Islam and the Challenge of Democracy

Islam and the Challenge of Democracy
Title Islam and the Challenge of Democracy PDF eBook
Author Khaled Abou El Fadl
Publisher Princeton University Press
Pages 146
Release 2004-03-28
Genre Religion
ISBN 0691119384

Download Islam and the Challenge of Democracy Book in PDF, Epub and Kindle

The events of September 11 and the subsequent war on terrorism have provoked widespread discussion about the possibility of democracy in the Islamic world. Such topics as the meaning of jihad, the role of clerics as authoritative interpreters, and the place of human rights and toleration in Islam have become subjects of urgent public debate around the world. With few exceptions, however, this debate has proceeded in isolation from the vibrant traditions of argument within Islamic theology, philosophy, and law. Islam and the Challenge of Democracy aims to correct this deficiency. The book engages the reader in a rich discourse on the challenges of democracy in contemporary Islam. The collection begins with a lead essay by Khaled Abou El Fadl, who argues that democracy, especially a constitutional democracy that protects basic individual rights, is the form of government best suited to promoting a set of social and political values central to Islam. Because Islam is about submission to God and about each individual's responsibility to serve as His agent on Earth, Abou El Fadl argues, there is no place for the subjugation to human authority demanded by authoritarian regimes. The lead essay is followed by eleven others from internationally respected specialists in democracy and religion. They address, challenge, and engage Abou El Fadl's work. The contributors include John Esposito, Muhammad Fadel, Noah Feldman, Nader Hashemi, Bernard Haykel, Muqtedar Khan, Saba Mahmood, David Novak, William Quandt, Kevin Reinhart, and Jeremy Waldron.

Islam and Democracy

Islam and Democracy
Title Islam and Democracy PDF eBook
Author John L. Esposito
Publisher Oxford University Press
Pages 241
Release 1996-05-09
Genre Religion
ISBN 0198026757

Download Islam and Democracy Book in PDF, Epub and Kindle

Are Islam and democracy on a collision course? Do Islamic movements seek to "hijack democracy?" How have governments in the Muslim world responded to the many challenges of Islam and democracy today? A global religious resurgence and calls for greater political participation have been major forces in the post-Cold War period. Across the Muslim world, governments and Islamic movements grapple with issues of democratization and civil society. Islam and Democracy explores the Islamic sources (beliefs and institutions) relevant to the current debate over greater political participation and democratization. Esposito and Voll use six case studies--Algeria, Egypt, Iran, Malaysia, Pakistan, and Sudan--to look at the diversity of Muslim experiences and experiments. At one end of the spectrum, Iran and Sudan represent two cases of militant, revolutionary Islam establishing political systems. In Pakistan and Malaysia, however, the new movements have been recognized and made part of the political process. Egypt and Algeria reveal the coexistence of both extremist and moderate Islamic activism and demonstrate the complex challenges confronting ruling elites. These case studies prove that despite commonalities, differing national contexts and identities give rise to a multiplicity of agendas and strategies. This broad spectrum of case studies, reflecting the multifaceted relationship of Islam and Democracy, provides important insight into the powerful forces of religious resurgence and democratization which will inevitably impact global politics in the twenty first century.

The Challenge of Political Islam

The Challenge of Political Islam
Title The Challenge of Political Islam PDF eBook
Author Rachel Scott
Publisher Stanford University Press
Pages 294
Release 2010-04-23
Genre Religion
ISBN 0804769052

Download The Challenge of Political Islam Book in PDF, Epub and Kindle

Based on Islamist writings, political tracts, and interviews with Islamists, this book examines Muslim-Christian relations in Egypt from the perspective of Islamic conceptions of citizenship, and provides non-Muslim responses to those views.

Muslim Civic Cultures and Conflict Resolution

Muslim Civic Cultures and Conflict Resolution
Title Muslim Civic Cultures and Conflict Resolution PDF eBook
Author John N. Paden
Publisher
Pages 324
Release 2005
Genre Political Science
ISBN

Download Muslim Civic Cultures and Conflict Resolution Book in PDF, Epub and Kindle

"Nigeria's grand democratic experiment is sure to resonate internationally. In this original and informative book, John N. Paden delivers a timely analysis of how Muslim civic cultures respond to conflict mediation and resolution, placing his inquiry within the historical context of Nigeria's evolution as an independent state." "Paden calls for increased cultural understanding and sensitivity for a more constructive engagement with the Arab and non-Arab Muslim world. The experience of Nigeria provides essential insight into the challenges facing a global community seeking to promote peace and prosperity."--BOOK JACKET.

Islam and the Challenge of Democracy

Islam and the Challenge of Democracy
Title Islam and the Challenge of Democracy PDF eBook
Author Khaled Abou El Fadl
Publisher Princeton University Press
Pages 147
Release 2015-05-20
Genre Religion
ISBN 1400873207

Download Islam and the Challenge of Democracy Book in PDF, Epub and Kindle

The events of September 11 and the subsequent war on terrorism have provoked widespread discussion about the possibility of democracy in the Islamic world. Such topics as the meaning of jihad, the role of clerics as authoritative interpreters, and the place of human rights and toleration in Islam have become subjects of urgent public debate around the world. With few exceptions, however, this debate has proceeded in isolation from the vibrant traditions of argument within Islamic theology, philosophy, and law. Islam and the Challenge of Democracy aims to correct this deficiency. The book engages the reader in a rich discourse on the challenges of democracy in contemporary Islam. The collection begins with a lead essay by Khaled Abou El Fadl, who argues that democracy, especially a constitutional democracy that protects basic individual rights, is the form of government best suited to promoting a set of social and political values central to Islam. Because Islam is about submission to God and about each individual's responsibility to serve as His agent on Earth, Abou El Fadl argues, there is no place for the subjugation to human authority demanded by authoritarian regimes. The lead essay is followed by eleven others from internationally respected specialists in democracy and religion. They address, challenge, and engage Abou El Fadl's work. The contributors include John Esposito, Muhammad Fadel, Noah Feldman, Nader Hashemi, Bernard Haykel, Muqtedar Khan, Saba Mahmood, David Novak, William Quandt, Kevin Reinhart, and Jeremy Waldron.

Islam and Democracy in the Middle East

Islam and Democracy in the Middle East
Title Islam and Democracy in the Middle East PDF eBook
Author Larry Diamond
Publisher
Pages 360
Release 2003-08-07
Genre Political Science
ISBN

Download Islam and Democracy in the Middle East Book in PDF, Epub and Kindle

A comprehensive assessment of the origins and staying power of Middle East autocracies, as well as a sober account of the struggles of state reformers and opposition forces to promote civil liberties, competitive elections and a pluralistic vision of Islam. Drawing on the insights of some 25 leading Western and Middle Eastern scholars, the book highlights the dualistic and often contradictory nature of political liberalization. Yemen suggest, political liberalization - as managed by the state - not only opens new spaces for debate and criticism, but is also used as a deliberate tactic to avoid genuine democratization. In several chapters on Iran, the authors analyze the benefits and costs of limited reform. There, the electoral successes of President Mohammad Khatami and his reformist allies inspired a new generation but have not as yet undermined the clerical establishment's power. By contrast, in Turkey a party with Islamist roots is moving a discredited system beyond decades of conflict and paralysis, following a stunning election victory in 2002. force for change. While acknowledging the enduring attraction of radical Islam throughout the Arab world, the concluding chapters carefully assess the recent efforts of Muslim civil society activists and intellectuals to promote a liberal Islamic alternative. Their struggles to affirm the compatibility of Islam and pluralistic democracy face daunting challenges, not least of which is the persistent efforts of many Arab rulers to limit the influence of all advocates of democracy, secular or religious.

Making Islam Democratic

Making Islam Democratic
Title Making Islam Democratic PDF eBook
Author Asef Bayat
Publisher Stanford University Press
Pages 324
Release 2007
Genre History
ISBN 9780804755955

Download Making Islam Democratic Book in PDF, Epub and Kindle

This book looks anew at the vexing question of whether Islam is compatible with democracy, examining histories of Islamic politics and social movements in the Middle East since the 1970s.