Islam in Context: Past, Present, and Future

Rating:
Summary: Excellent Historical and Cultural Perspectives on Islam
Review: Recent political and economic events have generated a flood of literature on Islam. Most of which neglect the historical and cultural issues that have made Islam an economic, political and religious force in the 21st century. By addressing these issues, Islam in Context equips its audience to interpret the events of 9/11 in the contexts of AD 611, 711 and 811.

This book, like similar ones, addresses the central beliefs and tenets of Islam, such as the Articles of Faith and the Five Pillars. However, it makes significant contributions toward understanding Islam, and the relationships between Islam and Christianity, providing balanced perspectives on such issues as Jihaad, the Crusades, Christian missions to Muslims, and responses to terrorism. It mediates the debates concerning the nature of Jihaad, an issue that has polarized many commentators on Islam since 9/11, influencing them to portray Islam as a religion of peace or a religion of violence.

The discussions on the roles of Jesus and Mohammed are particularly insightful, clarifying many misconceptions that govern conversations between Christians and Muslims. The authors give excellent insight into why Mohammed and Jesus are not dynamically equivalent figures in their respective faiths. Unlike Mohammed, Jesus was born of a Virgin, never married, performed miracles, did not participate in war, and ascended into heaven. Readers who want to explore why the crucifixion, a major point of contention between Islam and Christianity, will appreciate some thoughts on the Islamic teachings concerning why Muslims believe Jesus was not crucified.

The analyses of the Crusades clarify some issues that continue to shape relationships between Christians and Muslims. Readers who are unfamiliar with these events will appreciate the historical details, giving enough commentary to value the political natures of these events. The authors' quotes and comments on the "Reconciliation Walk of the 1990s," an effort by many Christians with European origins to seek to seek forgiveness for the crusades, are particularly noteworthy. Of the walkers, the authors quote: "Their words tell us more about where they are from than where they are going..."

No book that seeks to interpret Islam for Christian readers is complete without some comments on missions. This book acknowledges that Christians are working to convert Muslims, and Muslims also seek to convert Christians, offering some good analyses of these efforts. Christians who are interested in the history of Christian missions to Muslims will appreciate the references to Ramon Lull and Bishop Thomas Valpy French, but wonder whether Samuel Zwemer should have been mentioned.

Peter Riddell and Peter Cotterell's audience should especially commend them for including the sections on terrorism, which explore territories on which other authors fear to tread. In doing so, they address some issues that will generate more thought and discussion on discerning how Christians and Muslims should respond to this complex issue, particularly in light of the political developments in the Middle East.

The notion that Muslims must respond to terrorism is germane to the challenge of responding to terrorism. One way in which Muslims can respond to terrorism, the authors suggest, is by locating Qur'an verses that advocate in their original context to discern their historical meanings and their contemporary significance. The integrity of Islam depends on their success in this effort.

The discussion on Christian responses to terrorism resurrects the tensions between Rheinhold Niebuhr and John Howard Yoder. The authors, like John Howard Yoder, affirm the "there can be no New Testament justification for violence: certainly Jesus was uniformly pacifist." However, despite this affirmation, they seem to affirm Niebuhr's decision to reject pacifism "as an inappropriate response to evil," raising Yoder's question as to whether Jesus is normative for Christian ethics.

The authors attempt to resolve this theological tension between Niebuhr and Yoder by resorting to a "two-kingdom" worldview, acknowledging the nature of the conflict in terms of good and evil. They conclude: "The Christian response to this aspect of terrorism ought not to be more violence, but a peacemaking response," leaving Christians on the Yoderian side of the issue to believe the book postulates the right conclusion for the wrong reasons. Christians certainly affirm the need for peacemaking, but how should we engage in it. Should we, like Niebuhr, focus on original sin-or, like Yoder, affirm the redemptive nature of there cross, which transforms original sin and defeats the powers that hold us in bondage to sin. Furthermore, how do these issues express themselves as we apply them to terrorism?

Certainly, a discussion on the redemptive nature of the cross would have enhanced the content of this book. However, the absence of this discussion does not detract from the value of a book that provides Christians and Muslims with the historical, cultural and theological insights they need to make informed interpretations concerning the impact that Islam is having-and will continue to have-on global political, economic and religious issues.