Islam a concept of political world invasion ebook

The term is sometimes used outside academia, often with meanings tangential to or opposite to the sociological usage (for example, applying it to a church). The term is sometimes treated as synonymous with civil religion, but although some scholars use the terms as equivalent, others see a useful distinction, using 'civil religion' as something weaker, which functions more as a socially unifying and essentially conservative force, where a political religion is radically transformational, even apocalyptic. Such political religions vie with existing religions, and try, if possible, to replace or eradicate them. In the terminology of some scholars working in sociology, a political religion is a political ideology with cultural and political power equivalent to those of a religion, and often having many sociological and ideological similarities with religion. 'LouГ«r's succinct book will be the one students and general readers turn to in order to understand the great sectarian divide in Islam and the way it is playing out politically in the Islamic world today, including among radical Islamist actors and states.:' State religion and civil religion are separate topics.' Sunnis and Shi'a is a marvelous and unrivaled account of a complex history.'-Faisal Devji, author of Muslim Zion: Pakistan as a Political Idea 'This is by far the most lucid and detailed examination of Sunni-Shi'a relations that I've ever read. With a deeply informed discussion of how the relationship between Sunnis and Shi'a has varied over time and place in response to the political context, LouГ«r offers a convincing rebuttal to the notion of the inevitability of eternal sectarian conflict.'-Marc Lynch, author of The New Arab Wars: Uprisings and Anarchy in the Middle East 'Laurence LouГ«r has written a compelling, authoritative overview of the historical trajectory of Sunni-Shi'a relations across the Middle East. 'This richly informative study is a very useful aid to understanding the faith dynamics across Middle East today' -Rev. Or ShД«вЂД«.' -Christopher Clohessy, Islamochristiana ShД«вЂa, LouГ«rвЂ™s book.is a tour de force, and as such should be compulsory reading for students of Islamic history, whether SunnД« 'In terms of a superb and scholarly overview of Islamic history as articulated by the SunnД« and the Sunnis and Shi'a is an important book.' -Barclay McBain, The Herald 'To open the book is to appreciate the extent of the challenges in trying to understand the Islamic world and how it has drawn in the great global players, often at great cost to both. 'Captures the complexities, and in fact pulls the reader away from the usual tired dichotomy.' -Tyler Cowen, Marginal Revolution 'For the dedicated regional student who wants to examine the politics of the current conflicts in the region it provides a wealth of insight.' -Jerry Lenaburg, New York Journal of Books This compelling and accessible book also examines the diverse regional contexts of the Sunni-ShiвЂ™a divide, examining how it has shaped societies and politics in countries such as Iraq, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Iran, Yemen, andВ Lebanon. Timely and provocative, Sunnis and ShiвЂ™a provides needed perspective on the historical roots of todayвЂ™s conflicts and reveals how both branches of Islam have influenced and emulated each other in unexpected ways. LouГ«r traces how sectarian tensions have been inflamed or calmed depending on the political contingencies of the moment, whether to consolidate the rule of elites, assert clerical control over the state, or defy the powers that be.

She challenges the widespread perception of Sunnis and ShiвЂ™a as bitter enemies who are perpetually at war with each other, demonstrating how they have coexisted peacefully at various periods throughout the history of Islam. In a sweeping historical narrative spanning the Islamic world, LouГ«r shows how the Sunni-ShiвЂ™a divide was never just a dispute over succession-at issue are questions about the very nature of Islamic political authority. Laurence LouГ«r tells the story of this ancient rivalry, taking readers from the last days of Muhammad to the political and doctrinal clashes of Sunnis and ShiвЂ™a today. So began a schism that is nearly as old as Islam itself. When Muhammad died in 632 without a male heir, Sunnis contended that the choice of a successor should fall to his closest companions, but ShiвЂ™a believed that God had inspired the Prophet to appoint his cousin and son-in-law, Ali, as leader.

Islam a concept of political world invasion ebook