Minority Religions under Irish Law focuses the spotlight specifically on the legal protections afforded in Ireland to minority religions, generally, and to the Muslim community, in particular. Although predominantly focused on the Irish context, the book also boasts contributions from leading international academics, considering questions of broader global importance such as how to create an inclusive environment for minority religions and how to regulate religious tribunals best. Reflecting on issues as diverse as the right to education, marriage recognition, Islamic finance and employment equality, Minority Religions under Irish Law provides a comprehensive and fresh look at the legal space occupied by many rapidly growing minority religions in Ireland, with a special focus on the Muslim community.

"This book examines the possibility of reconciliation between liberalism and Shiite Islam. By examining two key liberal theories, this book shows that secular liberalism is not justifiable in the view of Shiite Islamic thought. Yet, since the liberal state is tolerant of Shiite Muslim citizens, at the practical level, there is no ground for conflict between liberal societies and Shiite Muslim minorities. Therefore, whilst Shiite Muslims at home should refrain from constructing the basic structure of their societies in accordance with liberal theory, Shiite Muslim minorities of liberal societies should accept the basic structure of these societies in return for receiving freedoms, protections, and opportunities." -- Book jacket.

A growing interest in political Islam, also called Islamism, has assumed significant ideological and intellectual dimensions especially in recent years. Rather than viewing it as Islam versus the rest, or tradition against modernity, this volume, without overlooking the tensions, also acknowledges the mutualities. It centres on issues such as the Rushdie affair, conflictive pluralism in South Asia and its linkages with the crucial regional themes like the Kashmir dispute, Iranian revolution, civil war in Afghanicstan and Western public diplomacy.

Chanfi Ahmed shows how West African 'ulama', who fled the European colonization of their region to settle in Mecca and Medina, helped the regime of King Ibn Sa'ud at its beginnings in the field of teaching and spreading the Salaf -Wahhab 's Islam both inside and outside Saudi Arabia. This is against the widespread idea of considering the spread of the Salaf -Wahhab doctrine as being the work of 'ulama' from Najd (Central Arabia) only. We learn here that the diffusion of this doctrine after 1926 was much more the work of 'ulama' from other parts of the Muslim World who had already acquired this doctrine and spread it in their countries by teaching and publishing books related to it. In addition Chanfi Ahmed demonstrates that concerning Islamic reform and mission (da'wa), Africans are not just consumers, but also thinkers and designers.

Described by the distinguished theatre director Peter Brook as "a very powerful form of theatre," the Ta'ziyeh is the Islamic drama of Iran. This work examines the evolution of the Ta'ziyeh, which involved elements drawn from Zoroastrianaism, Mithraism, mythology, folklore and traditional forms of Iranian entertainment.
In its final form, most of its elements - plot, character, thought, spectacle and song - derive from the Shi'a branch of Islam. Its main plot concerns the suffering and death of Imam Hussein, grandson of the Prophet of Islam. In 680 AD he and his family were massacred in the Karnala Plain near Baghdad by the soldiers of the Caliph, Yazid. The Ta'ziyeh's highest point came during the reign of Nasseredin Shah (1848-96), who built a magnificent playhouse, the Takieh Dowlat, in Tehran. In the 1930s it was banned by the Pahlavi regime, and Ta'ziyeh groups were forced to take refuge in remote rural areas. In the 20th century it was attacked by pro-Western and nationalistic movements whosaw performances as encouraging social stagnation. Despite the setbacks, today it is still possible to see performances of the Ta'ziyeh throughout Iran.

What happens when the idea of religious progress propels the shaping of modernity? In The Ahmadiyya Quest for Religious Progress. Missionizing Europe 1900 - 1965 Gerdien Jonker offers an account of the mission the Ahmadiyya reform movement undertook in interwar Europe. Nowadays persecuted in the Muslim world, Ahmadis appear here as the vanguard of a modern, rational Islam that met with a considerable interest. Ahmadiyya mission on the European continent attracted European 'moderns', among them Jews and Christians, theosophists and agnostics, artists and academics, liberals and Nazis. Each in their own manner, all these people strove towards modernity, and were convinced that Islam helped realizing it. Based on a wide array of sources, this book unravels the multiple layers of entanglement that arose once the missionaries and their quarry met.

This book is a collection of papers on the origins of economic thought discovered in the writings of some prominent Islamic scholars, during the five centuries prior to the Latin Scholastics, who include St. Thomas Aquinas. This period of time was labelled by Joseph Schumpeter as representing the 'great gap' in economic history. Unfortunately, this 'gap' is well embedded in most relevant literature. However, during this period the Islamic civilisation was one of the most fertile grounds for intellectual developments in various disciplines, including economics, and this book attempts to fill that blind-spot in the history of economic thought.

In the wake of the protests that spread throughout the Middle East and North Africa in late 2010 and early 2011, Islamist movements of varying political persuasions have risen to prominence. This is especially the case in post-Mubarak Egypt and post-Ben Ali Tunisia. Popular Protest in the New Middle East examines Islamist approaches to political participation and integration in the Arab world and asks whether regional trends can be discerned with respect to either the strategy of disparate movements or the challenges they confront in the various states in which they operate. It offers analysis of the ideologies and actions of these movements, ranging from countries where Islamism is in control of the state as an Islamic theocracy (Iran), the ruling party (for example, Turkey), part of the ruling coalition (Lebanon), or a parliamentary minority (such as in Jordan or Yemen). The question of political participation, and by implication integration into existing political systems, has been a significant issue for Islamist movements. Some, opting for the role of a revolutionary vanguard, have rejected the concept of participation outright. Others, particularly those that have developed a broad popular base and operate in states where local or national elections are conducted, have invested heavily in participation, either as a method of achieving political power, or as a means of influencing public policy. This book offers a systematic examination of a variety of examples of the actions of Islamist movements, from those that employ more militant tactics to those that have a more quietist approach. Are Knudsen and Basem Ezbidi bring together an examination of the effects that various experiences of participation and integration have had on the individual movements concerned and the broader Islamist trend throughout the Middle East, making this book vital for researchers of the impact of religion on politics (and, indeed vice versa).

This book focuses on the ways in which a particular Islamic brotherhood, or 'tariqa', the tariqa Alawiyya, spread, maintained and propagated their particular brand of the Islamic faith. Originating in the South-Yemeni region of Hadramawt, the Alawi tariqa mainly spread along the coast of the Indian Ocean. The Alawis are here portrayed as one of many cultural mediators in the multi-ethnic, multi-religious Indian Ocean world in the era of European colonialism.

Foreword by:
A. J. Stockwell

This book examines the methodological development of the principles of Islamic political economy in its theoretical and applied aspects. This is carried out in a general equilibrium framework using the theory of social choice. Thus a comparative study is also undertaken here in these areas while developing the theory of Islamic political economy. In these respects this book appears to be the first one of its kind.

This book presents a detailed critical analysis of the work of Fatima Mernissi. Mernissi is considered to be one of the major figures in Feminist thought for both Morocco and Muslim society in general. This work discusses Mernissi's intellectual trajectory from 'secular' to 'Islamic' feminism in order to trace the evolution of so-called Islamic feminist theory. The book also engages critically with the work of other Muslim feminists, using frameworks and approaches developed in the works of Muslim reformist thinkers, namely Mohammad Arkoun and Nasr Abu Zaid, with the aim of engaging the theorization of this emerging feminism.

The aim of the book is to energize the ongoing debate in academia and among practitioners on the meaning and understanding of Islamic architecture. It contains seventeen essays by architects and academicians from different parts of the world, representing an effort to clarify how the various disciplines of the design profession can be employed to build in the spirit of Islam.

This collection of papers presented at the 62nd Annual Meeting of the Permanent International Altaistic Conference explores the complex relations of religion and state in history, language and society of Altaic cultures, reflecting the unique interdisciplinary approach of the PIAC. It examines aspects of shamanism, religious belief, totemism and religious influences on contracts in historical literary monuments as well as in contemporary sources.

The role of women in Islamic societies, not to mention in the religion itself, is a defining issue. It is also one that remains resistant to universal dogma, with a wide range of responses to women's social roles across the Islamic world. Reflecting this heterogeneity, the editor of this volume has assembled the latest research on the issue, which combines contemporary with historical data.

The material comes from around the world as well as from Muslim and non-Muslim researchers. It takes in work from majority Muslim nations such as Bangladesh, Iran, Iraq, Lebanon, Pakistan, Palestine, Tunisia and Turkey, as well as countries with troubled interfaith relations such as India and Israel. Nations with minority Muslim populations such as France, the UK, Canada and Australia, are also represented. The work also features varying Islamic sub-groups such as the two main ones, Sunni and Shi'a, as well as less well known populations such as the Ismaili Muslims. In each case, the work is underpinned by the very latest socio-theological insights and empirical data."

In a world where the strident demands of Islamic extremists capture the media's attention, the courageous protests of Muslim reformers barely receive any notice. These include a surprising number of women who are prepared to challenge institutionalized persecution, risking derision, arrest, physical harm, and even death.
In this inspiring compilation of Muslim women's stories from around the world, the voices of these long-oppressed women ring loud and clear as they question ideology and culture, patriarchal and religious beliefs, and demand the social and political rights women lack in many Muslim countries. The reformers speak out with passion, humanity, and sometimes humor in these compact and often poignant biographies, bringing alive the harsh realities for women in many parts of the world.
By surveying a wide range of Muslim reformers, not only in the Middle East but also in Europe and North America, author Ida Lichter uncovers some significant emerging trends. For example, she notes that the majority of Muslim feminists would like to see reform contained within Islam. Many criticize their patriarchal culture for suppressing egalitarian views that they believe the Koran expresses and so they advocate a reinterpretation of the holy text. Some demand changes to discriminatory Sharia-based laws. Others campaign openly for political and educational reforms.
Complete with a glossary and a list of helpful Web sites, this vibrant anthology makes use of reliable translations from original languages to demonstrate the groundswell of grassroots change that promises eventually to bring even the most conservative sectors of Islam into the twenty-first century.

This thoroughly updated and revised second edition analyses the ideas behind Islamic finance, the forms Islamic finance has taken in practice and the tension between the two that may occasionally arise. Along with an expanded section on the history of the ban on interest, this second edition contains a much more extensive discussion of investment and savings accounts, sukuk and tawarruq.Hans Visser aims to answer key topics on Islamic finance, ranging from the principles behind the phenomenon to the interaction of the market place with religious restrictions. How can governments finance their deficits and central banks conduct monetary policy without the interest-rate instrument? What price do the clients of the Islamic financial system pay for the increase in complexity and loss in flexibility compared with conventional finance? How do banking supervisors take account of the associated risks? In answering these questions, Visser's systematic treatment of the belief system and a discussion on the acceptability of disputed instruments of Islamic finance distinguish the book from others in its field. Islamic Finance is essential reading for students of economics, finance and Islamic studies. Moreover, a detailed examination of both financial products and fiscal and monetary policies ensures that it will also appeal to banking staff, financial journalists and politicians alike. Contents: Preface Introduction 1. Why Islamic Finance? 2. Sources of Islamic Law 3. The Islamic Economy 4. Forms of Islamic Finance 5. Islamic Banks 6. Special Sectors 7. Public Finance and the Monetary Authorities 8. Islamic Finance: A Tentative Verdict Appendices A. The Quran on Riba B. The Quran on Maysir C. The Bible on Interest References Index

First Published in 2000. This is Volume III of six of the Oriental series looking at Arabic History and Culture. It was written in 1927 and includes four translated chapter of the second volume of Von Kremer's 'Culturgeschichte des Orients'.

After decades of prohibition, Mevlana ceremonies of whirling dervishes attract renewed interest as forms of sacral music, both in formal and popular genres. This trend runs parallel to an increasing concern for cultural, ethnic and religious identities, where the rising tide of religious revivalism sets the tone.

Irfan Ahmad makes the far-reaching argument that potent systems and modes for self-critique as well as critique of others are inherent in Islam - indeed, critique is integral to its fundamental tenets and practices. Challenging common views of Islam as hostile to critical thinking, Ahmad delineates thriving traditions of critique in Islamic culture, focusing in large part on South Asian traditions. Ahmad contemplates and interrogates Greek and Enlightenment notions of reason and critique, and he notes how they are invoked in relation to ""others,"" including Muslims. Drafting an alternative genealogy of critique in Islam, Ahmad reads religious teachings and texts, drawing on sources in Hindi, Urdu, Farsi, and English, and demonstrates how they serve as expressions of critique. Throughout, he depicts Islam as an agent, not an object, of critique. On a broader level, Ahmad expands the idea of critique itself. Drawing on his fieldwork among marketplace hawkers in Delhi and Aligarh, he construes critique anthropologically as a sociocultural activity in the everyday lives of ordinary Muslims, beyond the world of intellectuals. Religion as Critique allows space for new theoretical considerations of modernity and change, taking on such salient issues as nationhood, women's equality, the state, culture, democracy, and secularism.

Drawing on legal and hadith texts from the formative and classical periods of Islamic legal history, this book offers an overview of the development of the questions prominent jurists asked and answered about women's issues. All assumed a woman would marry and thus the book concentrates on women's family life. The introduction establishes the historical framework within which the jurists worked. A chapter on Qur'an verses devoted to women's lives is followed by chapters on marriage and divorce which compare the views of jurists during the formative period. The fourth chapter describes the evolution from the formative to the classical periods. The fifth uses material from both periods to describe the array of legal opinion about other aspects of women's lives in and outside their homes. Throughout, jurists' opinions are juxtaposed with relevant quotations from contemporaneous hadith collections.

The Dictionary of Islamic Architecture provides the fullest range of artistic, technical, archaeological, cultural and biographical data for the entire geographical and chronological spread of Islamic architecture - from West Africa through the Middle East to Indonesia, and from the seventh to the eighteenth centuries of the Common Era.
Over 500 entries are arranged alphabetically and fully cross-referenced and indexed to permit easy access to the text and to link items of related interest.
Four main categories of subject matter are explored:
* dynastic and regional overviews
* individual site descriptions
* biographical entries
* technical definitions
Over 100 relevant plans, sketch maps, photographs and other illustrations complement and illuminate the entries, and the needs of the reader requiring further information are met by individual entry bibliographies.

Emphasising an empirical research to contemporary legal pluralist settings in Muslim contexts, the present collected volume contributes to a deepened understanding of legal pluralist issues and realities through comparative examination. This approach reveals some common features, such as the relevance of Islamic law in power struggles and in the construction of (state or national) identities, strategies of coping with coexisting sets of legal norms by the respective agents, or public debates about the risks induced by the recognition of religious institutions in migrant societies. At the same time, the studies contained in this volume reveal that legal pluralist settings often reflect very specific historical and social constellations, which demands caution towards any generalisation.

James I "the Conqueror," king of Arago-Catalonia, conquered Mediterranean Spain from Islam during fifty crusading years (1225-1276). From his many surrender treaties, only two survive in their interlinear bilingual originals, both presented here. Each reflects the fragmentation of post-Almohad Islam, the warrior heroes of Islam carving recalcitrant principalities out of the confusion, the hard-fought local negotiations and the confrontation between two radically opposed mentalities.
The full meaning of these battered and deteriorated bits of parchment emerges only from minute reconstruction of the Arabic and Latinate texts and especially from ever-widening circles of changing contexts in each world, an historical kaleidoscope.
Many surprises here await students of medieval Europe, the Islamic West, Spain, the Crusades, diplomacy, Mudejars/Moriscos, and cultural conflict and interchange.

"The Sage in Jewish Society of Late Antiquity" explores the social position of rabbis in Palestinian (Roman) and Babylonian (Persian) society from the period of the fall of the Temple to late antiquity. Author Richard Kalmin argues that ancient rabbinic sources depict comparable differences between Palestinian and Babylonian rabbinic relationships with non-Rabbis." The Sage in Jewish Society of Late Antiquity" provides a cultured and stimulating analysis of the role of the sage in late antiquity and sheds new light on rabbinic comments on such diverse topics as biblical heroes and genealogy and lineage.