The Commander Of The Faithful

This biography and military history of Islamic resistance to the French occupation of Algeria lends valuable insight into current US/Muslim relations.

Studies of post-colonial government have had great difficulty in establishing either an intellectual standpoint from which to depict, or a moral one from which to judge. Waterbury's view of Morocco's political elite depicts a part of the politics of the early 20th century. The authors tells about the political elites and their various backgrounds. There is also a history of the political system as well as the creation of political parties in Morocco.

This biography and military history of Islamic resistance to the French occupation of Algeria lends valuable insight into current US/Muslim relations.

"The inspiration for the major motion picture "Of Gods and Men" A true story of Christian love set against political terrorism in contemporary Algeria. In the spring of 1996, militants of the Armed Islamic Group, today affiliated with Osama bin Laden's al Qaeda network, broke into a Trappist monastery in war-torn Algeria. Seven monks were taken hostage, pawns in a murky negotiation to free imprisoned terrorists. Two months later, the severed heads of the monks were found in a tree not far from Tibhirine; their bodies were never recovered. The village of Tibhirine had sprung up around the monastery because it was a holy place, protected by the Virgin Mary, who is revered by Christians and Muslims alike. But after 1993, as the Algerian military government's war against Islamic terrorism widened, napalm, helicopters, and gunfire became regular accompaniments to their monastic routine. The harmony between these Christian monks and the Muslim neighbors of Tibhirine contrasts with the fear and distrust among Algerians fighting over power and what it means to be a Muslim. Woven into the story of the kidnapping and the political disintegration of Algeria is a classic account of Christian martyrdom. But these monks were not martyrs to their faith, as preaching Christianity to Muslims is forbidden in Algeria, but rather martyrs to their love of their Muslim neighbors, whom they refuse to desert in their hour of need.

This book is one of the many Islamic publications distributed by Mustafa Organization throughout the world in different languages with the aim of conveying the message of Islam to the people of the world. Mustafa Organization is a registered Organization that operates and is sustained through collaborative efforts of volunteers in many countries around the world, and it welcomes your involvement and support. Its objectives are numerous, yet its main goal is to spread the truth about the Islamic faith in general and the Shi`a School of Thought in particular due to the latter being misrepresented, misunderstood and its tenets often assaulted by many ignorant folks, Muslims and non-Muslims. Organization's purpose is to facilitate the dissemination of knowledge through a global medium, the Internet, to locations where such resources are not commonly or easily accessible or are resented, resisted and fought!

This volume covers the years 96-105 A.H. (A.D. 715-724), describing the final, disastrous Arabic attempt to take Constantinople; the backroom machinations to bring the reformer Umar II to the throne; his brief reign and the abrupt reversal of his policies; the conflicts and revolts of tribal, political, and religious factions; the controversy of non-Arab converts; and the end of Islamic expansion. Paper edition, $16.95 (not seen). Volume 25 covers the Umayyad caliphate at its widest geographical extent, a period of apparent stability that was at nearly the end of the political unity of Islam. The focus is on military and political events in Khurasan and Irag, from where the Abbasids would soon rise to claim the caliphate. Paper edition, (not seen) $19.95. Annotation copyrighted by Book News, Inc., Portland, OR

Ahmad bin Yahuya al-Baladhuri's History of the Arab Invasions is perhaps the most important single source for the history of the great Arab conquests of the Middle East in the sixth and early seventh centuries. The author, who died in 892, was a historian working at court of the Abbasid caliphs in Baghdad. He had access to a wide variety of earlier writings on the conquests and has preserved accounts that are not found anywhere else. But the book is much more than a series of accounts of battles. Baladhuri was very interested in the origins of the Islamic state and its institutions. His work contains a wealth of information about government, land-holding and economic developments. It is, in short, a key text for anyone interested in the formation of the Islamic world. In this new modern translation, fully annotated with a scholarly apparatus and commentary on the places, events and individuals mentioned, a key source on the Arab conquests is made available in English. It will be essential reading for scholars and students of Islamic Studies and Middle East history.

Written in both English and Arabic, Ahmed Ibn Hanbal and the Mihna is the biography of the famous and beloved Imam Ahmed Ibn Hanbal, who is credited with having founded the Hanbali school of fiqh, or jurisprudence. Hanbal was most well-known for his association with the Mihna, an event in Islamic history where an Abassid Caliph named al-Ma'mun tried to assert his authority and test whether his Muslim subjects believed that the Qu'ran was created by God or uncreated and literally the words of God himself. Though those who rejected the idea that the Qu'ran was created were imprisoned and flogged, Hanbal did not back down and supported his view that it was not, serving as a symbol of strength and character to many Muslims. This biography includes the account of the Mihna, as well as Hanbal's family history and accomplishments. WALTER MELVILLE PATTON (1863-1928)was born in Montreal, Province of Canada, to James Patton and Margaret Mathewson. In addition to writing a biography of the Imam Ahmad Ibn Hanbal, he also wrote a short history of the beginning of Israel, following the first eleven chapters of Genesis in the Bible.