Thesis advisor: Katherine Nahum / This thesis is a comparison between medieval Christian and Islamic sacred architecture, using the Great Mosque of Cordoba and the Cathedral of Notre-Dame in Chartres as examples. The paper links a formal analysis and comparison of the buildings, including their use of space, light, and decoration to an analysis and comparison of each religion's philosophy and theology. It includes a discussion of the role of Neo-Platonist philosophy on the architecture of each religion. / Thesis (BA) — Boston College, 2007. / Submitted to: Boston College. College of Arts and Sciences. / Discipline: Fine Arts. / Discipline: College Honors Program.

Emblème de l’Islam en France créé en contexte colonial, la Mosquée de Paris fut inaugurée en 1926 pour remercier les musulmans morts pour la France, mais surtout pour la consacrer en tant que «puissance musulmane». Espace cultuel, culturel et diplomatique, elle souhaite incarner une vitrine prestigieuse de l’Islam Hexagonal. Dotée d'un financement et de statuts controversés, elle était considérée comme française, mais l'Algérie à partir de 1982, a joué un rôle clé, pour présider à sa destinée. Malgré les mutations dont elle fut l’objet, elle pensait incarner un lieu d'interface privilégié entre un Islam pluriel en quête de reconnaissance et des pouvoirs publics, tenant à faire émerger des représentants tenus pour légitimes. L’Institut Musulman de la Mosquée de Paris a prospéré jusqu’au milieu des années 1990, grâce au difficile équilibre qu’il a maintenu dans le cadre d’une relation tripartite mettant en jeu les musulmans de France, les pouvoirs publics français et algériens, ainsi qu’avec des acteurs du paysage islamique français. Elle demeurait la seule institution islamique dotée d’une forme de capital légitimité. Toutefois, la décennie 1990 préfigurait une perte d’éclat due à l’effritement de ce fragile équilibre, annonçant la mise en cause, du rôle d’acteur intermédiaire privilégié, qu’elle occupait jusque-là. Les causes et la genèse de ce déclin restituées à travers une grille d’analyse ternaire, retraçant la nature des relations entre religieux et représentants institutionnels français et étrangers, la régulation publique de l’Islam et la transformation de la sociologie des fidèles, impliquant une réflexion sur la validité de la notion «d’Islam de France». / As an emblem of Islam in France, The Great Mosque of Paris was inaugurated in 1926, in a colonial context, in honor of the Muslims “who died for France “, but more so as a consecration of France as « a Muslim power ». As a place of worship, culture, and diplomacy, this institution wishes to stand as a prestigious showcase of Islam in the hexagon. While it benefitted from controversial sources of funding and statutes, this Mosque was considered as French, until 1982, when Algeria started to play a key role in presiding over the destiny of the institution. Despite its numerous transformations, the Mosque of Paris sought to be perceived as a privileged interface between a pluralistic Islam that sought recognition on the one hand, and French authorities who were concerned with establishing legitimate Muslim representatives on the other. The Mosque of Paris was prosperous until the mid 1990s, painfully achieving a balancing act in the tripartite relationship between Muslims, French and Algerian public authorities, as well as some actors of the Islamic landscape in France. It remained the sole Islamic institution that had acquired a form of legitimacy. However, with the 1990s it gradually lost its influence and its role as an intermediate player, largely as a consequence of its tripartite relationship’s fragility. The causes and genesis of this decline will be restituted through a three-part analysis which will examine the nature of the relationships between religious leaders and French or foreign institutional representatives, the public regulation of Islam and transformations in the sociology of worshippers. Finally it will consider the validity of the concept of an “Islam of France”.

The study attempts to trace the development of mosque architecture in Islamic history, in modern architecture in the world, specifically focusing on the history of the mosque in Libya. It investigates whether the conformity of mosque components and finishing is due to historic, current and local Islamic prescriptions / due to functional purposes and necessities, or merely as an imitation of the stereotype styles for loyalty to mental and habitual traditions regardless of functions. The main objective of this thesis is to study &lsquo / the lack of innovation&rsquo / in mosque architecture, especially in the Libyan case. The thesis investigates the factors which may have caused this phenomenon and attempts to explore whether there is possibility to innovate mosque design. For this end, the thesis analyzes and evaluates urban, spatial, architectural and performance properties of the existing mosques in city of Ajdabiya in Libya, the results of which are expected to help architects in developing the innovations in mosque design. Finally, the study asserts that acceptance of innovation is possible under the given circumstances: there are differences from one mosque to another, there are variations of mosque elements in terms of type and form, already varying from region to region. The main reasons for the absence of innovations are found to be due to unqualified designers who lack creativity, fear for the vulnerability of the heritage and some misconceptions and misinterpretations in terms of religious prescriptions.

This thesis aims to problematize the cosmopolitan-spirited quest for a proper and permanent place for Islam and Muslim immigrants in Europe today, and to claim that the efforts to establish a European Islam cannot be thought in isolation from the efforts to consolidate a European identity. Since &ldquo / Europeanizing&rdquo / Islam is a process of inserting it into the politically acceptable formations of the secular in the European public sphere, not only does this project fail to offer a genuine alternative framework for belonging, or an authentic opportunity for dialogue, but also in fact consolidates the European civilizational identity on the one hand, and sustains the metanarrative about the Islamic threat on the other. The major argument of this thesis, therefore, is that the stranger (Muslim) is allowed to enter the host&rsquo / s secular space only under the conditions that construct Islam as the enemy. Forging a European Islam under the rules of secularism, without a radical interruption of the secular - religious division, and without referring to its implication in the discourses of Orientalism and racism, is ultimately a reconsolidation of the authority of the self-same European. This argument will be illustrated via a critical study of three cases of mosque debates in European cities.

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Sungur Bey Mosque and the Tomb adjacent to it were built in Nigde in the first half of the 14th century. In many respects, the Mosque is a traditional Anatolian building in terms of its architecture and decoration. Nevertheless, some of the architectural forms observed on the Mosque point to possible foreign interactions. The aim of this thesis is to take a critical look at the sources of the foreign architectural forms observed on the Sungur Bey Mosque and to question how such interactions could be possible in the 14th century Anatolia. In this context, the foreign architectural elements of the Mosque are compared vis-a-vis contemporary examples from Europe, Eastern Crusader States, Cyprus, Armenia and Anatolia. In addition, Crusades, trade relations and traveling artists are considered among possible interactions which could be influential in the transmission of these architectural forms. Thus, Sungur Bey Mosque is evaluated in a different viewpoint, which considers historical events and a number of possible interactions.

The purpose of this study was to examine the historical development of Islamic libraries internationally and in South Africa and to examine the Islamic Library in Gatesville as a case study to understand in which way communities have sought to provide a solution for adequate library facilities for the specific needs of the Muslim community in the greater Cape Town area.

With growing hostilities towards the Ummah (Muslim global community and Diaspora) in Western countries and the fear of Sharia laws, the socialization of international human rights norms within religious institutions, makes for a timely case study. Specifically, this dissertation project aims to capture the process of norm transformation at the grassroots level by investigating the religious, cultural, and social encounter between Islam and the West by interviewing Shia women at a local mosque in Florida. Critical constructivism, post-colonial feminism, and qualitative interpretive methods, are used to address the following: how practicing Shia women are navigating between competing liberal gender equality and traditional Islamic gender complementarity norms in regards to women’s rights and status in society? How are they self-identifying themselves and consciously picking and choosing what gender norms to follow and practice and teach the next generation? Finally, as “norm entrepreneurs,” how are these Shia women creating an alternative path which is neither purely liberal nor Islamic? It is argued that Islam is not a homogeneous religion and that Shia women are actively researching, self-reflecting, questioning, and proposing a new approach to Islamic gender norms. This dissertation seeks to show that these empowered Shia women are willfully paving a new path for more progressive Islamic gender norms centered on gender justice rather than gender equality which is still closely in line with the spirit of CEDAW, the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms Discrimination against women. To improve the power dynamics of the global system which is bias in favor Western liberal norms, more focus should be put on why countries and people may oppose or challenge such norms. As such, progressive Muslims need to have their voices heard within international human rights discourses.

The purpose of this study is to examine how religion and the construction of new religious buildings are debated in social media. The study is based on two research questions concerning the main arguments about the mosque building in Karlstad and what kind of image of Muslims and Islam that exist. Data were collected from two Facebook-groups, Ja till moské i Karlstad and Nej tack till moské i Karlstad and analyzed and categorised with a content analysis and image analysis. The theory of the study rests on Mattias Gardell’s definition of Islamophobia. The theory also includes Klas Borell’s definition of NIMBY and the concept of cyber-Islamophobia by Göran Larsson. The result showed that most arguments concerning the building of the mosque were based on arguments of freedom of religion. The positive arguments claimed a mosque was good for the city and the freedom of religion. The arguments that were negative claimed a mosque would be a threat to the freedom of religion, since they claimed Islam is violent and that the location for the mosque should be used for something better (housing, school, activities, etc.). Muslims and Islam i portrayed mostly negative and stereotyped. However, these stereotypes are contradicted by Muslims who claims their religion to be peaceful and respectful.the result showed that the arguments overall was Islamophobic even though some arguments in favor to defend that Islam exist.

Magister Bibliothecologiae - MBibl / The purpose of this study was to examine the historical development of Islamic libraries internationally and in South Africa and to examine the Islamic Library in Gatesville as a case study to understand in which way communities have sought to provide a solution for adequate library facilities for the specific needs of the Muslim community in the greater Cape Town area. / South Africa