Developed in response to the events of September 11, 2001, these 14 articles from prominent Muslim thinkers offer a provocative reassessment of Islam's relationship with the modern world. Confronting issues such as racism, justice, sexuality and gender, this book reveals the real challenges faced by Muslims of both sexes in contemporary Western society. A probing, frank, and intellectually refreshing testament to the capacity of Islam for renewal, change, and growth, these articles from fifteen Muslim scholars and activists address the challenging and complex issues that confront Muslims today. Avoiding fundamentalist and apologetic approaches, the book concentrates on the key areas of debate in progressive Islamic thought: "Contemporary Islam," "Gender Justice," and "Pluralism." With further contributions on subjects as diverse and controversial as the alienation of Muslim youth; Islamic law, marriage, and feminism; and the role of democracy in Islam, this volume will prove thought-provoking for all those interested in the challenges of justice and pluralism facing the Muslim world as it confronts the twenty-first century.

Is the British press prejudiced against Muslims? In what ways can prejudice be explicit or subtle? This book uses a detailed analysis of over 140 million words of newspaper articles on Muslims and Islam, combining corpus linguistics and discourse analysis methods to produce an objective picture of media attitudes. The authors analyse representations around frequently cited topics such as Muslim women who wear the veil and 'hate preachers'. The analysis is self-reflexive and multidisciplinary, incorporating research on journalistic practices, readership patterns and attitude surveys to answer questions which include: what do journalists mean when they use phrases like 'devout Muslim' and how did the 9/11 and 7/7 attacks affect press reporting? This is a stimulating and unique book for those working in fields of discourse analysis and corpus linguistics, while clear explanations of linguistic terminology make it valuable to those in the fields of politics, media studies, journalism and Islamic studies.

“A delightfully original take on…the prospects for liberal democracy in the broader Islamic Middle East.”—Matthew Kaminski, Wall Street Journal As the Arab Spring threatens to give way to authoritarianism in Egypt and reports from Afghanistan detail widespread violence against U.S. troops and women, news from the Muslim world raises the question: Is Islam incompatible with freedom? In Islam without Extremes, Turkish columnist Mustafa Akyol answers this question by revealing the little-understood roots of political Islam, which originally included both rationalist, flexible strains and more dogmatic, rigid ones. Though the rigid traditionalists won out, Akyol points to a flourishing of liberalism in the nineteenth-century Ottoman Empire and the unique “Islamo-liberal synthesis” in present-day Turkey. As he powerfully asserts, only by accepting a secular state can Islamic societies thrive. Islam without Extremes offers a desperately needed intellectual basis for the reconcilability of Islam and liberty.

A look at the developing conflicts in Christian-Muslim relations during late antiquity and the early Islamic era How did the medieval Middle East transform from a majority-Christian world to a majority-Muslim world, and what role did violence play in this process? Christian Martyrs under Islam explains how Christians across the early Islamic caliphate slowly converted to the faith of the Arab conquerors and how small groups of individuals rejected this faith through dramatic acts of resistance, including apostasy and blasphemy. Using previously untapped sources in a range of Middle Eastern languages, Christian Sahner introduces an unknown group of martyrs who were executed at the hands of Muslim officials between the seventh and ninth centuries CE. Found in places as diverse as Syria, Spain, Egypt, and Armenia, they include an alleged descendant of Muhammad who converted to Christianity, high-ranking Christian secretaries of the Muslim state who viciously insulted the Prophet, and the children of mixed marriages between Muslims and Christians. Sahner argues that Christians never experienced systematic persecution under the early caliphs, and indeed, they remained the largest portion of the population in the greater Middle East for centuries after the Arab conquest. Still, episodes of ferocious violence contributed to the spread of Islam within Christian societies, and memories of this bloodshed played a key role in shaping Christian identity in the new Islamic empire. Christian Martyrs under Islam examines how violence against Christians ended the age of porous religious boundaries and laid the foundations for more antagonistic Muslim-Christian relations in the centuries to come.

BONUS: This eBook includes downloadable videos and a Q&A with Nabeel Qureshi that are not found in the print edition. Having shared his journey of faith in the New York Times bestselling Seeking Allah, Finding Jesus, Nabeel Qureshi now examines Islam and Christianity in detail, exploring areas of crucial conflict and unpacking the relevant evidence. In this anticipated follow-up book, Nabeel reveals what he discovered in the decade following his conversion, providing a thorough and careful comparison of the evidence for Islam and Christianity--evidence that wrenched his heart and transformed his life. In Seeking Allah, Finding Jesus, Nabeel Qureshi recounted his dramatic journey, describing his departure from Islam and his decision to follow Christ. In the years that followed, he realized that the world’s two largest religions are far more different than they initially appeared. No God but One: Allah or Jesus? addresses the most important questions at the interface of Islam and Christianity: How do the two religions differ? Are the differences significant? Can we be confident that either Christianity or Islam is true? And most important, is it worth sacrificing everything for the truth? Nabeel shares stories from his life and ministry, casts new light on current events, and explores pivotal incidents in the histories of both religions, providing a resource that is gripping and thought-provoking, respectful and challenging. Both Islam and Christianity teach that there is No God but One, but who deserves to be worshiped, Allah or Jesus? This eBook includes the full text of the book plus bonus content not found in the softcover! Bonuses include a Q&A with Nabeel Qureshi and downloadable videos that answer important questions about Islam and Christianity. Please note that some e-reader devices do not accommodate video play. You can still access the bonus videos by copying the web address provided into an internet browser on a device or computer that accommodates video content.

“Ed Husain has become one of the most vital Muslim voices in the world. The House of Islam could very well be his magnum opus.” -Reza Aslan, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Zealot “This should be compulsory reading.” -Peter Frankopan, author of the international bestseller The Silk Roads Today, Islam is to many in the West an alien force, with Muslims held in suspicion. Failure to grasp the inner workings of religion and geopolitics has haunted American foreign policy for decades and has been decisive in the new administration's controversial orders. The intricacies and shadings must be understood by the West not only to build a stronger, more harmonious relationship between the two cultures, but also for greater accuracy in predictions as to how current crises, such as the growth of ISIS, will develop and from where the next might emerge. The House of Islam addresses key questions and points of disconnection. What are the roots of the conflict between Sunni and Shi'a Muslims that is engulfing Pakistan and the Middle East? Does the Koran encourage the killing of infidels? The book thoughtfully explores the events and issues that have come from and contributed to the broadening gulf between Islam and the West, from the United States' overthrow of Iran's first democratically elected leader to the emergence of ISIS, from the declaration of a fatwa on Salman Rushdie to the attack on the offices of Charlie Hebdo. Authoritative and engaging, Ed Husain leads us clearly and carefully through the nuances of Islam and its people, taking us back to basics to contend that the Muslim world need not be a stranger to the West, nor our enemy, but our peaceable allies.

Here is the first major work published about sexuality and eroticism between males in Islamic society. Through narratives, analytic essays, descriptions, and academic treatises, Sexuality and Eroticism Among Males in Moslem Societies provides a revealing and most fascinating look into what is--for most Westerners--still a very hidden, very foreign culture. Until now there has existed a lack of solid information about sexuality in Islamic society, but this volume portrays very clearly the relationship between same-sex eroticism and the ideal of the man as penetrator. As a result, Sexuality and Eroticism Among Males in Moslem Societies illuminates not only homosexuality but the whole sexual culture and role of gender in the Muslim world. The chapters focus on homosexuality among men in Morocco, Syria, Iran, Turkey, and Israel. Despite its occurrence in this region of the world, sex between males is not considered to be "homosexuality" by most men--a concept that is reiterated in chapter after chapter. In addition to major differences in the attitudes toward homosexual acts in Muslim countries and the West, this enlightening book also shows great differences among the Muslim countries themselves, depending upon the degree to which Islamic law is enforced, the impact of different western colonial influences and legal systems, and the sheer impact of cultural variation within so vast a geographic area. There are some keen observations and insights into the socialization of boys in Islamic culture, the status and inaccessibility of women, and sex roles and attitudes toward them. Sexuality and Eroticism Among Males in Moslem Societies captures a sense of the Muslim countries in the process of rapid change--from the anti-modernist and religious fundamentalism of Iran to the attempts in the cities of Turkey to develop a western style gay way of life, with all the difficulties that involves. An engaging book for readers interested in gay studies, anthropologists, orientalists, historians, students of comparative law, and sexologists, it should also be read by anyone in contact with Arabs, Turks, or Persians--as tourists in Muslim countries, social service professionals working with immigrants, or friends of Muslims.after chapter. In addition to major differences in the attitudes toward homosexual acts in Muslim countries and the West, this enlightening book also shows great differences among the Muslim countries themselves, depending upon the degree to which Islamic law is enforced, the impact of different western colonial influences and legal systems, and the sheer impact of cultural variation within so vast a geographic area. There are some keen observations and insights into the socialization of boys in Islamic culture, the status and inaccessibility of women, and sex roles and attitudes toward them. Sexuality and Eroticism Among Males in Moslem Societies captures a sense of the Muslim countries in the process of rapid change--from the anti-modernist and religious fundamentalism of Iran to the attempts in the cities of Turkey to develop a western style gay way of life, with all the difficulties that involves. An engaging book for readers interested in gay studies, anthropologists, orientalists, historians, students of comparative law, and sexologists, it should also be read by anyone in contact with Arabs, Turks, or Persians--as tourists in Muslim countries, social service professionals working with immigrants, or friends of Muslims. historians, students of comparative law, and sexologists, it should also be read by anyone in contact with Arabs, Turks, or Persians--as tourists in Muslim countries, social service professionals working with immigrants, or friends of Muslims.