Both Turkey and Iran consider themselves modern Islamic states—though with radically different status in today's social and political world. In Multiple Modernities, Civil Society and Islam, Masoud Kamali explores the historical factors that have shaped such dissimilar Muslim states, including the continued influence of Europe and the United States. Kamali's assertion that the "Muslim world" is far more multifaceted and pluralistic than generally portrayed is a message particularly relevant today. Multiple Modernities is critical reading for those interested in the history—both ancient and modern—of Islamic movements around the world.

In the face of Islam's own internal struggles, it is not easy to see who we should support and how. This report provides detailed descriptions of subgroups, their stands on various issues, and what those stands may mean for the West. Since the outcomes can matter greatly to international community, that community might wish to influence them by providing support to appropriate actors. The author recommends a mixed approach of providing specific types of support to those who can influence the outcomes in desirable ways.

As the world becomes increasingly globalised Islam faces some important choices. Does it seek to "modernise" in line with the cultures in which it is practised, or does it retain its traditions even if they are at odds with the surrounding society? This book utilizes a critical rationalist viewpoint to illuminate many of the hotly contended issues in modern Islam, and to offer a fresh analysis. A variety of issues within Islam are discussed in this book including, Muslims and modernity; Islam, Christianity and Judaism; approaches to the understanding of the Quran; Muslim identity and civil society; doctrinal certainty and violent radicalism. In each case, the author makes use of Karl Popper’s theory of critical rationalism to uncover new aspects of these issues and to challenge post-modern, relativist, literalist and justificationist readings of Islam. This is a unique perspective on contemporary Islam and as such will be of significant interest to scholars of Religious Studies, Islamic Studies and the Philosophy of Religion.

This book presents the first full-length study of the relationship between religion and the controversial concept of civil society. Across the world in the last two decades of the twentieth century religions re-entered public space as influential discursive and symbolic systems apparently beyond the control of either traditional religious authorising institutions or states. This differentiation of religion from traditional institutions and entry into secular public spheres carries both dangers and possible benefits for democracy. Offering a fresh interdisciplinary approach to understanding religion in contemporary societies, this book provides an invaluable resource for students and researchers in religious studies, sociology, politics and political philosophy, theology, international relations and legal studies. Part one presents a critical introduction to the interaction between religion, modernization and postmodernization in Western and non-Western settings (America, Europe, the Middle East and India), focussing on discourses of human rights, civil society and the public sphere, and the controversial question of their cross-cultural application. Part two examines religion and civil society through case studies of Egypt, Bosnia and Muslim minorities in Britain, and compares Poland as an example of a Christian majority society that has experienced the public reassertion of religion.

PART ONE. THE CULTURE, POLITICAL ECONOMY, AND HISTORY OF THE ISLAMIC COURTS -- Locating Islamic Magistrates and Their Courts in History -- The Work of the Courts -- Litigant Strategies and Patterns of Resistance -- PART TWO. MODERNITY AND GOVERNMENTALITY IN ISLAMIC COURTS AND OTHER DOMAINS -- Reinscribing Authenticity and Identity -- Producing Good Subjects, "Asian Values," and New Types of Criminality.

"This book is about Muslim encounters with the modern: how Islam and those in its orbit have shaped and been shaped by histories that are overlapping and distinctive. Identity and citizenship, piety and protest, music and modes of dress are explored as expressions that bear on the making and remaking of modern public spheres. Muslim as well as non-Muslim scholars show in these pages that tradition and religiosity alike are active players in the making of the modern." "A vital theme is the role of the ethical imagination in expressions of the civil, fed by the diversity of religious and cultural narratives as sources of the self. This can be seen in struggles for civil society and democratic citizenship, in the grappling with new technologies, and in the challenges of political violence. Since the events of September 11, 2001, a failure to come to grips with plural modernities has spurred claims about a 'clash of civilizations'. Fresh perspectives are offered here on what it is to be Muslim and modern, mindful of the rich narratives that inform both identities."--BOOK JACKET.

Weber’s classic study which deals specifically with: Types of Asceticism and the Significance of Ancient Judaism, History and Social Organization of Ancient Palestine, Political Organization and Religious Ideas in the Time of the Confederacy and the Early Kings, Political Decline, Religious Conflict and Biblical Prophecy.

In The Politics of Islamic Law, Iza Hussin compares India, Malaya, and Egypt during the British colonial period in order to trace the making and transformation of the contemporary category of ‘Islamic law.’ She demonstrates that not only is Islamic law not the shari’ah, its present institutional forms, substantive content, symbolic vocabulary, and relationship to state and society—in short, its politics—are built upon foundations laid during the colonial encounter. Drawing on extensive archival work in English, Arabic, and Malay—from court records to colonial and local papers to private letters and visual material—Hussin offers a view of politics in the colonial period as an iterative series of negotiations between local and colonial powers in multiple locations. She shows how this resulted in a paradox, centralizing Islamic law at the same time that it limited its reach to family and ritual matters, and produced a transformation in the Muslim state, providing the frame within which Islam is articulated today, setting the agenda for ongoing legislation and policy, and defining the limits of change. Combining a genealogy of law with a political analysis of its institutional dynamics, this book offers an up-close look at the ways in which global transformations are realized at the local level.

The Sociology of Islam provides an accessible introduction to this emerging field of inquiry, teaching and debate. The study is located at the crucial intersection between a variety of disciplines in the social sciences and the humanities. It discusses the long-term dynamics of Islam as both a religion and as a social, political and cultural force. The volume focuses on ideas of knowledge, power and civility to provide students and readers with analytic and critical thinking frameworks for understanding the complex social facets of Islamic traditions and institutions. The study of the sociology of Islam improves the understanding of Islam as a diverse force that drives a variety of social and political arrangements. Delving into both conceptual questions and historical interpretations, The Sociology of Islam is a transdisciplinary, comparative resource for students, scholars, and policy makers seeking to understand Islam’s complex changes throughout history and its impact on the modern world.

Even before the events of September 11th 2001, the global discourse on civil society--in its varied interpretations and manifestations--has caught the attention of citizens and communities across the Muslim world from Iran, Tajikistan and Indonesia, to the Mahgreb. Issues of human rights, pluralism and gender equity were already at the forefront of the wider quest for participatory politics. This survey of social and intellectual trends in diverse Muslim contexts includes contributions by Shirin Akiner, Mohammed Arkoun, Aziz Esmial, Tair Faradov, Abdou Filali-Ansary, Ersin Kalaycioglu, Iftikhar Malik, Ziba Mir-Hosseini and Oliver Roy.