Communities Of The Qur An

What is the nature of the Qur’an? It might seem a straightforward question, but there is no consensus among modern communities of the Qur’an, both Muslim and non-Muslim, about the answer. And why should there be? On numerous occasions throughout history, believers from different schools and denominations, and at different times and places, have agreed to disagree. The Qur’anic interpreters, jurists and theologians of medieval Baghdad, Cairo and Cordoba coexisted peacefully in spite of their diverging beliefs. Seeking to revive this ‘ethics of disagreement’ of Classical Islam, this volume explores the different relationships societies around the world have with the Qur’an and how our understanding of the text can be shaped by studying the interpretations of others. From LGBT groups to urban African American communities, this book aims to represent the true diversity of communities of the Qur’an in the twenty-first century, and the dialogue and debate that can flow among them.

This book provides a fresh perspective on present-day Qurʾānic interpretations by analysing the historical, social and political dimensions in which they take place, the ways in which they are performed and the media through which they are transmitted.

""The connectivity fostered by globalization coupled with the increased tension generated by the tragedies of September 11th and other terrorist atrocities have created an intellectual hunger on both sides of the divide between the West and the Islamic world. Americans, Europeans, and others in "the West" want adequate and reliable information about Islam and the Muslim world. But what they get is often misleading, distorted and sensationalized. To offset this, those of us who know something about these subjects have been working overtime to correct the inaccuracies and to stop the flow of misinformation. Many religious leaders and scholars in the Muslim world are on a similar quest. They want to know how people in non-Muslim countries learn about Islam, the Qur'an, and the fundamentals of Muslim faith and practice because they, too, are fully aware of the falsehoods and fabrications that often pass for the truth in many American and European media outlets, whether news media or social media. Even more urgently, they seek to present a counter-narrative to the perverse and corrupted versions of Islam preached by groups like the Taliban, Al-Qaeda, ISIS, and Boko Haram. Hope this book will be helpful in their efforts. ""--

This volume challenges a long history of normalizing patriarchal approaches to the Qur’an and calls for a questioning of the interpretive credibility of many inherited Qur’anic commentaries. The author presents a fresh reading of the sacred text and Islamic teaching traditions as the rediscovery of a lost humanitarian and gender-egalitarian textual richness that has been poorly and loosely handled for centuries. The book stresses the importance of reviewing the interpretive linguistic choices that jurists and exegetes over the last fourteen centuries have adopted to semantically reshape the Qur’anic text. The vigilant reading the author provides of carefully chosen texts and commentaries suggests that many interpretive approaches to the Qur’an are dominated by sociopolitical factors alien to the intrinsic values of the text itself. More importantly, inconsistencies across putatively sound books of tafsīr indicate that the Qur’anic text often suffers from historical and systematic drainage of its humanitarianism, gender-egalitarianism, and religious pluralism.

From the Pulitzer Prize-winning author of God- A Biography, an erudite, hugely informative portrait of the God of Islam, the world's second largest, fastest-growing, and perhaps most tragically misunderstood religion. Who is Allah? What makes Him unique? And what does He ask of those who submit to His teachings? In the spirit of his Pulitzer Prize-winning God, a trailblazing "biography" of the protagonist of the Old Testament, and Christ--a brilliant portrait of biblical Jesus, acclaimed religious scholar Jack Miles undertakes to answer these questions. Miles introduces us to a "character" less mercurial than Yahweh, less contrarian than Christ, and yet emphatically part of their traditions. The God of the Qur'an revises and perfects- His purpose is to make whole what had been corrupted or lost from the practices and scriptures of the earlier Abrahamic religions. Setting passages from the Hebrew Bible, the New Testament, and the Qur'an side by side, Miles illuminates what is unique about Allah, His teachings and His temperament, and in doing so revises that which is false, distorted, or simply absent from our conception of the heart of Islam. "I hope," Miles writes, " that by reading this book you may find it a little easier to trust the Muslim next door, thinking of him or her as someone whose religion, after all, may not be so wildly unreasonable that someone holding to it could not be a trusted friend."

This book explores the story of the Israelites' worship of the Golden Calf in its Jewish, Christian, and Muslim contexts, from ancient Israel to the emergence of Islam. It focuses in particular on the Qur'an's presentation of the narrative and its background in Jewish and Christian retellings of the episode from Late Antiquity. Across the centuries, the interpretation of the Calf episode underwent major changes reflecting the varying cultural, religious, and ideological contexts in which various communities used the story to legitimate their own tradition, challenge the claims of others, and delineate the boundaries between self and other. The book contributes to the ongoing reevaluation of the relationship between Bible and Qur'an, arguing for the necessity of understanding the Qur'an and Islamic interpretations of the history and narratives of ancient Israel as part of the broader biblical tradition. The Calf narrative in the Qur'an, central to the qur'anic conception of the legacy of Israel and the status of the Jews of its own time, reflects a profound engagement with the biblical account in Exodus, as well as being informed by exegetical and parascriptural traditions in circulation in the Qur'an's milieu in Late Antiquity. The book also addresses the issue of Western approaches to the Qur'an, arguing that the historical reliance of scholars and translators on classical Muslim exegesis of scripture has led to misleading conclusions about the meaning of qur'anic episodes.

Stories related to gendered social relations permeate the Qur'an, and nearly three hundred verses involve specific women or girls. These stories weave together theology and ethics to reinforce central Qur'anic ideas regarding submission to God and moral accountability. Women and Gender in the Qur'an outlines how women and girls - old, young, barren, fertile, chaste, profligate, reproachable, and saintly-enter Qur'anic sacred history and advance the Qur'an'soverarching didactic aims.

This is an analysis of the concept of woman drawn directly from the Qur'an. An explicit attempt to return to the original source--the Qur'an--when the tendency has been to confuse the works of Islamic scholars with the Qur'an, it demonstrates that in order to maintain its relevance, the Qur'an must be continually reinterpreted; that the importance of the Qur'anic text is its transcendence of time and its expression of eternal values. It is not the text which restricts women, but the interpretations of the text which have come to be held in greater importance than the text. The significance of this analysis of the Qur'anic concept of woman is measured within the perspective of the text using it both as a force in history, politics, language, culture, intellect, and spirit, and as a divine text that presents guidance to humankind. This book sheds new light on the role of woman through reviewing the Qur'an itself with its principles of social justice and human equality and its objective of justice.

"I grew up reading the Qur'an on my mother's lap," writes Ziauddin Sardar. "It's an experience I share with most Muslim children. And so it is that our connection to the Qur'an is infused with associations of the warmest and most enduring of human bonds." In Reading the Qur'an, Sardar--one of Europe's leading public intellectuals--laments that for far too many Muslims, the Qur'an he had learned in his mother's lap has become a stick used for ensuring conformity and suppressing dissenting views. Indeed, some find in the Qur'an justification for misogyny, validation for hatred of others, an obsession with dress and mindless ritual, rules for running modern states. Arguing passionately but reasonably against these trends, Sardar speaks out for a more open, less doctrinaire approach to reading the Qur'an. He contends that the Qur'an is not fixed in stone for all time, but a dynamic text which every generation must encounter anew, and whose relevance and implications for our time we have yet to fully discover. The words of the Qur'an imply movement: the religious life, it tells us, is not about standing still but always striving to make our life, our society, the entire world around us a better place for everyone. Sardar explores the Qur'an from a variety of perspectives, from traditional exegesis to hermeneutics, critical theory, and cultural analysis, drawing fresh and contemporary lessons from the Sacred Text. He also examines what the Qur'an says about such contemporary topics as power and politics, rights of women, suicide, domestic violence, sex, homosexuality, the veil, freedom of expression, and evolution. Ziauddin Sardar opens a new window on this remarkable Sacred Text, in a book that will engage all devout Muslims and will interest anyone curious about the Qur'an and Islam today.

Walking Qur'an: Islamic Education, Embodied Knowledge, and History in West Africa

This Volume Has Been Divided Into Eleven Chapters, Each Dealing, To The Extant Possible, With Various Ideological Perceptions Of Jurisprudence, And Their Comparative Analysis With Qu`Ranic Injunctions.

Helen N. Boyle takes an anthropological approach to Quranic schooling in examining the role of Quranic preschools in community life.

Muslims and non-Muslims alike will gain a comprehensive view of the Qur’an and discover the truth behind common misconceptions of Islam with this concise guide. Authoritative Islamic scholarship and literature provide extensive answers to frequently asked questions about Muslims, Islam, and the Qur’an while addressing the biased image of Islam perpetrated by the mass media.

This is an introduction to the Qur'an for those who want to know more about it and do not know where to start. In it, Jacques Jomier takes selected passages and points out their distinctive style and language, drawing attention to the religious ideas in the Qur'an and the way in which they are expressed. He shows how the Qur'an keeps returning to certain fundamental truths or essential points of doctrine, its great themes, yet often elsewhere confines itself to suggestion and allusion. He is also deeply aware of the role of the Qur'an in the history of Islam and the life of the community, so that it is not just a holy book but also arouses the emotions Christians feel as they remember family Christmases or hear quiet organ music in a darkened church. Chapters include discussions of Mecca and the early days of Islam, the Muslim community, Adam, Abraham, the prophets, Jesus, and hymns to God the creator. Jacques Jomier is a Dominican and the author of How to Understand Islam.

Opening the Qur'an can be a bewildering experience to non-Muslim, English-speaking readers. Those who expect historical narratives, stories, or essays on morals are perplexed once they pass the beautiful first Surah, often shocked and then bogged down by Surah 2, and even offended by Surah 3's strictures against nonbelievers. Walter H. Wagner "opens" the Qur'an by offering a comprehensive and extraordinarily readable, step-by-step introduction to the text, making it accessible to students, teachers, clergy, and general readers interested in Islam and Islam's holy Book. Wagner first places the prophet Muhammad, the Qur'an, and the early Muslim community in their historical, geographical, and theological contexts. This background is a basis for interpreting the Qur'an and understanding its role in later Muslim developments as well as for relationships between Muslims, Jews, and Christians. He then looks in detail at specific passages, moving from cherished devotional texts to increasingly difficult and provocative subjects. The selected bibliography serves as a resource for further reading and study. Woven into the discussion are references to Islamic beliefs and practices. Wagner shows great sensitivity toward the risks and opportunities for non-Muslims who attempt to interpret the Qur'an, and sympathy in the long struggle to build bridges of mutual trust and honest appreciation between Muslims and non-Muslims. "Walter Wagner's Opening the Quran: Introducing Islam's Holy Book raises excellent questions designed to draw in curious readers. He then follows up with sound analysis that is easy to grasp. Wagner has clearly learned much about the Qur'an and Islam. What is more he has found a most appealing way to speak about what he has learned to his fellow non-Muslims. --Charles E. Butterworth, University of Maryland, College Park "A number of observers, like Mahmood Mamdani, have pointed out that contemporary events have led to an expansion in the market for translations of the Qur'an. This book will assist and guide readers of these Qur'an translations in the English language. This book could be used in introductory courses on Islam or advanced courses focusing exclusively on Islam's holy Book, the Qur'an . . . general readers outside the academy may also find it useful in helping them understand how to use and make sense of the Qur'an." --A. Rashied Omar, The Joan B. Kroc Institute for International Peace Studies, University of Notre Dame "The QurÕan can be terra incognita for the non-Muslim reader. Walter Wagner's learned book brings us to terra firma. With clear, empathetic, religiously sensitive yet historical-critical commentary, Opening the Qur'an makes sense of Islam's holy book. Wagner is a rare guide: a committed Christian who has listened carefully and sympathetically to Muslims, who understand the Quran as God's word. Wagner conveys their faith without compromising his own. This is more than a work of scholarship and pedagogy; it is an act of respect from one great tradition to another." --Alan Mittleman, The Jewish Theological Seminary "This is not just a book that is being introduced but a context, a culture, its teachings, and the way Muslims have been interpreting, finding meaning, and living in obedience to the Qur'an over the centuries. What for many non-Muslims has been a puzzling, bewildering, and perplexing book now begins to come alive and to make some sense. . . . I highly recommend this book for use in schools and seminaries and even church study groups where people are serious about learning why the Qur'an is considered by Muslims to be God's final revelation. The book's step-by-step procedure and the important glossary of key terms in the back are extremely useful for readers who are being introduced to the Qur'an for the first time." --Harold Vogelaar, Center of Christian-Muslim Engagement for Peace and Justice, Lutheran School of Theology

Examines the diverse uses of conspiracy theory in Egyptian fiction over the last century

There is much more to the Qur'an than the selective quotations favoured by Islamic fundamentalists. This book provides a student-friendly guide to the many ways in which the Qur'an can be read. Designed for both Muslims and Western non-Muslim students, it examines the Qur'an in Western scholarship as well as giving an overview of the rich interpretive traditions from the time of the Prophet Muhammad to the present day. This guide is a concise introduction to all aspects of the Qur'an: history, understanding and interpretation, providing: coverage of both pre-modern and modern periods plenty of examples to illustrate key points and aid student understanding summaries, timelines and a glossary.