Thinking of modern jihad as simply a cultural extension of Islam is a common, and unfortunate, mistake. Two new books by Gilles Kepel and Olivier Roy offer better historical and sociological explanations, but they are only a start. The War for Muslim Minds: Islam and the West. By Gilles Kepel. Cambridge: Belknap, 2004, 336 pp. $23.95. Globalized Islam: […].
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Beyond Jihad Vs. McWorld
The terrorist attacks of September 11 did without a doubt change the world forever, but they failed to change the ideological viewpoint of either the left or the right in any significant way. The terrorist attacks of September 11 did without a doubt change the world forever, but they failed to change the ideological viewpoint of either the left or the ri […].
The freedom of thought and religion in Islam -III-
The critical review of the deniers of freedom of thought and religion would require a long time and can not be paid to just in this article. In the time that we have among the various judgments we would pay to three famous judgments that deal with freedom of religion and thought and we believe that these three are the most important concerning this area. […].
The freedom of thought and religion in Islam -II-
In this section we are to first present the religious proof of the freedom of religion and thought in religion and second critic the mentioned evidence of the deniers of the freedom of religion and thought. Before paying to this important subject we would first answer this introductory question that if freedom is the base in religion and thought and denyi […].
The freedom of thought and religion in Islam – I-
One of the assumptions in the dialogue of the civilizations is accepting the variety of ideas and religions. The civilizations are based on different cultures and different cultures have been found on the basis of various schools of thought and religions. Dialogue of civilizations and cultures is not possible without freedom of religion and thought. Firs […].
The Call for Islamic Protestantism
Dr. Hashem Aghajari, a University of Hamedan history lecturer, journalist, and active member of the reformist Islamic Revolution’s Mujahideen Organization (IRMO), is a disabled veteran of the Iran-Iraq war. In June 2002, Aghajari delivered an address commemorating the 25th anniversary of the death of Dr. ’Ali Shari’ati, a prominent intellectual and one of […].
The Clash of civilizations.
This article does not argue that civilization identities will replace all other identities, that nation states will disappear, that each civilization will become a single coherent political entity, that groups within a civilization will not conflict with and even fight each other. THE NEXT PATTERN OF CONFLICT World politics is entering a new phase, and […].
Islamic Civil Society.
We can certainly move the present as well as the future generation towards the new Islamic civilization through setting our eyes on horizons farther away, being together with understanding and helping each other as brothers. For this to become a reality, all of us must dedicate ourselves to the realization of the “Islamic civil society in our respective co […].
Malaise social, islamisme et replis identitaires dans le monde arabe.
Avec l’échec des idéologies du nationalisme et du panarabisme, et l’avortement des tentatives de modernisation par le haut, les années 80 ont été marquées par la montée en puissance de l’islamisme dans la plupart des pays arabes. Avec l’échec des idéologies du nationalisme et du panarabisme, et l’avortement des tentatives de modernisation par le haut, le […].
The Rise and Fall of Political Islam
Porsesh : What is your interpretation of concepts such as Islamic fundamentalism and political Islam ? What is the difference between the two ? Mansoor Hekmat : I do not use the expression Islamic fundamentalism because I believe it is a calculated Right wing interpretation, which deliberately presents a misleading image of contemporary Islam and Islamic […].
Fundamentalism and Modernism in the Contemporary Iranian Islam
Summary: `Islamic fundamentalism’ and `Islamic modernism’ are questions that Hojjatoleslam Hassan Yousefi Eshkevari has discussed in a lecture delivered at the University of Sorbonne in France in February 26, 1997. Text: In this article we will try to answer the following questions: a. What is Islamic fundamentalism? b. What is Islamic modernism? c. Wh […].
Islamists in Postmodern Times
Why are the postmodern times in which we are living important and what isso different about them. In general, every generation that lives assumes itis unique and is different from the generation that came before it. So ifwe are going to claim that we are living in a time which is different fromother times we have to justify that to some extent. Why are t […].
The democrat [Abdolkarim Soroush].
IF IRAN’S DEMOCRATIC REFORM movement has a house intellectual, it’s Abdolkarim Soroush. IF IRAN’S DEMOCRATIC REFORM movement has a house intellectual, it’s Abdolkarim Soroush. A small, soft-spoken philosopher with fiercely expressive eyebrows, Soroush specializes in mysticism, Sufi poetry, Islamic theology, chemistry, pharmacology, and the philosophy of […].
Abdolkarim Soroush and Islamic liberation theology.
Abdolkarim Soroush has emerged as the foremost Iranian and Islamic political philosopher and theologian. His sprawling intellectual project, aimed at reconciling reason and faith, spiritual authority and political liberty, ranges authoritatively over comparative religion, social science, and theology. However, it is only by understanding the local context […].
Islam Through Western Eyes
The media have become obsessed with something called “Islam,” which in their voguish lexicon has acquired only two meanings, both of them unacceptable and impoverishing. The media have become obsessed with something called “Islam,” which in their voguish lexicon has acquired only two meanings, both of them unacceptable and impoverishing. On the one hand, […].
Reason and revelation.
“Reason defines truth, justice, public interest, and humanity”. From chapter entitled “The Idea of Democratic Religious Government” in Reason, Freedom and Democracy in Islam: Essential Writings of Abdolkarim Soroush (Oxford University Press, 2000), edited by Mahmoud Sadri and Ahmad Sadri. Also see editors’ introduction. Modern science explains the world […].
Islamic Democracy and Islamic Governance.
A summary of remarks by Abdolkarim Soroush and Charles Butterworth at The Middle East Institute, November 21, 2000 On November 21, MEI gathered two scholars, the Iranian thinker Abdolkarim Soroush, visiting professor at Harvard University, and Charles Butterworth, Professor of Political Science at the University of Maryland, for a discussion on “Islamic […].
Types of Religiosity.
When we come to experiential religiosity, we step from the domain of separation into the domain of union. The previous types of religiosity can be described as religiosities of distance, for the first was physical and practical and the second mental and reflective. The first was based on instrumental rationality and the second on theoretical rationality.
