Islam in the Middle East

G.P. Makris (PhD, London School of Economics and Political Science) is Assistant Professor of Social Anthropology at Panteion University, Athens.

• Preface viiAcknowledgments ixTransliteration and Abbreviations xIntroduction 11 The Islamic Community through History 152 The Foundations of Islamic Doctrine and the Community of Believers 353 Authority and Knowledge 594 The Five Pillars 955 Islamic Mysticism 1426 Islamic Reformism 1747 Islamism: A General Overview 1938 Islamism at the Local Level 224Notes 255References 301Index 325

"Makris gives a sensitive account of women's status in Muslim societies, their traditional and modern situations and rights, and criticizes the limited ethnocentric judgements of simplistic Western commentators, especially in the context of 'development.'" (Journal of the Royal Anthropological Institute, September 2009)"Books such as Islam in the Middle East remind us that academics can play a positive role in challenging the meanings that practitioners ascribe to the world's religions and regions. Let us hope the book not only appears on university reading lists but that it also finds a way into the briefcases of politicians in London and Washington." (Times Higher Educational Supplement)"Islam in the Middle East provides a comprehensive introduction to a living religious tradition that is currently at the centre of much international attention." (Journal of Social Anthropology)