Demystifying Islam

“A welcome correction to the politically tortured conceptions of Islam so prevalent today . . . An important, original new examination of Islam.” —Kirkus Reviews Despite heightened interest in the study of the Muslim faith, for many people Islam remains shrouded in mystery and confusion. What really is Shariah law? How is a Muslim to understand Jihad? Does Islam oppose Western values such as free speech or freedom of religion? What place do women have according to Islam? Understanding that this confusion has as much to do with the behavior and words of Muslims as it does with allegations made by anti-Islam activists, Demystifying Islam offers refreshingly bold answers to provocative questions about Islam today. Author Harris Zafar—lecturer, writer, teacher and national spokesperson for Ahmadiyya Muslim Community USA—is forthright about issues where Muslims disagree, and he digs into history through vast research and scholarship to track the origins of differing beliefs. From the burqa to the role of Jesus in Islam, Demystifying Islam is an essential resource and concise guide to understanding the fastest growing religion in the world. “This book is less of a spiritual introduction than it is a cultural one, and an excellent starting point for people navigating interfaith relationships or working to improve understanding and representation in organizations and public discussion.” —Publishers Weekly “A significant contribution to the global conversation on peace, freedom, and justice in a world mystified and threatened by geopolitical and religious tensions.” —Paul Louis Metzger, author of Connecting Christ

“A welcome correction to the politically tortured conceptions of Islam so prevalent today . . . An important, original new examination of Islam.” —Kirkus Reviews Despite heightened interest in the study of the Muslim faith, for many people Islam remains shrouded in mystery and confusion. What really is Shariah law? How is a Muslim to understand Jihad? Does Islam oppose Western values such as free speech or freedom of religion? What place do women have according to Islam? Understanding that this confusion has as much to do with the behavior and words of Muslims as it does with allegations made by anti-Islam activists, Demystifying Islam offers refreshingly bold answers to provocative questions about Islam today. Author Harris Zafar—lecturer, writer, teacher and national spokesperson for Ahmadiyya Muslim Community USA—is forthright about issues where Muslims disagree, and he digs into history through vast research and scholarship to track the origins of differing beliefs. From the burqa to the role of Jesus in Islam, Demystifying Islam is an essential resource and concise guide to understanding the fastest growing religion in the world. “This book is less of a spiritual introduction than it is a cultural one, and an excellent starting point for people navigating interfaith relationships or working to improve understanding and representation in organizations and public discussion.” —Publishers Weekly “A significant contribution to the global conversation on peace, freedom, and justice in a world mystified and threatened by geopolitical and religious tensions.” —Paul Louis Metzger, author of Connecting Christ

Brimming with references and up-to-date statistics, this edition allows the reader to quickly and intelligently become familiar with the precepts upon which Islam stands, and to decide whether what is presented by the media is representative or biased. (World Religions)

A direct counterpoint to fear mongering headlines about shariah law—a Muslim American legal expert tells the real story, eliminating stereotypes and assumptions with compassion, irony, and humor Through scare tactics and deliberate misinformation campaigns, anti-Muslim propagandists insist wrongly that shariah is a draconian and oppressive Islamic law that all Muslims must abide by. They circulate horror stories, encouraging Americans to fear the “takeover of shariah” law in America and even mounting “anti-shariah protests” . . . . with zero evidence that shariah has taken over any part of our country. (That’s because it hasn’t.) It would be almost funny if it weren’t so terrifyingly wrong—as puzzling as if Americans suddenly began protesting the Martian occupation of Earth. Demystifying Shariah explains that shariah is not one set of punitive rules or even law the way we think of law—rigid and enforceable—but religious rules and recommendations that provide Muslims with guidance in various aspects of life. Sumbul Ali-Karamali draws on scholarship and her degree in Islamic law to explain shariah in an accessible, engaging narrative style—its various meanings, how it developed, and how the shariah-based legal system operated for over a thousand years. She explains what shariah means not only in the abstract but in the daily lives of Muslims. She discusses modern calls for shariah, what they mean, and whether shariah is the law of the land anywhere in the world. She also describes the key lies and misunderstandings about shariah circulating in our public discourse, and why so many of them are nonsensical. This engaging guide is intended to introduce you to the basic principles, goals, and general development of shariah and to answer questions like: How do Muslims engage with shariah? What does shariah have to do with our Constitution? What does shariah have to do with the way the world looks like today? And why do we all—Muslims or not—need to care?

Islam Demystified is a contemporary textbook that gives a modern context to the study of one of the world's most controversal and talked-about religion. A truly remarkable textbook, from a wholly unexpected source. Islam Demystified will change the way you and your students think about this religion.

Perceptions of Muslim women in Western society have been shaped by historical and sociological conditions such as colonialism, patriarchy and Orientalism. In Muslim Women in Britain, Sariya Contractor seeks to reinstate the Muslimah as a storyteller who tells her own story. An exploration of the lives of British Muslim women, this book examines issues of femininity, Britishness, inter-communal relations and social cohesion. Presenting the reader with incisive narratives of Muslim women on familiar topics such as the hijab, Muslim women in the media and feminist debate, particularly in a Western context, Sariya Contractor makes a valuable contribution to the existing literature on Islamic studies, social anthropology, feminist philosophy and social cohesion. Presenting a complex and nuanced retelling of Muslim women’s realities as explored through their own voices, stories and experiences; this book will be of interest to scholars and students of Islamic studies, Women’s studies, Social Anthropology and Sociology seeking a fresh perspective on Muslim women in Britain.

This highly readable and necessarily controversial book tackles all the hot topics relating to Islam uncompromisingly and head on. Whether it is the status of Muslim women, Islamic terrorism, democracy and Islam, or even the clash of civilizations, this book's thematic chapters take you on an in-depth tour of Islam--its people, politics, history, culture, philosophy and mind-spinning diversity. Written by an atheist Arab of Muslim upbringing, this book is politically incorrect in its purest sense. It seeks to reveal the truth about Islam unencumbered by anti- or pro-Islamic dogma, partisan interests or the growing "us" and "them" dichotomy.