Bøker i Contemporary Thought in the Islamic World-serien

While Christian approaches to the problem of evil have been much discussed, the issue of theodicy in Islam is relatively neglected. This title explores the viewpoints and discusses possible solutions to theodicy and the problem of evil through the early philosophy and theology of Islam through a semantic analysis of evil in the Qur'an.

Like anywhere else, the present-day Islamic world too is grappling with modernity and postmodernity, secularisation and globalisation. Muslims are raising questions about religious representations and authority. This has given rise to the emergence of alternative Islamic discourses which challenge binary oppositions and dichotomies of orthodoxy and heterodoxy, continuity and change, state and civil society. It also leads to a dispersal of authority, a collapse of existing hierarchical structures and gender roles. This book further argues that the centre of gravity of many of these alternative Islamic discourses is shifting from the Arabic-speaking ''heartland'' towards the geographical peripheries of the Muslim world and expatriate Muslims in North America and Europe. At the same time, in view of recent seismic shifts in the political constellation of the Middle East, the trends discussed in this book hold important clues for the possible direction of future developments in that volatile part of the Muslim world.

This book argues that the centre of gravity for alternative Islamic discourses will continue to shift from the Arabic-speaking 'heartland' towards the geographical peripheries of the Muslim world and expatriate Muslims in North America and Europe. This process has consequences for the question of authority among Muslims.

Taking a thematic approach, Bryan Turner draws together his important writings in sociology and Islam which engage with the relationship of Islam and the ideas of Western social thinkers. Turner engages with the broad categories of capitalism, orientalism, modernity, gender, and citizenship among others.