Zugl.: Frankfurt (Main), Univ., Diss., 2009

Proefschrift--Leiden. / "De aangehaalde Arabische literatuur": p. [81]-83.

Thesis (M. Div.)--Calvary Theological Seminary, 1995. / [Abstract]. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 59-62).

Thesis (doctoral)--Universität, Heidelberg. / Facsimile reprint. Enlarged by 22 p. (including English summary and a lecture of 1979 in Arabic language with its French translation).

Religion has a spiritual message embedded, as its purpose is to establish a relationship between the seen and the unseen worlds. However, to allow people to understand its spiritual message, it uses symbolism in such a way that the physical person would try to comprehend the inner meanings of the spiritual message that lies therein. This study is not about ‘how' the Hajj rituals are to be performed, because the answer to that question is trivial and have been thoroughly studied throughout centuries. This study is an attempt to answer the question ‘why.' Why is the Hajj to be performed in a certain way? This study delves into what must be a deeper meaning. Its methodology is through the etymological usage of the terminologies textually and intertextually between Scriptures, including the Qur'an and the Bible. It attempts to explore the polysemous nature of the root words and to resurrect the inner meanings that can be ascertained from the root. This study introduces a new methodology for Scriptural hermeneutics, while comparing the methods used by Biblical and Qur'anic scholars. Once the methodology is established, it is applied to increase understanding of the inner meanings of the Hajj rituals portraying the journey of a dead soul from death, sacrifice of the ego, resurrection into life, and spreading the seeds and Water of Life to other dead souls trying to fight their egos and, likewise, resurrect them into life.

In a time when “traditional” Islam and Islamic education are seen as incommensurable with American society and ideals, American Muslims are mobilizing traditions of Islamic scholarship within liberal arts institutional frameworks to articulate and establish the future possibilities of Islam and being Muslim in North America. This research shows how the Islamic discursive tradition is being critically engaged by the scholars and students of Zaytuna College to craft an “American Islam” based on a shared moral and ethical system that draws from and is relevant to the heterogeneous experiences of diverse Muslims and their material circumstances. Based on eighteen months of ethnographic research at Zaytuna College in Berkeley, California, and in the surrounding San Francisco Bay Area, this study’s methodological approach is grounded in participant-observation, interviews, and visual ethnography.

In a time when “traditional” Islam and Islamic education are seen as incommensurable with American society and ideals, American Muslims are mobilizing traditions of Islamic scholarship within liberal arts institutional frameworks to articulate and establish the future possibilities of Islam and being Muslim in North America. This research shows how the Islamic discursive tradition is being critically engaged by the scholars and students of Zaytuna College to craft an “American Islam” based on a shared moral and ethical system that draws from and is relevant to the heterogeneous experiences of diverse Muslims and their material circumstances. Based on eighteen months of ethnographic research at Zaytuna College in Berkeley, California, and in the surrounding San Francisco Bay Area, this study’s methodological approach is grounded in participant-observation, interviews, and visual ethnography.

This thesis deals with the crisis of political loyalty in Somalia. The analysis is based on an elitist perspective which permits a more satisfactory integration of all levels of Somali society than is possible with familiar "clanist" or "social theory" interpretations. The paper gives details of the three leading ideological groups in Somalia over the past three decades--the Tribalists, Nationalists and Islamists. It demonstrates how the future of the nationalists' imported models of government and policies to contain tribalism culminated in the re-emergence of tribalism, now in more militant political form. The author presents Islam as an important political component and analyses the Islamic Movement in Somalia as a potential alternative political force for the future. The Islamists may be successful if they overcome internal divisions, personality cults and isolation from society, and adopt a moderate realistic attitude on social issues.

Syftet med detta examensarbete är att få kunskap om hur ett antal idrottslärare arbetar vid simundervisning med muslimska flickor och detta för att på så sätt hjälpa mina eventuella framtida muslimska elever att bli simkunniga. Detta eftersom forskning visar att en stor del av eleverna i skolan som inte kan simma är elever med föräldrar från ett annat land eller elever som själva har invandrat. Intervjuerna har genomförts med fem lärare där alla undervisar i idrott och hälsa på mångkulturella skolor i en mellansvensk stad. Samtliga lärare anser att simundervisningen är ett mycket viktigt moment att arbeta med, men ingen av dessa lärare ägnar någon större tid åt att undervisa i simning. Undersökningen visade att simundervisning går bra att utföra även om eleverna är muslimska flickor. Forskningen bekräftar att invandrarelever behöver simundervisning i skolan.

In Kenya, there has been a tendency to portray a separation of Church and State. However, attempts made by political leaders to separate Church and State have not successfully severed the relationship between religion and politics. The interweaving of religion and politics is the subject of this project. In particular it studies the changing relationship between Muslims and various political orders in Kenya from the pre-colonial times to the present. The study traces the role of Muslim individuals and associations under different political regimes. It explores the ways in which Muslims have politically mobilised in a context of political authoritarianism and limited space for protest. This has led to increasing politicization of Islam in Kenya with the formation of the Islamic Party of Kenya (IPK) in 1992 crystallizing the growing process of radicalization of sections of the Kenya's Muslims. Therefore, this study focuses on the politicization of Islam in Kenya and discusses the factors that triggered the process of its politicization and its challenges in Kenya's politics. Over a period of one year, a structured interview with selected informers and informal discussions was conducted. The finding of the study indicates that the emergence of politicization of Islam in Kenya is a reflection of the exclusionary-repressive politics of the various Kenyan regimes. This political system is alleged to have contributed to the perceived political marginalization of Muslims in the country. It is this perceived marginalization which Muslims are striving to overcome. The formation of the IPK was an attempt by Muslims to address this perceived political marginalization. Fearing Islamic oriented political competition the Kenyan government refused to offer the IPK recognition. It is concluded that despite the registration setback the Muslims faced in Kenya's politics, they are still a significant opposition to political leadership in the country. None the less, this study shows that Muslim political engagement is not a monolithic. There are political differences among Muslims in relation to Kenya's politics. These differences are attributed to ethnic and racial binaries exhibited within the Muslim community. / Thesis (Ph.D.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, 2008.