insights, all of which are represented in a style that ease readers into sophisticated induction in the Middle East. It positions the didactic at the centre of inquiry. Contributions by forty-four scholars, both veterans and newcomers, rethink knowledge frames, conceptual categories, and fieldwork praxis. Substantive themes include secularity and religion, gender, democracy, authoritarianism, and new "borderline" politics of the Middle East. Like any field of knowledge, the Middle East is constituted by texts, authors, and readers, but also by the cultural, spatial, and temporal contexts within which diverse intellectual inflections help construct (write–speak) academic meaning, knowing, and practice. By denaturalizing notions of singularity of authorship or scholarship, the Handbook plants a dialogic interplay animated by multi-vocality, multi-modality, and multi-disciplinarity. Targeting graduate students and young scholars of political and social sciences, the Handbook is significant for understanding how the Middle East is written and re-written, read and re-read (epistemology, methodology), and for how it comes to exist (ontology).

Impeccability and Temptation

Download Impeccability and Temptation PDF Online Free

Author :
Publisher : Routledge
ISBN 13 : 1000376656
Total Pages : 316 pages
Book Rating : 4.0/5 (3 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!


Book Synopsis Impeccability and Temptation by : Johannes Grössl

Download or read book Impeccability and Temptation written by Johannes Grössl and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2021-04-13 with total page 316 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In Christian theology, the teaching that Christ possessed both a human and divine will is central to the doctrine of two natures, but it also represents a logical paradox, raising questions about how a person can be both impeccable and subject to temptation. This volume explores these questions through an analytic theology approach, bringing together 15 original papers that explore the implications of a strong libertarian concept of free will for Christology. With perspectives from systematic theologians, philosophers, and biblical scholars, several chapters also offer a comparative theology approach, examining the concept of impeccability in the Muslim tradition. Therefore, this volume will be of interest to scholars and graduate students working in analytic theology, biblical scholarship, systematic theology, and Christian-Islamic dialogue.

Shi'ite Identities

Download Shi'ite Identities PDF Online Free

Author :
Publisher : LIT Verlag Münster
ISBN 13 : 3643800495
Total Pages : 286 pages
Book Rating : 4.6/5 (438 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!


Book Synopsis Shi'ite Identities by : Christoph Marcinkowski

Download or read book Shi'ite Identities written by Christoph Marcinkowski and published by LIT Verlag Münster. This book was released on 2010 with total page 286 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The current political events surrounding the Iranian nuclear crisis, the precarious situation in Lebanon, as well as the still unsettled fate of Iraq have resulted in a renewed interest in the Shi'ite dimension of Islam among political observers. This volume covers the phenomenon of political assertiveness among contemporary Shi'ite Muslims in the Middle East, as well as among converts in Southeast Asia. It argues that Shi'ite identities are often based on local cultural heritage and history and are - contrary to what is usually assumed by the wider public - not to be considered monolithic. Christoph Marcinkowski, award-winning Professor of Islamic Studies and Interreligious Relations at Germany's Catholic University of Eichstatt-Ingolstadt and the author of "Religion and Politics in Iraq," is currently working for Germany's Federal Interior Ministry and CIBEDO (the Christian-Muslim dialogue forum of the German Catholic Bishops' Conference) on a survey of Shi'ite organisations in Germa