Religious intoleranceand conflict Books

Book SynopsisTrade Review"This important new collection of articles on contemporary antisemitism clearly illustrates the global reach and diverse manifestations of the phenomenon today. Readers will appreciate this deeper analysis of the antisemitic developments they see briefly in the press."—Catherine Chatterley, Editor-in-Chief, Antisemitism Studies"Alvin Rosenfeld has done a masterful job of gathering together a group of internationally known scholars to examine one of the world's most pressing global problems, a threat that has implications not only for the Jews but also for all of humanity: antisemitism. As timely as it is penetrating, this collection of insightful essays presents a deft and needful exploration of the horror of antisemitism that haunts today's social and political landscape. There is no way of responding to antisemitism without understating it. Rosenfeld's book provides just such an understanding. It is a must-read for anyone with a conscience."—David Patterson, Hillel A. Feinberg Distinguished Chair in Holocaust Studies, University of Texas at Dallas"As Jew hatred moves from the margins of society into the mainstream of cultural discourse Contending with Antisemitism in a Rapidly Changing Political Climate offers first-rate disciplined academic examinations of the varieties Antisemitisms of the right and left in their cultural, social and political manifestations. The essays in this sobering volume are a must read for all who remember that the oldest hatred begins with Jews but quickly spreads to societies at large."—Doron Ben-Atar, Fordham University"Written by the best scholars in the field, this collection bears witness to the urgent need to reflect upon antisemitism in specific rather than general terms. From campus ideology and so-called new 'antiracist' theories to Eastern Europe, the Arab world, and U.N. public policy, no other book contributes as powerfully as this one to our understanding of the rise of contemporary antisemitism."—Bruno Chaouat, University of Minnesota"Alvin Rosenfeld has compiled an essential resource for those seeking to understand better the threats posed by resurgent antisemitism and its relationship to present-day political dynamics, particularly in Europe. Reading this volume's chapters will allow scholars, policymakers, and non-specialists to identify the many trends and manifestations of antisemitism that plague the world and undermine the shared values of the international community."—Robert J. Williams, United States Holocaust Memorial Museum and Former Chair, Committee on Antisemitism and Holocaust Denial of the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance"This volume provides by far the best overview of the latest research into the various manifestations of antisemitism worldwide that is currently available. Despite its ugly subject matter, reading this book, edited by Professor Alvin H. Rosenfeld, is an intellectual pleasure. Every one of the excellently edited essays issues a scientifically rigorous call for a more effective struggle against the hatred of Jews, whether in right-wing, left-wing or Islamic milieus. This is a must-read for anyone with a professional interest in the topic but can also be highly recommended for general readers."—Matthias Küntzel, author of Jihad and Jew-Hatred: Islamism, Nazism and the Roots of 9/11"Alvin Rosenfeld's aptly titled anthology, Contending with Antisemitism in a Rapidly Changing Political Climate, provides a wide range of historical insights, fresh analytical frameworks and potential strategies to reverse antisemitism's potent resurgence and normalization. Readers are challenged to do more than simply define and/or identify antisemitism; we are encouraged to better understand how the growing reluctance to recognize it vindicates the perpetrators."—R. Amy Elman, author of The European Union, Antisemitism and the Politics of DenialTable of ContentsForeword, by Dina PoratIntroduction, by Alvin H. RosenfeldPart 1: The IHRA Definition of Antisemitism and Its Ramifications1. The IHRA Definition and Its Critics, by Bernard Harrison and Lesley Klaff2. Applying the IHRA Working Definition to the UN and Human Rights NGOs, by Gerald M. SteinbergPart 2: Intellectual and Ideological Currents of Antisemitism3. Israel as a White Colonial Settler State in Activist Social Science, by Balázs Berkovitz4. Traditionalism or the Perennial Philosophy, by Mark Weitzman5. Antisemitism on the Left, by Miriam F. ElmanPart 3: Antisemitism on College and University Campuses6. Contending with Antisemitism in its Many Forms on American Campuses, by Kenneth Waltzer7. In the Context of a Coarsened Climate, by Linda Maizels8. Rethinking Campus Antisemitism in America and How to Address It, by Tammi Rossman-BenjaminPart 4: The Global Reach of Antisemitism9. Orchestrating Public Blindness in Contemporary France, by Daniel Dayan10. Legislating and Distorting the History of the Holocaust, by Jan Grabowski11. The Changing Faces of European Antisemitism, by János Gadó12. Contradiction as Program, by Marc Grimm13. A "Serious Attack on Jewish Life", by Dana Ionescu14. What Role Does Antisemitism Play in Jeremy Corbyn's Labour Party?, by Dave Rich15. Antisemitism and the Left in the UK and the Global Significance of the Return of the "Jewish Question", by Philip Spencer16. Rethinking the Role of Religion in the Arab-Israeli Conflict and its Reflection on Arab Antisemitic Discourse, by Esther Webman17. Can the European Institutions Combat Antisemitism Effectively?, by Mike WhineIndex

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Book SynopsisTrade Review"Debates about antisemitism on the left are often focused on the public positions that activists take. In contrast, Sina Arnold's deep ethnographic engagement with US left activists, helps us understand the deeper complexities and nuances of discourse about antisemitism. In doing so, she offers a possible way out of intractable conflicts on and about antisemitism the left that currently generate more heat than light."—Keith Kahn-Harris, Leo Baeck College, and author of Strange Hate: Anti-semitism, racism, and the Limits of Diversity"This is an important study about the antisemitism of the American Left and its relationship to Israel. Arnold succeeds to step back and analyze different sides behind this all-to-familiar and all-too-heated debate. It tackles no less the question of how we find the truth in a world of differing interests, experiences and worldviews and argues for an ethics of responsibility."—Natan Sznaider, The Academic College of Tel-Aviv, Israel"Sina Arnold's work emerges not just in conversation with the political left, but from within it: her own commitment to the values that mark left-wing social movements drives her critiques of failures within the activist world. Her analysis draws on a rich tradition of critical scholarship that pushes the left to fulfill its stated promise of equality and freedom from oppression for all. Few books have the scope, rhetorical precision, and depth of analysis that Arnold brings, and this volume is sure to become one of the essential texts on contemporary antisemitism."—Shane Burley, Author of Why We Fight: Essays on Fascism, Resistance, and Surviving the ApocalypseTable of ContentsAcknowledgmentsIntroduction1. Antisemitism Old and New2. A Quick Look Back3. What's Left of the Left: Recent Movements, Recent Debates4. Interviews with Activists5. Conceptualizations of Antisemitism and Jews6. Antiracism7. Israeli-Palestinian Conflict8. Holocaust Remembrance9. The USA and Its Political Structures10. Critique of Capitalism: Occupy Wall Street as Case Study11. "Different Ways of Being Jewish": Jewish-Left IdentitiesThe Invisible Prejudice: ConclusionsAppendix I: Overview of the InterviewsAppendix II: Transcription RulesAppendix III: AbbreviationsReferencesIndex

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Book SynopsisTrade Review"Debates about antisemitism on the left are often focused on the public positions that activists take. In contrast, Sina Arnold's deep ethnographic engagement with US left activists, helps us understand the deeper complexities and nuances of discourse about antisemitism. In doing so, she offers a possible way out of intractable conflicts on and about antisemitism the left that currently generate more heat than light."—Keith Kahn-Harris, Leo Baeck College, and author of Strange Hate: Anti-semitism, racism, and the Limits of Diversity"This is an important study about the antisemitism of the American Left and its relationship to Israel. Arnold succeeds to step back and analyze different sides behind this all-to-familiar and all-too-heated debate. It tackles no less the question of how we find the truth in a world of differing interests, experiences and worldviews and argues for an ethics of responsibility."—Natan Sznaider, The Academic College of Tel-Aviv, Israel"Sina Arnold's work emerges not just in conversation with the political left, but from within it: her own commitment to the values that mark left-wing social movements drives her critiques of failures within the activist world. Her analysis draws on a rich tradition of critical scholarship that pushes the left to fulfill its stated promise of equality and freedom from oppression for all. Few books have the scope, rhetorical precision, and depth of analysis that Arnold brings, and this volume is sure to become one of the essential texts on contemporary antisemitism."—Shane Burley, Author of Why We Fight: Essays on Fascism, Resistance, and Surviving the ApocalypseTable of ContentsAcknowledgmentsIntroduction1. Antisemitism Old and New2. A Quick Look Back3. What's Left of the Left: Recent Movements, Recent Debates4. Interviews with Activists5. Conceptualizations of Antisemitism and Jews6. Antiracism7. Israeli-Palestinian Conflict8. Holocaust Remembrance9. The USA and Its Political Structures10. Critique of Capitalism: Occupy Wall Street as Case Study11. "Different Ways of Being Jewish": Jewish-Left IdentitiesThe Invisible Prejudice: ConclusionsAppendix I: Overview of the InterviewsAppendix II: Transcription RulesAppendix III: AbbreviationsReferencesIndex

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Book SynopsisIn Lubianka’s Shadow chronicles the life of a Catholic priest, Father Léopold Braun, who was a pastor near the Lubianka political prison in the heart of Moscow, witnessed Stalin’s purges and the Soviet government’s campaign against organized religionTrade Review"Father Braun's memoir is a remarkable document, a compelling testimony to faith and personal courage. At the same time these recollections present a unique window through which to view life in Russia during that country's most difficult times—the Stalinist terror and the Great Patriotic War." —Richard G. Robbins, Jr., Professor of History, University of New Mexico“This memoir is one of the most remarkable historical documents to come to light in an era of major archival revelations in Soviet history. Because of the unique nature of the circumstances of Father Braun's tenure in Moscow, his memoir reveals a previously unilluminated side of Soviet existence. Father Braun's personal commitment and courage enabled him to achieve a familiarity with Soviet society and officialdom that leads to incidents, by turns, movingly affirmative of human capacity for nobility and selflessness, chillingly reminiscent of the worst sides of human nature, amusing in a Kafka-esque fashion, and breathtaking from an historian's perspective for the internality and intimacy they reveal.” —Thomas Sanders, United States Naval Academy“In Lubianka’s Shadow is the apt title given to the memoirs of Father Leopold Braun, A. A., the American Assumptionist priest who served in Moscow during the Stalin era at the Roman Catholic church of Saint Louis. This was at one point the only Catholic church open in all Russia and stands next the fearsome Lubianka, headquarters of the Soviet secret police and prison for thousands of people. . . . The book gives us an eyewitness account of the fierce antireligious campaigns; of the dedicated faith of ordinary people; of the determination of the Soviets to destroy Father Braun by any means; of life under constant police surveillance; and a rare account of the panic that gripped the Soviet government as it packed up and fled east as the German forces drew near in 1941.” —The Catholic Historical Review"This is an astonishing memoir: astonishing for the story it tells of the ordeal of an American priest in sustaining the only Catholic church in Moscow during the terrible years of the Great Terror and World War II; astonishing for its account of 'Soviet reality' in those years, perhaps unparalleled in range and depth among foreigners' memoirs of this period; and astonishing for the author's unsuccessful attempts to get his Moscow memoir published during his lifetime, as recounted in Gary Hamburg's expert introduction." —Terence Emmons, Professor of Russian History, Stanford University (emeritus)"Fr. Leopold Braun has long last received his due, some forty-two years after his death, with the publication of the memoirs of his long service to the American Embassy Community of Moscow and especially to his beloved Russian Catholic Community during the most trying of times and in the most dire of circumstances. . . . In Lubianka's Shadow is an honest, generally very accurate, though not completely unbiased, and true historical account of life and politics in Moscow and the Soviet Union during twelve years of grim government-sponsored terror and turmoil, and World War II.” —The Russian Review“Braun's memoirs provide historians with a remarkable view into both how the Soviet state attempted to crush organized religion during the 1930s and how the Russian public reacted. Braun's account gives the reader some wonderful insights into Soviet life and religion during the Stalinist era. The most fascinating parts of the book deal with Braun's experiences. His critique is most powerful when he lets the evidence speak for itself.” —American Catholic Studies“The Assumptionist priest Léopold Braun . . . was right about Soviet responsibility for the Katyn massacre, Soviet post-war intentions and the squalid realities of a police state . . . in some passages-the desecrations, meetings with implacable secret police and an obtuse American ambassador, a soldier's wedding deep in the forest, and a visit by General de Gaulle (for which the church was repaired, properly lit and heated for twelve hours)—he shows us a strange, distant world.” —Times Literary Supplement

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Book SynopsisTraditionally, Christian martyrdom is a repetition of the story of Christ's suffering and death: the more closely the victim replicates the Christological model, the more legible the martyrdom. But if the textual construction of martyrdom depends on the rehearsal of a paradigmatic story, how do we reconcile the broad range of individuals, beliefs, and persecutions seeking justification by claims of martyrdom? Observing how martyrdom is constituted through the interplay of historical event and literary form, Alice Dailey explores the development of English martyr literature through the period of intense religious controversy from the heresy executions of Queen Mary to the regicide of 1649. Through close study of texts ranging from late medieval passion drama and hagiography to John Foxe's Acts and Monuments, martyrologies of the Counter-Reformation, Charles I's Eikon Basilike, and John Milton's Eikonoklastes, The English Martyr from Reformation to RevolutionTrade Review“'Martyrdom is not a death but a story that gets written about a death.' From this simple yet profound premise, Alice Dailey takes us into a tour de force of historical formalism. Martyrdom, as Dailey brilliantly and delicately unpacks it, sits at the nexus of story and the material world. It works through both the suffering of the flesh and the shifting contours of narrative form. In a study that reaches across time (medieval to postmodern) and confessions (Protestant and Catholic), Dailey herself masterfully crafts a compelling story about the life of narrative. This book will naturally be of great value to students of early modern religion, but it will also fascinate anyone interested in how human lives—and the meanings of those lives—are shaped by, and lived through, narrative forms." —Kristen Poole, University of Delaware"Alice Dailey’s innovative new study of English martyrology details the transformations undergone by the narrative forms, theological meanings, and visual imagery of sacred suffering in Reformation England. In the period stretching from the sixteenth century through the end of the English Civil War, the Catholic underground was stymied in its search for the glory of the martyrs by the rhetoric of treason wielded against them by the Protestant state, but periodically sustained by its own powerful and resilient treasury of religious narratives. In this broad and bracing study, Dailey conceives of the Catholic question in a pluralist manner, to include not only the fates of individual Catholics and Catholic communities, but also the survival of Catholic literary and architectural forms in post-Reformation England." —Julia Reinhard Lupton, The University of California, Irvine“By emphasizing the significance of the formal qualities that characterize English Christian martyr narratives, Dailey insightfully demonstrates how attitudes toward martyrdom changed over time. . . . The readings of individual texts are both grounded and provocative.” —The Medieval Review“Detailed and lucid. . . . A fluent and thoughtful critique of some familiar texts.” —Renaissance Quarterly“Alice Dailey’s The English Martyr accounts for a transformation of the Christian martyr narrative through an analysis of four historical stages—paradigmatic establishment, appropriation, crisis of representation, and its ultimate shift in signification. Her account suggests that as historical pressures undermined typological repetition, the language remained while its signification changed.” —Sixteenth Century Journal“Alice Dailey’s The English Martyr from Reformation to Revolution makes a persuasive case for the value of the new formalist trend in literary studies. . . . Dailey’s book is a useful contribution to several intersecting scholarly conversations about martyrdom, early modern English religious and political strife, and new formalism more generally. . . . Students and scholars looking to gain a solid, detailed grounding in any of these conversations will find this book very helpful.” —Comitatus: A Journal of Medieval and Renaissance Studies“The strength of this book is not just that Dailey discusses the traditions of martyrology. She also discusses the ways in which these traditions changed over time. . . . Her careful and insightful reading of contemporary texts and the thoughtful conclusions she draws from this reading will be of great interest not just to historians of the sixteenth and early seventeenth centuries but to anyone interested in how the modern world was, and is, constructed and how we both create and re-create the stories of the past.” —Journal of British Studies“Dailey’s prose is lucid and her close analysis of these key martyrological texts portrays the model Christian martyr comprehensively. It is admirable that she tackles martyrologies by both Catholics and Protestants, and across such a broad chronological range.” —English Historical Review“Dailey has provided an original work of contemporary scholarship . . . . Dailey has insightfully targeted her study at England from the time of its Reformation to its Revolution . . . . Dailey has provided a worthwhile volume.” —Anglican and Episcopal History

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Book SynopsisBioethicist Stephen G. Post argues that human beings are, by nature, inclined toward a presence in the universe that is higher than their own. In consequence, the institutions of everyday life are not justifed in censoring the spiritual and religious expression that arises from the human spirit.Trade Review"This is a well reasoned and clearly presented thesis that merits serious consideration by thoughtful readers. Recommended for academic and public libraries.” —Library Journal“It is long past time, Stephen Post persuasively argues, to stop tying ourselves into legal, philosophical, and psychological knots in trying to deny the obvious. The obvious is that people are, in maddeningly diverse ways, religious, and that the way people are is a public reality to be welcomed in order to make our common life more authentically human. This book both provokes and convinces.” —First Things"...Post has itegrated diverse sources into an inclusive argument."—Journal of Religion“Although Post’s conclusion is controversial... his premise is nonetheless compelling....” —ForeWord Magazine“… a provocative proposal … Post’s kind of public square would enable millions of Americans to speak where they have felt silenced, and to speak in their native tongue rather than an awkward second language.” —Journal of Church and State“Professor Post’s thought transcends sectarian boundaries by reason of his stress on the givens of human nature. His rigorous demonstration that by nature humanity should enjoy and exercise freedom of religious expression uncovers the foundations, in natural theology, for liberty — an important and urgent proposition. His book sets forth a strenuous argument on behalf of fundamental principles and demands a close reading.” —Jacob Neusner, Bard College“St. Augustine once wrote that our hearts will remain ‘restless till they find their rest in God.’ Stephen Post vindicates Augustine’s insight by mapping acutely our natural inclinations and intuitions of the divine. He also elaborates Augustine’s insight by arguing that our souls will become listless if they are forbidden to speak and our democracies will become feckless if they are forbidden to hear the public voices of religion. This is an elegant, erudite, and engaging meditation that brings the best of law, religion, and science into a rare and powerful combination.” —John Witte, Jr., Emory University"... sharply reasoned and passionate.... This is a boldly creative presentation, with a useful index and rigorous contemporary sourceing, underscoring its obvious relevance to current debates about the place of religious sentiment in the public square. ...this eclectic, reflective book will prove valuable to readers and researchers in religion, psychology, political science, and the law." —Choice"...this work represents a valuable contribution to the discussion of religious freedom, and will be appreciated by a wide audience. Using convincing evidence from medical and neurological studies, Post has demonstrated that religious inclination lies at the heart of what it means to be human."—Perspectives on Science and Christian Faith“This book is a valuable addition to the growing literature proposing promising alternatives to what has been called the naked public square.” —First Things“Stephen Post has done the culture a great favor. He has made religious liberty a question, not of who God is, but of who we are. And that is a question that people from many different traditions can all meaningfully engage. Agree with him or disagree with him about the finer points, you'll have to admit the debate over religion in public life will never be the same.” —Kevin J. “Seamus” Hasson, President of The Becket Fund for Religious Liberty“...a commonsense critique...” —Research News and Opportunities in Science and Theology, October 2003

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Book SynopsisBioethicist Stephen G. Post argues that human beings are, by nature, inclined toward a presence in the universe that is higher than their own. In consequence, the institutions of everyday life are not justifed in censoring the spiritual and religious expression that arises from the human spirit.Trade Review"This is a well reasoned and clearly presented thesis that merits serious consideration by thoughtful readers. Recommended for academic and public libraries.” —Library Journal“It is long past time, Stephen Post persuasively argues, to stop tying ourselves into legal, philosophical, and psychological knots in trying to deny the obvious. The obvious is that people are, in maddeningly diverse ways, religious, and that the way people are is a public reality to be welcomed in order to make our common life more authentically human. This book both provokes and convinces.” —First Things"...Post has itegrated diverse sources into an inclusive argument."—Journal of Religion“Although Post’s conclusion is controversial... his premise is nonetheless compelling....” —ForeWord Magazine“… a provocative proposal … Post’s kind of public square would enable millions of Americans to speak where they have felt silenced, and to speak in their native tongue rather than an awkward second language.” —Journal of Church and State“Professor Post’s thought transcends sectarian boundaries by reason of his stress on the givens of human nature. His rigorous demonstration that by nature humanity should enjoy and exercise freedom of religious expression uncovers the foundations, in natural theology, for liberty — an important and urgent proposition. His book sets forth a strenuous argument on behalf of fundamental principles and demands a close reading.” —Jacob Neusner, Bard College“St. Augustine once wrote that our hearts will remain ‘restless till they find their rest in God.’ Stephen Post vindicates Augustine’s insight by mapping acutely our natural inclinations and intuitions of the divine. He also elaborates Augustine’s insight by arguing that our souls will become listless if they are forbidden to speak and our democracies will become feckless if they are forbidden to hear the public voices of religion. This is an elegant, erudite, and engaging meditation that brings the best of law, religion, and science into a rare and powerful combination.” —John Witte, Jr., Emory University"... sharply reasoned and passionate.... This is a boldly creative presentation, with a useful index and rigorous contemporary sourceing, underscoring its obvious relevance to current debates about the place of religious sentiment in the public square. ...this eclectic, reflective book will prove valuable to readers and researchers in religion, psychology, political science, and the law." —Choice"...this work represents a valuable contribution to the discussion of religious freedom, and will be appreciated by a wide audience. Using convincing evidence from medical and neurological studies, Post has demonstrated that religious inclination lies at the heart of what it means to be human."—Perspectives on Science and Christian Faith“This book is a valuable addition to the growing literature proposing promising alternatives to what has been called the naked public square.” —First Things“Stephen Post has done the culture a great favor. He has made religious liberty a question, not of who God is, but of who we are. And that is a question that people from many different traditions can all meaningfully engage. Agree with him or disagree with him about the finer points, you'll have to admit the debate over religion in public life will never be the same.” —Kevin J. “Seamus” Hasson, President of The Becket Fund for Religious Liberty“...a commonsense critique...” —Research News and Opportunities in Science and Theology, October 2003

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Book SynopsisThis book charts Bishop Hanna's twenty-eight days in captivity after being abducted by a militant group associated with al-Qaeda in 2006 while visiting a college near Baghdad.Trade Review"Abducted in Iraq is Saad Hanna’s riveting account of his captivity in Iraq among Muslim extremists. The story Hanna tells will leave readers breathless. He recounts how his captors seized him from his car in Baghdad, tortured him, and repeatedly demanded that he convert to Islam. Through it all Hanna held courageously to his Christian faith, and refused stubbornly to hate his captors. By the end of Abducted in Iraq readers will not only be inspired, they will also gain a new sense of compassion for those who suffer from religious violence." —Gabriel Said Reynolds, author of The Emergence of Islam: Classical Traditions in Contemporary Perspective"Father Hanna’s gripping and gut-wrenching descent into the terrors of violent Islamic extremism is masterfully crafted, spell-binding, and deeply disturbing. Confronted with intense pressure to abandon his faith, this courageous young Iraqi priest not only refuses to do so, but also refuses to succumb to hatred of his oppressors. Above all else, this is an inspirational witness to the power of Christian hope and love in the face of unspeakable evil." —Kent R. Hill, Executive Director, Religious Freedom Institute“Bishop Hanna’s testimony and story deserves to be read by anyone who has ever wondered how they would react if they were kidnapped, tortured, told to abjure their faith, and faced likely death. It should be read by anyone with even a passing interest in the violence and hatred that has disfigured Iraq and that now disfigures Syria. It should be read by anyone interested in the widely dishonoured Article 18 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights—born in the ashes of Auschwitz, and which asserts our right to freedom of religion or belief. And it should be read by anyone who feels they need to be better informed about the ancient churches of the Middle East and the existential threat that these Christians face.” —David Alton, professor emeritus, John Moore's University, Independent Life Peer of the British House of Lords"The nearly month-long ordeal in 2006 of Bishop Saad Sirop Hanna, as he was brutalized by jihadists and was confronted with the constant threat of being killed, prefigured the plight of many thousands of the bishop’s fellow Chaldean faithful and members of other ancient Christian communities as ISIS conquered northern Iraq in the summer of 2014. The bishop’s suffering, survival, and ultimately enduring faith make for a heart-rending read; it is also a call to action for the world community to ensure that in the post-ISIS that Iraq’s Christians—and Christians throughout the Middle East—will be afforded full religious freedom and security." —George J. Marlin, author of Christian Persecutions in the Middle East: A 21st Century Tragedy"Writing with journalist Aris, Catholic priest Hanna opens up about the 27 days he was held captive in Baghdad, Iraq, in 2006. His first-person account begins with being waylaid while driving down a Baghdad street. He was quickly blindfolded, handcuffed, and taken captive while his abductors negotiated a ransom and tried, sometimes with violent beatings, to convert him to Islam. His plight garnered international attention when Pope Benedict XVI publicly appealed for his release. . . . The book is poignant in describing and lamenting the destruction of Iraqi culture." —Publishers Weekly“'Kafir! Kafir!' That was the word, meaning infidel or believer, the Muslim extremists shouted as they repeatedly beat Father Hanna in a futile attempt to force him to convert to their faith. In his memoir, Abducted in Iraq, Father Hanna provides a moving account of his treatment in captivity by this group from August 15, 2006, to his release on September 11. . . . As he refused to relent under ever more torturous treatment, Hanna became convinced that his ordeal could end only with his death." —Catholic Library World"Bishop Hanna varies the pace well between the rapid, intrusive violence and long periods of isolation and reflection, in which his deep spirituality comes to the fore. His recollections are philosophical, elegantly expressed, and colored not with bitterness but with incomprehension and an unselfconscious courage. He humanizes his captors as much as he can manage." —Sight Magazine"Bishop Saad Sirop Hanna, head of the Chaldean Christian community in Baghdad, was abducted by Muslim extremists in 2006, and held and tortured for 28 days. He is a philosopher, and this memoir clearly reflects that aspect of a man who grew up living side-by-side with Muslims, when nobody thought that that was anything other than normal. So the destruction of Iraq and the decimation of the Christian community grieves him utterly. . . . He urges looking beyond ethnicity, creed, culture, and religion; connecting on the level of shared humanity.” —Church Times"Abducted in Iraq is a gripping account of profound faith, authentic courage and hope against all odds. Not surprisingly, the priest's cruel confinement led him to ponder life's ultimate questions, like love's meaning, God's presence and action, and goodness itself." —The Catholic Missourian "Bishop Hanna's story is one of self-discovery, deepening faith, and an eye-opening reality to the plight of numerous Christians in the Middle East. . . . the situation of these Christians is often ignored and marginalized for political reasons. We are attesting to the potential end of one of the most ancient populations and religious traditions in the world. The Apostolic tradition of the Church of the East, Chaldean and Assyrian tradition, and its theological and spiritual richness is at risk. The world needs to see and to listen to the voice of this suffering church." —Word on Fire Blog

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Book SynopsisRecounts events surrounding the recovery, in 2017, of a sixteenth-century biographical manuscript by Luis de Carvajal the Younger, a crypto-Jew executed by the Inquisition in colonial Mexico.Trade Review“People interested in Jewish and Latin American history will most enjoy Stavans’s study, which for all its scrupulous research leaves the central mystery tantalizingly unsolved.”—Publishers Weekly“This book will be of interest to crypto-Jewish collections and potentially also to library science collections.”—Shmuel Ben-Gad Association of Jewish Libraries ReviewsTable of ContentsList of IllustrationsPart I: Lost1. The Thief2. The ProphetPart II: Found3. The Chronicler4. The CollectorNotes

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Book SynopsisStands out as a pivotal work on the interconnection between the root causes of Jihadi Salafi Groups and state fragility conditions and their amalgamated role in the formation and evolution of these organisations.Table of Contents List of Illustrations Chapter One: Introduction State Fragility Jihadi Salafi Groups Theory and Methodology Organization of Book Chapter Two: Fragile States and Jihadi Salfi Groups in the Islamic World State Fragility in the Islamic World JSGs Organizational Development of JSGs International Environment of the Rise of JSGs Chapter Three: Root Causes of Al-Qaeda Individual Level Group Level International Level Chapter Four: Condition of the Rise of Al-Qaeda: State Fragility in Afghanistan State Formation State Conservatism Social Transformation Changes Brought About by War State Fragility State Fragility and the Rise of al-Qaeda Lack of Legitimacy Weak Authority Lack of Capacity Chapter Five: Root Causes of IS The Insurgency Jihadi Organization in Iraq Root Causes of IS Individual Level Group Level International level Chapter Six: Condition of the Rise of IS: State Fragility in Iraq State Formation and the Origins of State Fragility The Monarchical Project (1921-1958) The Republican Project (1958-1968) The Baathist Project (1968-2003) State Fragility and Insurgency (2003-2004) The Contribution of State Fragility to the Rise of IS Poor Legitimacy Weak Authority Contribution of Weak Authority to the Rise of IS Lack of Capacity Chapter Seven: Causes of al-Qaeda Revolt in Saudi Arabia Individual Level Group Level International Level Chapter Eight: Conditions of Al-Qaeda Revolt: State Fragility in Saudi Arabia State Formation State Fragility State Fragility and the 2003 Revolt Chapter Nine: Conclusion Bibliography

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Book SynopsisCharting and interpreting the tendrils of religion and violence, this book reveals how formative moments of their intersection in American history have influenced the ideas, institutions, and identities associated with the United States. It shows how religion and violence provide crucial yet underutilized lenses for seeing America anew.Trade Review"An excellent study of the complex relationship between religion and violence... Highly recommended." -- J. R. Asher, Georgetown College ChoiceTable of ContentsForeword Martin E. Marty Preface Introduction. John Brown, Jeremiad, and Jihad: Reflections on Religion, Violence, and America John D. Carlson and Jonathan H. Ebel Part I. Religious Origins and Tropes of American Violence 1. From King Philip's War to September 11: Religion, Violence, and the American Way Andrew R. Murphy and Elizabeth Hanson 2. A Nation Birthed in Blood: Violent Cosmogonies and American Film S. Brent Rodriguez-Plate 3. From Covenant to Crusade and Back: American Christianity and the Late Great War Jonathan H. Ebel 4. From Jeremiad to Manifesto: The Rhetorical Evolution of John Foster Dulles's "Massive Retaliation" Ned O'Gorman 5. American Providence, American Violence Stephen H. Webb Part II. Religion and America's "Others" 6. New Israel, New Amalek: Biblical Exhortations to Religious Violence John Corrigan 7. Religion and Violence in Black and White Eddie S. Glaude Jr. 8. State Violence and the Un-American West: Mormons, American Indians, and Cults Todd M. Kerstetter 9. Alma White's Bloodless Warfare: Women and Violence in U.S. Religious History Lynn S. Neal 10. Of Tragedy and Its Aftermath: The Search for Religious Meaning in the Shootings at Virginia Tech Grace Y. Kao Part III. The Ethics of Violence and War 11. A Just or Holy War of Independence? The Revolution's Legacy for Religion, Violence, and American Exceptionalism John D. Carlson 12. Why War Is a Moral Necessity for America: Realism, Sacrifice, and the Civil War Stanley Hauerwas 13. Contemporary Warfare and American Efforts at Restraint James Turner Johnson 14. Enemies Near and Far: The United States and Its Muslim Allies in Radical Islamist Discourse Sohail H. Hashmi 15. Varieties of "Violence": Thinking Ethically about the Use of Force in the War on Terror Jean Bethke Elshtain Contributors Index

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Book SynopsisProvides an overview of the history and development of Islam in Afghanistan. Looking beyond the unifying rhetoric of theology, this book reveals the disparate and contested forms of Afghanistan's Islam.Trade Review"This book helps . . . better understand different facets of Islamic values and practices in Afghanistan through the ages. More importantly, unlike most works on Afghanistan, the chapters in this volume are based on primary and native-langauge sources." * Reading Religion *Table of ContentsList of Illustrations Preface and Acknowledgments Introduction. Afghanistan's Islam: A History and Its Scholarship Nile Green Part one. from conversions to institutions (ca. 700-1500) 1. The Beginnings of Islam in Afghanistan: Conquest, Acculturation, and Islamization Arezou Azad 2. Women and Religious Patronage in the Timurid Empire Nushin Arbabzadah 3. The Rise of the Khwajagan-Naqshbandiyya Sufi Order in Timurid Herat Jurgen Paul Part two. the infrastructure of religious ideas (ca. 1500-1850) 4. Earning a Living: Promoting Islamic Culture in the Sixteenth and Seventeenth Centuries R.D. McChesney 5. Transporting Knowledge in the Durrani Empire: Two Manuals of Naqshbandi-Mujaddidi Sufi Practice Waleed Ziad Part three. new states, new discourses (ca. 1850-1979) 6. Islam, Shari'a, and State Building under 'Abd al-Rahman Khan Amin Tarzi 7. Competing Views of Pashtun Tribalism, Islam, and Society in the Indo-Afghan Borderlands Sana Haroon 8. Nationalism, Not Islam: The "Awaken Youth" Party and Pashtun Nationalism Faridullah Bezhan Part four. holy warriors and (im)pious women (1979-2014) 9. Glossy Global Leadership: Unpacking the Multilingual Religious Thought of the Jihad Simon Wolfgang Fuchs 10. Female Sainthood between Politics and Legend: The Emergence of Bibi Nushin of Shibirghan Ingeborg Baldauf 11. When Muslims Become Feminists: Khana-yi Aman, Islam, and Pashtunwali Sonia Ahsan Afterword Alessandro Monsutti Notes Glossary of Islamic Terms List of Contributors Index

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Book SynopsisRevised edition of a popular text. Examines the important roles of Luther and Charles V. Includes an updated bibliography and an afterword by Andrew Pettegree on Elton's work and the enduring significance of this book.Table of ContentsMaps. Preface to the First Edition. 1. Luther. The Attack on Rome. The State of Germany. 2. Charles V. 3. Years of Triumph. The Progress of Lutheranism. Zwingli. The Wars of Charles V. 4. The Radicals. 5. Outside Germany. The South. The West. The North. The East. 6. The Formation of Parties. The Emergence of Protestantism. The Search for a Solution. 7. The Revival of Rome. Catholic Reform. Counter-Reformation. The Jesuits and the New Papacy. 8. Calvin. The Meaning of Calvinism. The Reformation in Geneva. The Spread of Calvinism. 9. War and Peace. The Triumph of Charles V. The Defeat of Charles V. The End of an Age. 10. The Age. The Religious Revolution. Art, Literature and Learning. The Nation State. Society. The Expansion of Europe. Afterword to the Second Edition by Andrew Pettegree. Notes. Further Reading. Index.

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Book SynopsisThe 12 complete articles in this volume represent some of the best recent scholarship on the Crusades. The collection introduces students to fundamental concepts of crusading, including the nature of the movement, the motivation of the participants, and the impact on the east.Trade Review“Madden's new book seeks to bridge the gap between popular caricatures of the crusades and the more balanced picture of the movement that historians have been producing for more than a generation. The dozen specimens of lively recent scholarship on the crusades that Madden has assembled here are shrewdly calculated to provoke students into rethinking what they thought they knew about the crusading movement.” James A. Brundage, University of KansasTable of ContentsAcknowledgments. Editor's Introduction. Part I What Were the Crusades?. 1. Pope Urban II's Preaching of the First Crusade. (H. E. J. Cowdrey). 2. Crusading as an Act of Love. (Jonathan Riley-Smith). 3. Reconquest and Crusade in Spain, c. 1050-1150. (R. A. Fletcher). 4. Crusades Against Christians. (Norman Housley). 5. Were There Any Crusades in the Twelfth Century? (Christopher J. Tyerman). Part II Who Were the Crusaders?. 6. Medieval Charters as a Source for the History of the Crusades. (Giles Constable). 7. Early Crusaders to the East and the Costs of Crusading, 1095-1130. (Jonathan Riley-Smith). 8. The Roots of Lay Enthusiasm for the First Crusade. (Marcus Bull). 9. Patronage and the Appeal of the First Crusade. (John France). Part III Impact of the Crusades on the East. 10. Byzantium and the Crusades. (Steven Runciman). 11. The Reaction of Syrian Muslims after the Foundation of the First Latin Kingdom of Jerusalem. (Nikita Elisséeff). 12. The Subjected Muslims of the Frankish Levant. (Benjamin Z. Kedar). Index.

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Book SynopsisThe 12 complete articles in this volume represent some of the best recent scholarship on the Crusades. The collection introduces students to fundamental concepts of crusading, including the nature of the movement, the motivation of the participants, and the impact on the east.Trade Review“Madden's new book seeks to bridge the gap between popular caricatures of the crusades and the more balanced picture of the movement that historians have been producing for more than a generation. The dozen specimens of lively recent scholarship on the crusades that Madden has assembled here are shrewdly calculated to provoke students into rethinking what they thought they knew about the crusading movement.” James A. Brundage, University of KansasTable of ContentsAcknowledgments. Editor's Introduction. Part I What Were the Crusades?. 1. Pope Urban II's Preaching of the First Crusade. (H. E. J. Cowdrey). 2. Crusading as an Act of Love. (Jonathan Riley-Smith). 3. Reconquest and Crusade in Spain, c. 1050-1150. (R. A. Fletcher). 4. Crusades Against Christians. (Norman Housley). 5. Were There Any Crusades in the Twelfth Century? (Christopher J. Tyerman). Part II Who Were the Crusaders?. 6. Medieval Charters as a Source for the History of the Crusades. (Giles Constable). 7. Early Crusaders to the East and the Costs of Crusading, 1095-1130. (Jonathan Riley-Smith). 8. The Roots of Lay Enthusiasm for the First Crusade. (Marcus Bull). 9. Patronage and the Appeal of the First Crusade. (John France). Part III Impact of the Crusades on the East. 10. Byzantium and the Crusades. (Steven Runciman). 11. The Reaction of Syrian Muslims after the Foundation of the First Latin Kingdom of Jerusalem. (Nikita Elisséeff). 12. The Subjected Muslims of the Frankish Levant. (Benjamin Z. Kedar). Index.

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Book SynopsisIn the post-9/11 West, there is no shortage of strident voices telling us that Islam is a threat to the security, values, way of life, and even existence of the United States and Europe. This title demolishes the notion that there is a "clash of civilizations" between the West and Islam.Trade Review"Is there a clash of civilizations, as Samuel Huntington maintained, between the Muslim world and the West? Norton's response will be of interest to students of geopolitics and Islamic studies."--Kirkus Reviews "She scores many hits, and illuminates the smug racism behind much recent blazoning of Enlightenment values."--Paul Laity, Prospect "Two strengths make Norton's work stand out in the crowded field of books that address Islam and democracy. First is her insistence on considering Islamic voices of the past and present, from medieval philosopher al-Farabi to Qutb and Ramadan, as conversation partners within the Western tradition. Second is her concise rebuttal of prominent philosophers, in particular Jacques Derrida, John Rawls and Slovaj Zizek, each of whom has perceived a danger in the nature of Islam."--Steve Young, Christian Century "Professor Anne Norton of the University of Pennsylvania, is a liberal academic who takes on all the anti-Muslim hysterics, right wing paranoiacs and sloppy thinkers in this measured and profoundly thought-provoking book."--Charles H. Middleburgh, Middleburgh Blog "Anne Norton provides us with a window into the interaction between European versions of modernity and the Islamic experience, drawing attention to how Muslims often face resistance and hatred as they enter into previously constituted elements of European society."--Tikkun "Anne Norton's On the Muslim Question ... is distinguished by moral daring and intellectual perspicacity, that is bold and passionate in tone but also rigorous and academic in substance... Anne Norton's scholarly effort, as much an academic tract as a pamphlet and a political statement, redeems all those promises and amply testifies to the intellectual and moral resources of the academy as well as its integrity."--S. Parvez Manzoor, Muslim World Book Review "Anne Norton ... has written an incisive volume analyzing a question at the heart of a number of contemporary vexing domestic and foreign policy issues. She brings to the task an impressive command of the subject matter as well as exceptional insight and judgment as a political theorist."--Mujeeb Khan, H-Net Reviews "[T]he book is an insightful analysis of the way Islam and Muslims figure in contemporary discourses, and it should be read by students and scholars interested in representations of Islam and Muslims. I recommend it."--Lasse Thomassen, Political Studies Review and Political Theory "This will be excellent and important reading for missiologists, social anthropologists, political scientists, and others."--Bruce Campbell Moyer, Seminary Studies "On the Muslim Question, is an indispensable reading for scholars as well as those interested in understanding the complex relationship between Islam and the West."--Asif Mohiuddin, Islam and Civilisational Renewal "On the Muslim Question combines virtues rarely found in one place. It is scrupulously attentive to the everyday facts about the ways in which the Muslim and non-Muslim worlds interact and devastatingly sharp about the way in which the facts undermine a lot of high-flown commentary on the supposed threat the Muslim world poses to the West... [Norton] is a witty and graceful writer... On The Muslim Question is a triumph."--Alan Ryan, Journal of Church and StateTable of ContentsForeword by Ruth O'Brien ix Introduction On the Muslim Question: Philosophy, Politics, and the Western Street 1 Part I Muslim Questions* Chapter 1 Freedom of Speech 15 * Chapter 2 Sex and Sexuality 45 * Chapter 3 Women and War 67 * Chapter 4 Terror 82 * Chapter 5 Equality 94 * Chapter 6 Democracy 118 Part II In the Western Street* Chapter 7 Where Is Europe? 141 * Chapter 8 "Islamofascism" and the Burden of the Holocaust 164 * Chapter 9 In the American Desert 176 * Chapter 10 There Is No Clash of Civilizations 195 Acknowledgments 229 Notes 233 Index 247

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Book SynopsisTrade Review"Is there a clash of civilizations. . . between the Muslim world and the West? Norton’s response will be of interest to students of geopolitics and Islamic studies."—Kirkus Reviews"Norton scores many hits, and illuminates the smug racism behind much recent blazoning of Enlightenment values."—Paul Laity, Prospect"Norton provides us with a window into the interaction between European versions of modernity and the Islamic experience, drawing attention to how Muslims often face resistance and hatred as they enter into previously constituted elements of European society."—Tikkun"On the Muslim Question . . . is distinguished by moral daring and intellectual perspicacity."—S. Parvez Manzoor, Muslim World Book Review"Scrupulously attentive to the everyday facts about the ways in which the Muslim and non-Muslim worlds interact and devastatingly sharp about the way in which the facts undermine a lot of high-flown commentary on the supposed threat the Muslim world poses to the West. . . . On the Muslim Question is a triumph."—Alan Ryan, Journal of Church and State

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Book SynopsisAn alternative account of the Kashmir conflict centring the voices of the KashmirisTrade Review'Repeated clashes between India, Pakistan and China over Kashmir threaten to erupt into a nuclear conflict that might kill as many as 120 million in India and Pakistan, and perhaps several 1000 million worldwide. These disputes need to be resolved, which requires understanding their origins, the people of Kashmir and their struggles, and recent changes in the region. Nuclear Flashpoint provides essential insight into these issues for all who are concerned.' -- Professor Brian Toon, University of Colorado Boulder'An urgent and trenchant examination of Kashmir. Beautifully meshing history with modern political analysis, Chak masterfully interrogates ... the intersecting flashpoints that make the Kashmir crisis one of the most politically sensitive issues in modern world history. Beyond intellectual examination, Chak injects first-hand insights as a scholar, advocate and ancestral Kashmiri to offer a richness that few other books provide - bringing intimacy and empathy to words that spring colorfully from the pages.' -- Khaled A. Beydoun, Law Professor and author of 'The New Crusades: Islamophobia and the Global War on Muslims''Institutionalized systemic racial persecution ... against the people of Kashmir has pushed the world to the edge of nuclear conflict. Torture, unlawful killings and the denial of basic human rights and freedoms are well-documented by Amnesty, Human Rights Watch and others. Dr. Chak's skillful analysis explains just how this unresolved crisis threatens global peace.' -- Ilyasah Shabbazz, educator and author of 'Growing Up X: A Memoir by the Daughter of Malcolm X'Table of Contents1. Introduction 2. Who Are the Kashmiris? Resisting Post-Colonial Identity Theft and False Narratives 3. The Long Life Cycle of Resistance 4. Jammu Genocide 5. The Myth of Partition 6. India, Islamophobia, and the Hindutva Playbook 7. The 'Final Solution': Abrogation of Articles 370 and 35A 8. Nuclear Flashpoint: Sino-Indian Rivalry and Kashmir 9. Conclusion Notes Index

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Book SynopsisIs conflict between Catholics and Protestants really the key to understanding Irish history?

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Book SynopsisExamines the limitations and dilemmas of government responses to religious diversity and how secular states deal (and should deal) with such pluralism.Table of ContentsPrefaceIntroduction: Globalization, Secular States, and Religious Diversity / Bruce J. Berman, Rajeev Bhargava, and André LalibertéPart 1: Historical and Theoretical Approaches1 Religious Pluralism as a Self-Evident Problem in the Context of Globalization / Peter Beyer2 Secular Modernity, Religion, and the Politics of Knowledge / Bruce J. Berman3 Can Secularism Be Rehabilitated? / Rajeev BhargavaPart 2: Secularisms in the West4 Between Secularism and Postsecularism: A Canadian Interregnum / Paul Bramadat and David Seljak5 Tolerance and Accommodation as Vestiges of the Empire / Lori G. Beaman6 In God We Trust? Secular States, Diversity, and the “Clash” within North America / Yasmeen Abu-Laban and Claude Couture7 Ideologies, Institutions, and Laws: Religious Freedom in Secular States / Ahmet T. KuruPart 3: Secularisms beyond the West8 State Intervention in the Reform of a “Religion of Rules”: An Analysis of the Views of B.R. Ambedkar / Rinku Lamba9 Something Got Lost in Translation: From “Secularism” to “Separation between Politics and Religion” in Taiwan / André Laliberté10 The Changing State Monopoly on Religion and Secular Views in Thailand / Manuel Litalien11 State-Society Structures and the Frustration of Movements for Secular Reforms in Lebanon: Civil Marriage and Youth Activism / Elinor Bray-CollinsConclusion: Secularism, Religious Diversity, and Democratic Politic / Anna DrakeContributors; Index

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Book SynopsisA study of three hundred years of medieval Franciscan history that focuses on martyrdomWhile hagiographies tell of Christian martyrs who have died in an astonishing number of ways and places, slain by members of many different groups, martyrdom in a Franciscan context generally meant death at Muslim hands; indeed, in Franciscan discourse, death by Saracen came to rival or even surpass other definitions of what made a martyr. The centrality of Islam to Franciscan conceptions of martyrdom becomes even more apparent—and problematic—when we realize that many of the martyr narratives were largely invented. Franciscan authors were free to choose the antagonist they wanted, Christopher MacEvitt observes, and they almost always chose Muslims. However, martyrdom in Franciscan accounts rarely leads to conversion of the infidel, nor is it accompanied, as is so often the case in earlier hagiographical accounts, by any miraculous manifestation.If the importance of Trade Review"MacEvitt’s book shows us how the reconfigured political landscape of the Islamic world in the high Middle Ages opened the way for a deeper, richer, and more complex engagement between Islam and Latin Christianity than at any earlier point in time....This is a fine book, one that significantly expands our understanding of the history of the Franciscan order, Latin Christian engagement with Islam, and the role of hagiography in shaping mentalities and communities during the Middle Ages." * Medieval Encounters *"Christopher MacEvitt convincingly demonstrates how martyrdom functioned as a central tenet of Franciscan identity, and as such his book constitutes an original and substantial contribution to the fields of Christian-Muslim relations and religious institutional history." * Bert Roest, Radboud University, Netherlands *Table of ContentsNote on Names Introduction Chapter 1. "I Acquired the Martyrs": Bishops, Kings, and the Victory of the Martyrs Chapter 2. "Do Not Fear Those Who Kill the Body": The Desire for Martyrdom in the Thirteenth Century Chapter 3. "To Sustain the Frail": Franciscan Evangelization in the Thirteenth Century Chapter 4. "Their Blood Has Been Spilled Everywhere": Evangelization, Martyrdom, and Christian Triumphalism in the Early Fourteenth Century Chapter 5. "The Infidels Learned Nothing": Poverty, Rejection of the World, and the Creation of the Franciscan Passio Chapter 6. "For the Damnation of Infidels": Martyrdom and History in the Chronicle of the Twenty-Four Ministers-General Epilogue. The Afterlife of the Martyrs Notes Bibliography Index Acknowledgments

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Book SynopsisThe Changing Terrain of Religious Freedom offers theoretical, historical, and legal perspectives on religious freedom, while examining its meaning as an experience, value, and right. The volume starts from the premise that the terrain of religious freedom has never been easy and smooth. Across societies and throughout history, defending or contesting principles of religious freedom has required compromise among multiple interests, balancing values, and wrangling with the law. Drawing on examples from the United States and around the world, and approaching the subject from the disciplines of history, law, sociology, philosophy, religious studies, and political science, the essays in this volume illustrate these challenges. They sketch the contours of contemporary debates while showing how the landscape of religious freedom has shifted over time. They consider various stakeholders that have asserted competing claims, among them individuals and groups; members of minority and majority cTable of ContentsIntroduction: The Landscape of Religious Freedom Heather J. Sharkey and Jeffrey Edward Green Part I. Ethical Arguments Chapter 1. A Right of Its Own: A Case for the Human Right of Religious Freedom Daniel Philpott Chapter 2. Can Freedom of Religion or Belief (FoRB) Be Universal? Heiner Bielefeldt Part II. The Social Contingency of Religious Freedom Disputes Chapter 3. Microclimates of Religious Freedom: Global Norms Meet Local Conditions in Territorial Hawai'i and Occupied Japan Jolyon Baraka Thomas Chapter 4. The Protection of Religion as "Culture" and "History": Three Case Studies Lori G. Beaman Chapter 5. "Baptism of Ire": Atheist Plaintiffs and Irreligious Freedom in Postwar America Leigh E. Schmidt Chapter 6. The Heads or Tails of Cow Protection in India: Religious Freedom and Secular Agriculture Cassie Adcock Chapter 7. Bad Faith: Religious Fraud and Religious Freedom in the "Mighty I AM" Case William Schultz Part III. The (Mis)application of Religious Freedom Chapter 8. The Historian's Pickaxe: Uncovering the Racist Origins of the Religious Right Randall Balmer Chapter 9. Female Genital Cutting in Michigan: How Advocates of the Dawoodi Bohra Distorted Religious Freedom to Control Women's Sexual Conduct Kristina Arriaga Chapter 10. The U.S. Supreme Court and the Future of Religious Freedom in the United States Joshua Matz Notes List of Contributors Index Acknowledgments

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Book SynopsisRace, in the early modern period, is a concept at the crossroads of a set of overlapping concerns of lineage, religion, and nation. In Bad Humor, Kimberly Anne Coles charts how these concerns converged around a pseudoscientific system that confirmed the absolute difference between Protestants and Catholics, guaranteed the noble quality of English blood, and justified English colonial domination. Coles delineates the process whereby religious error, first resident in the body, becomes marked on the skin. Early modern medical theory bound together psyche and soma in mutual influence. By the end of the sixteenth century, there is a general acceptance that the soul's condition, as a consequence of religious belief or its absence, could be manifest in the humoral disposition of the physical body. The history that this book unfolds describes developments in natural philosophy in the early part of the sixteenth century that force a subsequent reconsideration of the interactions of body and Trade Review"By analyzing how theology and natural philosophy of the period inform works of early modern English literature, [Bad Humor] traces the development of a racial logic that ultimately upholds and justifies English colonial rule by rendering impossible the religious conversion of Irish Catholics, Spanish Catholics, Africans and Indigenous people. Coles examines canonical works by John Donne, Ben Jonson, Edmund Spenser and Shakespeare alongside readings of Mary Wroth, Elizabeth Carey and Aphra Behn to document an emerging relationship between melancholy and religious error that assumes the heritability of (un)belief. Writing within a contemporary American context that has witnessed a rise in white Christian nationalism, Coles offers a timely exploration of how race and religion become intertwined." * Times Literary Supplement *"Locating religion and race along a single axis, Kimberly Anne Coles measures the role of the connection between body and soul in the oppression and alienation of groups of people. Her argument gets at the foundations of race-making in a book that is thoroughly grounded in literary criticism, early modern race studies, religious history, early modern medical theory, and early American law." * Jonathan Burton, Whittier College *"Bad Humor is a timely contribution to ongoing conversations about how religion informed early modern race-thinking. Arguing that earlier conceptions of hereditary blood and rank enabled ‘Black melancholy’ to be tethered to irreligion, Coles shows that faith comes to be seen as less a feature of belief than an inheritable somatic condition. First articulated in relationship to Europeans and later to Black Africans, the idea that there exists a ‘complexion of the soul’ reveals early modern theology, natural philosophy, humoral medicine, and Protestant literature to be early contributors to white supremacy." * Valerie Traub, University of Michigan *"Uncovering how humoral theory entwines with philosophical and theological discussions of the relationship between body and soul, Kimberly Anne Coles makes clear that English Protestants rendered belief and non-belief heritable, and that this understanding of the heritable nature of belief was used to justify colonialism and the enslavement of Africans. Bad Humor provides important new insight into the racialization of religion in early modern English literature." * Dennis Austin Britton, The University of British Columbia *"In Bad Humor, Kimberly Anne Coles traces a logic whereby humoral imbalance—in particular, the excess of black bile supposedly registered in dark complexions—constitutes an essential moral inferiority that renders Christian conversion and civic affiliation impossible; those so cast outside the body politic are marked as legitimate objects of enslavement and genocide. Bad Humor compels us to attend to the enmeshment of science and religion in shaping early modern iterations of hierarchy and heredity attuned to the demands of emergent racial capitalism." * Melissa E. Sanchez, University of Pennsylvania *

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Book SynopsisAlthough commonly regarded as a prejudice against Roman Catholics, anti-popery is both more complex and far more historically significant than this common conception would suggest. As the essays collected in this volume demonstrate, anti-popery is a powerful lens through which to interpret the culture and politics of the British-American world.

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Book SynopsisExamines the history of African American Baptists and Methodists of the early twentieth century. By presenting African American Protestantism in the context of white Protestant fundamentalism, this study demonstrates that African American Protestants were acutely aware of the manner in which white Christianity operated and how they could use that knowledge to justify social change.Trade ReviewMathews deals with the connection between African American religion and the quest for racial equality. Her focus is unique: she looks at the subject from the perspective fundamentalism, as practiced by conservative Protestants, both black and white, in the years from 1915 to 1941. Recommended."" - Choice""Doctrine and Race—which considers the evolution of black evangelicals during the interwar period through their struggle with the modernist controversies and white fundamentalism’s rise—is an extremely welcome contribution to the study of black religious history."" - Clarence E. Hardy III, author of James Baldwin’s God: Sex, Hope, and Crisis in Black Holiness Culture

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Book SynopsisReligious and ethnic violence between Indonesia's Muslim majority and Christian minorities escalated dramatically after Suharto resigned in 1998. In this ethnographic study of Christianization in Indonesia, Lorraine Aragon delineates some of the background to this conflict.

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Book SynopsisIn 2002, armed Hindu mobs attacked Muslims in broad daylight in the west Indian state of Gujarat. The pogrom, which was widely seen over television, left more than one thousand dead. In Composing Violence Moyukh Chatterjee examines how highly visible political violence against minorities acts as a catalyst for radical changes in law, public culture, and power. He shows that, far from being quashed through its exposure by activists, media, and politicians, state-sanctioned anti-Muslim violence set the stage for transforming India into a Hindu supremacist state. The state''s and civil society’s responses to the violence, Chatterjee contends, reveal the constitutive features of modern democracy in which riots and pogroms are techniques to produce a form of society based on a killable minority and a triumphant majority. Focusing on courtroom procedures, police archives, legal activism, and mainstream media coverage, Chatterjee theorizes violence as a form of governance that crTrade Review"It is through scholarship of the kind offered by Composing Violence that we can grapple with questions of mass violence, impunity and justice after violence in South Asia, and beyond, in any meaningful way." -- Chulani Kodikara * Social and Legal Studies *Table of ContentsAcknowledgments ix Introduction. The Limits of Exposure 1 1. A Minor Reading 34 2. Composing the Archive 56 3. Against the Witness 76 4. Anti-Impunity Activism 93 5. Beyond the Unspeakable 107 Conclusion. Minor, Minorities, Minorization 127 Notes 139 Bibliography 151 Index 163

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Book SynopsisPresents readers with twenty-five essays on a curated selection of images and artifacts from the Keston Archive. Some of the world's leading authorities on religion and communism as well as experts personally involved with the operation of Keston College carefully selected and provided commentary for these images.Table of Contents Introduction New Voices: Activists, Archivists, and Academics on the Keston Collection Julie deGraffenried and Zoe Knox Essays Archival References

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Book SynopsisIn Out of Place, Luann Good Gingrich explores social inclusion and exclusion in relation to the approximately 60,000 Low German-speaking Mennonites who have migrated from isolated agricultural colonies in Latin America to rural areas of CanadaTrade Review'An informative and innovative account of the concept of social exclusion, the policies of Canada's social welfare system, and the logic of the market, as each relates to Mennonite migrants to southern Ontario from self-contained colonies in Mexico.' -- Dawn S. Bowen The Mennonite Quarterly Review April 2017Table of ContentsPreface Chapter One Social Exclusion In A World On The Move Chapter Two Mennonite Migrations And A Common Sense Point-Of-View Chapter Three Market Logic And The Order Of Social Space Chapter Four Everyday Practices Of Social Exclusion Chapter Five Producing The Economic Habitus Chapter Six The Practical Sense Of Self-Imposed Social Exclusion Chapter Seven Social Inclusion: Ideas And Practices Of Reconciliation References Notes

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Book SynopsisReflecting on humanity's shared desire for certainty, this book explores the discrepancies between religious adherence and inner belief specific to the early modern period, a time marred by forced conversions and inquisition.Trade Review"How did theology, medicine, law, natural science, exegesis and literature respond to the rising demand for credibility and truth? All nine essays in this volume adopt an approach we could call case-based, a CHOICE that renders the individual articles particularly intriguing." -- Vincenzo Lavenia, Università di Bologna * Journal of Jesuit Studies *“Barbara Fuchs and Mercedes García-Arenal have distinguished themselves, not only as gifted scholars but also as notably successful collaborators and editors of collections of essays. Their previous volumes of essays demonstrate a consistently high quality of scholarship and a coherence of thematic focus. The Quest for Certainty in Early Modern Europe: From Inquisition to Inquiry, 1550–1700, is a worthy addition to this corpus.” -- Gretchen Starr-LeBeau, Principia College * Journal of Modern History *Table of ContentsAcknowledgments Introduction Mercedes García-Arenal I. Staging Inquisitions: Nature, Culture, Religion 1. Trusting the “I”: Picaresque Confession and Early Modern Scepticism Barbara Fuchs 2. Feeling Certainty, Performing Sincerity: The Emotional Hermeneutics of Truth in Inquisitorial and Theatrical Practice Paul Michael Johnson 3. Conflicting Certainties or Different Truths: Healers and Inquisition in Baroque Spain María Luz López Terrada 4. True Peste and False Doors: Medical and Legal Discourse during the Great Castilian Plague, 1596–1601 Ruth MacKay 5. Policing Talent in Early Modern Jesuit Rome: Difference, Self-Knowledge, and Career Specialization Javier Patiño Loira II. Negotiating History and Theology 6. Stolen Saint: Relic Theft and Relic Identification in Seventeenth-Century Rome A. Katie Stirling-Harris 7. Baptizing “Uncertain Human Beings”? Probabilist Theology and the Question of the Beginning of Human Life in Seventeenth-Century Catholicism Stefania Tutino 8. Truth and Human History in Melchor Cano’s De locis theologicis Fernando Rodríguez Mediano 9. Ambivalent Origins: Isaac La Peyrère and the Politics of Historical Certainty in Seventeenth-Century Europe Carlos Cañete

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Book SynopsisIn Out of Place, Luann Good Gingrich explores social inclusion and exclusion in relation to the approximately 60,000 Low German-speaking Mennonites who have migrated from isolated agricultural colonies in Latin America to rural areas of CanadaTrade Review'An informative and innovative account of the concept of social exclusion, the policies of Canada's social welfare system, and the logic of the market, as each relates to Mennonite migrants to southern Ontario from self-contained colonies in Mexico.' -- Dawn S. Bowen The Mennonite Quarterly Review April 2017Table of ContentsPreface Chapter One Social Exclusion In A World On The Move Chapter Two Mennonite Migrations And A Common Sense Point-Of-View Chapter Three Market Logic And The Order Of Social Space Chapter Four Everyday Practices Of Social Exclusion Chapter Five Producing The Economic Habitus Chapter Six The Practical Sense Of Self-Imposed Social Exclusion Chapter Seven Social Inclusion: Ideas And Practices Of Reconciliation References Notes

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Book SynopsisIn April 1909, two waves of massacres shook the province of Adana, located in the southern Anatolia region of modern-day Turkey, killing more than 20,000 Armenians and 2,000 Muslims. The central Ottoman government failed to prosecute the main culprits, a miscarriage of justice that would have repercussions for years to come. Despite the significance of these events and the extent of violence and destruction, the Adana Massacres are often left out of historical narratives. The Horrors of Adana offers one of the first close examinations of these events, analyzing sociopolitical and economic transformations that culminated in a cataclysm of violence. Bedross Der Matossian provides voice and agency to all involved in the massacres—perpetrators, victims, and bystanders. Drawing on primary sources in a dozen languages, he develops an interdisciplinary approach to understand the rumors and emotions, public spheres and humanitarian interventions that together informed this complex event. Ultimately, through consideration of the Adana Massacres in micro-historical detail, this book offers an important macrocosmic understanding of ethnic violence, illuminating how and why ordinary people can become perpetrators.Trade Review"The Horrors of Adana is a truly groundbreaking and highly nuanced exploration of intercommunal, sectarian, and nationalist violence in the late Ottoman Empire. A must-read for scholars of the modern Middle East."—Ussama Makdisi, Rice University, author of Age of Coexistence: The Ecumenical Frame and the Making of the Modern Arab World"The Horrors of Adana is an outstanding analysis of a massacre never before deeply studied. Bedross Der Matossian offers a thorough inquiry into the perpetrators, victims, bystanders, and social-political context, useful to all those interested in understanding processes of mass violence."—Jacques Semelin, Sciences Po Paris, author of Purify and Destroy: The Political Uses of Massacre and Genocide"With The Horrors of Adana, the Adana Massacres get their own story, a story that needs telling. Bedross Der Matossian's deeply researched and engagingly argued book situates Adana in a longer trajectory of 'forgotten' massacres and as part of Ottoman history more broadly."—Michelle Tusan, University of Nevada, Las Vegas, author of The British Empire and the Armenian Genocide: Humanitarianism and Imperial Politics from Gladstone to Churchill"Der Matossian's well-written and meticulously researched book, utilizing rare documentation from fifteen different archives, employing an interdisciplinary perspective and an objective, conversational tone, offers insights into this untold history."—Eleni Sakellis The National Herald"Der Matossian draws on an impressive array of sources in Armenian, Arabic, French, German, Greek, Hebrew, Ladino, Russian, and both Ottoman and modern Turkish to paint an all-encompassing picture of the events from the perspectives of perpetrators, victims, and bystanders."—Samuel Sweeney, The American Conservative"Der Matossian himself is rather modest about his aims and achievements, but I do not have to be, so here goes: The Horrors of Adana is the first broad, deep, and analytical take on the Adana massacres. The introduction alone is a tour de force... The author's detailed micro level analysis of the actions and reactions of perpetrators, bystander, and victims – who fight back, outnumbered and outgunned – is dispassionate, evenhanded, and yet reads like a thriller."—Matthias Bjørnlund, International Journal of Armenian Genocide Studies"By analyzing the structure of violence from various perspectives, Professor Der Matossian was able to bring attention to the spiral of violence that occurred in Adana while explaining the multi-faceted, complex phenomenon of massacre and violence."—Natalie Agazarian, Hye Sharzhoom"The Horrors of Adana is a rich work on an episode which has never before been investigated so closely.... Even for readers new to the region and its history, the nuanced and multi-layered presentation of this complex time period is engaging. It also offers much to think about in echoing other places and our own era."—Nareg Seferian, Armenian Review"Written by the pioneer historian who has worked on one of the most horrendous events that took place at the beginning of the twentieth century, The Horrors of Adana would surely be an insightful and commendable contribution to the vast literature on ethnoreligious conflict, massacres, genocide, and ethnic conflict."—Önder Uçar, New Perspectives on Turkey"This beautifully written, carefully constructed, and convincingly argued book is based on deep reading of archival and published sources and a strong command of the existing, multilingual literature, and it is judicious in its conclusions. Der Matossian not only deploys the best tools of his own historical profession but appreciates the insights, findings, and techniques of qualitative political science and historical sociology. This is a major and original contribution to Armenian historiography, late Ottoman history, and the comparative study of ethnic violence."—Ronald Grigor Suny, American Historical Review

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Book SynopsisIn April 1909, two waves of massacres shook the province of Adana, located in the southern Anatolia region of modern-day Turkey, killing more than 20,000 Armenians and 2,000 Muslims. The central Ottoman government failed to prosecute the main culprits, a miscarriage of justice that would have repercussions for years to come. Despite the significance of these events and the extent of violence and destruction, the Adana Massacres are often left out of historical narratives. The Horrors of Adana offers one of the first close examinations of these events, analyzing sociopolitical and economic transformations that culminated in a cataclysm of violence. Bedross Der Matossian provides voice and agency to all involved in the massacres—perpetrators, victims, and bystanders. Drawing on primary sources in a dozen languages, he develops an interdisciplinary approach to understand the rumors and emotions, public spheres and humanitarian interventions that together informed this complex event. Ultimately, through consideration of the Adana Massacres in micro-historical detail, this book offers an important macrocosmic understanding of ethnic violence, illuminating how and why ordinary people can become perpetrators.Trade Review"The Horrors of Adana is a truly groundbreaking and highly nuanced exploration of intercommunal, sectarian, and nationalist violence in the late Ottoman Empire. A must-read for scholars of the modern Middle East."—Ussama Makdisi, Rice University, author of Age of Coexistence: The Ecumenical Frame and the Making of the Modern Arab World"The Horrors of Adana is an outstanding analysis of a massacre never before deeply studied. Bedross Der Matossian offers a thorough inquiry into the perpetrators, victims, bystanders, and social-political context, useful to all those interested in understanding processes of mass violence."—Jacques Semelin, Sciences Po Paris, author of Purify and Destroy: The Political Uses of Massacre and Genocide"With The Horrors of Adana, the Adana Massacres get their own story, a story that needs telling. Bedross Der Matossian's deeply researched and engagingly argued book situates Adana in a longer trajectory of 'forgotten' massacres and as part of Ottoman history more broadly."—Michelle Tusan, University of Nevada, Las Vegas, author of The British Empire and the Armenian Genocide: Humanitarianism and Imperial Politics from Gladstone to Churchill"Der Matossian's well-written and meticulously researched book, utilizing rare documentation from fifteen different archives, employing an interdisciplinary perspective and an objective, conversational tone, offers insights into this untold history."—Eleni Sakellis The National Herald"Der Matossian draws on an impressive array of sources in Armenian, Arabic, French, German, Greek, Hebrew, Ladino, Russian, and both Ottoman and modern Turkish to paint an all-encompassing picture of the events from the perspectives of perpetrators, victims, and bystanders."—Samuel Sweeney, The American Conservative"Der Matossian himself is rather modest about his aims and achievements, but I do not have to be, so here goes: The Horrors of Adana is the first broad, deep, and analytical take on the Adana massacres. The introduction alone is a tour de force... The author's detailed micro level analysis of the actions and reactions of perpetrators, bystander, and victims – who fight back, outnumbered and outgunned – is dispassionate, evenhanded, and yet reads like a thriller."—Matthias Bjørnlund, International Journal of Armenian Genocide Studies"By analyzing the structure of violence from various perspectives, Professor Der Matossian was able to bring attention to the spiral of violence that occurred in Adana while explaining the multi-faceted, complex phenomenon of massacre and violence."—Natalie Agazarian, Hye Sharzhoom"The Horrors of Adana is a rich work on an episode which has never before been investigated so closely.... Even for readers new to the region and its history, the nuanced and multi-layered presentation of this complex time period is engaging. It also offers much to think about in echoing other places and our own era."—Nareg Seferian, Armenian Review"Written by the pioneer historian who has worked on one of the most horrendous events that took place at the beginning of the twentieth century, The Horrors of Adana would surely be an insightful and commendable contribution to the vast literature on ethnoreligious conflict, massacres, genocide, and ethnic conflict."—Önder Uçar, New Perspectives on Turkey"This beautifully written, carefully constructed, and convincingly argued book is based on deep reading of archival and published sources and a strong command of the existing, multilingual literature, and it is judicious in its conclusions. Der Matossian not only deploys the best tools of his own historical profession but appreciates the insights, findings, and techniques of qualitative political science and historical sociology. This is a major and original contribution to Armenian historiography, late Ottoman history, and the comparative study of ethnic violence."—Ronald Grigor Suny, American Historical Review

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Book SynopsisThe history of the Chechen wars and the origins of terrorism in Russia and beyond

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Book SynopsisThose who anticipated the demise of religion and the advent of a peaceful, secularized global village have seen the last two decades confound their predictions. René Girard’s mimetic theory is a key to understanding the new challenges posed by our world of resurgent violence and pluralistic cultures and traditions.Girard sought to explain how the Judeo-Christian narrative exposes a founding murder at the origin of human civilization and demystifies the bloody sacrifices of archaic religions. Meanwhile, his book Sacrifice, a reading of conflict and sacrificial resolution in the Vedic Brahmanas, suggests that mimetic theory’s insights also resonate with several non-Western religious and spiritual traditions.This volume collects engagements with Girard by scholars of Judaism, Christianity, Islam, Hinduism, and Buddhism and situates them within contemporary theology, philosophy, and religious studies.

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Book SynopsisIn order to better understand the political conditions of the Arabic language in Israel, a comparison with the political conditions of Arabic in the Levant as well as the Diaspora is necessary. Comparison consists of macro factors, such as nation-state building, and at the micro level, the daily public usage of Arabic. While the relationship between language and nationhood is well documented, study of the unique socio-political situation of the use of Arabic in the Jewish state, and in particular language usage in East Jerusalem, has hitherto not been addressed. The removal of Arabic as an official language in Israel in 2018 has major implications for IsraeliPalestinian accommodation. Research for the book relied on ethnographic fieldwork as well as sociolinguistic literature. Investigation is wide-ranging: distinguishing the different public presences of language; the state of literacy (publishing, education); and (formal and informal) interviews with students, teachers and journalists. Linguists often consider the Levant to belong to one dialect group but post-1918 people in the Levant have had to deal with separate political realities, and language differences reflect their unique political and social circumstances. The history of European colonialism is but one influencing factor. Diaspora comparison engages with the US city of Dearborn, Michigan, home to the largest Arab American community in one locality. How does this community find meaning in both being American and a threat to national security? This dilemma is mirrored in the life of Palestinians in Israel. Security and securitisation are relational concepts (Rampton and Charalambous 2019), and language plays a large part in personal sense of belonging. Analytical tools such as the concept of seamline (Eyal 2006), and indexicality (Silverstein 1979), assist in coming to terms with the metapragmatic meanings of language. This important book reaches far beyond linguistic difference; it goes to the heart of political, social and economic despair faced by multiple communities.Trade ReviewBuilding on long term and wide-ranging ethnographic explorations of language and politics in the Middle East, Professor Camelia Suleiman incorporates situated understanding of people and place, cross-disciplinary scholarship, and insightful theoretical links to account for the use and role of Arabic in the Jewish state, with a comparison to the diaspora in the US a key feature. It is an important, revealing, thought-provoking book, which illuminates facets of a complex history of language, politics, and identity. Colleen Cotter, Professor in Media Linguistics, Queen Mary University of LondonCamelia Suleiman’s Arabic between State and Nation is a vitally important and many-sided study on the position and development of Arabic in Israel, the Palestinian territories, Jordan, Lebanon, and Syria. It even discusses Arabs and Arabic in Michigan, with the highest concentration of Arabs in the US. Through language, it tackles a myriad important questions such as identity, position of minorities in a settler-colonial state, and the role of education systems. This diligently researched book is an essential reading for anybody wishing to learn what has happened to Levantine Arabic, once common to the whole region but now separated by modern borders and competing nation-building projects. Hannu Juusola, Professor of Middle Eastern Studies, University of Helsinki, FinlandThe author discusses the role of language in various Arab contexts and leads the reader to the special situation of the language development in Jerusalem. I found the book interesting, well organized, and comprehensive. In my opinion, this book should be part of linguistics studies, as well as Middle East Studies. Mona Khoury-Kassabri, Vice President of Strategy and Diversity, Professor of Social Work, Hebrew University of JerusalemIt is a fascinating, comprehensive and enlightening research work on the interplay between the Arabic language and the social and political developments in the Levant states, notably Jordan, Israel, the West Bank and East Jerusalem. Based on a variety of sources, personal observations and interviews, this original study uniquely contributes to our knowledge and understanding of the crucial role of Arabic on the national identities of important Middle Eastern entities. Moshe Ma'oz, Professor Emeritus, Islamic and Middle Eastern Studies, Hebrew University of Jerusalem

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Book SynopsisDoes religion cause war? It is often claimed that religion is responsible for more wars, more global conflicts and more deaths than any other factor. After all, the world has seen its share of crusades, inquisitions and jihads. Enlightened, modern people assume that if we could only discard primitive religious belief, the world would be a better place. Alas, the picture is not quite so simple. "Indeed," writes Meic Pearse, "there is only one thing that bears a heavier responsibility than religion as a principal cause of war. And that is, of course, irreligion." In this provocative book, historian Meic Pearse debunks the common misconception that religion causes war. He argues that while religion is often a significant generator of armed conflict both in the past and in the present, the two principal causes of human warfare are in fact culture and greed for territory, resources or power. Since culture and greed often clothe themselves in religion, wars fought for culture often appear to be fought for religion. With keen analysis of global history and current events, Pearse shows how irreligion has produced far bloodier wars than religion, and how global secularism itself does violence to religion and traditional cultures. Ultimately, throughout history warfare has been waged over the shape of society itself. A crisis in meaning leads people to fight for what they fear may be lost. For a world weary of war, Pearse points beyond both cultural and secular metanarratives to an alternative hope.

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Book SynopsisManifestations of hatred of Jews and Israel have risen over the last few decades in the Arab and Muslim world. This hatred is demonstrated in many ways -- from propaganda to terrorism. But is such hatred the result of Islamic anti-Semitism, as widely claimed? Or does it have other roots and reasons? This book sets the record straight by explaining that while anti-Semitism is the credo of fanatic groups and regimes, such an attitude is not representative of traditional and contemporary Islam. For centuries Muslim attitudes to Jews were ambivalent: contempt and antagonism alongside tolerance and co-operation. In fact Jews under Islam were better off than their Christian neighbours, and much better off than their Jewish brethren under Christianity. A similar pattern of relations has developed over the last several decades between Muslim nations and the Jewish state of Israel: hostility and violence, mostly by Muslim Arabs, but also dialogue and co-operation by and with many other Muslims. These complex relations are discussed here by Muslim and Jewish scholars -- from Azerbaijan, Egypt, India, Israel, Jordan, Pakistan, the USA, Palestine and Turkey -- who analyse the religious, cultural, political and economic factors that have shaped Muslim attitudes to Jews and Israel. Ideas and suggestions are put forward to improve Muslim-Jewish relations -- the theme of which was first conceived at an international conference organised by the Weatherhead Center for International Affairs, and the Divinity School, Harvard University.Table of ContentsPreface; Introduction by Moshe Ma'oz; Modern Myths of Muslim Anti-Semitism; The Image of the Jew/Zionist/Israeli in the Arab World; The Breakdown of Arab-Israeli Peace: Research from Remote, Reciprocal Stereotypes & Anti-Normalization - The Case of Jordan; Islam & the Question of Peace with Israel: Jad al-Haqqs Fatwa Permitting Egypts 1979 Peace Treaty with Israel; Saudi Arabia & Israel: The Essence of Strategic Pragmatism; Myth, History & Realpolitik: Morocco & its Jewish Community; Babylon versus Zion: Changing Iraqi Perceptions of Israel; Azerbaijani Public Perceptions of Jews & the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict; Turkish Policy towards the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict; Dancing in the Dark: Pulling the Veil off Israeli-Pakistan Relations; Indian Muslims & the Three Js: Jews, Jerusalem & the Jewish State; Indonesian Muslims Perceptions of Jews & Israel; African Islam: Its Attitudes towards Israel & Judaism; "The Triangle": Europeans, Muslims, Jews; An Examination of Current Attitudes of Muslim Americans Toward Jews, Israel & Jerusalem; Index.

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Book SynopsisManifestations of hatred of Jews and Israel have risen over the last few decades in the Arab and Muslim world. This hatred is demonstrated in many ways -- from propaganda to terrorism. But is such hatred the result of Islamic anti-Semitism, as widely claimed? Or does it have other roots and reasons? This book sets the record straight by explaining that while anti-Semitism is the credo of fanatic groups and regimes, such an attitude is not representative of traditional and contemporary Islam. For centuries Muslim attitudes to Jews were ambivalent: contempt and antagonism alongside tolerance and co-operation. In fact Jews under Islam were better off than their Christian neighbours, and much better off than their Jewish brethren under Christianity. A similar pattern of relations has developed over the last several decades between Muslim nations and the Jewish state of Israel: hostility and violence, mostly by Muslim Arabs, but also dialogue and co-operation by and with many other Muslims. These complex relations are discussed here by Muslim and Jewish scholars -- from Azerbaijan, Egypt, India, Israel, Jordan, Pakistan, the USA, Palestine and Turkey -- who analyse the religious, cultural, political and economic factors that have shaped Muslim attitudes to Jews and Israel. Ideas and suggestions are put forward to improve Muslim-Jewish relations -- the theme of which was first conceived at an international conference organised by the Weatherhead Center for International Affairs, and the Divinity School, Harvard University.Table of ContentsPreface; Introduction by Moshe Ma'oz; Modern Myths of Muslim Anti-Semitism; The Image of the Jew/Zionist/Israeli in the Arab World; The Breakdown of Arab-Israeli Peace: Research from Remote, Reciprocal Stereotypes & Anti-Normalization - The Case of Jordan; Islam & the Question of Peace with Israel: Jad al-Haqqs Fatwa Permitting Egypts 1979 Peace Treaty with Israel; Saudi Arabia & Israel: The Essence of Strategic Pragmatism; Myth, History & Realpolitik: Morocco & its Jewish Community; Babylon versus Zion: Changing Iraqi Perceptions of Israel; Azerbaijani Public Perceptions of Jews & the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict; Turkish Policy towards the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict; Dancing in the Dark: Pulling the Veil off Israeli-Pakistan Relations; Indian Muslims & the Three Js: Jews, Jerusalem & the Jewish State; Indonesian Muslims Perceptions of Jews & Israel; African Islam: Its Attitudes towards Israel & Judaism; "The Triangle": Europeans, Muslims, Jews; An Examination of Current Attitudes of Muslim Americans Toward Jews, Israel & Jerusalem; Index.

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Book SynopsisIn recent decades, the taking of hostages has proven to be a particularly effective tactic for Islamic terrorist organizations worldwide, including al Qaeda. The global jihad movement regards citizens of foreign (mainly western) countries as prime targets for abduction, although in fact local residents have constituted the majority of kidnapping victims. This book analyzes Islamic terror abductions over the last 30 years in the Middle East (Lebanon, Syria, Iraq, Iran, Yemen, and Saudi Arabia), Asia (Afghanistan, Pakistan, India, and the Philippines), Africa (the Maghreb, the Sahel regions, and Somalia), and in Russia as a part of the Russian-Chechen conflict. Discussion also focuses on the abduction by Hizballah of Israeli soldiers, the Second Lebanon War of 2006, the Mumbai terror attack (2008), the Chechen hostage crisis in Moscow and Beslan (2002 and 2004), the kidnapping of employees of the Algerian In Amenas gas facility by al Qaeda of the Maghreb' in January 2013 and the Nairobi "Westgate Mall" hostage crisis in September 2013. The role of Iran as a state sponsor of terrorism, and its patronage of terror organizations that utilize the tactic of abduction to promote Iranian interests in Lebanon and Iraq, is highlighted throughout. Discussion focuses on the challenges faced by countries whose citizens have been abducted by Islamic terror organizations and their reactions to these challenges, and provides theoretical classifications of the phenomenon of terrorism in general and terror abduction in particular.

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Book SynopsisInvestigation of the development of the Cathar heresy in south-west France, looking at how and why its growth differed across the regions. The medieval county of Quercy in Languedoc lay between the Dordogne and the Toulousain in south-west France; it played a significant role in the history of Catharism, of the Albigensian crusade launched against the heresy in 1209,and of the subsequent inquisition. Although Cathars had come to dominate religious life elsewhere in Languedoc during the course of the twelfth century, the chronology of heresy was different in Quercy. In the late twelfth century, nearby abbeys were still the main focus of devotional activity; inquisitors' discoveries in the 1240s point to the previous twenty years as the period when Catharism and also the Waldensian heresy took a firm hold, most dramatically in its far north. This study deals with the cultural and political origins of the religious change. Its careful analysis offers a significant re-evaluation of the nature and social significance of religious dissidence,and of its protection and persecution in both the history and historiography of Catharism. Dr Claire Taylor is Associate Professor, School of History, University of Nottingham.Trade ReviewMakes a thought-provoking and rich contribution to a complex subject. * FRENCH HISTORY *[Provides] a new model for approaching the subject. * CRUSADES *Highly recommendable reading for all who are interested in medieval heresy. * SEHEPUNKTE *Tightly focused and highly detailed. [...] Anyone interested in heresy and its repression will find this book essential reading. * CATHOLIC HISTORICAL REVIEW *Heresy came late to Quercy. . . . Taylor is concerned to work out why this should have been so and brings to the task a thorough knowledge of the sources and the region and great acuity and intellectual tenacity. * SPECULUM *Table of ContentsIntroduction Investigating Medieval Quercy: Questions about Sources Medieval Quercy War and its Aftermath 'Heretical' Quercy: the Evidence Gathered by c.1245 Heresy: A Social and Cultural Life Heresy and What it Meant The Re-Shaping of Quercy Conclusion Bibliography

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Book SynopsisMany American Christians have come to understand their relationship to other Christian denominations and traditions through the lens of religious persecution. This book provides a historical account of these developments, showing the global, theological, and political changes that made it possible for contemporary Christians to claim that there is a global war on Christians. This book, however, does not advocate on behalf of particular repressed Christian communities, nor does it argue for the genuineness (or lack thereof) of certain Christians’ claims of persecution. Instead, this book is the first to examine the idea that there is a “global war on Christians” and its analytical implications. It does so by giving a concise history of the categories (like “martyrs”), evidence (statistics and metrics), and theologies that have come together to produce a global Christian imagination premised upon the notion of shared suffering for one’s faith. The purpose in doing so is not to deny certain instances of suffering or death; rather, it is to reflect upon the consequences for thinking about religious violence and Christianity worldwide using terms such as a “global war on Christians.”Trade Review"Jason Bruner's Imagining Persecution offers a polite, probing, and ultimately devastating deconstruction of the common American Christian belief that there is at this time a global war of persecution against Christians. This is an extraordinarily important book. In its own understated way, it raises this fundamental question—why exactly is it so important for conservative American Christians to believe they are part of a globally persecuted community?"— David P. Gushee, author of Still Christian: Following Jesus Out of American Evangelism. "A significant contribution."— David Smith, author of Religious Persecution and Political Order in the United States "Persecution, Martyrdom, and Christian Identity: 7 Questions with Jason Bruner"— Sacred Matters "New Books Network - New Nooks in Christian Studies" interview with Jason Bruner— New Books Network - New Nooks in Christian StudiesTable of ContentsContents Preface 1. Coming to Terms: Christians, Martyrs, and Persecution 2. Christians, Martyrdom, and Persecution from the New Testament to the Reformation 3. Religious Persecution and American Christianity 4. A Global War on Christians? 5. The Global Politics of the Suffering Body of Christ Notes Bibliography Acknowledgments Index

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Book SynopsisReligious Horror and Holy War in Viking Age Francia explores how authorities in western Francia used horror rhetoric to cast Christian soldiers, who robbed the poor and the church, as monsters that devoured human flesh and drank human blood. Adapting modern literary horror approaches to medieval sources, this study reveals how such rhetoric served as a form of spiritual weaponry in the clergy's attempts to correct and condemn wayward military men. This investigation, therefore, unearths long-forgotten Carolingian thought about the dreadful spiritual reality of internal enemies during a time of political division and the Northmen's depredations. Yet such horror also informed a new understanding of Christian heroism that developed in relation to the wars fought against the invaders. This vision of heroic soldiers, which included military martyrs, culminated in ideas about holy war against the pagans. Thus Carolingian religious horror and holy war together belonged to a body of ideas about the spiritual, unseen side of the church's cosmic conflict against evil that foreshadowed later medieval Crusading thought.Trade ReviewGillis has written a vital book that takes a moment of crisis in the late ninth century and transforms how we think about not just the Viking attacks but much else. The Franks were enmeshed in violence and Gillis is one of the first to really theorize what that meant, how 'horror' can help us understand not just how they thought about war, politics, and religion, but also how the centuries that followed built upon those foundation stones and further developed an idea of Christian holy war that crescendoed in the twelfth century."" - Matthew Gabriele, Professor of Medieval Studies, Dept. of Religion & Culture, Virginia Tech""Matthew Gillis is one of the most creative historians working today in any field. His application of the theories and literature of horror to Carolingian texts allows him and his readers to find new insights in the material. It will be particularly valuable for showing how the Carolingians and ideas of horror helped shape the early doctrine of holy war."" - Jay Rubenstein, Professor of History and Director of the Center for the Premodern World, University of Southern CaliforniaTable of Contents Preface PART ONE. ""And The Blood of Our Brothers Drips from Our Mouths"" – King Carloman II's Monsters & Carolingian Religious Horror PART TWO. ""Men Devouring One another Drink their Neighbors' Blood"" – Spiritual Protections against Christian Monsters PART THREE. ""Alas, Naked They Underwent the Savage Folk's Sword!"" – Heroism in Abbo of Saint-Germain's Wars of the City of Paris PART FOUR. ""O, Francia, Protect Yourself!"" – Cosmic War in Abbo of Saint Germain's Sermons Acknowledgements Abbreviations Bibliography Index

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Book SynopsisThe sixteenth century, which heralded the end of the Middle Ages and the commencement of the Early Modern Era, was a time of tremendous religious upheaval and social ferment. The nebulous conglomeration of movements often referred to as the "Reformation" led to a wave of bloodshed and persecution which engulfed most of Europe for at least a hundred years. The present volume offers a translation of a particularly graphic literary portrayal of tortures and atrocities committed against Catholics during that time—the Speculum Haereticae Crudelitatis [The Mirror of Heretical Cruelty], by Arnold Havens (1540–1610). Havens was a Carthusian monk, an accomplished historian and scholar, and a prolific author. The Mirror of Cruelty is a remarkable and unique literary achievement, describing in gruesome and chilling detail an extensive catalogue of disturbing, inhuman and often bizarre acts of abuse. Most of these have not been available in any English-language sources until now, or have been presented only in abridged and bowdlerized forms. Havens drew the overall plan of his work from another book which enjoyed a wide, underground circulation at the time—the notorious Theatrum Crudelitatum [Theatre of Cruelties], by Richard Verstegan, a kind of nightmarish picture-book of atrocities committed against Catholics. A selection of illustrations from that book are included in this volume.Table of Contents Translator's Introduction Letter of Approval from the Prior of the Grande Chartreuse monastery, and Moderator and Minister-General of the Carthusian Order, Dom Bruno II de Affringues i. Introduction ii. The slaughter and devastation instigated by Martin Luther in upper Germany iii. The cruel persecutions of Catholics in England iv. King Henry VIII and the Carthusian martyrs v. Some acts of egregious cruelty committed in Ireland vi. The persecutions in France under the Calvinist regimes vii. Some particular examples of atrocities committed by Calvinists in France viii. The Franciscan martyrs at Gorkum (Part I) ix. The Franciscan martyrs at Gorkum (Part II) x. The Franciscan martyrs at Gorkum (Part III) xi. The Franciscan martyrs at Gorkum (Part IV) xii. The cruelty of the Calvinists towards four Augustinian Canons Regular xiii. The martyrdom of two Hieronymite monks at Gouda xiv. The vicious martyrdom of the poet Cornelis Musius xv. The martyrdom of William of Gouda, a Franciscan friar xvi. Further hideous crimes perpetrated against Catholics in Holland and Flanders xvii. The martyrdom of twelve Carthusian monks at Roermond in Holland xviii. The horrendous and inhuman torture and execution of Balthasar Gérard of Burgundy, the man who killed the Prince of Orange xix. Conclusion List of Images Bibliography

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