The right to religious liberty and the tolerance of difference that this right engenders are central components of the American national identity. As a result, many in the United States are perplexed by current events in the Middle East. Rising sectarian violence and the imposition of Islamic law throughout the region have made it clear that the values associated with liberalism are not gaining traction in this part of the world. This dissertation uses the tools of comparative religious ethics to challenge two popular explanations of this phenomenon. The first contends that liberalism is not gaining traction because it is incompatible with certain "exceptional" features of Islamic history and theology. The second explains the phenomenon in terms of a general incompatibility between liberalism and all religions that seek a public role for religion. To challenge these theses, I compare the arguments of John Rawls, John Courtney Murray, and three contemporary Muslim reformers: Abdullahi Ahmed An-Na'im, Khaled Abou El Fadl, and Abdulaziz Sachedina. In so doing, I show that it is possible to make religious arguments in support of liberal democracy and that Islamic struggles to do so are in no way exceptional. / A Dissertation Submitted to the Department of Religion in Partial Fulfillment of
the Requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy. / Summer Semester, 2009. / July 7, 2009. / Development of Doctrine, Moral Reform, Natural Law, Human Rights, Religious Pluralism, Public Reason, Limited Government, Popular Sovereignty, Religious Liberty, Comparative Religious Ethics / Includes bibliographical references. / John Kelsay, Professor Directing Dissertation; M. Victoria Costa, Outside Committee Member; Sumner B. Twiss, Committee Member; Aline Kalbian, Committee Member; Adam Gaiser, Committee Member.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:fsu.edu/oai:fsu.digital.flvc.org:fsu_175675 |
| Contributors | Barre, Elizabeth A., 1980- (authoraut), Kelsay, John (professor directing dissertation), Costa, M. Victoria (outside committee member), Twiss, Sumner B. (committee member), Kalbian, Aline (committee member), Gaiser, Adam (committee member), Department of Religion (degree granting department), Florida State University (degree granting institution) |
| Publisher | Florida State University, Florida State University |
| Source Sets | Florida State University |
| Language | English, English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Text, text |
| Format | 1 online resource, computer, application/pdf |
| Rights | This Item is protected by copyright and/or related rights. You are free to use this Item in any way that is permitted by the copyright and related rights legislation that applies to your use. For other uses you need to obtain permission from the rights-holder(s). The copyright in theses and dissertations completed at Florida State University is held by the students who author them. |
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