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First published in Arabic in 1994, this book's controversial approach argued that conventional fundamentalist interpretations of the Quran and other Islamic religious texts are ahistorical and misleading. Conservative religious leaders accused this book's author of apostasy. Marking the first time a work by this author is available in its entirety in any Western language, this English edition makes the author's erudite interpretation of classical Islamic thought accessible to a wider audience at a critical historical moment. The book discusses the life and work of Nasr Hamid Abu Zayd (1943–2010); the rise of the Islamist movement, a phenomenon that Islamists call the Awakening; religious discourse; the Islamic left; and the problematic aspects of reading the religious texts themselves.

This book sheds light on the relationship between spiritual and political authority in early modern Egypt. This guide to political behavior and expediency offers advice to Sufi shaykhs, or spiritual guides, on how to interact and negotiate with powerful secular officials, judges, and treasurers, or emirs. Translated into English, it is a unique account of the relationship between spiritual and political authority in late medieval/early modern Islamic society.

Considering its prominent role in many faith traditions, surprisingly little has been written about hospitality within the context of religion, particularly Islam. This book makes a contribution to the understanding of hospitality both within Islam and beyond. It explores and compares teachings within the various Muslim traditions over the centuries, while also drawing on materials as diverse as Islamic belles lettres, Christian reflections on almsgiving and charity, and Islamic and Western feminist writings on gender issues. Applying a theological approach to the idea of mercy as a fundamental basis for human relationships, this book considers issues related to Islam, ethics, and religious studies.

Followers of Muhammad b. 'Abd al-Wahhab, often considered to be Islam's Martin Luther, shaped the political and religious identity of the Saudi state while also enabling the significant worldwide expansion of Salafist Islam. Studies of the movement he inspired, however, have often been limited by scholars' insufficient access to key sources within Saudi Arabia. This book includes details from interviews and observations gathered from research in important Saudi archives. The text studies the Wahhabi religious movement from its founding to the modern day. Gleaning information from both written and oral sources and employing a multidisciplinary approach that combines history, sociology, and Islamic studies, the text presents a new reading of this movement that transcends the usual resort to polemics.