Religious and theocratic ideologies and movements Books
Zondervan Is God Real
Book SynopsisIt''s no coincidence that one of the most asked questions on any search engine is: Is God real?When life feels overwhelming, we want to know if there really is a deity who loves us, knows us, and cares about what happens to us. Join investigative journalist and former atheist Lee Strobel on a quest to determine whether we can know with confidence that God is real.Lee Strobel''s landmark book, The Case for Christ, is one of the most respected defenses of Christianity of all time. Now in Is God Real? Lee weaves together material from his previous books with the latest evidence from the most brilliant scientific and philosophical minds to answer the pressing questions on our hearts and minds.In this rational exploration of the proof of God''s existence, Lee investigates: If God is real, why is there so much suffering? How do we know which God is real? If God is real, why does he seem so hi
£11.69
Saqi Books Islamic State
Book SynopsisPacked full of information, this book offers a unique and indispensable insight into the origins and operations of IS. Atwan, a well-known Arab journalist and expert on extremist groups, had exclusive access to militants close to IS and his findings are based on interviews with jihadists who were in the same cell as Baghdadi.Trade Review'This is a brave and important book. It lifts the lid on how Islamic State combines an ideology of 1,000 years ago with the use of 21st century information technology to spread its messages. If you want to understand what motivates those prepared to behead hostages and post the results on the internet, then this book is a must-read.' Gavin Esler; 'Abdel Bari Atwan is one of the leading analysts in the world on the modern Middle East. In his new book on ISIS he delivers a uniquely informed, crisply argued and excellent account of the world's most powerful terrorist organization.' Peter Bergen, author of Manhunt: The Ten-Year Search for bin Laden from 9/11 to Abbottabad; 'Thank heavens we have writers such as Atwan - who knew the real Bin Laden better than any other journalist' Robert Fisk, Independent; 'An extraordinarily gifted, experienced and knowledgeable analyst of Arab affairs' Ann Leslie, Daily Mail; 'In this comprehensive and well-researched book, Abdel Bari Atwan, perhaps one of the Arab world's most distinguished commentators, has thrown considerable light on the IS phenomenon, explaining its origins, leadership and organisation ... Atwan's unique contribution is the detail he provides relating to the use of digital technology ... This outstanding book tells us how it all started.' Business Standard; 'Middle East expert Abdel Bari Atwan explains exactly how IS propagandists and recruiters use the necromancy of the "dark web" to overcome our attempts to stop them.' Hugh Prysor-Jones, The TabletTable of ContentsIntroduction; 1. Masters of the Digital Universe; 2. The Origins - Part One: Iraq; 3. The Origins - Part Two: The Taliban, al-Qa'ida and IS; 4. The Origins - Part Three: Syria; 5. Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi: A Portrait of 'Caliph Ibrahim'; 6. Consolidation and Expansion; 7. Within Islamic State; 8. The Management of Savagery; 9. The Caliph's Foreign Fighters; 10. A Dangerous Game: The West's Attempts to Exploit Radical Islam; 11. Saudi Arabia, Wahhabism and Islamic State; Conclusion; Acknowledgements; Notes; Index
£8.99
WW Norton & Co Your Fatwa Does Not Apply Here Untold Stories
Book SynopsisEye-opening accounts of heroic resistance to religious extremism.Trade Review"Her [Karima Bennoune's] reporting is diligent, passionate and convincing." -- The Economist"Bennoune offers a compelling, meticulously researched account..." -- Guardian Weekly"Bennoune has written a very necessary book indeed, and it is to be hoped that it will find the widest audience possible." -- Times Higher Education"Should be required reading." -- The Washington Post
£13.29
Princeton University Press Hamas and Civil Society in Gaza
Book SynopsisBased on author's extensive fieldwork in the Gaza Strip and West Bank during the critical period of the Oslo peace process, this title shows how the social service activities sponsored by the Islamist group emphasized not political violence but rather community development and civic restoration.Trade ReviewWinner of the 2012 Academic Palestine Book Award, Middle East Monitor Winner of the 2012 British-Kuwait Friendship Society Book Prize in Middle Eastern Studies One of Choice's Top 25 Titles for 2012 "Ms. Roy strives not to speak for Palestinians, but to let their voices reverberate... [Hamas and Civil Society is] rigorous and precise... [T]his is an important book, which challenges lazy views about the Palestinians and highlights how they go about securing basic services."--Economist "Resolutely unbiased, Roy sets the tone of the book from the very beginning. She has always made it a priority to live among Palestinians and even 'walk in their shoes.' This empathy, present throughout the book, helps the author go beyond the usual stereotypes and falsities so often portrayed in the foreign press... Hamas and Civil Society in Gaza shows the Palestinian Islamist movement in a new light. The author analyzes a complex subject with a sound judgment and a remarkable, unbiased approach. By recognizing Hamas' potential for moderation, adaptation and change, Roy uncovers the wall of lies and deceit built around the Islamist movement as well as the need for just, non-discriminatory and fair-minded policies."--Arab News "This is an outstanding study of social institutions mainly in Gaza but sometimes in the West Bank, particularly those connected to Hamas... Anyone looking for an in-depth study of the history, ideology, and activities of Hamas will find Roy's book indispensable, as will those concerned with broader topics such as civil society in relation to Islam and Islamist movements."--Choice "Roy combines scholarly rigor and moral clarity to examine and challenge 'the conventional frame that defines Hamas only as a terrorist organization'... Defining Zionism as a racist settler-colonial ideology, and the Israeli state as a supremacist ethnic Jewish state, is not about sloganeering, and for that purpose the book is an essential contribution."--Nubar Hovsepian, Journal of Palestine Studies "Sara Roy's detailed study is ingrained within history, culture and the ubiquitous illegality of the Israeli occupation... By not resorting to the prejudice of external observers involved in promoting an imperialist agenda, Roy empowers Palestinians in their role of protagonists in her treatise, participants in a framework which continues to strengthen a constantly evolving identity."--Ramona Wadi, Middle East Monitor "A focused study of how the Islamist organization turned itself into the most powerful political entity in the southern Palestinian territory, Roy's portrait of Hamas is every bit the multifaceted portrait it ought to be. Emphasizing the organization's civic activities, Hamas comes off sounding far more secular than it is generally portrayed in the media, characterized, as it often is, as an Iranian-style agent of religious coercion. If you want to understand why its base of support became so broad, Roy has the answer."--Joel Schalit, Forward "Sara Roy has chosen to write about Hamas from the wholly original perspective of the organization's relations with civil society in Gaza. What she has found is a profound challenge to the very basis of US and European policy towards political Islam in Palestine and will be warmly welcomed by the many officials and scholars who have tried in vain to deflect the juggernaut of western policy, which has driven the region into the militarised cul de sac that is Israel today... This is an academic's book, not a journalist's, and reflects the weight of the twenty-five years Roy has devoted to research on the Occupied Palestine Territories."--Victoria Brittain, Race & Class "Roy's work provides an interesting and emphatic description of the sociopolitical life in Gaza, while offering much-needed insight into the development and functioning of the Islamist social sector in the strip... [T]his well-written book is worth reading."--Benedetta Berti, Israel Journal of Foreign Affairs "Meticulously researched, Hamas and Civil Society in Gaza is a significant study of Hamas and Gaza's social institutions."--Ramona Wadi, Middle East Monitor "Sara Roy's studies of Gaza have come to be recognized internationally as unequalled resources that, in the context of the United States, are essential antidotes to indifference as well as ignorance. They have contributed to our understanding of the history and political evolution of a region that continues to be marginalized in the abortive discussion of the broader Arab-Israeli conflict of which it is an integral part."--Irene Gendzier, Middle East Policy "Hamas and Civil Society in Gaza remains an indispensable guide to understanding how Islamic social institutions actually operated in Palestinian society at a particular point in time. Sara Roy has persuasively demonstrated how we might engage the Islamist social sector and in so doing reverse the policies that have so disastrously undermined any serious attempt to achieve a just and lasting peace between Palestinians and Israelis."--Loren D. Lybarger, European LegacyTable of ContentsAcknowledgments xi A Note on Language and Transliteration xiii Prologue xv Chapter 1 Introduction: Structure, Arguments, and Conceptual Framework 1 Chapter 2 A Brief History of Hamas and the Islamic Movement in Palestine 19 Chapter 3 Islamist Conceptions of Civil Society 51 Chapter 4 The Evolution of Islamist Social Institutions in the Gaza Strip: Before and during Oslo (a Sociopolitical History) 70 Chapter 5 Islamist Social Institutions: Creating a Descriptive Context 97 Chapter 6 Islamist Social Institutions: Key Analytical Findings 161 Chapter 7 A Changing Islamist Order? From Civic Empowerment to Civic Regression--the Second Intifada and Beyond 191 Postscript The Devastation of Gaza--Some Additional Reflections on Where We Are Now 226 Appendix Islamist (and Non-Islamist) Social Institutions 237 Afterword to the Paperback Edition 239 Epilogue 261 Notes 271 Selected Bibliography 331 Index 351
£23.80
C Hurst & Co Publishers Ltd Sayyid Qutb and the Origins of Radical Islamism
Book SynopsisSayyid Qutb (1906-1966) was an influential Egyptian ideologue credited with establishing the theoretical basis for radical Islamism in the post colonial Sunni Muslim world. Lacking a pure understanding of the leader's life and work, the popular media has conflated Qutb's moral purpose with the aims of bin Laden and al-Qaeda. He is often portrayed as a terrorist, Islamo-Fascist, and advocate of murder. This book rescues Qutb from misrepresentation, tracing the evolution of his thought within the context of his time. An expert on social protest and political resistance in the modern Middle East, as well as Egyptian nationalism, John Calvert recounts Qutb's life from the small village in which he was raised to his execution at the behest of Abd al-Nasser's regime. His study remains sensitive to the cultural, political, social, and economic circumstances that shaped Qutb's thought-major developments that composed one of the most eventful periods in Egyptian history. These years witnessed the full flush of Britain's tutelary regime, the advent of Egyptian nationalism, and the political hegemony of the Free Officers. Qutb rubbed shoulders with Taha Husayn, Naguib Mahfouz, and Abd al-Nasser himself, though his Islamism originally had little to do with religion. Only in response to his harrowing experience in prison did Qutb come to regard Islam and kufr (infidelity) as oppositional, antithetical, and therefore mutually exclusive. Calvert shows how Qutb repackaged and reformulated the Islamic heritage to pose a challenge to authority, including those who claimed (falsely, he believed) to be Muslim.Trade Review'This rich and carefully researched biography sets Qutb for the first time in his Egyptian context, rescuing him from caricature without whitewashing his radicalism. It is no small achievement.' * The Economist *'Hefty and impressively researched … insightful.' * New York Review of Books *'The best biographies balance the person, the person's achievements, and the environment in which that person worked. This one of Sayyid Qutb (1906-66), considered by both friends and foes to be a founding father of radical Sunni Islamic thought, does just that. Calvert presents a portrait of Qutb worthy of a psychobiography, without the excesses of the genre.' * Foreign Affairs *'In one of the first serious English-language biographices of Qutb, Calvert puts this often misunderstood figure into his historical context, situating Qutb within the turbulent intellectual and political flow of Egyptian and Arab history. He expertly shows the development of Qutb's thinking, from literary critic to Islamist, and powerfully details the impact of the repression and torture carried out by the regime of Gamal Abdel Nasser on his turn towards the stark, radical doctrines which have shaped generations of Islamist radicals. Fascinating details emerge in this book. . . . The Qutb which emerges from Calvert's even-handed history is far more complex and interesting than the caricature of him which dominates popular understanding. Anyone interested in the evolution of Islamism in the 20th century should read it.' * Atlantic Monthly *'Given that Qutb is taught in a large (and increasing) number of campuses, and given that he has already been introduced to the general public in bestselling books such as Lawrence Wright's The Looming Tower, the very publication of a Qutb biography is likely to attract considerable interest. The book not only constitutes what is likely to remain the definitive biography of Sayyid Qutb, it also offers crucial new insights on the post-1954 history of the Egyptian Muslim Brotherhood, another gaping hole in the literature. We are dealing here with a rare book that is likely to become a classic in the field of political Islam.' * An outstanding volume.' Thomas Hegghammer, Harvard University *'Sayyid Qutb and the Origins of Islamic Radicalsm will become the standard intellectual biography of the most influential Muslim thinker of the twentieth century. Demonstrating a deep engagement with contemporary history, religious thought, and social theory, Calvert eschews the sensationalism that too often posits Qutb as the ideological 'godfather' of global jihad. An erudite and engaging writer, Calvert situates Qutb in time and place, tracing his political evolution, and exploring the power of his words, personality, and, ultimately, his divergent legacies. Neither hagiography, nor expose, Qutb finally gets his due'. * Joel Gordon, author of Nasser: Hero of the Arab Nation *'Calvert … has produced a biography that is lively, sensitive, and methodical, and represents a landmark study of serious value to students, academics, and general readers alike. … Calvert's study is as much a political history of modern Egypt through the prism of Sayyid Qutb as it is a biography of the man and a study of his thought.' * Middle East Quarterly *'Calvert's book is a substantial contribution to the scholarship on radical Islamism and contemporary Muslim thought. It is a must read for academics, students, and those in the general public who want a more in-depth understanding of one of the most influential, controversial, and enigmatic Muslim personalities in modern Arab and Islamic history.' * The Muslim World Book Review *'An exquisite intellectual biography of Sayyid Qutb … This is the deepest exploration of Qutb I have seen in the English language and a recommended read for those in counter-terrorism, and understanding what aspects of radical ideologues al-Qaida chooses to ignore.' * Youssef Aboul-Enein, Small Wars Journal *'An extremely thoroughly researched, sober, and careful book that seeks to cover all of Qutb's life, activities, and writings and situate them in their Egyptian context. In many ways, Calvert's book shows what scholarship can do at its best. For those who already know something about the subject, there is an account rich in context, new details, and deeper interpretations. For a broader audience, there is an accessible and fair treatment of Qutb and his ideas that should replace some recent rather puzzling accounts that view Qutb through a particular and narrow lens.' * Review of Middle East Studies *
£24.75
Transcript Verlag The Christian Right in Europe: Movements,
Book SynopsisInspired by the success of the US Christian Right and the rise of the global far-right, ultraconservative Christians in Europe are joining forces and seek to reshape Europe. By assembling in anti-gender movements and sharing anti-Muslim narratives, they actively influence the political landscape and shape government policies. The contributors offer new perspectives on the protagonists and the entangled networks that work to abolish liberal democracy in Europe behind the scenes. This anthology is the first to bring together case studies on the Christian Right in over 20 European countries, providing a transnational perspective and an accessible insight for clergy, politicians, and academics alike.
£33.74
Zondervan Jesus through Medieval Eyes
Book SynopsisBy exploring surprising medieval representations of Jesus in art and literature, Jesus through Medieval Eyes, by Grace Hamman, expands readers’ Christian imaginations. Meeting Jesus as a Knight, a Lover, a Judge, even a Mother allows us to see Christ’s face with eyes paradoxically both fresh and ancient, and reorient ourselves towards the Savior.Trade Review'In Jesus Through Medieval Eyes Grace Hamman combines the scholarly and the practical in a way that is, alas, all too uncommon. She deploys her broad and deep knowledge of the Middle Ages in the service of helping ordinary Christians become more knowledgeable and more faithful lovers of Christ. Beautifully and engagingly written, this book helps us understand ourselves better by introducing us to our fellow Christians who lived in a world that is at once strikingly strange and strangely familiar.' * Fritz Bauerschmidt, professor of theology, Loyola University Maryland; deacon of the Archdiocese of Baltimore *'In Jesus through Medieval Eyes, Grace Hamman offers an absorbing and accessible work of Christian retrieval, guiding readers back to the delightfully distinct treasures of medieval Christianity. With erudition and devotional care, Hamman guides us toward the radiant goodness of Christ--a goodness best beheld when we gaze upon him from a vantage point beyond our own. Whether 'medieval' as a modifier to 'Christianity' makes you sing with joy, hum with curiosity, or shriek with fear, humble readers will find this book an intellectual and spiritual feast.' * Claude Atcho, pastor of Church of the Resurrection, author of Reading Black Books *'Jesus Through Medieval Eyes offers vivid, earthy, and sometimes jarring insights into Jesus as seen through the lives and minds of those who walked this faith journey ahead of us. The Jesus they understood is, in some ways, as startling to us as our portrayals of him today would be to them. But we have much to learn from ages past, and Grace Hamman is the perfect one to guide us on this tour. Her writing is as sharp, witty, and sparkling as the medieval minds she studies and introduces us to. This book is rich and utterly delightful.' * Karen Swallow Prior, PhD, author of The Evangelical Imagination: How Stories, Images & Metaphors Created a Culture in Crisis *'Under Grace Hamman's tutelage, readers enter a 'school of love.' Jesus through Medieval Eyes challenges our assumptions about Jesus, expanding our vision of him with medieval images. After reading this book, we know Jesus as judge, lover, mother, and more. Contrary to books that offer contemporary solutions to contemporary problems, Jesus through Medieval Eyes illuminates an eternal and timeless Savior.' * Jessica Hooten Wilson, Fletcher Jones Endowed Chair of Great Books at Pepperdine University, author of Reading for the Love of God *'With a scholar's eye and a pastor's hand, Grace Hamman gently accompanies us on a journey of challenging our under-examined beliefs and biases until we find ourselves beholding Christ in new, exciting ways. This book is a breath of fresh air.' * Shannon K. Evans, author of Rewilding Motherhood and Feminist Prayers for My Daughter *
£18.00
C Hurst & Co Publishers Ltd Hizb-ut-Tahrir: The Untold History of the
Book SynopsisAlthough Hizb ut-Tahrir, an international pan-Islamic political party, regularly holds conferences from Jakarta to Ramallah attended by tens of thousands of people, little is known about the organisation, which was founded in 1953, beyond generalities and conjecture. Its members are repeatedly arrested in Russia, Central Asia, Turkey and across the Middle East, and since the Arab uprisings it has emerged as an influential political actor in Tunisia, has a growing profile in Egypt, and is making a visible impact in the Syrian revolution. It is also paradoxically often dismissed as inconsequential despite its call for the implementation of Islam and the establishment of a universal caliphate across the Muslim world. 'Hizb ut-Tahrir: The Untold History of the Liberation Party' uncovers the history of the global Islamic political party, based upon a diverse array of archival research, internal documents, multiple interviews and other sources to build an authoritative account of the party as told from inside and out. From coup attempts in Jordan, sending delegations to meet Sadat, al-Gaddafi and Khomeini, and the execution of hundreds of its members in Libya and Iraq, Pankhurst's book blends political, intellectual and personal history, moving from global, regional and local perspectives.Trade ReviewNowhere have I read a more lucid, accessible and well-researched history of Hizb ut-Tahrir. Reza Pankhurst’s book is not only timely but is also informed by excellent scholarship and meticulous attention to detail. Pankhurst successfully blurs the boundaries between the insider and the academic to narrate how a group of Muslims imagined the caliphate, struggled to establish it and faced many challenges. This is a complex but accessible study of one of the most controversial projects of the Muslim movement in the twentieth century. The book truly demystifies the caliphate and its many advocates. Whether you are a sympathizer or a critic, this book will challenge your stereotypes about Islamic activism. -- Madawi Al-Rasheed, Visiting Professor at the Middle East Centre, LSE, and author of 'Muted Modernists: The Struggle over Divine Politics in Saudi Arabia'In this elegantly written and meticulously researched new book, Reza Pankhurst tells the previously untold story of Hizb-ut-Tahrir's founding and early development in the West Bank, Jordan, and elsewhere in the Middle East. The book is unprecedented and unparalleled in the new light it sheds on the early years of the party's emergence and evolution, and on a period in the history of 'Islamist' mobilization which is otherwise largely passed over in silence. Pankhurst raises important new questions about the trajectory of Islam as a force in world politics in the latter half of the twentieth century and the first decades of the twenty-first. -- John Sidel, Sir Patrick Gillam Professor of International and Comparative Politics, LSECombining scholarly rigour with engaged Muslim intellectualism, this book offers a comprehensive historical survey of an Islamic movement that continues to confound observers of politics in the Muslim world. As an academic and former member of Hizb-ut-Tahrir, Reza Pankhurst is uniquely positioned to write the history of this intriguing Islamist organisation. Written in the same vein as his earlier exploration of the place of the Caliphate in the Muslim world today, this Untold History of the Liberation Party offers a provocative rereading of an important strand of political Islam. -- Carool Kersten, Senior Lecturer in the Study of Islam and the Muslim World at King’s College London, editor of 'Demystifying the Caliphate' and 'The Caliphate and Islamic Statehood', and author of 'Islam in Indonesia'Reza Pankhurst has written a judicious and engaging account of a much maligned political party. His contribution goes beyond sensationalist headlines and presents us with a serious history of Hizb-ut-Tahrir, helping us to understand how the party has developed and grown in response to the challenges faced by the Muslim Ummah. -- S. Sayyid, author of 'Recalling the Caliphate' and 'A Fundamental Fear'This well-documented, detailed, and readable study fills a gap in knowledge about an important organization. . . . As the author shows, the Liberation Party has recently experienced remarkable growth that has transformed it into a worldwide movement, repressed by authoritarian regimes in most Muslim countries but generally tolerated in the West. Pankhurst had access to important documents and conducted extensive interviews with leaders of the group, notably during brief intervals of relative freedom initiated by the Arab Spring of 2011. Clearly favorable to the organization (of which he was a member) but also demonstrating objective scholarship, he convincingly refutes accusations that it is tied to groups such as Al Qaeda. This will prove valuable to those in various disciplines who deal with Islamist movements and global civil society generally. -- G. E. Perry, Professor Emeritus at Indiana State University
£17.09
Penguin Books Ltd Lower than the Angels
£17.09
Oxford University Press A Just Zionism
Book SynopsisThe legitimacy of the Zionist project--establishing a Jewish homeland in Palestine--has been questioned since its inception. In recent years, the voices challenging the legitimacy of the State of Israel have become even louder. Chaim Gans examines these doubts and presents an in-depth, evenhanded philosophical analysis of the justice of Zionism.Today, alongside a violent Middle East where many refuse to accept Israel''s existence, there are two academically respectable arguments for the injustice of Zionism. One claim is that the very return of the Jews to Palestine was unjust. The second argument is that Zionism is an exclusivist ethnocultural nationalism out of step with current visions of multicultural nationhood. While many therefore claim that Zionism is in principle an unjust political philosophy, Gans seeks out a more nuanced ground to explain why Zionism, despite its manifest flaws, could in principle be just. Its flaws stem from the current situation, where exigencies have disTrade ReviewThere are an awful lot of books dealing with the politics of Israel/Palestine, written mostly in defense of one side or the other. A Just Zionism, however, presents the first systematic philosophical analysis of the Zionist enterprise as a whole, in each of its historical moments and in all its moral/political aspects. The arguments are meticulously developed, and the book is very carefully constructed. Any reader who is caught up, as I am, in the Israel/Palestine debates will find it intellectually engaging. * Michael Walzer, Professor Emeritus, School of Social Science, Institute for Advanced Study, and author of Just and Unjust Wars *Chaim Gans deals with a very tough topic: the moral justification of Zionism. He presents all positions in the best of light. He is passionate when possible and dispassionate when necessary. A discussion on the moral justification of Zionism would look very different and far better if those involved in the debate would take heed of this engaging book. * Avishai Margalit, Professor, School of Historical Studies, Institute for Advanced Study *Table of ContentsPreface and Acknowledgments ; Introduction ; Chapter 1: Zionism as an Ethno-cultural Nationalism ; Chapter 2: The Jewish Return to the Historical Homeland ; Chapter 3: A Jewish State - Self-Determination and Hegemony ; Chapter 4: Dividing up the Historical Homeland ; Chapter 5: Jewish Hegemony in Immigration and Other Domains ; Conclusion ; Notes ; Index
£38.24
Oxford University Press Islam Secularism and Liberal Democracy
Book SynopsisIslam''s relationship to liberal-democratic politics has emerged as one of the most pressing and contentious issues in international affairs. In Islam, Secularism, and Liberal Democracy, Nader Hashemi challenges the widely held belief among social scientists that religious politics and liberal-democratic development are structurally incompatible. This book argues for a rethinking of democratic theory so that it incorporates the variable of religion in the development of liberal democracy. In the process, it proves that an indigenous theory of Muslim secularism is not only possible, but is a necessary requirement for the advancement of liberal democracy in Muslim societies.Table of ContentsIntroduction ; Chapter 1. Toward a Democratic Theory for Muslim Societies: The Historical Background ; Chapter 2. Dueling Scriptures: The Political Theology of John Locke and the Democratization of Muslim Societies ; Chapter 3. A Concise Anatomy of Secularism: Examining Its Linkages to Liberal Democracy ; Chapter 4. Secularism and Its Discontents in Muslim Societies: Indigenizing the Separation between Religion and State ; Conclusion ; Notes ; Bibliography ; Index
£34.19
University of Chicago Press Combating Jihadism
Book SynopsisAlthough terrorism is an age-old phenomenon, jihadist ideology is distinctive in its ambition to destroy the foundations of world order. This title argues that a crucial element in responding to such a threat and winning the war against terror is the hegemon - a powerful state that generates cooperation among states to fight jihad.Trade Review"This is a provocative and important study of contemporary terrorism and counterterrorism; it is, in many ways, the best attempt yet to locate these phenomena within general international-relations theory and the workings of the international system. Mendelsohn not only provides a compelling explanation for variation in the degree of international cooperation against terrorism, but also makes an important contribution to how we theorize the institutions of international society." - Daniel H. Nexon, Georgetown University"
£80.00
The University of Chicago Press Combating Jihadism
Book SynopsisArgues that the distinctiveness of the al Qaeda threat led the international community to change its approach to counterterrorism. This title provides a reinterpretation of the war on terrorism and the role of the United States in leading the fight against al Qaeda and its affiliates.Trade Review"This book is essential reading for international relations scholars on all levels, from the newest undergraduates to more seasoned researchers and professionals, and it should have a place on every library shelf by virtue of the novelty of the argument and approach." (Choice)"
£26.60
Palgrave MacMillan Us The Muslim Brotherhood The Organization and Policies of a Global Islamist Movement Middle East in Focus
Book SynopsisThe Muslim Brotherhood is the oldest and most important international Islamist group. Aside from strong organizations in Egypt, Jordan, Syria—where it provides the main opposition—and its Palestinian offshoot Hamas which rules the Gaza Strip, the Brotherhood has become active in Europe and North America.Trade Review"This is a wide-ranging, pithy, and painstakingly thorough collection, at once gripping and informative. It fills a critical lacuna in Middle East Studies and in the study of Islamist groups in particular, which, although already impressive in the breadth of their literature, remain mostly on the order of hagiographies and eloquent apologetics, more often than not justifying Islamism rather than mining its history and subjecting it to the honest critic s scalpel. Barry Rubin s collection has distinguished itself from the rest quite brilliantly here, supplementing the field with a refreshing dispassionate treatment of the Brotherhoods, and providing specialists, students and the general public with an alternative reading to common platitudes currently dominating the field. What s more, Rubin and the other contributors to this volume did that with alacrity, penetrating attention to detail, scrupulous plumbing of sources, and a pellucid jargon-free style making this collection at once instructive and strikingly accessible." - Franck Salameh, Boston CollegeTable of ContentsComparing Muslim Brotherhoods; B.Rubin The Middle East Yusuf al-Qaradawi: Portrait of the Muslim Brotherhood's Ideological Guide; A.Belén Soage The Muslim Brothers in Egypt; A.Belén Soage & J.Fuentelsaz Franganillo The Muslim Brotherhood in Jordan; H.Escobar The Syrian Muslim Brotherhood; R.Rabil Hamas: The Palestinian Muslim Brotherhood; H.Frisch Europe and the West The Muslim Brotherhood in Europe; L.Vidino The Very Model of a British Muslim Brotherhood; D.Rich The Muslim Brotherhood in France; F.Khosrokhavar The Muslim Brotherhood in Germany; G.Steinberg The Muslim Brotherhood in North America; A.Lapin
£38.24
Columbia University Press Democracy and Islam in Indonesia
Book SynopsisTrade ReviewSpecialists in Indonesia will see the array of experts assembled in this volume and need little persuasion to study its contents. But those interested in democratization, religion and politics, and Islam will find the book equally rich. The authors offer sober and sophisticated analysis in service of fairly sunny conclusions about Indonesia's democratic present and future; they do so in a form that is accessible and very amenable to comparative understandings of the Indonesian experience. -- Nathan J. Brown, George Washington University Democratization literature in political science has few in-depth studies of democratic transitions in Muslim-majority societies. The abundant literature on Islam and politics in Indonesia has largely neglected to compare Indonesia's transition with those in other parts of the world. In this well-written and theoretically engaging volume, Kunkler and Stepan bring together leading figures from political science and Indonesian studies to address both of these intellectual shortcomings. The result is the best volume currently available on the role of Islam and Muslims in Indonesia's democratic transition. This important book should be required reading for specialists of Indonesia and all those interested in how democracy might be constructed in Muslim-majority countries. -- Robert W. Hefner, Institute on Culture, Religion, and World Affairs, Boston UniversityTable of ContentsAcknowledgments List of Abbreviations Chronology Part I. Introduction 1. Indonesian Democratization in Theoretical Perspective by Mirjam Kunkler and Alfred Stepan 2. Indonesian Democracy: From Transition to Consolidation by R. William Liddle and Saiful Mujani Part II. Attitudes: The Development of a Democratic Consensus by Religious and Political Actors 3. How Pluralist Democracy Became the Consensual Discourse Among Secular and Nonsecular Muslims in Indonesia by Mirjam Kunkler 4. Christian and Muslim Minorities in Indonesia: State Policies and Majority Islamic Organizations by Franz Magnis-Suseno Part III. Behaviors: Challenges to the Democratic Transition and State and Their Transcendence 5. Veto Player No More? The Declining Political Influence of the Military in Postauthoritarian Indonesia by Marcus Mietzner 6. Indonesian Government Approaches to Radical Islam Since 1998 by Sidney Jones 7. How Indonesia Survived: Comparative Perspectives on State Disintegration and Democratic Integration by Edward Aspinall Part IV. Constitutionalism: The Role of Law and Legal Pluralism 8. Contours of Sharia in Indonesia by John Bowen 9. Unfinished Business: Law Reform by Tim Lindsey and Simon Butt Glossary Notes Selected Bibliography Contributors Index
£73.60
Columbia University Press Democracy and Islam in Indonesia
Book SynopsisTrade ReviewSpecialists in Indonesia will see the array of experts assembled in this volume and need little persuasion to study its contents. But those interested in democratization, religion and politics, and Islam will find the book equally rich. The authors offer sober and sophisticated analysis in service of fairly sunny conclusions about Indonesia's democratic present and future; they do so in a form that is accessible and very amenable to comparative understandings of the Indonesian experience. -- Nathan J. Brown, George Washington University Democratization literature in political science has few in-depth studies of democratic transitions in Muslim-majority societies. The abundant literature on Islam and politics in Indonesia has largely neglected to compare Indonesia's transition with those in other parts of the world. In this well-written and theoretically engaging volume, Kunkler and Stepan bring together leading figures from political science and Indonesian studies to address both of these intellectual shortcomings. The result is the best volume currently available on the role of Islam and Muslims in Indonesia's democratic transition. This important book should be required reading for specialists of Indonesia and all those interested in how democracy might be constructed in Muslim-majority countries. -- Robert W. Hefner, Institute on Culture, Religion, and World Affairs, Boston UniversityTable of ContentsAcknowledgments List of Abbreviations Chronology Part I. Introduction 1. Indonesian Democratization in Theoretical Perspective by Mirjam Kunkler and Alfred Stepan 2. Indonesian Democracy: From Transition to Consolidation by R. William Liddle and Saiful Mujani Part II. Attitudes: The Development of a Democratic Consensus by Religious and Political Actors 3. How Pluralist Democracy Became the Consensual Discourse Among Secular and Nonsecular Muslims in Indonesia by Mirjam Kunkler 4. Christian and Muslim Minorities in Indonesia: State Policies and Majority Islamic Organizations by Franz Magnis-Suseno Part III. Behaviors: Challenges to the Democratic Transition and State and Their Transcendence 5. Veto Player No More? The Declining Political Influence of the Military in Postauthoritarian Indonesia by Marcus Mietzner 6. Indonesian Government Approaches to Radical Islam Since 1998 by Sidney Jones 7. How Indonesia Survived: Comparative Perspectives on State Disintegration and Democratic Integration by Edward Aspinall Part IV. Constitutionalism: The Role of Law and Legal Pluralism 8. Contours of Sharia in Indonesia by John Bowen 9. Unfinished Business: Law Reform by Tim Lindsey and Simon Butt Glossary Notes Selected Bibliography Contributors Index
£23.80
Columbia University Press Global Alert
Book SynopsisDescribes the motivations that lead to modern Islamist terrorism and the different stages in the execution of a terrorist attack.Trade ReviewAn important addition to the literature on global Islamic terrorism...It is a very well-referenced and argued book...It should be a required reading for all university courses on global Islamic terrorism. Washington Book Review I highly recommend that anyone interested in the subject of combating the plague of terrorism today read Ganor's short but punchy book. Jerusalem Post Global Alert is a must read for national security professionals, political leaders, academics, and any citizens who simply want to better understand the rationale and threat of modern Islamist terrorism. -- Randolph Lake H-WarTable of ContentsAcknowledgments Introduction 1. Introduction to Multidimensional Warfare: Defining Terrorism, Redefining War 2. The Challenges and Dilemmas Faced by Democracies Coping with Modern Islamist Terrorism 3. The Proportionality Dilemma in Countering Terrorism 4. State Involvement in Terrorism 5. The Hybrid Terrorist Organization 6. Is Liberal Democracy the Solution to Terrorism-or Is It Part of the Problem? 7. The Rationale of Modern Islamist Terrorism 8. The Practical Aspects of an Islamist Terrorist Organization's Rationale 9. Understanding the Rationale Behind Different Types of Terrorist Attack 10. The Rationale of the Modern Islamist Terrorist Organization: Hamas as a Case Study 11. Conclusion Notes Selected Bibliography Index
£27.20
Columbia University Press Global Alert
Book SynopsisDescribes the motivations that lead to modern Islamist terrorism and the different stages in the execution of a terrorist attack.Trade ReviewIn Global Alert Boaz Ganor, a true expert in the field of terrorism and counter-terrorism, enlightens readers of the Israeli–Palestinian reality, which he understands flawlessly. This book is a must read for researchers, academics, practitioners, and decision makers, who will find a comprehensive strategic doctrine and operational approach to counter this plague of modern times. -- Judge Jean-Louis Bruguière, former vice president of the Paris Court of Serious ClaimsBoaz Ganor, who has dealt with the phenomenon of Islamic terrorism for more than twenty years and is rightly considered an international authority on the subject, deals with the fundamental issues of radical Islam, clarifies them, and translates them for the Western conceptual world of the twenty-first century. There is no doubt that this book will serve as a significant contribution to a better understanding of the conflict that will accompany human society for many years to come. -- Shabtai Shavit, former director of the MossadA provocative book that will generate discussion. -- Erica Chenoweth, Josef Korbel School of International Studies, University of DenverIn Global Alert Boaz Ganor addresses the fundamental dilemmas that confront the liberal democratic state in combating contemporary terrorist groups. He makes the point that terrorism is not mindless violence. Today’s terrorist leaders think strategically. They have benefited from decades of experience, observing their predecessors, enabling them to create new kinds of organizations and formulate strategies that exploit the disadvantages of the democratic state. Intellectually, states have not kept up, and radical rethinking is in order. Global Alert starts us in a new direction. -- Brian Jenkins, senior adviser to the president of the RAND CorporationWhen it comes to outstanding informed analytical and policy-oriented scholarship on counterterrorism in the context of open societies, the work of Boaz Ganor is plainly and simply inescapable for academics, politicians, security practitioners, and concerned citizens. -- Fernando Reinares, professor of politics and security studies, Universidad Rey Juan Carlos, and senior analyst on international terrorism, Elcano Royal Institute, MadridI highly recommend that anyone interested in the subject of combating the plague of terrorism today read Ganor's short but punchy book. * Jerusalem Post *An important addition to the literature on global Islamic terrorism...It is a very well-referenced and argued book...It should be a required reading for all university courses on global Islamic terrorism. * Washington Book Review *Global Alert is a must read for national security professionals, political leaders, academics, and any citizens who simply want to better understand the rationale and threat of modern Islamist terrorism. -- Randolph Lake * H-War *Ganor’s text is one that will likely invite spirited debate. * Terrorism and Political Violence *Table of ContentsAcknowledgmentsIntroduction1. Introduction to Multidimensional Warfare: Defining Terrorism, Redefining War2. The Challenges and Dilemmas Faced by Democracies Coping with Modern Islamist Terrorism3. The Proportionality Dilemma in Countering Terrorism4. State Involvement in Terrorism5. The Hybrid Terrorist Organization6. Is Liberal Democracy the Solution to Terrorism—or Is It Part of the Problem?7. The Rationale of Modern Islamist Terrorism8. The Practical Aspects of an Islamist Terrorist Organization's Rationale9. Understanding the Rationale Behind Different Types of Terrorist Attack10. The Rationale of the Modern Islamist Terrorist Organization: Hamas as a Case Study11. ConclusionNotesSelected BibliographyIndex
£19.80
Columbia University Press Terror in Transition
Book SynopsisThis book provides a groundbreaking analysis of how religious terrorist groups manage and adapt to major shifts in leadership. It argues that how successors position themselves in terms of the founder shapes a terrorist group’s future course and examines how and why different types of successors choose to pursue incremental or discontinuous change.Trade ReviewMeticulous in its research, Terror in Transition delivers an abundance of new insight into the impact of succession on terrorist entities, delivering on its objective to better “analyze the implications of decapitation.” Focusing on the essence of a leader’s “how” and “why” and its relationship to succession, Terror in Transition also provides CT practitioners with a framework to assess other options for influencing the direction of terrorist entities. -- Gina M. Bennett, author of National Security Mom: Why Going Soft Will Make America StrongTerror in Transition is the definitive study of how terrorist groups manage (or fail to manage) leadership transitions. Bacon and Grimm's analysis helps us understand how and why certain terrorist groups thrive while some split or otherwise cannot manage the transition. Their many insights can help counterterrorist officials exploit transition tensions to weaken extremist groups. -- Daniel Byman, author of Spreading Hate: The Global Rise of White Supremacist TerrorismAn original, systematic, detailed, and rigorous analysis of terrorist leadership and succession. A very compelling study of a major topic. -- Richard English, author of Does Terrorism Work?: A HistoryMeticulous in its research, Terror in Transition delivers an abundance of new insight into the impact of succession on terrorist entities, delivering on its objective to better “analyze the implications of decapitation.” Focusing on the essence of a leader’s “how” and “why” and its relationship to succession, Terror in Transition also provides CT practitioners with a framework to assess other options for influencing the direction of terrorist entities. -- Gina M. Bennett, author of National Security Mom: Why Going Soft Will Make America StrongBacon and Grimm have written an outstanding book, essential reading for anyone seeking to understand terrorist organizations, or leadership of violent groups in general. -- Brian Phillips * Small War Journals *It rewards unpacking owing to its analytic soundness, practical utility and, lamentably, its ongoing relevance. * Survival *An important conceptual and knowledge-based foundation, which will undoubtedly be built on for years to come. * Parameters *Table of ContentsAcknowledgmentsIntroduction1. Literature Review and Research Design2. Founders: Who Is a Founder, What Does He Do, and Who Comes Next?3. The Second Ku Klux Klan: From Founder to Fixer4. Egyptian Islamic Jihad: From Founder to Figureheads, to Fixer, to Visionary5. Al-Qaida in Iraq/the Islamic State of Iraq: From Founder to Signalers6. Al-Shabaab: From Founder to Fixer, to Figurehead7. Pathways and Possibilities: Lessons Learned from the Mini–Case StudiesConclusionAppendix A. Religious Terrorist GroupsAppendix B. Summary of Mini–Case Study DataNotesBibliographyIndex
£84.00
Columbia University Press Terror in Transition
Book SynopsisThis book provides a groundbreaking analysis of how religious terrorist groups manage and adapt to major shifts in leadership. It argues that how successors position themselves in terms of the founder shapes a terrorist group’s future course and examines how and why different types of successors choose to pursue incremental or discontinuous change.Trade ReviewMeticulous in its research, Terror in Transition delivers an abundance of new insight into the impact of succession on terrorist entities, delivering on its objective to better “analyze the implications of decapitation.” Focusing on the essence of a leader’s “how” and “why” and its relationship to succession, Terror in Transition also provides CT practitioners with a framework to assess other options for influencing the direction of terrorist entities. -- Gina M. Bennett, author of National Security Mom: Why Going Soft Will Make America StrongTerror in Transition is the definitive study of how terrorist groups manage (or fail to manage) leadership transitions. Bacon and Grimm's analysis helps us understand how and why certain terrorist groups thrive while some split or otherwise cannot manage the transition. Their many insights can help counterterrorist officials exploit transition tensions to weaken extremist groups. -- Daniel Byman, author of Spreading Hate: The Global Rise of White Supremacist TerrorismAn original, systematic, detailed, and rigorous analysis of terrorist leadership and succession. A very compelling study of a major topic. -- Richard English, author of Does Terrorism Work?: A HistoryMeticulous in its research, Terror in Transition delivers an abundance of new insight into the impact of succession on terrorist entities, delivering on its objective to better “analyze the implications of decapitation.” Focusing on the essence of a leader’s “how” and “why” and its relationship to succession, Terror in Transition also provides CT practitioners with a framework to assess other options for influencing the direction of terrorist entities. -- Gina M. Bennett, author of National Security Mom: Why Going Soft Will Make America StrongBacon and Grimm have written an outstanding book, essential reading for anyone seeking to understand terrorist organizations, or leadership of violent groups in general. -- Brian Phillips * Small War Journals *It rewards unpacking owing to its analytic soundness, practical utility and, lamentably, its ongoing relevance. * Survival *An important conceptual and knowledge-based foundation, which will undoubtedly be built on for years to come. * Parameters *Table of ContentsAcknowledgmentsIntroduction1. Literature Review and Research Design2. Founders: Who Is a Founder, What Does He Do, and Who Comes Next?3. The Second Ku Klux Klan: From Founder to Fixer4. Egyptian Islamic Jihad: From Founder to Figureheads, to Fixer, to Visionary5. Al-Qaida in Iraq/the Islamic State of Iraq: From Founder to Signalers6. Al-Shabaab: From Founder to Fixer, to Figurehead7. Pathways and Possibilities: Lessons Learned from the Mini–Case StudiesConclusionAppendix A. Religious Terrorist GroupsAppendix B. Summary of Mini–Case Study DataNotesBibliographyIndex
£23.80
Indiana University Press The Holocausts Jewish Calendars
Book SynopsisTrade ReviewIn addition to the richness of the calendrical artifacts surveyed, Rosen provides an evidence based argument against the erasure of Jewish time. Applying a fresh integration of historiography and hermeneutics, he forges a path that leads beyond Holocaust time by delving into its devestating details. * the Lehrhaus *The Holocaust's Jewish Calendars offers a major contribution to the understanding of the life Jews had to experience not only as human beings cast into dreadful circumstances, but most sensibly as people trying to survive under inhuman situations, chiefly designed to eradicate their own Jewishness. [Rosen's] book is a major opus to add to the library of any reader. -- Sylvie Anne Goldberg, École des hautes études en sciences sociales, Paris * Slavic Review *Rosen's important and very readable study raises and answers an array of significant questions concerning the concept and meaning of Jewish time as well as the value of a calendar's insistence on normalcy, regularity, and order during the hellishly disordered time of the Shoah. * the arts fuse *Rosen's work is the most comprehensive to date treatment of these precious artifacts of the Holocaust's Jewish efforts to maintain religious observations and identity and should serve scholars and lay people interested in accessing this aspect of Jewish martyrology. * Choice *The Holocaust's Jewish Calendars is a masterpiece that helps us grasp one of the most fundamental traditional modes of spiritual resistance—the tracking of Jewish time in the ghettos, camps and in hiding. * Jewish Action *The book offers a comprehensive overview as well as a detailed insight into everyday Jewish life during the Holocaust as well as into the techniques of survival and the preservation of one's own Jewish identity through the special access to the Jewish time. Rosen illustrates how the victims opposed the destruction of Jewish life when they wrote the Jewish calendar, and thus makes a fundamental contribution to it. -- Christin Zühlke * H-Soz-Kult *The Holocaust's Jewish Calendars is deeply researched, eloquently written, and filled with surprises. Rosen has unearthed a treasure trove of calendrical works, mute survivors to historical calamity. He analyzes each artifact in terms of its materiality, its creator, its calendrical calculations, and its Holocaust setting. By means of the calendars, Rosen explores philosophically the meaning of tracking time under such extreme conditions. The Holocaust's Jewish Calendars is an original and profound contribution to the study of Jewish culture during the Holocaust. -- Elisheva Carlebach * Journal of Modern History *Table of ContentsPrefaceAcknowledgmentsIntroductionPart I: Time at the End of a Jewish CenturyPart II: Tracking Time in the New Jewish Century: Calendars in Wartime GhettosPart III: Concentration Camps, Endless Time, and Jewish TimePart IV: While in Hiding: Calendar Consciousness on the Edge of DestructionPart V: At the Top of the Page: Calendar Dates in Holocaust DiariesPart VI: The Holocaust as a Revolution in Jewish Time: The Lubavitcher Rebbes' Wartime Calendar BookEpilogueAppendix 1: Inventory of Wartime Jewish CalendarsAppendix 2: Months of the Jewish Calendar Year, with Their Holidays and Fast DaysAppendix 3: English-Language Rendering of Rabbi Scheiner CalendarGlossarySelective BibliographyIndex
£59.40
Indiana University Press The Holocausts Jewish Calendars
Book SynopsisTrade ReviewIn addition to the richness of the calendrical artifacts surveyed, Rosen provides an evidence based argument against the erasure of Jewish time. Applying a fresh integration of historiography and hermeneutics, he forges a path that leads beyond Holocaust time by delving into its devestating details. * the Lehrhaus *The Holocaust's Jewish Calendars offers a major contribution to the understanding of the life Jews had to experience not only as human beings cast into dreadful circumstances, but most sensibly as people trying to survive under inhuman situations, chiefly designed to eradicate their own Jewishness. [Rosen's] book is a major opus to add to the library of any reader. -- Sylvie Anne Goldberg, École des hautes études en sciences sociales, Paris * Slavic Review *Rosen's important and very readable study raises and answers an array of significant questions concerning the concept and meaning of Jewish time as well as the value of a calendar's insistence on normalcy, regularity, and order during the hellishly disordered time of the Shoah. * the arts fuse *Rosen's work is the most comprehensive to date treatment of these precious artifacts of the Holocaust's Jewish efforts to maintain religious observations and identity and should serve scholars and lay people interested in accessing this aspect of Jewish martyrology. * Choice *The Holocaust's Jewish Calendars is a masterpiece that helps us grasp one of the most fundamental traditional modes of spiritual resistance—the tracking of Jewish time in the ghettos, camps and in hiding. * Jewish Action *The book offers a comprehensive overview as well as a detailed insight into everyday Jewish life during the Holocaust as well as into the techniques of survival and the preservation of one's own Jewish identity through the special access to the Jewish time. Rosen illustrates how the victims opposed the destruction of Jewish life when they wrote the Jewish calendar, and thus makes a fundamental contribution to it. -- Christin Zühlke * H-Soz-Kult *The Holocaust's Jewish Calendars is deeply researched, eloquently written, and filled with surprises. Rosen has unearthed a treasure trove of calendrical works, mute survivors to historical calamity. He analyzes each artifact in terms of its materiality, its creator, its calendrical calculations, and its Holocaust setting. By means of the calendars, Rosen explores philosophically the meaning of tracking time under such extreme conditions. The Holocaust's Jewish Calendars is an original and profound contribution to the study of Jewish culture during the Holocaust. -- Elisheva Carlebach * Journal of Modern History *Table of ContentsPrefaceAcknowledgmentsIntroductionPart I: Time at the End of a Jewish CenturyPart II: Tracking Time in the New Jewish Century: Calendars in Wartime GhettosPart III: Concentration Camps, Endless Time, and Jewish TimePart IV: While in Hiding: Calendar Consciousness on the Edge of DestructionPart V: At the Top of the Page: Calendar Dates in Holocaust DiariesPart VI: The Holocaust as a Revolution in Jewish Time: The Lubavitcher Rebbes' Wartime Calendar BookEpilogueAppendix 1: Inventory of Wartime Jewish CalendarsAppendix 2: Months of the Jewish Calendar Year, with Their Holidays and Fast DaysAppendix 3: English-Language Rendering of Rabbi Scheiner CalendarGlossarySelective BibliographyIndex
£25.19
Yale University Press The Master Plan ISIS Al Qaeda and the Jihadi
Book SynopsisAn incisive narrative history of the Islamic State, from the 2005 master plan to reestablish the Caliphate to its quest for Final Victory in 2020Trade Review"Brian Fishman’s The Master Plan provides a comprehensive history of the Islamic State’s strategic evolution, covering the personalities and events that shaped one of the most feared terroristinsurgent groups that has ever existed. Eminently readable, in places even amusing — no small feat in a book about IS — Fishman flips with ease between the overview and the granular to demonstrate his points, using new sources that will allow as much supplementary research as a reader could wish for, and ties it together in a narrative that will be of use to both specialists and generalists."—Kyle Orton, Fathom"The definitive history of the Islamic State—told by one of a handful of experts who studied the group long before it became what it is today.”—Peter Neumann, King’s College London"With its original and powerful analysis, The Master Plan should be required reading for anyone attempting to understand both ISIS and al-Qaeda and the implications for contemporary global security."—Bruce Hoffman, Georgetown University"For too many years, the United States and its allies have failed to understand the ideological drive of the people who lead ISIS. Brian Fishman tells us who they are, what they think and where they hope to be headed. His work needs to be read by policy makers and average citizens alike."—General John P. Abizaid, U.S. Army (Ret.), former commander, U.S. Central Command"Brian Fishman's Master Plan is a deeply researched account of ISIS' rise to prominence from its obscure roots in pre-9/11 Afghanistan. Fishman masterfully elucidates the organization's history, tactics and strategy."—Peter Bergen, author of United States of Jihad
£30.88
WW Norton & Co Your Fatwa Does Not Apply Here
Book SynopsisEye-opening accounts of heroic resistance to religious extremism.Trade Review"A powerful and captivating tribute to those brave women and men who have stood up to fundamentalist violence in their own countries from Afghanistan to Mali, this book will hopefully inspire a new and improved international human rights response." -- Mary Robinson, former president of Ireland, former United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights"This work redefines courage in a humbling dimension. Bennoune’s meticulous testament serves as a warning to the complacent and rebukes ‘politically correct’ posturing that makes excuses for the inexcusable and canvasses tolerance for the intolerable." -- Wole Soyinka, winner of the 1986 Nobel Prize for Literature"Courageous and passionate, illuminating the confiscated lives of secularists, religious minorities, and Muslims alike. Yet what is striking is not their victimhood but their resilience and resistance—that is where hope lies." -- Azar Nafisi, author of Reading Lolita in Tehran"For too long, these types of voices, those Muslims who stand for individual freedom, debate, creativity, and compassion, have been ignored. But if we are ever to defeat the extremists, the counter narratives they provide to the distorted version of Islam need to be heard loud and clear." -- Ali Soufan, author of The Black Banners"Bennoune, and those she profiles, bravely meets the tide of extremism with a sense of shared community and nonviolent purpose." -- Kirkus Reviews"Starred review. Her interviews sear with passion as her subjects deconstruct false views of Islam and inaccurate readings of the Qur’an. Again and again, Bennoune shines a spotlight on those who battle with intelligence and creativity against guns and bloodlust. She has created a significant and compelling record of modern life in which she spares no one, from the right wing to the left." -- Booklist"A fascinating and often heartbreaking read… Bennoune’s writing is crisp and conversational, and she possesses a deft sense of how to clearly deconstruct the most ingrained American arguments about violence in the name of Islam." -- Lorraine Ali - Los Angeles Times"A compelling, meticulously researched account of the legions of Muslims whose struggles against fundamentalist violence are almost never reported in our media…. Required reading." -- Rachel Newcomb - Washington Post
£19.79
The University of Michigan Press Visualizing Secularism and Religion
Book Synopsis
£76.95
The University of Michigan Press Scriptures Shrines Scapegoats and World Politics
Book SynopsisOffers a comprehensive evaluation of the role of religion in international relations, broadening the scope of investigation to such topics as the relationship between religion and cooperation, religion and conflict, and the relationship between religion and the quality of life.Trade ReviewThis is an important book. The book's contribution lies particularly in its sophisticated and comprehensive conceptualization and measurement of religious demographics." —Isak Svensson, Uppsala University
£57.90
Harvard University Press Liberalisms Religion
Book SynopsisCécile Laborde argues that religion is more than a statement of belief or a moral code. It refers to comprehensive ways of life, theories of justice, modes of association, and vulnerable collective identities. By disaggregating these dimensions, she addresses questions about whether Western secularism and religion can be applied more universally.Trade ReviewThe standard story that liberalism has told about religion since the Enlightenment is that they are sibling rivals—frères ennemis—battling each other for control of the modern world… The standard account…is not wrong, Cécile Laborde argues in Liberalism’s Religion, her important and illuminating…book, but it needs substantial revision. -- Michael Ignatieff * New York Review of Books *It’s a major contribution to its field, likely to displace a lot of other texts from reading lists. It will command attention from political theorists, philosophers, and legal scholars for years to come. -- Bernard G. Prusak * Commonweal *Liberalism’s Religion is a paradigm-shifting book and an exemplary academic achievement…Given its unquestionable status as a landmark contribution to the field, it is not unreasonable to suggest that this book will become a fundamental reference point for the foreseeable future…By demystifying the concept of religion, Laborde gives liberalism an opportunity for self-reflection and renews the possibility of taking on the challenges facing contemporary plural societies with a sharper focus. -- Eugenio Velasco Ibarra * Oxford Journal of Law and Religion *Cécile Laborde [shows],…against secular fundamentalism, that the state can, without ceasing to be liberal and losing its legitimacy, use religious ideas to justify its actions far beyond what existing theories of liberal neutrality suggest. But, without any contradiction, she also shows that religious freedom extends beyond the boundary that some impenitent secularists would like to set for it. -- Jean-Fabien Spitz * La Vie des Idées *A powerful, original, and nuanced book. The implications of Cécile Laborde’s views will have a wide impact for a long time to come. -- Corey Brettschneider, Brown UniversityThe question of the proper place of religion in liberal societies proves to be a perennial problem. In this masterpiece, Cécile Laborde, one of the most powerful political theorists of our time, addresses the many aspects of this question in a most thorough and original way. Her arguments for the disaggregation of religion and for ‘minimal secularism’ open up new perspectives of thought and practice. -- Rainer Forst, Goethe-University FrankfurtLiberalism’s Religion is a major contribution to a crowded field, offering a distinctive and powerful approach to the familiar problem of the relationship between religion and state. Professor Laborde also offers a shrewd critical map of the intellectual territory. The book is more than an application of liberal political philosophy to religion. It deepens our understanding of liberalism itself. -- Andrew M. Koppelman, Northwestern UniversityA major theoretical accomplishment, one that ought to shape theoretical analysis of religion and politics by liberal egalitarian, democratic, and critical theorists long into the future. * Political Theory *An elegant philosophical exercise of rigorous conceptual analysis, erudite discussion, and challenging normative engagement with the conceptualization of ‘religion’ as an object of concern for liberal political philosophers. * Ethics *Splendid…Should receive attention from anyone interested in liberal democracy or in the place of religion within modern secularized societies. Laborde has thought deeply and subtly about the problems which she ponders, and her contemplation has paid off in the form of a truly fine book. * Modern Law Review *[An] outstanding contribution to debates about religion in political philosophy and [an] excellent window for moral and political theologians on the most advanced liberal thinking on the subject. * Studies in Christian Ethics *Will have a significant share in shaping future debates in liberal political theory. In addition to masterfully addressing and reinvigorating an impressive range of discussions about liberalism and religion, its treatment of liberal neutrality and secularism expands the scope for imagining a liberal democratic future for religious societies. -- Karim Sadek * Ethical Theory and Moral Practice *
£28.86
Princeton University Press Islam in Pakistan
Book SynopsisTrade Review"A Choice Outstanding Academic Title of the Year""Zaman’s excellent study will remain indispensable to any student who seeks to understand Islam in Pakistan, while the methodologies, themes, and archives to which it does not attend invite scholars to build on this insightful monograph."---Ali Altaf Mian, Reading Religion"Thematically organized, deeply detailed, urgently relevant history of leading figures, groups and movements. . . . No other book offers a guide to ways in which the meaning and significance of Islam have been understood by proponents in South Asia. Essential."---G.R. Thursby, Choice Reviews"This is a wonderfully balanced treatment of Islam in Pakistan, which throughout respects nuance and complexity."---Francis Robinson, Times Literary Supplement"Zaman’s extensive survey of the kaleidoscopic range of Islamic movements and groups discerns and dissects dominant trends in Islamic discourses over the last seven decades."---Ali Usman Qasmi, Herald"This book is not meant to be read. It is meant to be studied. Encyclopedic in scope, subtle in analysis, Islam in Pakistan attempts to define a unique strand of Islam that the author calls ‘modernism,’ tracing its genealogy and relation to the corridors of political power."---Mahan Mirza, Maydan"A wonderfully balanced treatment of Islam in Pakistan, which throughout respects nuance and complexity . . . rooted in a deep knowledge of the writings of modernists, ulama and Islamists."---Francis Robinson, Times Literary Supplement"A rich intellectual history. . . . This work will immediately be established as essential reading for all specialists."---Justin Jones, H-Net Reviews"A landmark publication in the fields of religious studies, modern Islam, South Asian Islam, and by far the most important and monumental contribution to date in the study of Islam in Pakistan."---Sherali Tareen, Islamic Studies
£42.50
Princeton University Press Out of Many Faiths
Book SynopsisTrade Review"Building on his prowess as an interfaith pioneer in American colleges, Patel offers a vision of pluralism that aims to guard against religious preference and particularism, advances everyday ethics, and invites Americans of many religious persuasions into civic participation. . . . Readers will be rewarded with Patel’s rich perspective on religious diversity in America as he champions the strength of its civic identity and the possibility of religious pluralism in the years to come." * Publishers Weekly, starred review *"Patel provides a thoughtful and passionate response to contemporary social and civic ills grounded in his experience as a Muslim American. . . . For a compelling portrait of pluralistic optimism in the early decades of the twenty-first century, sociologists of religion in America could ask for no better primary source."---Elizabeth Dolfi, Sociology of Religion"Patel portrays civil religion as a potluck supper where the food on the table diversifies and palate widens as demographics change but lately from the countryside to the inner city, the unchanging inventory of food items placed on top of grocery store shelves and behind a fast food restaurant counters feeds Americans."---Sher Afgan Tareen, Politics, Religion, & Ideology
£19.80
Princeton University Press Sunnis and Shia
Book SynopsisTrade Review"For the dedicated regional student who wants to examine the politics of the current conflicts in the region it provides a wealth of insight."---Jerry Lenaburg, New York Journal of Books"Captures the complexities, and in fact pulls the reader away from the usual tired dichotomy."---Tyler Cowen, Marginal Revolution"To open the book is to appreciate the extent of the challenges in trying to understand the Islamic world and how it has drawn in the great global players, often at great cost to both. . . . Sunnis and Shi'a is an important book."---Barclay McBain, The Herald"In terms of a superb and scholarly overview of Islamic history as articulated by the Sunnī and theShī‘a, Louër’s book. . . .is a tour de force, and as such should be compulsory reading for students of Islamic history, whether Sunnīor Shī‘ī."---Christopher Clohessy, Islamochristiana"This richly informative study is a very useful aid to understanding the faith dynamics across Middle East today"---Rev. Brian Cooper, The Gandhi Way
£21.25
Princeton University Press Out of Many Faiths
Book SynopsisTrade Review"One of America’s deepest thinkers on religion and the human condition."—U.S. News & World Report"Readers will be rewarded with Patel’s rich perspective on religious diversity in America."—Publishers Weekly"Patel makes a gloriously unapologetic case for such old-fashioned American values as empathetic citizenship and religious pluralism."—Stephen Prothero, author of God Is Not One"With this book, we experience the sweep of Patel’s intellect and perspective."—Krista Tippett, founder and CEO of the On Being Project"Patel is the best of what this country makes: a person of faith with a heart as big as his mind."—Ayad Akhtar, Pulitzer Prize–winning author of Disgraced
£14.24
Princeton University Press Sunnis and Shia
Book SynopsisTrade Review"For the dedicated regional student who wants to examine the politics of the current conflicts in the region it provides a wealth of insight."---Jerry Lenaburg, New York Journal of Books"Captures the complexities, and in fact pulls the reader away from the usual tired dichotomy."---Tyler Cowen, Marginal Revolution"To open the book is to appreciate the extent of the challenges in trying to understand the Islamic world and how it has drawn in the great global players, often at great cost to both. . . . Sunnis and Shi'a is an important book."---Barclay McBain, The Herald"In terms of a superb and scholarly overview of Islamic history as articulated by the Sunnī and theShī‘a, Louër’s book. . . .is a tour de force, and as such should be compulsory reading for students of Islamic history, whether Sunnīor Shī‘ī."---Christopher Clohessy, Islamochristiana"This richly informative study is a very useful aid to understanding the faith dynamics across Middle East today"---Rev. Brian Cooper, The Gandhi Way
£18.00
Pluto Press Islamic State Rewriting History
Book SynopsisA fast-paced, narrative-driven account of the rise of Islamic State, based on thorough researchTrade ReviewPraise for previous books:'Filled with the dramatic moments, ironies and political intrigues that colour the Taliban's rise ... Griffin writes engagingly' -- The New York Times Book Review'Michael Griffin has reached a better understanding of the Taliban in his book than I have come across anywhere else' -- John Simpson, BBC'Recommended' -- CHOICE'Engaging and succinct' -- Middle East JournalTable of ContentsList of Acronyms/Abbreviations Timeline Preface 1. The Great Escape 2. Zarqawi’s War 3. The First Caliph 4. Clear, Hold and Build 5. The Successions 6. Springtime for Qatar 7. The Road to Damascus 8. Prince Bandar’s Last Adventure 9. Knights of the Silencers 10. Treasure of Babisqa 11. Chain of Custody 12. Game of Thrones 13. Paradise Square 14. Birth of a Nation 15. Twitter Caliphate 16. Call of Duty 17. Inside the Whale 18. Euphrates Volcano Postscript: Saddam’s Ghost Notes Index
£68.00
Pluto Press Why Turkey is Authoritarian From Atat252rk to
Book SynopsisA radical history of Turkey, from the end of the Ottoman Empire to the present day, rejecting traditional narratives of a 'clash of civilisations'Trade Review'Wrests us out of the stale narratives of Islam vs. secularism, offering a new way of understanding one of the most important questions in Turkey today: why despite so much democratic promise, its fundamental political structure returns to authoritarianism again and again' -- Suzy Hansen, author of Notes on a Foreign Country (Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2017)'Informative and authoritative Karaveli's analysis of Turkish politics should be required reading for anyone who wants to understand Turkey's relentless retreat from democracy' -- Ronald Grigor Suny, William H. Sewell Jr. Distinguished University Professor of History, The University of Michigan, and author of 'They Can Live in the Desert But Nowhere Else': A History of the Armenian Genocide (Princeton, 2015)Table of ContentsSeries Preface Timeline List of Illustrations Introduction 1. A Pattern of Violence 2. Kemalism and the Left 3. Capitalist Foundation 4. How the Right Won the People 5. Social Democratic Hope 6. Vengeance of the Right 7. The Rise of the Islamists Epilogue: Class, Identity and Democracy Afterword: Attacking the Kurds - The 'Return' of Kemalism Notes Bibliography Index
£16.99
Pluto Press Why Turkey is Authoritarian
Book SynopsisA radical history of Turkey, from the end of the Ottoman Empire to the present day, rejecting traditional narratives of a 'clash of civilisations'Trade Review'Wrests us out of the stale narratives of Islam vs. secularism, offering a new way of understanding one of the most important questions in Turkey today: why despite so much democratic promise, its fundamental political structure returns to authoritarianism again and again' -- Suzy Hansen, author of Notes on a Foreign Country (Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2017)'Informative and authoritative Karaveli's analysis of Turkish politics should be required reading for anyone who wants to understand Turkey's relentless retreat from democracy' -- Ronald Grigor Suny, William H. Sewell Jr. Distinguished University Professor of History, The University of Michigan, and author of 'They Can Live in the Desert But Nowhere Else': A History of the Armenian Genocide (Princeton, 2015)Table of ContentsSeries Preface Timeline List of Illustrations Introduction 1. A Pattern of Violence 2. Kemalism and the Left 3. Capitalist Foundation 4. How the Right Won the People 5. Social Democratic Hope 6. Vengeance of the Right 7. The Rise of the Islamists Epilogue: Class, Identity and Democracy Afterword: Attacking the Kurds - The 'Return' of Kemalism Notes Bibliography Index
£68.00
Pluto Press Faith and Resistance
Book SynopsisHow is decolonial resistance evolving in Lebanon and the Middle East?Trade Review'This is a brilliant, erudite and welcome addition to the growing body of work on Islamic liberation theology and decoloniality. -- Farid Esack, Professor in the Study of Islam, University of JohannesburgTable of ContentsList of Illustrations Preface Acknowledgements 1. Introduction 2. The Rise of Religious Activism in Lebanon and Beyond 3. Deconstructing Terrorism and Resistance 4. Lebanon’s Resistance Charities 5. The Imam Al-Sadr Foundation 6. The Problem of Resistance and Power Conclusion Notes References Index
£25.19
Pluto Press Faith and Resistance
Book SynopsisHow is decolonial resistance evolving in Lebanon and the Middle East?Trade Review'This is a brilliant, erudite and welcome addition to the growing body of work on Islamic liberation theology and decoloniality. -- Farid Esack, Professor in the Study of Islam, University of JohannesburgTable of ContentsList of Illustrations Preface Acknowledgements 1. Introduction 2. The Rise of Religious Activism in Lebanon and Beyond 3. Deconstructing Terrorism and Resistance 4. Lebanon’s Resistance Charities 5. The Imam Al-Sadr Foundation 6. The Problem of Resistance and Power Conclusion Notes References Index
£68.00
Ebury Publishing Radical
Book SynopsisBorn and raised in Essex, Maajid Nawaz was recruited into politicised Islam as a teenager. Abandoning his love of hip hop music, graffiti and girls, he was recruited into Hizb ut-Tahrir (the Liberation Party) where he played a leading and international role in the shaping and dissemination of an aggressive anti-West narrative. While studying for his Arabic and law degree, he travelled around the UK and to Denmark and Pakistan, setting up new cells.Arriving in Egypt the day before 9/11 his views soon led to his arrest, imprisonment and mental torture, before being thrown into solitary confinement in a Cairo jail reserved for political prisoners. There, while mixing with everyone from the assassins of Egypt''s president to Liberal reformists, he underwent an intellectual transformation and on his release after four years, he publically renounced the Islamist ideology that had defined his life. This move would cost him his marriage, his family and his friends as well as his own personal security.Six years after his release, Maajid now works all over the world to counter Islamism and to promote democratic ideals through his organisation, The Quilliam Foundation, which he co-founded with former Islamist and bestselling author Ed Husain.Following in the wake of the extraordinary democratic change in the Arab world, that few would have foretold, Radical is Maajid''s intensely personal account of life inside and out of Islamic extremism. It also highlights one man''s quest to inspire change and challenge extremism in all its forms.This is a hard-hitting memoir of one man''s journey into and out of Islamic extremism.Trade ReviewThis is a book for our times. It should be read by anyone who wants to understand how the extremism that stalks our world is created and how it can be overcome. It could only be written by someone who has lived this story. And Maajid has * Tony Blair *This book is more powerful than America's drone attacks because it helps kill the ideas that inspire terrorists. Ultimately, it is by defeating the extremists' worldview that we will make our world safer. Maajid's compelling story from hatred to hope shows us how this can be done * Ed Husain, author of The Islamist *Maajid Nawaz was thirty years my junior when I first encountered him in the Torah Prison. His story saddened but inspired me. His innocence and idealism sharply contrasted with the corruption and despotism of his captors. Through Maajid my faith was renewed that a spring of freedom was bound to happen eventually, and so it did * Dr Saad El-Dine Ibrahim, Egyptian liberal reform pioneer and former political prisoner *This book is the account of a redemptive journey – through innocence, bigotry, hardline radicalism and beyond – to a passionate advocacy of human rights and all that this can mean ... I was moved beyond measure * Kate Allen, Director, Amnesty International UK *Imagine Homeland crossed with Skins, and you will get some idea of what a gripping, revelatory book this is. Unputdownable * Tom Holland *
£13.49
Bloomsbury Publishing PLC A History of the Tajiks
Book SynopsisRichard Foltz is Professor of Religions and Cultures at Concordia University, Canada.Trade Review‘This engagingly written, excellent new history of the Tajik people is an outstanding achievement’. * Rustam Shukurov, Professor of History, Moscow State University, Russia *"an informative introduction to an important subject that has been ill-served both in history and in scholarship" * Daniel Beben, Central Asian Survey *Table of ContentsList of Illustrations Preface Preface to the second edition Acknowledgments Historical Timeline A Note on Transliteration Introduction: Who are the Tajiks? 1 The Prehistory of Central Asia 2 Sogdians and Bactrians 3 The Samanid Empire and the New Persian Renaissance 4 Tajiks and Turks 5 The Soviet Period 6 The Republic of Tajikistan 7 Tajiks in Uzbekistan Excursus: Afghanistan at a Stone’s Throw Conclusion: Differing Contexts, Manifold Challenges Notes Bibliography Index
£23.39
John Wiley & Sons Mirror for the Muslim Prince
Book SynopsisMoves beyond the fashionable yet cursory understanding of Muslims' beliefs regarding power and statecraft. By assembling a group of world class scholars, this book challenges a host of exalted assumptions and theories concerning political power in the muslim world.
£37.76
University of Alabama Press Hunt the Devil A Demonology of US War Culture
Book Synopsis
£38.66
Saqi Books The Battle for British Islam Reclaiming Muslim
Book SynopsisLong-standing, award-winning Muslim human rights campaigner Sara Khan courageously takes on the extremists within her faith whose ideology has made it easier for terrorists to recruit young Britons. This important and timely book will be a major news story this autumn.Trade Review'Sara Khan is a fearless and principled voice in the struggle for the soul of Islam. Everyone who cares about combatting prejudice should read her, befriend her and fight alongside her.' Nick Cohen; 'An important book from a tireless campaigner' Mishal Husain; 'This is an important book full of compelling, disturbing and inspirational material, required reading to understand what is happening in our midst and what we can do about it.' Sunday Times; 'Deserves a wide audience.' Mail on Sunday; 'A fascinating book [by] one of the UK's most influential counter-extremism voices.' Dermot Murnaghan, Sky News; 'An impresive book. [This book] deftly examines the roots and growth of Muslim extremism in the UK and would have been invaluable for that alone. But it stands for something more. It is a powerful cri de coeur. British society, Khan urges, must stand with reforming Muslims otherwise "extremists are the ones who will be left to define British Islam".' TLSTable of ContentsAcknowledgements 9; A Note on Terms 11;Introduction 15; 1. Race to your Caliphate: The Rise of Islamist Extremism 25; 2. British Salafists and Islamists: The Growing Convergence 51; 3. The Islamist-Led Assault on Prevent 87; 4. Identity Politics: Islamism and the Ultra Left, the Far Right and Feminists 119; 5. Voices from the Frontline 151; Conclusion: Winning the Battle against Extremism 175; About the Authors 197; Notes 199; Bibliography 235; Index 243
£12.74
Cambridge University Press Democracy or Authoritarianism
Book SynopsisTracing the evolution of Islamist political parties and their rise to power in Turkey, Egypt and Tunisia, Sebnem Gumuscu explains why some remained committed to democracy while others took an authoritarian turn. Drawing on extensive fieldwork in three countries, Gumuscu considers the impact of party affairs on incumbents' democratic commitments.
£28.49
Cambridge University Press Who Is a True Christian
Book SynopsisPart intellectual history and part nuanced argument for change,this book explores how and why the question of what defines Christianity has become so vexing over the past century, and how believers could think differently about it in the future.
£28.50
Cambridge University Press Hobbes and the Artifice of Eternity
Book SynopsisThomas Hobbes argues that the fear of violent death is the most reliable passion on which to found political society. His role in shaping the contemporary view of religion and honor in the West is pivotal, yet his ideas are famously riddled with contradictions. In this breakthrough study, McClure finds evidence that Hobbes' apparent inconsistencies are intentional, part of a sophisticated rhetorical strategy meant to make man more afraid of death than he naturally is. Hobbes subtly undermined two of the most powerful manifestations of man's desire for immortality: the religious belief in an afterlife and the secular desire for eternal fame through honor. McClure argues that Hobbes purposefully stirred up controversy, provoking his adversaries into attacking him and unwittingly spreading his message. This study will appeal to scholars of Hobbes, political theorists, historians of early modern political thought and anyone interested in the genesis of modern Western attitudes toward mortaTable of Contents1. The desire for immortality as a political problem; 2. The effectual truth of Hobbes's rhetoric; 3. Leviathan as a scientific work of art; 4. The hollow religion of Leviathan; 5. Hell and anxiety in Hobbes's Leviathan; 6. War, madness and death: the paradox of honor in Hobbes's Leviathan; 7. Self-interest rightly understood in Behemoth: the case of General Monck; 8. The afterlife and immortality.
£75.59
Cambridge University Press Messianic Religious Zionism Confronts Israeli Territorial Compromises
Book SynopsisThe book discusses the ways in which the rabbinical elite of the Israeli West Bank settlers responded to Israeli territorial compromises.Trade Review'Motti Inbari's book is an insightful introduction into Messianic Religious Zionists' (MRZ) evolving worldviews as they relate to political negotiations over land compromises. Inbari is particularly insightful in his discussion of the changes in approach since the Oslo period in the 1990s … [he] effectively synthesizes significant secondary sources with available primary sources to provide a stimulating and much-needed analysis of the changing attitudes of MRZ rabbis and followers toward violent responses to territorial compromises.' H-Judaic'An extremely valuable book that should be read by anyone interested in the role of religious Zionism in Israel.' Politics, Religion and IdeologyTable of Contents1. Zionist perceptions in the thought of Rabbi Zvi Yehuda Kook and the roots of Gush Emunim; 2. Gush Emunim and the Israeli-Egyptian peace agreement; 3. The statist approach confronted with the Oslo Accords; 4. 'Hearing a baby's cry': political reality and messianic retreat in the thought of Rabbi Yehuda Amital; 5. Post-Zionism in the religious-Zionist camp: the 'Jewish leadership' movement; 6. Fundamentalism in crisis: the response of messianic religious Zionism to the theological dilemmas raised by Israel's disengagement plan; 7. The position of the messianic religious Zionist rabbis to political violence and incitement; 8. The American fundamentalist response to 'land for peace' solutions.
£34.12
Cambridge University Press Religion and Authoritarianism
Book SynopsisThis book provides a rare window into the micropolitics of contemporary authoritarian rule through a comparison of religious-state relations in Russia and China - two countries with long histories of religious repression, and even longer experiences with authoritarian politics. Drawing on extensive fieldwork in multiple sites in these countries, this book explores what religious and political authority want from one another, how they negotiate the terms of their relationship, and how cooperative or conflicting their interactions are. This comparison reveals that while tensions exist between the two sides, there is also ample room for mutually beneficial interaction. Religious communities and their authoritarian overseers are cooperating around the core issue of politics - namely, the struggle for money, power and prestige - and becoming unexpected allies in the process.Trade Review'Professor Koesel's book is not only an important primer for understanding the role of religion in autocratic societies and how dictators control the faithful, it also provides us with a new view of the interaction between civil society and authoritarianism. This work deserves to be read as part of the general canon in comparative political science.' Tony Gill, University of Washington, author of The Political Origins of Religious Liberty (Cambridge, 2007)'Based on more than two years of field work in China and Russia, this book offers an illuminating account of one of the most remarkable phenomena of the post-Cold War era: the religious revival sweeping the Communist and post-Communist worlds. Koesel rejects a simplistic portrait of repression and resistance in favour of a complex, multilevel pattern of collaboration and reciprocity between state authorities and religious adherents. Her fascinating findings speak not only to area specialists and social scientists of religion, but to those interested in the comparative study of authoritarianism more broadly.' Elizabeth J. Perry, Henry Rosovsky Professor of Government, Harvard University'This book makes an important contribution to the literature on religious freedom. Based on more than two years of field research on China and Russia, Koesel describes the ways in which leaders of religious institutions often negotiate shared interests with representatives of authoritarian governments, especially at the local level. Her comparative focus and rich theoretical argumentation make this an important book for anyone interested in the civic role of religion.' Donald E., Director, Center for Religion and Civic Culture, University of Southern California'Koesel's comparative analysis is rich and persuasive, demonstrating one can theorize about cooperation beyond a single authoritarian case study. While regime type influences religious actors' likelihood of cooperating with autocrats, it does not determine whether local states cooperate with religious organizations. Koesel's findings also suggest incentives leading to cooperation cut across religions. … Koesel's book is a must read for scholars of comparative authoritarianism, the sociology of religion, and Chinese politics and society.' Marie-Eve Reny, Journal of Chinese Political ScienceTable of Contents1. Introduction: the politics of religion; 2. Religion and state games; 3. Regulating the religious marketplace; 4. The political economy of religious revival; 5. The politics of faith, power, and prestige; 6. Conclusion: cooperation, conflict, and the consequences.
£20.69
Cambridge University Press Politics Law and Community in Islamic Thought The
Book SynopsisThis revisionist account of the history of Islamic political thought from the early to the late medieval period focuses on Ibn Taymiyya, one of the most brilliant theologians of his day. This original study demonstrates how his influence shed new light on the entire trajectory of Islamic political thought. Although he did not reject the Caliphate ideal, as is commonly believed, he nevertheless radically redefined it by turning it into a rational political institution intended to serve the community (umma). Through creative reinterpretation, he deployed the Qur'anic concept of fitra (divinely endowed human nature) to centre the community of believers and its common-sense reading of revelation as the highest epistemic authority. In this way, he subverted the elitism that had become ensconced in classical theological, legal and spiritual doctrines, and tried to revive the ethico-political, rather than strictly legal, dimension of Islam. In reassessing Ibn Taymiyya's work, this book marks Trade Review"Like all others, Islam’s is a storied tradition. And the manner in which one generation receives or understands its storied legacy can engender mutations that seemingly determine the substance and range of possibilities handed down to posterity. At a time when scholars of Islamic law are inviting us to close the book on Islam’s preparedness to meet contemporary political challenges, Ovamir Anjum brilliantly points the way to an alternative reading of the intellectual history that allegedly produced this outcome. And in the course of doing so, his attention to the nexus between law, theology and political thinking point up the inadequacy of approaches that overly isolate them. Against the tendency both to restrict Islam to accepted medieval readings and to separate it from its own storied metacognitions, Anjum reminds us that Islam has never known an authority powerful enough to curtail its perennial attempt to understand and realize its highest calling." -Sherman A. Jackson, King Faisal Chair of Islamic Thought and Culture, University of Southern California, author of Islamic Law and the State: The Constitutional Jurisprudence of Shihâb al-Dîn al-Qarâfî"With bold and penetrating insight, Ovamir Anjum completely reframes our understanding of the great Damascene jurist Ibn Taymiyya’s views on politics and the caliphate. After thoroughly documenting the pessimism permeating classical Islamic theology and political theory, Anjum expounds Ibn Taymiyya’s contrasting epistemological optimism and shows how this grounds a robust vision of the Shari‘a that extends far beyond the traditional domains of the legal scholars and the caliphate to include all the functions of government and the Muslim community as a whole. This remarkably wide-ranging study will spur deeper reflection on the function of political theory in medieval Islam, and it sets the stage for an entirely new evaluation of how modern Muslim political theorists have appropriated Taymiyyan thought." -Jon Hoover, Lecturer in Islamic Studies, The University of Nottingham, author of Ibn Taymiyya’s Theodicy of Perpetual Optimism"Finally: a study capturing the complex intersections of jurisprudence and government in Islam before the early modern centuries. Anjum’s Politics, Law and Community combines originality from departure to conclusion with rootedness in primary sources and mastery of theoretical research tools. An introduction to Islamic political philosophy surpassing available introductions, this work takes none of the assumptions of earlier scholarship for granted. It ushers in a new era in the field, where new studies will be produced with higher expectations in mind." -Ahmad Atif Ahmad, Associate Professor of Religious Studies, the University of California in Santa Barbara, and author of Islam, Modernity, Violence, and Everyday Life and The Fatigue of the Shari'a"This book is a much-needed, intellectually rigorous and very timely revision of the standard literature on Islamic scholars and power. It demonstrates that alongside the familiar legalistic and elitist approach of the medieval tradition, there was also a pragmatic strand of Sunni Islamic thought that envisioned the community of the believers as the ultimate source of political authority. In the aftermath of the Arab Spring, this new interpretation of medieval Islamic political thought opens up new ways of imagining the future of Islam in public life." -Yossef Rapoport, Senior Lecturer in History, Queen Mary University of London, and author of Marriage, Money and Divorce in Medieval Islamic Society"Boldly renegotiating our understanding of the complex intersections of government, law, and religious sentiment in the pre-modern Muslim world, Ovamir Anjum has produced a remarkable study which shifts attention away from facile dichotomies by resituating the very terms of how best to engage with the legacy of Ibn Taymiyya, a difficult yet critical figure in Islamic legal and intellectual history. In doing so, the implications of this study reach far beyond its overt ambit to embrace wider questions pertaining to how best to understand the ongoing history of such discourse amongst Muslim thinkers from the medieval period to the present. An important book." -Erik S. Ohlander, Associate Professor of Religious Studies, Indiana University-Purdue University Fort Wayne"A real tour-de-force that brings to life the Islamic discursive tradition on politics through an impressive analysis of theological, literary, jurisprudential and epistemological texts of the classical period. Using sophisticated theoretical analyses and by paying close attention to the content and contexts of classical works, Ovamir Anjum offers new insights into the intertextual negotiations that led to the religious scholars’ compromises with political authority. His analysis of Ibn Taymiyya’s works in light of this tradition not only helps us revise our understanding of the master critic’s project, but it also helps us situates the novelty of his vision and proposals within the context of Mamluk society and politics. His work thus challenges traditional portrayals of this period as one of “decline”, and furthers our appreciation of the intellectual vibrancy of this politically chaotic period." -Nahyan Fancy, Assistant Professor, DePauw University, author of Science and Religion in Mamluk Egypt (forthcoming)"Politics, Law, and Community in Islamic Thought is a valuable contribution to the history of Islamic political experience. It approaches this rich history as a tradition of conflicting interpretations and debates that culminates in a fascinating re-examination of Ibn Taymiyya’s creative response to the politics and thought of his turbulent time. In this account Ibn Taymiyya emerges as an original political thinker who restored (and elaborated on) the central role of the community in theories of Islamic governance. This book deserves to be widely read not only by specialists in medieval Islamic history but also by all who are interested in contemporary Islamic thought." -Talal Asad, Professor of Anthropology, CUNY Graduate CenterTable of ContentsIntroduction; Part I. The Classical Legacy: 1. A tale of two visions: Shari'a and Siyasa in early Islam; 2. The political thought of the classical period; 3. Reason and community in the classical period; Part II. The Taymiyyan Intervention: 4. Ibn Taymiyya's world; 5. Defending revelation and liberating reason; 6. Fitra, community, and Islamic politics; 7. Conclusion.
£23.99
