Islam, the State, and Political Authority Medieval Issues and Modern Concerns [Hardcover]

The expert essays in this volume deal with critically important topics concerning Islam and politics in both the pre-modern and modern periods, such?as the nature of government, the relationship between politics and theology, Shi'i conceptions of statecraft, notions of public duty, and the compatibility of Islam and democratic governance.Introduction; A.Afsaruddin Medieval Section Justification of Political Authority in Medieval Sunni Thought; H.Yucesoy Alfarabi and the Foundation of Political Theology in Islam; M.Campanini Alfarabi's Goal: Political Philosophy, not Political Theology; C.Butterworth Prophecy, Imamate, and Political Rule among the Ikhwan al-Safa; C.Baffioni Responsibilities of Political Office in a Shi'I Caliphate and the Delineation of Public Duties under the Fatimids; P.Walker Ibn Taymiyya on Islamic Governance; B.Malkawi & T.Sonn Modern Section Theologizing about Democracy: A Critical Appraisal of Mawdudi's Thought; A.Afsaruddin The Political Philosophy of Islamic Resurgence; M.Khan Rethinking the Relationship between Religion and Liberal Democracy: Overcoming the Problems of Secularism in Muslim Societies; N.Hashemi Minarchist Political Islam; A.Malik Wilayat al-Faqih and Democracy; M.Kadivar Anwar al-'Awlaqi against the Islamic Legal Tradition; A.March

'This edited volume is a model collection. Its title identifies clearly its subject matter, political authority in the Islamic world. The chapters focus in varied and useful ways on that obviously pressing subject matter.' - Journal of Shi'a Islamic Studies

ASMA AFSARUDDIN Professor of Islamic Studies in the Department of Near Eastern Languages and Cultures at Indiana University, USA.