Despite frequent and extensive publications on Islam, very few Americans, indeed very few non-Muslims, truly understand the faith or the more than one billion adherents who live it. This set presents the diversity and richness of Islam, filling in the blanks and expanding our knowledge and understanding. Portraying Muslims in all their humanity and diversity balances the images that have bombarded society and presents the reader with a fuller and more accurate picture of the Islamic faith and what it means to live as a Muslim—in Muslim communities, and as part of a broader tapestry of pluralism in the nations of the world. What does it mean to share Muslim concerns? To experience Muslim spirituality? What is the difference between Sunni and Shiite sects? Why do Muslims pray so frequently? What is the reality of Muslim marriage and gender relations? What is the meaning of jihad and martyrdom to a practicing Muslim? What role do the arts and humanities play in modern Muslim life? How are Islamic children raised? These questions and others are answered in these volumes, which bring together Muslim voices from around the world, including men and women, scholars and laypersons, fundamentalists and progressives, and others from various cultural, political, and Islamic backgrounds. Personal experiences and poetry are included to illustrate the many different expressions of Islam.

In recent years, Islamic fundamentalist, revolutionary, and jihadist movements have overshadowed more moderate and reformist voices and trends within Islam. This compelling volume introduces the current generation of reformist thinkers and activists, the intellectual traditions they carry on, and the reasons for the failure of reformist movements to sustain broad support in the Islamic world today. Richly detailed regionally focused chapters cover Iran, the Arab East, the Maghreb, South Asia, Indonesia, Malaysia, Turkey, Europe, and North America. The editor's introductory chapter traces the roots of reformist thinking both in Islamic tradition and as a response to the challenge of modernity for Muslims struggling to reconcile the requirements of modernization with their cultural and religious values. The concluding chapter identifies commonalities, comparisons, and trends in the modernizing movements.

Essays discuss Islamic identity, influential Islamic leaders, and reasons for the revitalization of Islam in the Middle East

An unprecedented, sympathetic, and wide-ranging exploration of the mysterious world of Islamic women--the people behind the veils--is presented by female writers and Christian workers.

"Mehran Kamrava has compiled a selection from some of the leading Muslim reformist thinkers whose voices have often been muted and marginalized. These essays introduce the reader to the nuances of the unfolding drama surrounding the issues of religion, politics and the public space across the Muslim World, revealing the richness as well as the limitations of these new attempts to synthesize Islam and modernity. This is a must-read for all those interested in hearing the new voices and seeing the other face of Islam."--Manochehr Dorraj, Professor of Political Science, Texas Christian University "The New Voices of Islam is a fine collection that effectively answers the question: where are the reformist voices in Islam? Mehran Kamrava has done an excellent job of presenting the global diversity of Muslim thinking from North Africa to Southeast Asia, Europe to America."--John L. Esposito, University Professor and Founding Director of the Prince Alwaleed Bin Talal Center for Muslim-Christian Understanding, Georgetown University "Western public concern about Islamic extremism is almost wholly uninformed by the views of the reforming intellectuals gathered together in Mehran Kamrava's very important book The New Voices of Islam. These men and women, living both within the Islamic world and in Europe and America, have been struggling for a modern, pluralist, tolerant and democratic transformation of the Muslim world years before the crises of 9/11 and 7/7. Their collective message deserves the widest exposure, particularly within western political circles where it has, sadly, gone unheeded."--David Waines, Emeritus Professor of Islamic Studies, Lancaster University "This volume contains not the voices of Muslim governments and Islamist oppositions but the work of Muslim mavericks--refreshing in their originality, searing in their critiques, reassuring in their rationality. These voices deserve a wider audience in the West, and this book responds to that need. But also, and most especially, they deserve the attention of Muslims everywhere. Government repression and Islamist pressures unfortunately obstruct general access to such unconventional ideas in many Muslim states."--Robert D Lee, Professor of Political Science, Colorado College

Raising awareness of what Islam is, as well as deepening understanding about the lived realities of Muslim people, this book explores the contemporary Muslim experience through first-hand interviews with over a hundred Muslims. Exploring key issues such as women and Islam, extremism and radicalisation, Sharia Law, homosexuality and Islamophobia, the book looks deep into what it means to be Muslim today. The 'voices' of Muslims are showcased throughout the book to highlight the diversity and evolution of Islam, and to show its inherent complexities and contradictions. This is an easy and accessible introduction to Islam combined with discussion surrounding several contentious issues associated with the religion.

In an era when Islam ostensibly lies at the heart of a volatile nexus of a global campaign of war on terrorism, simplistic notions and dangerous misunderstandings about the cultures and nature of Southeast Asian Islam, in all its variants, are used to inform and justify policies.