To what extent are Islamic associations vehicles for recruitment for Islamist movements? Whom do they recruit? How does recruitment occur? Does the mere provision of health care suffice as a basis... Show moreTo what extent are Islamic associations vehicles for recruitment for Islamist movements? Whom do they recruit? How does recruitment occur? Does the mere provision of health care suffice as a basis for recruitment? Can we assume that all those who work and volunteer in Islamic associations are Islamists with a political agenda? These represent some of the questions that motivated research in Jordan in 1998 to examine the political significance of the Islamic Centre Charity Society (ICCS) as part of a larger comparative study of Islamic associations in Jordan, Yemen, and Egypt. Show less
Cyberspace gives access to an astounding amount of information on Islam. How do we find relevant data and possible answers to the questions one may have? Search engines are convenient tools but... Show moreCyberspace gives access to an astounding amount of information on Islam. How do we find relevant data and possible answers to the questions one may have? Search engines are convenient tools but have not been designed by specialists in Islam. Many sites, including top ranking hits, fail to plainly indicate the objectives of the individuals or organizations that maintain them, while many others are ephemeral. As a result, researching digital Islam constitutes a major methodological challenge for social scientists. Show less
Nasra is one of the thousands of second generation Sahrawi youngsters who have studied for more than ten years in Cuba before returning to the camps of the liberation movement Polisario, in the... Show moreNasra is one of the thousands of second generation Sahrawi youngsters who have studied for more than ten years in Cuba before returning to the camps of the liberation movement Polisario, in the South Western Sahara in Algiers. There they wait in a state of limbo for a solution to the conflict that has lasted already three decades. What follows is an excerpt from the recently published travelogue Africa’s last colony, travels in the Western Sahara (in Dutch). Show less
Albania is the only European country with a majority Muslim population—about 70 % of a total of 3,2 million and a Christian minority—approximately 20% belong to the Orthodox Church and 10% to the... Show moreAlbania is the only European country with a majority Muslim population—about 70 % of a total of 3,2 million and a Christian minority—approximately 20% belong to the Orthodox Church and 10% to the Roman Catholic Church. The Muslim population is further divided into a Sunni community (comprising about 55% of the whole population), a Bektashi community (about 15%), in addition to a number of Sufi brotherhoods such as Rifa‘iyya, Qadiriyya, Khalwatiyya, among others, most of which are considered to be within the Sunni realm. Show less
Islam in France has been experiencing a significant evolution of traditional gender roles as more Muslim women have access to schooling and employment. Increasingly, first and second-generation... Show moreIslam in France has been experiencing a significant evolution of traditional gender roles as more Muslim women have access to schooling and employment. Increasingly, first and second-generation Maghrebi women, as well as new immigrants, seek out and benefit from religious training in institutions that have traditionally been male domains such as mosques, religious associations and Institutes for Islamic Studies. Could it be that new public female Muslim elite with religious skills and competencies is emerging? Do Muslim women occupy a new position within a religious education market? Show less
Muslims in the United States have attempted to carve out identities that challenge evolving national norms, identities that often are at odds with those imposed on them by other Americans. Through... Show moreMuslims in the United States have attempted to carve out identities that challenge evolving national norms, identities that often are at odds with those imposed on them by other Americans. Through a review of three key areas of tension, the constructions of race, religion, and the nation, it can be argued that American Muslims may very well be making their greatest contributions to American pluralism. Show less
The mainstream American critique of the centrality of Islam in Arab culture often implies that religion is not important at home. Yet evangelical Christianity has been occupying an increasingly... Show moreThe mainstream American critique of the centrality of Islam in Arab culture often implies that religion is not important at home. Yet evangelical Christianity has been occupying an increasingly more prominent place in contemporary popular American culture. Just as Mel Gibson’s, The Passion of the Christ, has towered over competitors at the box office, so too have millenarian Christian texts—fictional and otherwise— been appearing in, and dominating, American best-seller lists. The popularity of these texts suggests that many American audiences are viewing contemporary events in the Middle East through an extremist evangelical lens. Show less
During the last week of May this year ISIM, in collaboration with Zentrum Moderner Orient (ZMO), Berlin, organized a two-day workshop on the theme The Asian Madrasa: Transnational Linkages and Real... Show moreDuring the last week of May this year ISIM, in collaboration with Zentrum Moderner Orient (ZMO), Berlin, organized a two-day workshop on the theme The Asian Madrasa: Transnational Linkages and Real or Alleged Political Role. The nine papers that were presented at the workshop looked at madrasas in different Asian countries in the context of the ongoing debate on “terrorism.” Show less
Suicide attacks have increased dramatically in the Middle East over the past year with the war in Iraq and the escalation of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. This rise in suicide attacks is... Show moreSuicide attacks have increased dramatically in the Middle East over the past year with the war in Iraq and the escalation of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. This rise in suicide attacks is remarkable given that the total number of terrorist incidents worldwide fell from its peak of 665 in 1986 to 190 in 2003 alone, whereas the incidents of suicide attacks increased from 31 in the 1980s to 98 in 20031. There is growing evidence that current American domestic and foreign policies may be further contributing to an acceleration of this trend. Show less
The Western welfare state is usually presumed to be “neutral” and not involved in “personal” matters such as religion. The principle of neutrality which is based on the separation of church and... Show moreThe Western welfare state is usually presumed to be “neutral” and not involved in “personal” matters such as religion. The principle of neutrality which is based on the separation of church and State is often put to the test as a society becomes more religiously plural. Questions regarding the legal neutrality of the State came to the fore in a recent German Supreme Court case dealing with whether a teacher should be allowed to wear a headscarf in the classroom (Teacher with Headscarf case of 24 September 2003). This case poses questions about the nature of the contemporary German welfare state and whether it can maintain its neutrality when confronted with growing socio-religious pluralism. Show less
It is often believed that under the Soviet regime in Ukraine—in particular after the mass deportation of Crimea Tatars—Islam ceased to be a communal project. New research, however, reveals that the... Show moreIt is often believed that under the Soviet regime in Ukraine—in particular after the mass deportation of Crimea Tatars—Islam ceased to be a communal project. New research, however, reveals that the local reproduction of religious knowledge has continued to date. Moreover, it has shaped to a great extent the religious fabric after the breakdown of the Soviet Union. Many younger Muslims consider this traditional knowledge too inadequate to address the challenges of today. They turn increasingly to alternative knowledge supplied by a variety of organizations and individuals from the Middle East and elsewhere. Show less
Islam and Muslim societies often appear in the contemporary period, at least to the “Western” public, as if uncompromising, inflexible, and unwilling to adjust to modernity. Unfortunately this... Show moreIslam and Muslim societies often appear in the contemporary period, at least to the “Western” public, as if uncompromising, inflexible, and unwilling to adjust to modernity. Unfortunately this debate leaves significant aspects of Muslim ways of life and its inherent pluralistic dimensions in the shadow. Zanzibar—a Muslim and multicultural society off the East African coast, like other Swahili societies, has a diverse population, aesthetics and life-style. The multicultural dimension of the island of Zanzibar gets uniquely articulated through the popular belief in spirits called masheitani ya kibuki and the rituals performed on their behalf. Show less
Suicide attacks referred to as “martyrdomoperations” by their executors and sympathizers, have become a weapon of mainly Islamist groups in the Middle East. The first suicide attacks in the early... Show moreSuicide attacks referred to as “martyrdomoperations” by their executors and sympathizers, have become a weapon of mainly Islamist groups in the Middle East. The first suicide attacks in the early 1980s in Lebanon met with criticism, in particular among the Sunni religious establishment. Though they were then regarded as violations of Islamic principles, today suicide attacks receive broader popular support and religious backing—and are understood—within the context of legitimate resistance and national struggle for liberation. Show less
ISIM, in co-operation with Gerdien Jonker (Marburg University), held a workshop on 9 January 2004 to take stock of previous research on the Turkish religious movement Millî Görüs (“The National... Show moreISIM, in co-operation with Gerdien Jonker (Marburg University), held a workshop on 9 January 2004 to take stock of previous research on the Turkish religious movement Millî Görüs (“The National Vision”) in Western Europe. The workshop brought together scholars from Germany, the Netherlands, Belgium, and France, whose research was at least in part concerned with this movement. Show less
In December 2003 a new exhibition on Islam opened at the KIT Tropenmuseum in Amsterdam. This comprehensive exhibition entitled Urban Islam is the first one of its kind in the Netherlands to explore... Show moreIn December 2003 a new exhibition on Islam opened at the KIT Tropenmuseum in Amsterdam. This comprehensive exhibition entitled Urban Islam is the first one of its kind in the Netherlands to explore the modern aspects of Islam in different parts of the world. Urban Islam aims to present a thought-provoking view on Islam by highlighting the complex and dynamic contexts that shape religious ideas and practices in Muslim societies. Show less
Art education is thriving in Iran despite facing obstacles by some conservative Islamic elements. Women are especially active in making and exhibiting art in the contemporary period. Through an... Show moreArt education is thriving in Iran despite facing obstacles by some conservative Islamic elements. Women are especially active in making and exhibiting art in the contemporary period. Through an ethnographic enquiry into women’s art education at the Tehran and Al-Zahra Universities, the ways in which women assert themselves as highly active members of a complex and changing society will be examined. Ethnographic research allows for long-held stereotypes to be corrected, truer versions of reality to come to the fore, and hopefully, the spaces and texts of “the other” to be better understood. Show less
From 19-21 February 2003 ISIM hosted a workshop, Saudi Futures. Paul Aarts (University of Amsterdam) and Gerd Nonneman (Lancaster University, UK) brought a group of experts from around the world,... Show moreFrom 19-21 February 2003 ISIM hosted a workshop, Saudi Futures. Paul Aarts (University of Amsterdam) and Gerd Nonneman (Lancaster University, UK) brought a group of experts from around the world, together with a number of Saudi commentators and observers representing a wide spectrum of opinion. The workshop was also sponsored by the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Lancaster University and the Mediterranean Programme of the European University Institute. Topics for discussion included trends in Saudi politics, society, economy and international relations in the post-9/11 and post-Iraq War era. Show less
For decades, the study of Islamic activism has languished at the margins of social science theory. With the exception of a small handful of scholars (particularly those focused on the Iranian... Show moreFor decades, the study of Islamic activism has languished at the margins of social science theory. With the exception of a small handful of scholars (particularly those focused on the Iranian revolution), research on Islamic activism has not fully engaged the broader theoretical and conceptual developments that have emerged from scholarship on social movements, revolutions, and contentious politics. Yet this large body of comparative research on non-Islamic forms of collective action provides myriad tools of analysis and theoretical leverage for many questions that interest students of Islamic activism, including issues of recruitment, tactics and strategies, mobilization patterns, and statemovement interactions. Show less
The Middle East is currently saturated with talk about “change.” Yet, the resiliency of authoritarianism and patriarchy in the region coupled with the evident failure of “democratization”-by... Show moreThe Middle East is currently saturated with talk about “change.” Yet, the resiliency of authoritarianism and patriarchy in the region coupled with the evident failure of “democratization”-by-conquest have plunged this part of the world into a depressing impasse. The region’s Muslim majority is caught up between, on the one hand, authoritarian regimes or fundamentalist inspired opposition, both of which tend to impose severe social control in the name of nation and religion, and on the other, flagrant foreign intervention and occupation in the name of democratization. We witness, then, a clear abuse of faith, freedom, and the faithful. In the midst of this, however, one thing has become clearer. If a meaningful change is to occur in these societies it should come from within, through the self-assertion of societal forces in a democratic direction. But the monumental question is how? Show less
