A History Of God The 4000 Year Quest Of Judaism Christianity And Islam

A History Of God The 4000 Year Quest Of Judaism Christianity And Islam

 

Title: A History Of God The 4000 Year Quest Of Judaism Christianity And Islam | ISBN : 9780345384560 | Author: Karen Armstrong | Publisher: Ballantine Books  | Year: 1994 | Pages: 219 | Language : English | file: pdf

A History Of God The 4000 Year Quest Of Judaism Christianity And Islam

About A History of God

Why does God exist? How have the three dominant monotheistic religions—Judaism, Christianity, and Islam—shaped and altered the conception of God? How have these religions influenced each other? In this stunningly intelligent book, Karen Armstrong, one of Britain’s foremost commentators on religious affairs, traces the history of how men and women have perceived and experienced God, from the time of Abraham to the present. 

The epic story begins with the Jews’ gradual transformation of pagan idol worship in Babylon into true monotheism—a concept previously unknown in the world. Christianity and Islam both rose on the foundation of this revolutionary idea, but these religions refashioned ‘the One God’ to suit the social and political needs of their followers. From classical philosophy and medieval mysticism to the Reformation, Karen Armstrong performs the near miracle of distilling the intellectual history of monotheism into one superbly readable volume, destined to take its place as a classic.

Praise for History of God

“An admirable and impressive work of synthesis that will give insight and satisfaction to thousands of lay readers.”—The Washington Post Book World

“A brilliantly lucid, spendidly readable book. [Karen] Armstrong has a dazzling ability: she can take a long and complex subject and reduce it to the fundamentals, without oversimplifying.”—The Sunday Times (London)

“Absorbing . . . A lode of learning.”—Time

The Spiral Staircase My Climb Out of Darkness by Karen Armstrong

The Spiral Staircase My Climb Out of Darkness by Karen Armstrong

Title: The Spiral Staircase My Climb Out of Darkness by Karen Armstrong | ISBN : 9780385721271 | eISBN : 978-0-307-42939-1 | Author: Karen Armstrong | Publisher: Anchor Books a Division of Random House, Inc. | Year: Februari 22, 2005| Pages: 259 | file: pdf , epub & mobi
The Spiral Staircase My Climb Out of Darkness by Karen Armstrong

About this book

A memoir recommended for those facing disappointments and making major changes in their lives.

Karen Armstrong is the author of many books including A History of God, The Battle for God, Islam and Visions of God. She is also the author of three television documentaries. Since September 11, 2001, Armstrong has been a frequent contributor to conferences, panels, newspapers, periodicals, and media outlets on both sides of the Atlantic on the subject of Islam. She lives in London.

In this intriguing spiritual autobiography, Armstrong picks up where her 1982 memoir Through the Narrow Gate left off, with the culture shock that accompanied her departure after seven years from the Catholic convent she had joined when she was an ardent, idealistic, and immature seventeen year old. Although already enrolled at Oxford University, the author is unprepared for the feeling of living in a twilight zone. Armstrong isolates herself from others and sees a psychiatrist for three years during which she is hospitalized, given drugs, and attends therapy sessions. It is only later that she discovers that her physical and mental ailments stem from epilepsy. But the biggest shock of all comes when the examiner for Oxford rejects her doctoral thesis and she is forced to take a job teaching at a private girl's school in London.

Throughout all these changes, Armstrong laments her inability to pray and her lack of a genuine sense of God's presence in her life. But like the poet T .S. Eliot in Ash Wednesday (the poem that opens this book), she persists and eventually comes to see that her spiritual recovery is taking place at its own pace and in its own sweet ways.

Armstrong regains her poise while doing research for a television documentary on St. Paul. This spurs her interest in both Judaism and Islam. For those religions, right practice is more important than right belief. While writing Muhammad: A Biography of the Prophet, Armstrong comes to respect his struggle with doubt, grief, and despair. She concludes that "religion is born out of desperation, horror, and vulnerability as well as from moments of sublime thought."

Armstrong also develops a sense of compassion for her own questing. Fred Burnham, director of the Trinity Institute at Trinity Church Wall Street, tells her: "You always claim that you never had a religious experience. But I disagree. I think you are constantly living in the dimension of the sacred. You are absorbed in holiness all the time!" And so Armstrong is today still spending her days thinking and talking about God, religion, and spirituality.

Twelve Steps to a Compassionate Life by Karen Armstrong

Twelve Steps to a Compassionate Life by Karen Armstrong

 

Title: Twelve Steps to a Compassionate Life | eISBN : 978-0-307-59563-8 | Author: Karen Armstrong | Publisher: Alfred A. Knopf, a division of Random House, Inc. | Year: 2010 | Pages: 150 | Language : English | file: pdf, epub & mobi

A Word from Karen Armstrong

The work of the Charter for Compassion and this book is born from Karen Armstrong’s commitment to provide practical and actionable ideas that can indeed transform our world. Armstrong offers these words of advice to reading groups:
 
I suggest that at the end of each session, each person resolves to introduce one regular practice into his or her life. This resolution should, for example, be “realistic.” It has to be something that you can feasibly include in your daily routine; it should be challenging, but not so demanding that you give it up after a few days; it is no good saying, for example, “I am never going to say another unkind word to anybody in my life ever again,” because this just isn’t going to happen. It should be something really concrete: “I am going to go out of my way to perform one act of kindness each day to somebody (make a list of candidates!) who really annoys me.”
 
The resolution should also be practical. It shouldn’t be something vague, such as “I am going to open my heart to the whole world.” That is meaningless unless it becomes a concrete reality in your life.
 
Be creative and inventive; there is no need to stick slavishly to these suggestions: think of ways in which your actions can become a dynamic and positive force for change, not just within yourself but in the world around you. Make each resolution a regular part of your life, and by the end of the course you will have twelve new habits that should be effecting a transformation within yourself and your immediate environment.

One of the most original thinkers on the role of religion in the modern world—author of such acclaimed books as A History of God, Islam, and Buddha—now gives us an impassioned and practical book that can help us make the world a more compassionate place.

Karen Armstrong believes that while compassion is intrinsic in all human beings, each of us needs to work diligently to cultivate and expand our capacity for compassion. Here, in this straightforward, thoughtful, and thought-provoking book, she sets out a program that can lead us toward a more compassionate life.

The twelve steps Armstrong suggests begin with “Learn About Compassion” and close with “Love Your Enemies.” In between, she takes up “compassion for yourself,” mindfulness, suffering, sympathetic joy, the limits of our knowledge of others, and “concern for everybody.” She suggests concrete ways of enhancing our compassion and putting it into action in our everyday lives, and provides, as well, a reading list to encourage us to “hear one another’s narratives.” Throughout, Armstrong makes clear that a compassionate life is not a matter of only heart or mind but a deliberate and often life-altering commingling of the two.

Islam A Short History by Karen Armstrong

Islam A Short History by Karen Armstrong

 

Title: Islam A Short History | ISBN: 0-8129-6618-X | Author: Karen Armstrong | Publisher: Modern Library Paperback Edition New York | Year: 2000, 2002 | Pages: 274 | Language : English | file: pdf & epub

Islam A Short History

Readers seeking a quick but thoughtful introduction to Islam will want to peruse Armstrong's latest offering. In her hallmark stylish and accessible prose, the author of A History of God takes readers from the sixth-century days of the Prophet Muhammad to the present. Armstrong writes about the revelations Muhammad received, and explains that the Qur'an earned its name (which means recitation) because most of Muhammad's followers were illiterate and learned his teachings not from reading them but hearing them proclaimed aloud. Throughout the book, Armstrong traces what she sees as Islam's emphasis on right living (? la
 Judaism) over right belief (? la Christianity). Armstrong is at her
most passionate when discussing Islam in the modern world. She explains antagonisms between Iraqi Muslims and Syrian Muslims, and discusses the devastating consequences of modernization on the Islamic world. Unlike Europe, which modernized gradually over centuries, the Islamic world had modernity thrust upon it in an exploitative manner. The Islamic countries, Armstrong argues, have been "reduced to a dependent bloc by the European powers." Armstrong also rehearses some basics about Islamic fundamentalism in a section that will be familiar to anyone who has
read her recent study, The Battle for God. A useful time line and a
guide to the "Key Figures in the History of Islam" complete this strong, brisk survey of 1,500 years of Islamic history. 

PREFACE

The external history of a religious tradition often seems divorced from the raison d'etre of faith. The spiritual quest is an interior journey; it is a psychic rather than a political drama. It is preoccupied with liturgy, doctrine, contemplative disciplines and an exploration of the heart, not with the clash of current events. Religions certainly have a life outside the soul.

Their leaders have to contend with the state and affairs of the world, and often relish doing so. They fight with members of other faiths, who seem to challenge their claim to a monopoly of absolute truth; they also persecute their co-religionists for interpreting a tradition differently or for holding heterodox beliefs. Very often priests, rabbis, imams and shamans are just as consumed by worldly ambition as regular politicians. But all this is generally seen as an abuse of a sacred ideal. These power struggles are not what religion is really about, but an unworthy distraction from the life of the spirit, which is conducted far from the madding crowd, unseen, silent and unobtrusive. Indeed, in many faiths, monks and mystics lock themselves away from the world, since the clamour and strife of history is regarded as incompatible with a truly religious life.

Islam in the Bible by Thomas McElwain

Islam in the Bible by Thomas McElwain

 

Title: ISLAM IN THE BIBLE | ISBN: - | Author: Thomas McElwain | language : English | Publisher: Adams & McElwain Publishers | Year: 1998 | Pages: 186 | file: pdf

Islam in the Bible

INTRODUCTION

Not only Judaism in its several varieties, but hundreds of different sects of Christianity all maintain that their beliefs and practices are based on the Bible. If so many different religions can be justified by the Bible, why not Islam?

Most of Christianity recognizes the authority of the Bible, containing the Hebrew and Greek writings. There is some discussion of what writings to include and to what degree they are authoritative, but in principle Christians recognize the Bible. All forms of Judaism recognize the Torah and the other writings of the Tanach, which makes up the Old Testament of the Christian Bible. Islam appeals primarily to the Holy Qur'an, but in principle accepts the Bible. In practice, Muslims reject the Bible on the assump­tion that it is corrupted from the original in order to make it accommodate to Christian teaching.

The problem arises when we compare the beliefs and practices of any particular religious group with the book it appeals to. Inevitably there is much selectivity and interpre­tation, but beyond this remains the bare fact that the book is never the sole source of belief and practice. Where would the Christian year of festivals, the liturgy and a multitude of beliefs and practices be if all had to be founded on the Bible? Many of them would sadly fall by the wayside.

The decoupling of books from actual belief and practice first struck me a few years ago when I noticed how the books relate to the day of worship. The Hebrew Scriptures obviously maintain the observance of the Sabbath or seventh day of the week. Jewish tradition quite consistently puts this in practice. The observance of Sunday is characteristic of Christianity. But there is very little justification for this in the Greek Scriptures, the so-called New Testament.

On the contrary, the Sabbath is men­tioned very often, sometimes quite favorably. I looked in the Qur'an to see how it dealt with the issue, and found that the Sabbath is maintained on a half-dozen occasions in the Qur'an as well. Friday prayer is also well established in the Qur'an, unlike Sunday in the New Testament, which can only be defended by doing violence to the text. But there is no Qur'anic justification for observing Friday as a special day from Thursday evening, as many Muslims do. We thus find the Sabbath to be a feature common to all of the sacred books. By contrast, the traditions vary on how they relate to the Sabbath, Judaism observing Saturday, Christianity Sunday, and Islam Friday.

Salah Ad-Deen Al-Ayubi (3 Volumes)

salah-ad-deen-al-ayubi-3-volumes |  Dr. Ali M. Sallabi

 

SALAH AD DEEN AL AYUBI

Title: Salah ad Deen Al Ayubi |  Author : Prof. Dr. Ali Muhammad Sallabi  |  Language : English  | Publisher: International Islamic Publishing House  |  Translator : Nasiruddin al-Khattab  | Year: 2009  | Pages: Vol. 1 (277), Vol. 2 (471), Vol. 3 (261) | file: pdf

Salah ad Deen Al Ayubi

Description

As a soldier, a ruler, and a human being, Sultan Salahuddin Ayubi was a person of phenomenal attributes. The hero of hundreds of battles was the person who for 20 years braved the storm of the Crusaders and ultimately pushed them back. The world has hardly witnessed a more chivalrous and humane conqueror. His unmatchable battle tactics and gallantry as a soldier, heroic statesmanship and his strength of character won him the respect of even his foes. known for liberating the holy city of Jerusalem from the Crusaders.

The renowned contemporary Arab historian of Islam, Dr. Ali M. Sallabi has written a fascinating biography of a man who looms larger than life throughout history, yet who remains largely unknown to people outside of the Arab world.

Dr. Sallabi’s meticulous research has effectively filled that gap in our knowledge. His work is more than just a biography, as the readers will see. 

 

     As history repeat itself? A saying of 'Umar, the first liberator of Jerusalem, suggests that it does. He said that the latter generations of this Ummah would not prevail except by means of that by which its first generations prevailed.

 

    If we try to prevail by any means other than Islam, Allah will cause us to suffer only more humility and defeat. The Companions and the early generations of Islam prevailed by means of Islam. At a time of decline, Salah ad-Deen understood that this was the way to restore the glory of this nation.

    In this book, Dr. Sallabi discusses the conflict of civilizations between the Crusaders and Islam. He discusses the Crusades; the moral standards, ethics and character of Salah ad-Deen, and his support of the revival movement that was aimed to bringing Muslims back to the true path of Islam by establishing many schools; and how he held the scholars in high esteem and included them in his inner circle. He devotes an entire chapter to the battle of Hatteen and the liberation of Jerusalem, and the causes of victory in that decisive battle.
 

    He goes on to discuss the Third Crusade and the reaction of Western Europe to the liberation of Jerusalem and the general mobilization that took place in Christendom. Finally, he describes the death of Salah ad-Deen, how the people were affected by it and how even European historians praised his justice, strength and tolerance, and regarded him as the greatest character of the Crusade era. His life still inspires the Muslims with his heroic character and exploits which will bring back to life the glories of the past.

    It is important for anyone who wants to gain an historical perspective on present-day events to read this book and understand the life and times of Salah ad-Deen.

 

Volume 1 : CRUSADES PRIOR TO THE RISE OF THE AYUBID STATE

Volume 2 : THE ESTABLISHMENT OF THE AYUBID STATE

Volume 3 : THE BATTLE OF HATTIN, THE CONQUEST OF JERUSALEM AND THE THIRD CRUSADE

Atlas of The Qur'an

Title: Atlas of The Qur'an | ISBN: 9960897540 | ISBN13: 9789960897547 | Author: Dr. Shawqi Abu Khalil | Language : 

English & Arabic | Publisher: Dar-us-Salam for Publishing & Distribution | Year:  October 1st 2003 (first published January 1st 2003) | Pages: 390 (English) & 333 (Arabic) | file: pdf

Atlas of The Qur'an

Description

An Authentic Collection of the Qur'anic Information with Maps, Tables and Pictures

This Atlas is new in its subject, a subject that has not been touched before. It helps whoever recites the Qur'an or studies it to specify the locations mentioned by the Noble Verses, and to mark those places of ancient people mentioned in the Qur'an. This is besides locating areas where the incidents of the prophetic Seerah occurred. Eventually the diligent reader will easily recognize those places, learn about them, and take heed of them while reciting.

Eventually the diligent reader will easily recognize those places, learn about them, and take heed of them while reciting. The Atlas has also revealed obscure places we used to pass through inattentively, like the site where Nuh's Ark settled, the site of the curved Sand-hills {Al Ahqah}, the cave of the young faithful men, the houses of median, the site of Sodom and other places determined by the Atlas depending on reliable sources.

Thus the Atlas eliminates all the guessing and the fantasies we used to encounter when reciting the Noble Quran, and takes us to the specific place.

Arabic For Dummies

Title: Arabic For Dummies | ISBN: 978-1-118-05278-5 | Author: Amine Bouchentouf | Publisher: WILEY | Year: May 2011 | Pages: 384 | file: pdf

Arabic For Dummies

Description

Regarded as one of the most difficult languages to learn for native English speakers by the U.S. State Department, Arabic is gaining both prominence and importance in America. Recent world events have brought more and more Americans and other English speakers into contact with Arabic-speaking populations, and governments and businesses are increasingly aware of the importance of basic Arabic language skills. Arabic for Dummies provides you with a painless and fun way to start communicating in Arabic. Why should you learn Arabic? Well, besides the fact that over 200 million people in more than 22 nations use it to communicate, there are tons of reasons to get up to speed this 1,400 year old language, including:

• Nearly all of the Middle-East speaks Arabic or one of its dialects
• Basic Arabic skills are extremely useful for anyone traveling to, doing business in, or serving in the Middle East
• It is the language in which the Koran is written
• There is a rich, centuries-old literary tradition in Arabic

Arabic For Dummies presents the language in the classic, laid-back For Dummies style. Taking a relaxed approach to this difficult language, it’s packed with practice dialogues and communication tips that will have you talking the talk in no time. You’ll get the scoop on:

• The Arabic alphabet, pronunciation, basic grammar, and the rules of transliteration
• The history of the language and information on classical Arabic and its dialects
• How to make small talk and make yourself understood when dining, shopping, or traveling around town
• How to communicate on the phone and in business conversations
• Handy words and phrases for dealing with money, directions, hotels, transportation, and emergencies
• Arabic culture and etiquette, including ten things you should never do in Arabic countries

The book also includes an Arabic-English dictionary, verb tables, and an audio CD with dialogues from the book to help you perfect your pronunciation. Written by a native Arabic speaker who helped start a year-round Arabic department at Middlebury College, Arabic For Dummies is just what you need to start making yourself understood in Arabic.

The Art of RF (Riba‐Free) Islamic Banking and Finance: Tools and Techniques for Community‐Based Banking, Second Edition

Title: THE ART OF RF (RIBA‐FREE) ISLAMIC BANKING AND FINANCE: TOOLS AND TECHNIQUES FOR COMMUNITY‐BASED BANKING, SECOND EDITION | Print ISBN:9781118770962 |Online ISBN:9781118792551 | DOI:10.1002/9781118792551 | Author: Yahia Abdul-Rahman | Publisher: WILEY | Year: November 21, 2014 | Pages: 545 | file: pdf 
The Art of RF (Riba‐Free) Islamic Banking and Finance: Tools and Techniques for Community‐Based Banking, Second Edition

About this book

Updated and expanded insights into Islamic banking and finance From Yahia Abdul-Rahman-the father of Riba-Free (RF) banking-comes the expanded edition of the definitive resource that offers an understanding for applying Islamic banking and financial practices. No matter what your faith or religious beliefs, the book shows how to take a modern American approach to incorporating Islamic financial principles into banking and investment techniques.
The Art of RF (Riba-Free) Islamic Banking and Finance describes the emergence of a culture of Islamic banking and finance today, which is based on the real Judeo-Christian-Islamic spirit and has proven very effective when compared to 20th century models that use financial engineering and structural techniques to circumvent the Shari'aa Law. The author also reveals information about how fiat money is created, the role of the Federal Reserve, and the US banking system. Abdul-Rahman includes a wealth of real-life examples and offers an analysis of how this new brand of banking and financing yields superior results.

• Offers the fundamentals on Riba-Free (RF) banking
• Shows how to apply RF to everything from joint ventures and portfolio management to home mortgages and personal finance
• Reveals what it takes to incorporate Shariah Law into US financial systems
• Includes information on why RF banking is a socially responsible way to invest

Thoroughly revised and updated, this resource offers a handbook for applying Shari'aa law to American banking and finance.

The Art of Islamic Banking and Finance: Tools and Techniques for Community-Based Banking

Title: THE ART OF ISLAMIC FINANCE AND BANKING : TOOLS AND TECHNIQUES FOR COMMUNITY-BASED BANKING | ISBN: 978-0-470-57263-4 | Author: Yahia Abdul-Rahman | Publisher: WILEY | Year: Dec 2009 | Pages: 432 | file: pdf

The Art of Islamic Banking and Finance: Tools and Techniques for Community-Based Banking 1st Edition

Description

A detailed look at the fast-growing field of Islamic banking and finance
The Art of Islamic Banking and Finance is a modern American take on what it means to incorporate Islamic finance principles into everyday banking and investment techniques by introducing a new brand of banking for all people of all faiths: The Riba-Free (RF) banking.
The author is considered the father of RF (Islamic) banking in America. He has been a banker and an Imam/scholar for over 40 years in America since 1968. He started the tedious process with a finance company, LARIBA, in Pasadena, California in 1987. This is the first book ever in the field to trace the origins of prohibiting the renting of money at a price called interest rate and over-indulging in debt. The book reviews in great details the theological foundations of prohibiting interest in the Jewish Bible, the Christian Bible, and the Qur'aan. The author then discusses money and how fiat money is created, the role of the Federal Reserve, and the banking system in America. The book also discusses for the first time ever how to include an important aspect of RF (Islamic) finance using commodity indexation and marking the items to be financed to market in order to avoid participating in economic "bubbles." The author discusses how these rules work, how they affect consumer behavior, and how they change the role of the banker/financier.

• Covers a new pioneering model that is based on the Law (Shari'aa) and how it is applied in every transaction from joint ventures and portfolio management to home mortgages and personal financing
• Shows how to incorporate the Law (Shari'aa) into American financing and banking systems
• Points to RF (Islamic) finance and banking as a way to emphasize socially responsible investing

The Art of Islamic Banking and Finance also includes a discussion on the emergence of a culture of RF (Islamic) banking and finance today, which is based on the real Judeo-Christian-Islamic spirit and very effective when compared to twentieth-century models that use financial engineering and structuring techniques to circumvent the Law (Shari'aa). The book also includes case studies based on the actual experience of the author and detailed analysis of the superior results realized by applying this new brand of banking to financing.