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A Brief Guide to Islam: History, Faith and Politics: The Complete Introduction

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A Brief Guide to Islam: History, Faith and Politics: The Complete Introduction

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Overview

Exploring the beliefs, history and politics of the ordinary people of Muslim countries, Grieve cuts through the complexities as he examines all aspects of Islam. He also addresses the big issues: can Islam support true democracy? Is true democracy what the West really wants for Muslim countries or are we merely seeking a cover of legitimacy for a policy of 'might is right'?

Paul Grieve is an unbeliever - he is not a born-again Muslim, a proselytizer or a frustrated desert romantic. His aim is to inform. The result is an accessible but never simplistic guide that challenges
stereotypical views, from women and banking to war and Malcolm X.

Complete with advice for visitors to Muslim countries, and with carefully chosen primary sources, maps and illustrations, this is the ideal summary for the reader looking for an unbiased overview of the religious and political world issues that have become part of our everyday lives.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781472107558
Publisher:	Little, Brown Book Group
Publication date:	02/07/2013
Series:	Brief Histories
Sold by:	Hachette Digital, Inc.
Format:	eBook
Pages:	400
File size:	3 MB

About the Author

While writing his critically successful novel Upon a Wheel on Fire, set against the organs of WWII, Paul Grieve became interested in the same events in the eastern Mediterranean, and particularly in the end of the Ottoman Empire and origins of the State of Israel. In order to understand the resulting conflicts in the present, Grieve decided to study Islam. After two years at the Mosquée de Paris he spent a further three years in the Middle East studying Islamic history, jurisprudence, politics and Arabic, with experts at Cairo University and the American University. The result is this book and a second novel. Grieve now lives in London.
Paul Grieve spent five years at the Mosquée de Paris and then at Cairo universities study

	A Stroll Through the City of God	1
1	In the Beginning	6
I	Muslims, Christians and Jews: Similarities	6
II	Muslims, Christians and Jews: Differences	11
III	The Torah, the Bible and the Qur'an	14
IV	The Nature of Islam	17
V	The Divide: Islam Misunderstood	21
2	The Coming of the Prophet	28
I	Early History	28
II	Islam and the Torah	32
III	The Judeo-Christian Prophets and the Qur'an	34
	The Messenger Isa	37
IV	The Life of Muhammad	40
	Islamic Dating	53
Appendix 1	The Constitution of Medina	72
Appendix 2	Muhammad's Wives	76
3	The Fundamentals of Faith	79
I	The Noble Qur'an	79
	The Mysterious Letters	84
	Qur'an Reciters	92
II	The Hadith and the Sunna of the Prophet	94
III	The Five Pillars of Islam	98
	The Perils of the Pilgrimage	120
IV	The Commandments of Islam	121
	At the Heart of Faith	125
Appendix 1	Examples of Secure Hadiths from al-Bukhari and Muslim	129
Appendix 2	Surah 1, Al-Fatiha (The Opening)	130
Appendix 3	Common Arabic Expressions Invoking the Name of God	131
Appendix 4	The Ninety-nine Beautiful Names of Allah	133
Appendix 5	Muhammad's Farewell Sermon	135
4	Islam in the Modern World	138
I	The Spread of Islam	138
	The Battle of Yarmuk	142
	Islam in Medieval Europe	148
	The Crusades through Arab Eyes	151
II	Islam beyond the Empire	155
III	The Arrival of the West in Dar al-Islam	157
IV	The Great War and the Cairo Conference	158
	Piracy on the Tyne	159
V	Islam in the Modern World	163
	Hiro as Hero	187
	11th September 2001	191
VI	Muslim Communities in the West	194
Appendix	The Balfour Declaration	204
5	The Practice of Islam	205
I	Faith without Priests, Feasts without Sacraments	205
II	Understanding Shariah	213
	Fatwas in modern times	216
III	Social Prohibitions	246
	The Queen Boat	250
IV	Women in Islam	252
V	Islamic Banking	257
	Shariah banking in Pakistan	261
VI	Jihad	263
6	The Development of Islam	266
I	Movements within Islam	266
	The Death of the Imam al-Husayn, Prince of Martyrs	268
	That Turbulent Priest	286
	The Oppressed and the Martyrs	292
	The Life and Times of Brother X	304
II	What is a Fundamentalist?	306
III	The Future	315
	Powerless in Gaza	327
	Under the Lid	335
7	Travelling in Dar al-Islam	338
I	Culture, Religion and Social Progress	338
II	God Without an Image	341
III	Mosque Architecture	346
IV	The Harams	349
	The Mysterious Ending of al-Hakim bi-amr Allah	359
V	Ten Treasures of Islam	364
VI	Thirty-five Famous Muslims	370
VII	Face to Face	397
Appendix	Excerpt from The Life of Muhammad	404
	Glossary	407
	Index	419

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Editorial Reviews

Grieve, a London-based writer and self-styled student and traveler of the Islamic world, puts forward a riveting book on Islam that decries and then corrects the widespread ignorance about the faith and its history. He consistently jolts the reader out of preconceived notions about Islam and Muslims, particularly concerning the Palestinian conflict. Grieve's precise insights into the Muslim worlds, past and present, are astonishingly accurate. He provides the real and surprising backstory on everything from the Crusades and colonialism to Muslim immigration to Europe and women under Islam. He also provides succinct introductory information on Islam, including recommending Qur'an translations and reviewing standard prayer techniques. Of the harsh reputation Islam has received in the West, Grieve writes: "The universal message of Christianity would be similarly diminished... if the faith were to be defined only by reference to sectarian murders in Northern Ireland, the history of the Spanish Inquisition, or the sad stories of lust and greed in modern television evangelism." His book is by no means an ode of praise to Islam; he is properly critical of the marginalization of women in Muslim societies, which he argues will hold the Muslim world back. If you read only one book about Islam this year, this should be it. (Apr.) Copyright 2006 Reed Business Information.

Publishers Weekly

Grieve (Christ All-Sufficient: The Unveiling of the Messiah in John 1-12) starts his book with a look at the similarities and differences among the three major world religions: Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. From there, he explores the history of Islam and the foundations of the culture that grew out of the Islamic faith. Particularly good are his explanations of the history of the Middle East. For a reader unfamiliar with the region or the religion, the book offers an understandable historical overview of the area and a description of the belief system and practices of Islam. Included are short biographical sketches of important Islamic figures and descriptions of places of interest to Muslims. The last chapter offers helpful tips for anyone traveling to Muslim countries. The book is nicely written, objective, and well researched, but no references are given, and there is little information available on Grieve, who is described in the publisher's catalog as "an unbeliever; not a born-again Muslim, a proselytizer or a frustrated desert romantic." An appropriate addition to public libraries.-Jennifer Kuncken, Williamsburg Regional Lib., VA Copyright 2006 Reed Business Information.

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A Brief Guide to Islam: History, Faith and Politics: The Complete Introduction

A Brief Guide to Islam: History, Faith and Politics: The Complete Introduction

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Overview

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About the Author

Table of Contents

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Product Details

About the Author

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