Western Muslims and the Future of IslamIn a Western world suddenly acutely interested in Islam, one question has been repeatedly heard above the din: where are the Muslim reformers? With this ambitious volume, Tariq Ramadan firmly establishes himself as one of Europe's leading thinkers and one of Islam's most innovative and important voices. As the number of Muslims living in the West grows, the question of what it means to be a Western Muslim becomes increasingly important to the futures of both Islam and the West. While the media are focused on radical Islam, Ramadan claims, a silent revolution is sweeping Islamic communities in the West, as Muslims actively seek ways to live in harmony with their faith within a Western context. French, English, German, and American Muslims--women as well as men--are reshaping their religion into one that is faithful to the principles of Islam, dressed in European and American cultures, and definitively rooted in Western societies. Ramadan's goal is to create an independent Western Islam, anchored not in the traditions of Islamic countries but in the cultural reality of the West. He begins by offering a fresh reading of Islamic sources, interpreting them for a Western context and demonstrating how a new understanding of universal Islamic principles can open the door to integration into Western societies. He then shows how these principles can be put to practical use. Ramadan contends that Muslims can-indeed must-be faithful to their principles while participating fully in the civic life of Western secular societies. Grounded in scholarship and bold in its aims, Western Muslims and the Future of Islam offers a striking vision of a new Muslim Identity, one which rejects once and for all the idea that Islam must be defined in opposition to the West. |
Contents
In Practice | |
A Universe of Reference | |
Encounter with the Universal | |
The Way alSharia | |
First Attempts at Reform | |
An Inventory | |
The Meaning of Engagement | |
Spirituality and Emotions | |
Toward a Reform of Islamic Education | |
Social Commitment and Political Participation | |
Economic Resistance | |
Interreligious Dialogue | |
The Cultural Alternative | |
Conclusion | |
Notes | |
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Common terms and phrases
action active adaptation al-harb al-maslaha approach awareness basis commitment concept conscience context countries culture dar al-harb dar al-islam dialogue economic environment essential ethical expression faith fatwa fiqh formulate fundamental give global Hadith Hanafi heart human humankind ijma ijtihad individual integration intellectual involvement Islamic education Islamic sciences Islamic teaching justice knowledge law and jurisprudence legal opinions maslaha means message of Islam moral mosques mufti mujtahid Muslim citizens Muslim communities Muslim identity nature non-Muslims numerous one’s oneself people’s political possible practice present prohibition Prophet protect qiyas question Qur’an reality reference religion religious requires respect responsibility Revelation rules salafi scholars sciences scriptural sources sense shahada Sharia situation social solidarity specific spirituality Sufism Sunna tawhid teaching of Islam Texts tradition ulama umma understanding usul usul al-fiqh usury various verses West Western Muslims Western societies women zakat