Islam in the Middle East A Living Tradition [Hardcover]

This concise book offers a nuanced introduction to Islam in the Middle East. It presentsIslam as both a unified tradition of theological dogma and practices that transcends cultural differences and as a dynamic tradition that is historically informed, locally shaped, and continually reinterpreted.

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• Offers numerous ethnographic examples from the Middle East and North Africa
  
• Explores key concepts, including the doctrinal foundations of Islam; the role of religious scholars; the five pillars; and Islamic “orthodoxy”
  
• Includes discussion of spirit-possession cults as integral part of Islamic tradition
  
• Introduces politics and current affairs as key elements in understanding contemporary Islamic discourse

Acknowledgments.

Transliteration and Abbreviations.

Preface.

Introduction.

1. The Islamic Community through History.

2. The Foundations of Islamic Doctrine and the Community of Believers.

3. Authority and Knowledge.

4. The Five Pillars.

5. Islamic Mysticism.

6. Islamic Reformism.

7. Islamism: A General Overview.

8. Islamism at the Local Level.

Notes.

References.

Index

Makris gives a sensitive account of women's status in Muslim societies, their traditional and modern situations and rights, and criticizes the limited ethnocentric judgements of simplistic Western commentators, especially in the context of 'development.' (Journal of the Royal Anthropological Institute, September 2009)

Books such as Islam in the MiddllcR