Islamic Studies Commons^™

From Mekteb-I-Nuwwab To The Faculty Of Islamic Studies: A Short History Of Bosnia's Leading Islamic Educational Institution, Harun Karèiæ

Occasional Papers on Religion in Eastern Europe

No abstract provided.

Business Management And Ethics: An Islamic Approach, M. M. Maishanu, Ahmad Maigari Dutsin-Ma

Business Review

This paper explores the relationships between business management and ethics in Islam. The paper’s central theme is that business management is not separate from ethics; the latter reinforces the former. In Islam, mundane and spiritual pursuits are complementary as such mundane activities are not left to chance but guided by sharia to enhance the chances of spiritual salvation. To establish this, the paper largely relies on the Holy Quran and Hadith and other complementary sources of data. Istikhlaf (vicegerency), Tauhid (Oneness and Uniqueness of Allah) and ukhuwah (Brotherhood) are regarded as the main guiding concepts or precepts behind activities which …

Different Branches Of The Same Tree: A Comparative Analysis Of Sunni And Shia Theological Disparities And Their Implications For Democracy And Democratization, Alexander Porter

Honors Theses

This thesis initially examines the historical roots of the Sunni and Shia split and discusses how the different theological and governmental values that emerged out of the divide have the potential to change how each sect approaches ruling, hierarchy, and government. It then traces the development of these theological differences into their solidification in modern‐day usage by the two branches, and provides real world examples of how the history of the Sunni/Shia split both has and has not become realized in today’s world. Finally, this thesis discusses the democratic proclivity of each specific relevant theological difference.

Going International: The Development And Operations Of Al Qaãida In The Islamic Maghreb, Sarah Faye Mangrem

Theses and Dissertations

Since 2006 there has been a uniquely independent and autonomous branch of al Qa’ida operating in the Sahel and Sahara region of North and West Africa. Relative to associated movements elsewhere, al Qa’ida in the Islamic Maghreb is geographically and financially isolated, dependent on its own members to mobilize both human and financial resources. Yet at this they have been particularly successful; smuggling contraband across African borders, kidnapping Europeans for ransom and playing middleman for Latin American cartels transporting huge amounts of drugs to Europe. The 2012 Tuareg rebellion and subsequent military coup in Mali has provided opportune timing as …

Les Médias En Arabie Saoudite : Luttes Politiques Et Controverses Sociales, De Star Academy Au Printemps Arabe, Marwan M. Kraidy

Departmental Papers (ASC)

Nulle part dans le monde arabe les inquiétudes au sujet du changement social et culturel n’ont été aussi passionnément discutées qu’en Arabie saoudite, où la doctrine salafiste du wahhabisme est au coeur du système, en tant que conception sacro sainte de l’authenticité enracinée dans la pureté culturelle et religieuse et la séparation entre hommes et femmes. L’avènement de la « téléréalité » au milieu des années 2000 a réactivé ces débats dans le royaume. Star Academy, notamment, populaire émission de téléréalité en langue arabe, diffusée par satellite depuis le Liban par la Lebanese Broadcasting Corporation (LBC) depuis décembre 2003, a …

An Architectural Reflection Of Community : A Study Of The Patriarchal Churches In Constnatinople/Istanbul As A Reflection Of The Relationship Of Christians And Muslims In The Ottoman Empire, Greta Steeber

Master of Arts Theses

No abstract provided.

Diversity Within Islam: Its Intersections With Muslim Immigrant Identities, Esther Smidt

Languages & Cultures Faculty Publications

This article investigates the multiple identities of four Muslim immigrant students, the intersections of these identities, and the students’ understandings of the systems of oppression examined in the multicultural developmental ESL writing course they attended as college freshmen. The research question is “What are Muslim immigrant students’ understandings of their own identities in terms of race, class, and gender as seen through the lens of their religious identity while taking a multicultural college writing class focusing on race, class, and gender?” The four participants of this qualitative multiple case study were chosen on the basis of religion, race, and gender. …

The Arabs In The (Inter)National, Haider Ala Hamoudi

Articles

This essay is a commentary on an article submitted by Professor Lama Abu-Odeh as part of a special symposium edition contained in Volume 10 of the Santa Clara Journal of International Law. In her piece, Professor Abu-Odeh builds on her earlier work respecting Islamic law but adds a new target to her sites, that of the study of national security. That is, we already knew Professor Abu-Odeh’s view of the typical Islamic law scholar. He is one who is focused either on the resurrection of the shari’a in some sort of reconstructed form or involved in a thoroughly misguided search …

Creating Knowledge, Volume 5, 2012

Creating Knowledge

It is my great pleasure to introduce the fifth volume of the College of Liberal Arts and Social Sciences’ Creating Knowledge, our undergraduate student scholarship and research journal. First published in 2008, the journal is the outcome of an initiative to enhance and enrich the academic quality of the student experience within the college. Through this publication, the college seeks to encourage students to become actively engaged in creating scholarship and research and give them a venue for the publication of their essays. This fifth volume, like the ones that preceded it, gives considerable testimony to the creativity, hard work …

Risky Rights? Gender Equality And Sexual Diversity In Muslim Contexts, Anissa Helie

Publications and Research

In her contribution to Sexuality in Muslim Contexts: Restrictions and Resistance (ZED Book, UK), Anissa Hélie contrasts the emphasis on victimization of both ‘Muslim women’ and ‘gay Muslims’ in mainstream Western discourses with actual strategies designed by advocates of gender equality and sexual rights from Muslim contexts.These strategies include religious reinterpretation efforts in South Africa and Indonesia, and organizing geared towards public visibility in Lebanon, Turkey and Morocco.

Deconstructing the false dichotomy between an ‘enlightened West’ and ‘oppressive Muslim contexts’, Hélie insists on the need to take into account a broad range of factors that impact the ability of both …

Repugnancy In The Arab World, Haider Ala Hamoudi

Articles

“Repugnancy clauses” -- those constitutional provisions that, in language that varies from nation to nation, require legislation to conform to some core conception of Islam -- are all the rage these days. This clause, a relatively recent addition to many modern constitutions, has emerged as a central focus of academic writing on Muslim state constitutions generally, and on Arab constitutions in particular. Much of the attention it has received has been enlightening and erudite. Yet one aspect of the broader repugnancy discourse that deserves some attention is an important, often de facto, temporal limitation on the effect of the clause. …

Religion As Rehabilitation? Reflections On Islam In The Correctional Setting, Spearit

Articles

This essay is the keynote lecture from the Muslims in the United States and Beyond symposium at Whittier Law School. The work reflects on the state of research into Islam in prison, including the religion's historic role in supporting inmate rehabilitation and providing a means for coping with life as a prisoner and on the outside.

Al-Shabaab's American Recruits: A Comparative Analysis Of Two Radicalization Pathways, Matthew Wade Richardson

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

From 2005 to 2011, at least 41 Americans joined, or attempted to join, al-Shabaab, Somalia's preeminent terrorist organization. This thesis examines the radicalization process for al-Shabaab's American recruits by dividing the sample into two groups: non-Somali and Somali. The author employs causal flow diagramming as a means of visualizing each group's unique radicalization pathway. While most of the non-Somali recruits were motivated by political grievances and Salafism, most of the Somali recruits were motivated by identity conflict and nationalism. Considering al-Shabaab is both a religious and an ethno-nationalist terrorist organization, these results make sense. Radicalization within diaspora communities is a …

The Development Of Political Secularism In A Nascent State, Tabassum Farooqui

Theses Digitization Project

This study will explore the rise, fall and revival of political secularism in Bangladesh. The exclusion or inclusion of political secularism is a controversial issue in many nascent states, because political groups often use religion as a political tool to manipulate the masses. In some newly-independent states, religious sentiment of citizens may be manipulated by different regimes; yet, the unique style of adopting religion may or may not increase religious tolerance in government.

Political Competition, Relative Deprivation, And Perceived Threat: A Research Note On Anti- Christian Violence In India, Chad Bauman, Tamara Leech

Department of Public Health Scholarship and Creative Works

A preliminary subnational statistical analysis of violence against Christians in contemporary India, this article suggests that whereas the data provide very little support for simple, demographic explanations of this violence, they do more robustly support theories emphasizing the relative status of ethnic and religious minorities (vis-à-vis majorities) and the perception, among Hindus, that Christians (and other minorities) represent a threat to their numerical, political and economic strength.

Dearabizing Arabia: Tracing Western Scholarship On The History Of The Arabs And Arabic Language And Script, Saad D. Abulhab

Publications and Research

This book is a reference book on the history of the Arabic Language and script, which goes beyond the sole discussion of technical matters. It studies objectively the evidence presented by modern-day western archeological discoveries together with the evidence presented by the indispensable scholarly work and research of past Islamic Arab civilization era. The book scrutinizes modern western theories regarding the history of the Arabs and Arabic language and script in connection with the roles played by Western Near East scholarship, religion and colonial history in the formation of current belief system, which is an essential step to study this …

Architecture In Religion: The History Of The Hagia Sophia And Proposals For Returning It To Worship, Andrew Jonathan Cohen

FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations

For nearly fifteen hundred years, the Hagia Sophia has been a constant figure in Istanbul, Turkey. The building has been the symbol of Christianity for the Byzantine Empire, Islam for the Ottoman Empire and Secularism for Republic of Turkey. It is rare that one building has had the ability to symbolize both religion and politics in the manner in which the Hagia Sophia has. One of the goals of this research is to examine the historical circumstances that have allowed this symbolism to occur. The other goal of this research is to examine the current voice that wishes to return …

Comparing Fundamentalisms: A Social Movement Theory Approach, David Romney

Student Works

The last forty years have witnessed the emergence of a number of Islamist and Jewish fundamentalist groups, resulting in a number of comparative studies that try to explain this phenomenon (e.g. Antoun and Hegland 1987; Sivan and Friedman 1990). Although scholars have argued varying reasons for this recent religious resurgence, most have recognized the importance of the 1967 war to both Jewish and Islamist fundamentalist movements. Some of these scholars see the religious resurgence following this war as a continuation of religious sentiments expressed by pre-1967 Zionist and fundamentalist Islamic groups rather than as a new movement (Davis 1987, 149-152).

Exploratory Study Of Countries Lacking Data On Female Genital Mutilation In The Middle East And Africa, Nazia Rose Naeem

Sociology & Criminal Justice Theses & Dissertations

Female genital mutilation (FGM) is the cutting off of female genitals for nonmedical purposes (WHO 2008). FGM is a gender specific practice, which has no health benefits and severe consequences. In addition, the victims of this form of physical, sexual, psychological, and emotional violence are predominantly children between birth and age 15 (WHO 2008). Female genital mutilation is an egregious act, which must be eradicated. This study sought to begin the process of securing preliminary estimates for FGM in countries that lacked data on FGM in the Middle East and Africa, thereby shedding light on this extremely detrimental and oppressive …

Succession In Family Businesses: Kinship Culture And Islamic Law Of Inheritance, Nasir Afghan

Business Review

Majority of research has been carried out on succession within family firms in the positivistic tradition of research and also has a very strong normative element to it. The successful research has been defined using researchers determined criterion such as firm performance, viability and harmony among the family members etc. This type of research obviously assumes an independent reality ‘out there’ ready to be collected by objective researcher. This positive stance has been apparent even in the case based research mostly conducted by practitioners. On the contrary, to carry out this research an interpretive approach was adopted. The aim of …