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ID:
174416
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| Summary/Abstract |
The Kitāb al-Maghāzī or “Book of the Raids” by the early Islamic historian Muḥammad b. ‘Umar al-Wāqidī (ca. 747–823) appeared for the first time in English translation in 2011. The editor and lead translator, Rizwi Faizer, asserts in her introduction (coauthored with Andrew Rippin) that “ … the primary theme that runs through al-Wāqidī’s Maghāzī is that Muḥammad’s battles were always defensive.” The present article shows that this is a misinterpretation of the text. According to the evidence supplied by al-Wāqidī, it is clear that Muḥammad’s military efforts were motivated by far more than mere self-defense. Warfare as Muḥammad practiced and preached it was missionary warfare. Its purpose was to stamp out polytheism, and, more broadly, to destroy a non-Islamic social and political order and to replace it with an Islamic one. The goal of this new order was, in turn, to induce conversion to Islam.
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| 2 |
ID:
191891
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In his 2012 book Islamism and Islam, Bassam Tibi argues that Islamism, a political ideology, is quite distinct from Islam, which he defines as a religion focused on faith and spirituality. This article analyzes and evaluates the six arguments that Tibi advances for this thesis and finds all of them unconvincing. The main problem with Tibi’s case is that it ignores the figure of Muḥammad, whom Islamic sources uniformly portray as someone who fused politics and religion and sought to overthrow a non-Islamic socio-religious order and to replace it with an Islamic one. For mainstream Muslims, Muḥammad is the perfect role model who possessed divinely granted infallibility against sin and error. Due to Muḥammad’s example, as enshrined in classical Islamic sources, Islamists have a strong claim to be following orthodox Islamic principles when they embrace an ideology in which religion and politics are tightly intertwined. The article concludes with some tentative suggestions as to how a Muslim reformer like Tibi might develop more promising arguments for a progressive form of Islam.
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| 3 |
ID:
154273
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| Summary/Abstract |
Resolution 2334 in effect prejudges the outcome of negotiations on the crucial topics of borders, Jerusalem, and settlements. It does so in favor of the Palestinians, thereby circumventing and undermining the Oslo peace process that former U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry professed to protect and foster. The resolution rewards Palestinians for violating their commitment to negotiate directly with Israel and teaches them the (false) lesson that they can unilaterally impose their preferred outcome on Israel through international pressure. Therefore, Resolution 2334 removes the incentive for the Palestinians to return to bilateral negotiations with Israel.
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