A former U.S. ambassador and author of The End of the Cold War? takes readers on a tour of Islamic history, reconstructing the complex historical and geopolitical trends that have created modern Islam. Simultaneous. (Islam)
Islamic Globalization examines the Muslim world''s growing importance in creating a more inclusive international system that is increasingly multipolar and multicultural. The author describes an emerging pattern of Islamic globalization as a series of transformations in four interrelated areas OCo pilgrimage and religious travel, capitalism and Islamic finance, democracy and Islamic modernism, and diplomacy and great power politics. The book integrates the disciplines of religion, politics, economics, law, and international relations highlighting developments in the Middle East, South Asia, Southeast Asia, and Africa. It provides new insights into the rapidly growing ties between China and the Islamic world, exploring their likely impact on the balance of power in Eurasia and beyond.
Written by scholars from a range of disciplines concerned with the Middle East and Islam (history, religious studies, anthropology, sociology, political science) and covering the Muslim world extensively (from Malaysia, Turkey, Sudan, Egypt, and Israel/Palestine to Muslim communities in Europe and the United States), this important contribution to the debate on globalization sets a standard in dealing with this pervasive force in the field of Islamic and Middle Eastern studies.
The book examines the growing tension between social movements that embrace egalitarian and inclusivist views of national and global politics, most notably classical liberalism, and those that advance social hierarchy and national exclusivism, such as neoliberalism, neoconservatism, and national populism. In exploring issues relating to tensions and conflicts around globalization, the book identifies historical patterns of convergence and divergence rooted in the monotheistic traditions, beginning with the ancient Israelites that dominated the Near East during the Axial age, through Islamic civilization, and finally by considering the idealism-realism tensions in modern times. One thing remained constant throughout the various historical stages that preceded our current moment of global convergence: a recurring tension between transcendental idealism and various forms of realism. Transcendental idealism, which prioritize egalitarian and universal values, pushed periodically against the forces of realism that privilege established law and power structure. Equipped with the idealism-realism framework, the book examines the consequences of European realism that justified the imperialistic venture into Africa, the Middle East, and Latin America in the name of liberation and liberalization. The ill-conceived strategy has, ironically, engendered the very dysfunctional societies that produce the waves of immigrants in constant motion from the South to the North, simultaneously as it fostered the social hierarchy that transfer external tensions into identity politics within the countries of the North. The book focuses particularly on the role played historically by Islamic rationalism in translating the monotheistic egalitarian outlook into the institutions of religious pluralism, legislative and legal autonomy, and scientific enterprise at the foundation of modern society. It concludes by shedding light on the significance of the Muslim presence in Western cultures as humanity draws slowly but consistently towards what we may come to recognize as the Global Age. The Open Access version of this book, available at http://www.taylorfrancis.com/books/e/9781003203360, has been made available under a Creative Commons Attribution-Non Commercial-No Derivatives 4.0 license.
Globalization, modernity and identity are fundamental issues in contemporary Islam and Islamic Studies. This collection of essays reflects the wide diversity that characterises contemporary Islamic Studies. The case studies cover regions stretching from China and Southeast Asia to diaspora communities in the Caribbean and Tajikistan. There is significant participation of intellectual voices from all areas concerned, providing a real contribution to the academic exchange between the Muslim and the Euro-American worlds.
An insightful examination of how general global processes are affecting Muslims everywhere, and the way in which these processes are moulded by particular local cultural, political, and economic configurations.
These essays explore many of the key aspects of the globalisation process. The authors discuss how Muslim countries are coping with their encounters with globalisation and consider how the West is responding to Islam in the political sphere.
Five centuries after the expulsion of Muslims and Jews from Spain, Europe is once again becoming a land of Islam. At the beginning of a new millennium, and in an era marked as one of globalization, Europe continues to wrestle with the issue of national identity, especially in the context of its Muslim citizens. Muslim Europe or Euro-Islam brings together distinguished scholars from Europe, the United States, and the Middle East in a dynamic discussion about the Muslim populations living in Europe and about Europe's role in framing Islam today. Working at the knotty intersection of cultural identity, the politics of nations and nationalisms, and religious persuasions, this is an invaluable anthology of scholarship that reveals the multifaceted natures of both Europe and Islam.
Why? Years After September 11, We Are Still Looking For Answers. Internationally Renowned Islamic Scholar Akbar Ahmed Knew That This Question Could Not Be Answered Until Islam And The West Found A Way Past The Hatred And Mistrust Intensified By The War On Terror And The Forces Of Globalization. Seeking To Establish Dialogue And Understanding Between These Cultures, Ahmed Led A Team Of Dedicated Young Americans On A Daring And Unprecedented Tour Of The Muslim World. Journey Into Islam: The Crisis Of Globalization Is The Riveting Story Of Their Search For Common Ground. From The Mosques Of Damascus To The Madrassas Of Karachi And Deoband, Ahmed And His Companions Met With Muslims From All Walks Of Life. They Listened To Students And Professors, Presidents And Prime Ministers, Sheikhs And Cab Drivers, Revealing Muslim Hopes And Frustrations As The West Has Never Heard Before. They Returned From Their Groundbreaking Journey With Both Cause For Concern And Occasion For Hope. Rejecting Stereotypes And Conventional Wisdom About Islam And Its Encounter With Globalization, This Important Book Offers A New Framework For Understanding The Muslim World. As Western Leaders Wage A War On Terrorism, Ahmed Offers Insightful Suggestions On How The United States Can Improve Relations With Islamic Nations And Peoples. Written With Equal Parts Compassion And Urgency, Journey Into Islam Makes A Powerful Case For Forming Bonds Across Religion, Race, And Tradition To Create Lasting Harmony Between Islam And The West. It Is Essential Reading In An Era Of Mistrust And Misunderstanding.