The Trouble with Islam Today

"The Trouble with Islam Today", original title "The Trouble with Islam" is a 2004 book critical of Islam written by Irshad Manji, styled in an open-letter for Muslims world wide.

Contents

In the book the author aims to provide an examination of what she describes as "the inferior treatment of women in Islam"; "Jew-bashing that so many Muslims persistently engage in", "the continuing scourge of slavery in countries ruled by Islamic regimes", "literalist readings of the Koran" and "the lost traditions of critical thinking Ijtihad". [ [http://www.pbs.org/now/shows/233/trouble-islam.html PBS:Irshad Manji: The Trouble with Islam Today] ] [ [http://www.muslim-refusenik.com/ijtihad.html Project Ijtihad] ]

:"The Trouble with Islam is an open letter from me, a Muslim voice of reform, to concerned citizens worldwide – Muslim and not. It's about why my faith community needs to come to terms with the diversity of ideas, beliefs and people in our universe, and why non-Muslims have a pivotal role in helping us get there." - "That doesn't mean I refuse to be a Muslim, it simply means I refuse to join an army of automatons in the name of Allah."

Chapters

*"The Letter"
*"How I Became a Muslim Refusenik"
*"Seventy Virgins?"
*"When Did We Stop Thinking?"
*"Gates and Girdles"
*"Who's Betraying Whom?"
*"The Hidden Underbelly of Islam"
*"Operation Ijtihad"
*"In Praise of Honesty"
*"Thank God for the West"

Editions

*"The Trouble with Islam", St. Martin's Press (hardcover), 2004, ISBN 0-312-32699-8
*"The Trouble with Islam Today", St. Martin's Griffin (paperback), 2005, ISBN 0-312-32700-5

Translations:
*Finnish: "Islamin kahdet kasvot", Tammi (paperback), 2004, ISBN 951-31-3076-2, translated by Tiina Sjelvgren
*Urdu, Arabic, and Persian editions are available on her website [http://www.muslim-refusenik.com/ here]
*Many other translations exist, from Hindi to German

Reception

Praise

"The Trouble with Islam Today" has created debate worldwide. The book is now translated into more than 30 languages. Manji also has multiple translations of the book (namely Arabic, Urdu, Malay and Persian) available for free download on her website. Meant to reach readers in those countries where her book is banned, the translations are widely popular.

Praise comes from both Muslim and non-Muslim sources. Khaleel Mohammed, an imam and professor of Islam at San Diego State University, wrote in his foreword to Manji's book that "Irshad wants us to do what our Holy Book wants us to do: end the tribal posturing, open our eyes, and stand up to oppression, even if it's rationalized by our vaunted imams... She remains obedient to the Divine Imperative: 'O you who believe! Be upholders of justice, witnesses for God, even if it be against yourselves, or your parents and kin' (Quran, 4:135)."

Hesham Hassaballa, a columnist with Muslimwakeup.com said that he "was deeply surprised by what she had to say. And deeply grateful." [ [http://www.muslimwakeup.com/main/archives/2005/03/002709print.php MWU!: The Trouble with Irshad Manji? ] ]

Quantara.de, a website promoting interfaith dialogue, mentions that "Irshad Manji breaks every taboo in the book while also challenging our prejudices about Islam. What's more, she does so as a Muslim, not as a Westernized woman preaching from the pulpit of a feminist ivory tower." [ [http://www.quantara.de/webcom/show_article.php/_c-310/_nr-52/i.html Qantara.de - Book Review - The Trouble with "The Trouble with Islam" ] ]

Jane Mansbridge, Adams Professor of Political Leadership and Democratic Values at Harvard University, says that “all is not lost if people of Irshad Manji's capacity can carry a fresh and convincing message to the coming generation. I cannot urge her more strongly to maintain her frank, open and intelligent approach. This cause is, I believe, the most important new movement in several decades.”

"The New York Times Book Review" wrote a positive review of "The Trouble with Islam". Although Sullivan found some of Manji's "prescriptions for change in Islam ... dwarfed by the scale of the problem", he nevertheless considers Manji "a nerve ending for the West -- shocking, raw, but mercifully, joyously, still alive." [ [http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9C01E5D61E30F936A15752C0A9629C8B63 Decent Exposure] January 25, 2004, book review of The Trouble With Islam]

The Times of India reviewed "The Trouble with Islam Today", and said that Manji's "courage is to be commended" [ [http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/Opinion/Sunday_Specials/Book_Mark/Calling_all_believers_to_a_conversation_on_Islam/articleshow/msid-1326998,curpg-1.cms Calling all believers to a conversation on Islam-Book Mark-Sunday Specials-Opinion-The Times of India ] ] . The Pakistan Friday Times encouraged Pakistan to set a "positive example" by letting the book be distributed and discussed freely [ [http://www.irshadmanji.com/news/fridaytimes-04-08-27set.html Welcome to The Friday Times ] ] .

"The Sydney Morning Herald" also wrote a positive review. [ [http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2004/09/10/1094789671719.html The curious rebel] September 11, 2004]

Criticism

Criticism also comes from within Islam and from secular sources. Some of Manji's critics allege that she goes too far in her criticisms of Islam and Muslims. Some claim there is a double standard between her criticism of Muslim states and her staunch defence of Israel. [ [http://www.chowk.com/show_article.cgi?aid=00004158&channel=gulberg&start=0&end=9&chapter=1&page=1 The Trouble With Irshad Manji] October 3, 2004]

As'ad Abu Khalil, professor of political science at California State University, Stanislaus, charges Manji with disproportionately targeting Muslims, ignoring the peripheral context within which most Muslims live, and not applying the same critiques to other groups, notably those with significantly more power in society such as conservative Christians. Abu Khalil also asserts Manji is not trained in Islamic scholarship, history, or the Arabic language, and as such ignores the multiplicity of debates and traditions within Islam. [ [http://www.democracynow.org/article.pl?sid=06/02/07/1458210 Freedom of Speech or Incitement to Violence? A Debate Over the Publication of Cartoons of Prophet Muhammed and the Global Muslim Protests] Debate with As'ad AbuKhalil, professor of political science at California State University, on the 2006 cartoon controversy and the worldwide protests. February 07, 2006]

Khaled Almeena, editor of the "Arab News" in Saudi Arabia, complains that "This fraudulent book has now become a guide to Islam." [ [http://www.muslimwakeup.com/main/archives/2003/11/thanks_but_no_t.php Thanks, but No Thanks: Irshad Manji's Book Is for Muslim Haters, Not Muslims] by Tarek Fatah, November 27, 2003] [ [http://muslim-refusenik.com/news/globe-dec2-03.html The trouble with à la carte critics] Manji's response to Fatah, December 2, 2003]

Omar Afra, editor of Free Press Houston, charges Manji with a failure to see the problems of the Islamic world in a socio-economic context. He also states that Manji "sees the mis-treatment of women in the Islamic world as a monolith all the while ignoring rampant date rape and domestic abuse in Western culture."

In 2003, Tarek Fatah, who was acknowledged at the beginning of "The Trouble with Islam" (for the discussions he had with the author), has criticized the book: "In one fragment of a sentence, "Muslim Complicity in the Holocaust," Ms. Manji places all these warriors on the wrong side of the trenches." . He also generally called the book a "diatribe against Muslims", concluding: "Had it been written in good faith, I would have understood her reasoning, even if I did not agree with her. However, her book is not addressed to Muslims; it is aimed at making Muslim haters feel secure in their thinking." and asked his name to be removed from future editions. [Tarek Fatah. [http://www.muslimwakeup.com/main/archives/2003/11/thanks_but_no_t.php "Thanks, but No Thanks: Irshad Manji's Book Is for Muslim Haters, Not Muslims"] . (November 27, 2003, in The Globe and Mail)] [ [http://www.web.net/sworker/En/SW2004/419-08-islamophobia.html The trouble with Islamophobia] book review, February 4, 2004] [ [http://www.psreview.org/content/view/26/72/ The Trouble with Irshad Manji] Palestine Solidarity Review editorial, Fall 2004]

Irshad Manji answered: " [Tarek Fatah] should have read the very next paragraph in my book, which acknowledges that some Muslims refused to hitch themselves to Hitler -- despite Haj Amin's effort to recruit them. I emphasized that "Bosnian Muslims not only resisted his charms, but actively hid Jews in their homes." Yet we hear nothing about this from Mr. Fatah, the à la carte critic of a fast-food historian." and " [Tarek Fatah] bellowed, "This book was written by the Jews for the Jews!" It's painful to hear such words fly from the mouth of a self-declared Muslim reformer". [Irshad Manji. [http://muslim-refusenik.com/news/globe-dec2-03.html "The trouble with à la carte critics"] . (December 2, 2003, in The Globe and Mail)]

In 2008, Fatah said that he regrets his remarks, and that he was unfair in slamming Manji's book. He now says that she was "right about the systematic racism in the Muslim world" and that "there were many redeeming points in her memoir, which I overlooked in my rush to judge it. [http://www.thespec.com/Opinions/article/392889] ] "

In January 2005, Canadian activist Linda Belanger [http://student.cs.ucc.ie/cs1064/jabowen/IPSC/php/authors.php?auid=718] of Women Against Occupation stated: "By page 30 of her book, Manji starts to sound like the pro-war, pro-Zionist, Islam bashing columnists from the pages of Canwest Global newspapers" [...] "Again, her enthusiasm for Western societies seems to be very ill informed. Women's rights are a relatively new thing in Canada." [...] "The trouble with "The Trouble with Islam" is that it is a biased, poorly researched and negative book." [Linda Belanger. [http://www.canpalnet-ottawa.org/belanger.html "The Trouble with The Trouble with Islam"] . "canpalnet-ottawa.org" (January 1, 2005)]

References

External links

Downloads from the author's official website:
* [http://www.muslim-refusenik.com/arabic.html Complete free online edition of "The Trouble with Islam Today" in Arabic] - HTML and zip file
* [http://www.muslim-refusenik.com/urdu.html Complete free online edition of "The Trouble with Islam Today" in Urdu] - HTML and zip file
* [http://www.muslim-refusenik.com/persian.html Complete free online edition of "The Trouble with Islam Today" in Persian] - HTML and zip file