Islam Addresses Contemporary Issues

This book deals with certain "e;hot-button"e; contemporary issues in Islam, including the Shari'a, jihad, the caliphate, women's status, and interfaith relations. Notably, it places the discussion of these topics within a longer historical framework in order

This book deals with certain "e;hot-button"e; contemporary issues in Islam that are often the focus of public scrutiny, including the Sharia, jihad, the caliphate, women's status, and interfaith relations. Notably, it places the discussion of these topics within a longer historical framework in order to reveal their multiple interpretations and contested applications over time. Most public and some academic discourses however present the Islamic tradition as unchanging and therefore unable to respond to the modern world. Such an ahistorical approach fosters the belief that Muslim and Western societies are destined to clash with one another. In contrast, this book allows the reader to see the diversity and transformations within Islamic thought over time. Focusing on this internal diversity permits us to appreciate the scriptural and intellectual resources available within the Islamic tradition for responding to the challenges of modernity, even as it interrogates and shapes modernity itself.

Presents the teachings of Islam regarding peace in the world today.

This book presents an intellectual history of today’s Muslim world, surveying contemporary Muslim thinking in its various manifestations, addressing a variety of themes that impact on the lives of present-day Muslims. Focusing on the period from roughly the late 1960s to the first decade of the twenty-first century, the book is global in its approach and offers an overview of different strands of thought and trends in the development of new ideas, distinguishing between traditional, reactionary, and progressive approaches. It presents a variety of themes and issues including: The continuing relevance of the legacy of traditional Islamic learning as well as the use of reason; the centrality of the Qur’an; the spiritual concerns of contemporary Muslims; political thought regarding secularity, statehood, and governance; legal and ethical debates; related current issues like human rights, gender equality, and religious plurality; as well as globalization, ecology and the environment, bioethics, and life sciences. An alternative account of Islam and the Muslim world today, counterbalancing narratives that emphasise politics and confrontations with the West, this book is an essential resource for students and scholars of Islam.

This engaging introduction to Islam examines its lived reality, its worldwide presence, and the variety of beliefs and practices encompassed by the religion. The global perspective uniquely captures the diversity of Islam expressed throughout different countries in the present day. A comprehensive, multi-disciplinary, and global introduction to Islam, covering its history as well as current issues, experiences, and challenges Incorporates key new research on Muslims from a variety of countries across Europe, Latin America, Indonesia, and Malaysia Central Asia Directly addresses controversial issues, including political violence and ‘terrorism’, anti-western sentiments, and Islamophobia Explores different responses from various Islamic communities to globalizing trends Highlights key patterns within Islamic history that shed light upon the origins and evolution of current movements and thought

This collection of papers presents a reformist project calling upon Muslim intellectuals and scholars everywhere to comprehend the vast breadth and depth of the crisis engulfing Muslim thought today and the necessity of solving this crisis to enable the Ummah to experience a revival and fulfill its role among the nations of the world. The reader will find a variety of articles dealing with this intellectual crises, these include a chapter on ijtihad's role and history, important since our intellectual problems cannot be solved without the scholars' use of independent reasoning and creativity. Another discusses imitation (taqlid) calling upon Muslim scholars and intellectuals to abandon imitation and to stop favoring the past over the present when trying to solve modern problems. Another looks at human rights.