Muhammad Ali Abstract Based on some historical and anthropological accounts, this article examines a dynamic interplay between Islam and local tradition in Indonesia with special reference to Java and Sulawesi. It explains how local Muslims differed in their interpretation and application of Islam. It looks at processes of religious change as a world religion interacts with local forces. The “localization” of Islam was a constant feature in the expansion of Islam beyond the Arab homeland, including Southeast Asia. Based on the framework of ‘practical Islam’, rather than ‘normative Islam’, and on the framework of both accommodation and conflict between shari’ah … Continue reading Muslim diversity: Islam and local tradition in Java and Sulawesi, Indonesia

This paper investigates how Islamic doctrine conceives the place of work by outlining the notion of an Islamic work ethic and by discussing a number of human resource issues in relation to Islam. Knowledge of these issues has become an urgent need given the high level of discrimination Muslim workers suffer in modern workplaces. The paper argues that potential areas of friction between Islam and contemporary HRM practices can be managed effectively as there is not inherent conflict between Islamic doctrine and modern workplaces. The paper concludes with an outline of the nature of the Islamic influence in Australia, a … Continue reading Work, Religious Diversity and Islam

In France, multiculturalism, as a legal and institutional approach to dealing with cultural, ethnic and religious differences, does not refer to a specific political model as it does in Canada, the USA or Australia. The word ‘multicultural’ is seldom used in public or even in academic debate (Wieviorka, 1996). However, from the 1960s onwards, discussions and claims based on cultural differences have emerged in French society and have intensified over the last decades with the mounting debate about Islam. There is a longstanding tradition of separation between church and state. In law, only individuals free and equal in rights are … Continue reading Nondiscrimination, Diversity and Islam: Challenges for Multiculturalism in France

This edited volume is a compilation of original scholarly papers on the theme of cultural diversity in Islamic thought and practice under conditions of early and late modernity, with a specific contemporary focus on the crisis of religious tolerance in the Muslim world. Particular emphasis is placed upon Islamic concepts of cultural diversity as they contrast to the traditional Western liberal approach that takes a neutral position on tolerance to cultural difference.  Said, A. A., & Sharify-Funk, M. (2003). Cultural diversity and Islam. Univ Pr of Amer. Source Continue reading Cultural diversity and Islam

Simonetta Calderini Islam contains a greater plurality of theology than is often realised. Here two “alternative voices” are chosen as examples of how cultural accretions can be questioned to what is taken to be the original, pure voice of Islam. Amina Wadud has led a mixed congregation in prayer in New York and has demonstrated, not without opposition, that women can be imams. There follows a discussion of the historical debate about women as imams and reactions to Wadud’s actions. The second voice is Hasan Askari, an Indian Muslim who has written widely on inter-faith dialogue. He maintains that to … Continue reading Islam and Diversity: Alternative Voices within Contemporary Islam