Islam: An Introduction (I.B.Tauris Introductions to Religion) - Softcover

Catharina Raudvere

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1848850840 ISBN 13: 9781848850842

Publisher: I.B.Tauris, 2012

Synopsis

Many existing introductions to Islam focus predominantly on the Middle East and on historical background at the expense of Islam as a lived faith. Assessing Islam as a truly global phenomenon, Catharina Raudvere engages thoroughly with history (explaining the significance of the revelation of the Prophet Muhammad and the origins of the different Sunni and Shi'a groups within Islam), while also giving full and comprehensive coverage to Muslim ritual life and Islamic ethics. She discusses moral debates and modern lifestyle issues such as halal consumption, interfaith dialogue and controversy over the wearing of the veil. Diaspora communities are considered with a view to showing how norms and doctrines are understood - and sometimes contradicted - in social and ritual practice. In addition, the author focuses on the meaning and continuing application to modern life of the Quran and hadith as sources for Islamic theology (kalam) and jurisprudence (fiqh). The book gives much attention to questions of universal values, Islam and democracy, gender issues, women's rights and pluralism, contrasting the thinking of Wahabism and radical Islamism with liberal reformist voices within Islam. 'Islam: An Introduction' offers undergraduate students of religion and general readers a balanced, sensitive and well informed appraisal of the world's most intensively discussed religious and cultural traditions.

About this title

About the Author

Catharina Raudvere is Professor of Islamic Studies at the University of Copenhagen. Her previous books include The Book and the Roses: Sufi Women, Visibility and Zikir in Contemporary Istanbul (I.B.Tauris, 2003) and Sufism Today: Heritage and Tradition in the Global Community (I.B.Tauris, 2008, co-edited with Leif Stenberg).

Edition details

• Publisher: I.B.Tauris
• Publication date: 2012
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 1848850840
• ISBN 13: 9781848850842
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 304