Download or read book Rethinking Religion and Radicalization written by Michele Grossman and published by Bloomsbury Academic. This book was released on 2024-08-22 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Highlighting the relevance of deep contextual and comparative analysis, this open access volume offers new perspectives on how religious beliefs and frameworks intersect with the politics of violent radicalisation across different narratives, geographies and cultures. The role of religion and religiosity in processes of radicalisation to violence has been at the forefront of debates around terrorism and extremism for decades. The events of 9/11 gave new impetus to these debates, cementing assumptions about the role of Islam as the key driver for religiously inspired violent radicalisation, and defining the way in which radicalisation to violence is understood. The years since 9/11 have seen a striking diversification in the terrorist and violent extremist landscape, yet the treatment of how religious beliefs, concepts and histories are entangled with established and emergent violent ideologies and social movements has changed far less, impeding our understanding of how religious and ideological belief systems intersect and influence each other in different social, cultural, political and regional contexts. By looking beyond Islamist-inspired or attributed terrorism, this volume explores how violent extremists instrumentalise religion and religiosity in unexpected ways, from Orthodox Christianity and Hindutva to 'conspirituality', far-right extremism, and single-issue social movements.With contributions from range of regions and disciplines, this offers theoretically compelling and empirically rich new insights that speak to contemporary developments in the relationship between religion and violent extremism.The eBook editions of this book are available open access under a CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 licence on bloomsburycollections.com.
Download or read book Radicalization written by Kevin McDonald and published by John Wiley & Sons. This book was released on 2018-12-14 with total page 200 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: From Paris to San Bernardino, Barcelona to Manchester, home-grown terrorism is among the most urgent challenges confronting Western nations. Attempts to understand jihadism have typically treated it as a form of political violence or religious conflict. However, the closer we get to the actual people involved in radicalization, the more problematic these explanations become. In this fascinating book, Kevin McDonald shows that the term radicalization unifies what are in fact very different experiences. These new violent actors, whether they travelled to Syria or killed at home, range from former drug dealers and gang members to students and professionals, mothers with young children and schoolgirls. This innovative book sets out to explore radicalization not as something done to people but as something produced by active participants, attempting to make sense of themselves and their world. In doing so, McDonald offers powerful portraits of the immersive worlds of social media so fundamental to present-day radicalization. Radicalization offers a bold new way of understanding the contemporary allure of jihad and, in the process, important directions in responding to it.
Download or read book Radical Judaism written by Arthur Green and published by Yale University Press. This book was released on 2010-03-30 with total page 192 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: How do we articulate a religious vision that embraces evolution and human authorship of Scripture? Drawing on the Jewish mystical traditions of Kabbalah and Hasidism, path-breaking Jewish scholar Arthur Green argues that a neomystical perspective can help us to reframe these realities, so they may yet be viewed as dwelling places of the sacred. In doing so, he rethinks such concepts as God, the origins and meaning of existence, human nature, and revelation to construct a new Judaism for the twenty-first century.
Download or read book Rethinking Political Islam written by Shadi Hamid and published by Oxford University Press. This book was released on 2017-07-17 with total page 320 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: For years, scholars hypothesized about what Islamists might do if they ever came to power. Now, they have answers: confusing ones. In the Levant, ISIS established a government by brute force, implementing an extreme interpretation of Islamic law. On the opposite end of the spectrum, Tunisia's Ennahda Party governed in coalition with two secular parties, ratified a liberal constitution, and voluntarily stepped down from power. In Egypt, the Muslim Brotherhood, the world's oldest Islamist movement, won power through free elections only to be ousted by a military coup. The strikingly disparate results of Islamist movements have challenged conventional wisdom on political Islam, forcing experts and Islamists to rethink some of their most basic assumptions. In Rethinking Political Islam, two of the leading scholars on Islamism, Shadi Hamid and William McCants, have gathered a group of leading specialists in the field to explain how an array of Islamist movements across the Middle East and Asia have responded. Unlike ISIS and other jihadist groups that garner the most media attention, these movements have largely opted for gradual change. Their choices, however, have been reshaped by the revolutionary politics of the region. The groups depicted in the volume capture the contradictions, successes, and failures of Islamism, providing a fascinating window into a rapidly changing Middle East. It is the first book to systematically assess the evolution of mainstream Islamist groups since the Arab uprisings and the rise of ISIS, covering 12 country cases. In each instance, contributors address key questions, including: gradual versus revolutionary approaches to change; the use of tactical or situational violence; attitudes toward the nation-state; and how ideology, religion, and political variables interact. For the first time in book form, readers will also hear directly from Islamist activists and leaders themselves, as they offer their own perspectives on the future of their movements. Islamists will have the opportunity to challenge the assumptions and arguments of some of the leading scholars of Islamism, in the spirit of constructive dialogue. Rethinking Political Islam includes three of the most important country cases outside the Middle East-Indonesia, Malaysia, and Pakistan-allowing readers to consider a greater diversity of Islamist experiences. The book's contributors have immersed themselves in the world of political Islam and conducted original research in the field, resulting in rich accounts of what animates Islamist behavior.
Download or read book New World A Coming written by Judith Weisenfeld and published by NYU Press. This book was released on 2018-11-06 with total page 357 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "When Joseph Nathaniel Beckles registered for the draft in the 1942, he rejected the racial categories presented to him and persuaded the registrar to cross out the check mark she had placed next to Negro and substitute "Ethiopian Hebrew." "God did not make us Negroes," declared religious leaders in black communities of the early twentieth-century urban North. They insisted that so-called Negroes are, in reality, Ethiopian Hebrews, Asiatic Muslims, or raceless children of God. Rejecting conventional American racial classification, many black southern migrants and immigrants from the Caribbean embraced these alternative visions of black history, racial identity, and collective future, thereby reshaping the black religious and racial landscape. Focusing on the Moorish Science Temple, the Nation of Islam, Father Divine's Peace Mission Movement, and a number of congregations of Ethiopian Hebrews, Judith Weisenfeld argues that the appeal of these groups lay not only in the new religious opportunities membership provided, but also in the novel ways they formulated a religio-racial identity. Arguing that members of these groups understood their religious and racial identities as divinely-ordained and inseparable, the book examines how this sense of self shaped their conceptions of their bodies, families, religious and social communities, space and place, and political sensibilities. Weisenfeld draws on extensive archival research and incorporates a rich array of sources to highlight the experiences of average members."--Publisher's description.
Download or read book Gender Religion Extremism written by Katherine E. Brown and published by Oxford University Press, USA. This book was released on 2020-07 with total page 295 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "This volume offers a feminist critique of counter- and deradicalization programmes, including those collected under the umbrella of 'preventing and countering violent extremis'. Based on insights from five countries, and examples from elsewhere, the book shows how collectively efforts rely on particular narratives of agency, security and human rights. Putting gender at the centre of analysis reveals a series of significant limitations in anti-radicalisation work, in construction, operation, and evaluation. First, these programmes fail to explore or engage with how masculinity and femininity inform the radicalisation process. As a result, they cannot successfully understand the personal drivers or the socio-political environment of these programmes. Second, within the operations of these programmes it becomes clear that male radicalisation is unreflectively linked to an excessive but flawed masculinity, whilst ideas about women's radicalisation depend on orientalist stereotypes about passivity and subjugation. Solutions for male deradicalisation therefore hinge on particular ideals of masculinity that few men can obtain, and deradicalising women is seen as a rescue mission. Third, the impact of these programmes derives from a racialized paternalist logic that justifies intervention in 'ordinary lives' in the name of security, yet fails to deliver. There is a gendered differential in the impact of counter-radicalisation measures. Although the rhetoric of countering terrorism is often couched in a narrative of 'women's rights' and 'liberal values', the book demonstrates the consequences are often detrimental to these precepts. The book concludes by offering an alternative way of thinking about and implementing anti-radicalisation efforts, rooted in a feminist peace"--
Download or read book The New Islamic State written by Jack Covarrubias and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2016-09-17 with total page 446 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The rise of the Islamic State has dramatically forced a recalculation of political order and security in the Persian Gulf and broader Greater Middle East by the United States and its allies and adversaries, including, most notably, Iran, Israel and Saudi Arabia. Since the Arab Spring of 2011, the Islamic State has altered the military balance in the Syrian intra-state conflict and captured significant territory in Iraq. Its military successes has attracted foreign fighters from more than 100 countries, drawn in some cases by a sophisticated recruitment strategy that effectively combines a jihadist message with a social media outreach program targeting vulnerable Muslim populations in the region and the West. The Islamic State has prompted renewed American and allied military intervention in Iraq and Syria, and complicated the US relationship with its Iranian adversaries. The New Islamic State examines the rise of the religious extremist organization from the ashes of al-Qaeda in Iraq to its current efforts in Syria and Iraq and is designed to provide a comprehensive overview of the Islamic State, its effects on the Persian Gulf and Greater Middle East, and the response of both regional and great powers. The book is suitable for academics, policymakers and the general public.
Download or read book Radicalisation written by Noel Clycq and published by Leuven University Press. This book was released on 2019 with total page 251 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Radicalisation is a topical and a much-discussed concept in current European societies. Its use in policy and societal discourses, such as media coverage and educational contexts, is very sensitive. This thought-provoking collection of essays critically addresses the topic of radicalisation from different angles, combining discipline-specific insights from the fields of sociology, philosophy, history, religious studies, and media studies, with new empirical data. The authors step away from readily available explanations and rethink the notion of 'the radical'. Rather than merely focusing on individuals or ideologies, they advocate for a contextual perspective that allows to consider the complex interaction between individuals, groups, and institutions, both at a national and international level. Radicalisation: A Marginal Phenomenon, or a Mirror to Society? provides the reader not only with much-needed knowledge of the complex nature of the concept of radicalisation, but also offers insights into the various ways radicalisation processes can be triggered, prevented, or addressed. This publication is GPRC-labeled (Guaranteed Peer Review Content). Contributors: Rik Coolsaet (Ghent University), Stiene Ravn (University of Antwerp), Tom Sauer (University of Antwerp), Jessika Soors (KU Leuven), François Levrau (University of Antwerp), Janiv Stamberger (University of Antwerp), Ward Nouwen (University of Antwerp), Rut Van Caudenberg (University of Antwerp), Noel Clycq (University of Antwerp), Thomas Frissen (KU Leuven), Kevin Smets (Vrije Universiteit Brussel / University of Antwerp), Leen d'Haenens (KU Leuven), Kristof Verfaillie (Vrije Universiteit Brussel), Sofie De Kimpe (Vrije Universiteit Brussel), Marc Cools (Vrije Universiteit Brussel), Karel Van Nieuwenhuyse (KU Leuven)
Download or read book Rethinking the Messianic Idea in Judaism written by Michael L. Morgan and published by Indiana University Press. This book was released on 2014-11-28 with total page 455 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Over the centuries, the messianic tradition has provided the language through which modern Jewish philosophers, socialists, and Zionists envisioned a utopian future. Michael L. Morgan, Steven Weitzman, and an international group of leading scholars ask new questions and provide new ways of thinking about this enduring Jewish idea. Using the writings of Gershom Scholem, which ranged over the history of messianic belief and its conflicted role in the Jewish imagination, these essays put aside the boundaries that divide history from philosophy and religion to offer new perspectives on the role and relevance of messianism today.
Download or read book Radicalization to Terrorism written by Sophia Moskalenko and published by Oxford University Press, USA. This book was released on 2020 with total page 289 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "In the recent years, terrorism and radicalization have (unfortunately) become something of a regular topic in the news, in movies and TV shows, and even in dinnertime conversations. It seems like everyone knows something and has a theory or two to explain the growing number of terrorist attacks around the world. Some blame it on Muslims, some on the news media and the Internet, and some on the CIA and the U.S. government. It has become difficult to judge the quality of all this information. Thus, it makes sense to ask for credentials of the messengers"--
Download or read book The Ambivalence of the Sacred written by R. Scott Appleby and published by Rowman & Littlefield. This book was released on 2000 with total page 450 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This text explains what religious terrorists and religious peacemakers share in common and what causes them to take different paths in fighting injustice.
Download or read book There is a Crack in Everything Education and Religion in a Secular Age written by K. H. (Ina) ter Avest and published by MDPI. This book was released on 2019-11-22 with total page 266 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: There are two constants in academic and theological discourse throughout history, they are the debate around secularization and the dialogue concerning the intersection of religion and education. Each age has had its debate about modernizing forces that drive concerns of impending secularization. In this publication this theme is approached from perspectives of teachers, of students, of policy makers and situated in a politico-historical context. Aware of the fact that in today’s plural societies one sacred canopy is non-existent anymore, cracks of the sacred canopy/canopies are described, as well as ‘the light that gets in’, the possible and challenging ways out are roughly sketched.
Download or read book Pakistan Under Siege written by Madiha Afzal and published by Brookings Institution Press. This book was released on 2018-01-02 with total page 159 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Over the last fifteen years, Pakistan has come to be defined exclusively in terms of its struggle with terror. But are ordinary Pakistanis extremists? And what explains how Pakistanis think? Much of the current work on extremism in Pakistan tends to study extremist trends in the country from a detached position—a top-down security perspective, that renders a one-dimensional picture of what is at its heart a complex, richly textured country of 200 million people. In this book, using rigorous analysis of survey data, in-depth interviews in schools and universities in Pakistan, historical narrative reporting, and her own intuitive understanding of the country, Madiha Afzal gives the full picture of Pakistan’s relationship with extremism. The author lays out Pakistanis’ own views on terrorist groups, on jihad, on religious minorities and non-Muslims, on America, and on their place in the world. The views are not radical at first glance, but are riddled with conspiracy theories. Afzal explains how the two pillars that define the Pakistani state—Islam and a paranoia about India—have led to a regressive form of Islamization in Pakistan’s narratives, laws, and curricula. These, in turn, have shaped its citizens’ attitudes. Afzal traces this outlook to Pakistan’s unique and tortured birth. She examines the rhetoric and the strategic actions of three actors in Pakistani politics—the military, the civilian governments, and the Islamist parties—and their relationships with militant groups. She shows how regressive Pakistani laws instituted in the 1980s worsened citizen attitudes and led to vigilante and mob violence. The author also explains that the educational regime has become a vital element in shaping citizens’ thinking. How many years one attends school, whether the school is public, private, or a madrassa, and what curricula is followed all affect Pakistanis’ attitudes about terrorism and the rest of the world. In the end, Afzal suggests how this beleaguered nation—one with seemingly insurmountable problems in governance and education—can change course.
Download or read book After Modernity written by James K. A. Smith and published by . This book was released on 2008 with total page 348 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The "conservative radicalismrepresented in these contributions will resonate with a broad audience of scholars and citizens who seek to put faith into action.
Download or read book Rethinking Open Society written by Michael Ignatieff and published by Central European University Press. This book was released on 2018-06-10 with total page 366 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The key values of the Open Society – freedom, justice, tolerance, democracy, and respect for knowledge – are increasingly under threat in today’s world. As an effort to uphold those values, this volume brings together some of the key political, social and economic thinkers of our time to re-examine the Open Society closely in terms of its history, its achievements and failures, and its future prospects. Based on the lecture series Rethinking Open Society, which took place between 2017 and 2018 at the Central European University, the volume is deeply embedded in the history and purpose of CEU, its Open Society mission, and its belief in educating skeptical, but passionate citizens.
Download or read book Radical Religious and Violent written by Eli Berman and published by MIT Press. This book was released on 2011-09-30 with total page 315 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Applying fresh tools from economics to explain puzzling behaviors of religious radicals: Muslim, Christian, and Jewish; violent and benign. How do radical religious sects run such deadly terrorist organizations? Hezbollah, Hamas, Lashkar-e-Taiba, and the Taliban all began as religious groups dedicated to piety and charity. Yet once they turned to violence, they became horribly potent, executing campaigns of terrorism deadlier than those of their secular rivals. In Radical, Religious, and Violent, Eli Berman approaches the question using the economics of organizations. He first dispels some myths: radical religious terrorists are not generally motivated by the promise of rewards in the afterlife (including the infamous seventy-two virgins) or even by religious ideas in general. He argues that these terrorists (even suicide terrorists) are best understood as rational altruists seeking to help their own communities. Yet despite the vast pool of potential recruits—young altruists who feel their communities are repressed or endangered—there are less than a dozen highly lethal terrorist organizations in the world capable of sustained and coordinated violence that threatens governments and makes hundreds of millions of civilians hesitate before boarding an airplane. What's special about these organizations, and why are most of their followers religious radicals? Drawing on parallel research on radical religious Jews, Christians, and Muslims, Berman shows that the most lethal terrorist groups have a common characteristic: their leaders have found a way to control defection. Hezbollah, Hamas, and the Taliban, for example, built loyalty and cohesion by means of mutual aid, weeding out “free riders” and producing a cadre of members they could rely on. The secret of their deadly effectiveness lies in their resilience and cohesion when incentives to defect are strong.These insights suggest that provision of basic social services by competent governments adds a critical, nonviolent component to counterterrorism strategies. It undermines the violent potential of radical religious organizations without disturbing free religious practice, being drawn into theological debates with Jihadists, or endangering civilians.
Download or read book The Wiley Blackwell Companion to the Study of Religion written by Robert A. Segal and published by John Wiley & Sons. This book was released on 2021-04-12 with total page 36 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Explore a rigorous but accessible guide to contemporary approaches to the study of religion from leading voices in the field The Wiley Blackwell Companion to the Study of Religion delivers an expert and insightful analysis of modern perspectives on the study of religion across the humanities and the social sciences. Presupposing no knowledge of the approaches examined in the collection, the book is ideal for undergraduate students who have yet to undertake extensive study in the humanities or social sciences. The book includes perspectives from those in fields as diverse as globalization, cognitive science, the study of emotion, law, esotericism, sex and gender, functionalism, terror, the comparative method, modernism, and postmodernism. Many of the topics covered in the book clearly hail from religious studies, while others are grounded in other areas of academia. All of the chapters contained within are written by recognized authors who show how their chosen discipline contributes to the understanding of the phenomenon of religion. This book also includes topics like: A comprehensive exploration of multiple approaches to religious study, including anthropology, economics, literature, phenomenology, philosophy, psychology, sociology, and theology A review of various topics germane to the study of religion, including the study of the body, cognitive science, the comparative method, death and the afterlife, law, magic, music, and myth A selection of subjects touching on modern trends in extremism and violence, including chapters on terror and violence, fundamentalism, and nationalism A discussion of the influence of modernism and postmodernism in religion Ideal for undergraduate, graduate, and postgraduate students in humanities and social science programs taking courses on religion and myth, The Wiley Blackwell Companion to the Study of Religion will also earn a place in the libraries of specialists working in the fields of Religious Studies, Theology, Sociology, Anthropology, Psychology, Political Science, History, and Philosophy.
