No god but God : the origins, evolution, and future of Islam
Author
Reza Aslan
Imprint
London : Arrow Books, 2011
Edition
New ed.
Descript
xxxi, 338 p. : maps ; 20 cm
SUMMARY
Much of the Muslim faith remains largely unknown and misunderstood in the West. To many in the west, Islam means jihad, veiled women and suicide bombers. Yet these represent only fringe elements of the world's fastest growing religion. While there have been a number of successful books on the topic of Islamic history - from Karen Armstrong's Islam: A Brief History to Bernard Lewis's The Crises of Islam, there is surprisingly no book for a popular audience about Islam as a religion, let alone one by an author from an Islamic background. No God But God fills that gap, addressing issues of belief: the difference between the Quran and the Bible, the meaning of the Hajj, the Muslim relationship with Jesus, the Muslim attitude towards Jews, equality between the sexes and more. -- From publisher's web site
CONTENT
The sanctuary in the desert : pre-Islamic Arabia -- The keeper of the keys : Muhammad in Mecca -- The city of the Prophet : the first Muslims -- Fight in the way of God : the meaning of Jihad -- The rightly guided ones : the successors to Muhammad -- This religion is a science : the development of Islamic theology and law -- In the footsteps of martyrs : from Shi'ism to Khomeinism -- Stain your prayer rug with wine : the Sufi way -- An awakening in the east : the response to colonialism -- Slouching toward Medina : the Islamic reformation
