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Christians, Muslims, and Islamic Rage: What Is Going on and Why It Happened
The world did not change on September 11. Instead, Americans found themselves in a wider struggle in which the rest of the world had been engaged for some time. The terrorist attacks marked the end of America's geographical immunity from the horrors of the outside world. This is not a war between Arabs and the United States or Muslims versus America. September 11 was a manifestation of a deeper struggle between one set of values and another. Christians, Muslims, and Islamic Rage explores the roots of the conflict and offers a perspective on what is going on, how it developed, and what our response as Christians should be. To the purveyors of Islamic rage, past history is at the heart of the hatred they have toward the Christian West. Christians, Muslims, and Islamic Rage looks at the key issues of today, and it explores how those issues are influenced by events of the past. You'll learn about the history that led to current conflicts, including old wars and ancient empires that still capture the minds and imaginations of millions around the world. The book traces the rise of Islam, the rise and fall of Islamic superpowers over the centuries, and the clash of values between Islam, Christianity, and Western civilization. Christians, Muslims, and Islamic Rage examines the core beliefs of Muslims without either demonizing or idolizing them. You'll also learn how belief affects people's perspectives on world events and how cultural values color the way we interpret today's headlines. Moving beyond the limitations of strictly secular interpretations, the author brings a biblical and evangelical dimension to our understanding of what is happening in the world today. The book addresses the issues of oil in the Middle East, the political and religious consequences of economic issues, and the differences between Western civilization, Christianity, Islam, and extremist beliefs. An analysis of the ebb and flow of empires, especially the fall of the Ottoman Empire after World War I and the rise of modern Middle Eastern nations, will help you identify the players in this geopolitical chess game and the forces that motivate them. Finally, Christians, Muslims, and Islamic Rage offers a glimpse of what God is doing in these chaotic times, bringing biblical insight on how these conflicts will finally be resolved.
Hardcover
Published January 1, 2003
About the author
Christopher Catherwood
65 books15 followersChristopher Catherwood is a writer and historian based in Cambridge. He has taught at the University of Cambridge and the University of Richmond, Virginia. An expert on Winston Churchill, his previous books include the bestseller Winston’s Folly.
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
May 17, 2016
This book was one of the many post 9/11 attempts to answer a question that many in the West had previously been oblivious to: why are so many Muslims so angry at the West? In other words why do they hate us?
Written in 2003 it was inevitable that this book would show some signs of ageing, most notably when the author tried to engage in contemporary geo-politics. However the central question remains incredibly relevant and in many ways so does the answers that Catherwood provides.
This book is at its strongest when dealing with history to enlighten the present. Perspectives on the beginnings of Islam as a militaristic enterprise enable you to avoid the mistake of drawing too many parallels with the anomaly of the Crusades vs the expansion of Islam.
Catherwood rightly points out that essentially Islam has posed a violent question to the world for 1400 years now but also depending on how you interpret the Qu'ran that it is entirely possible for many Muslims to argue that Islam is not inherently violent. This apparent paradox pushes you towards a better understanding of the many different traditions within Islam and in particular the notion of jihad and the influence of men like Sayyid Qutb and the mix of religion & politics in Saudi Arabia.
The other interesting historical perspective, which Catherwood is right to highlight, is how important the fall of the Ottaman Empire in 1918 was and why it so disturbed the worldview of fundamentalist Islam. For 1300 years Islam could make a good case to have been ascendant (or at least post the defeat at the gates of Vienna holding its own). But since the First World War, politically Islamic nations have been mostly a tragic, sorry story - compounded by the failure of Arab socialism and the 1967 defeat by Israel.
All of this led to the conviction of a need to purify the house of Islam and, to restore the Caliphate. At the time of writing ISIS was not in existence and it was Osama bin Laden who was the main villain yet subsequent events have only served to gives weight to the authors thesis.
Christians, Catherwood argues, should avoid simplistic stereotypes of Muslims recognising that Islam in Indonesia is not quite the same as Islam in Saudi Arabia or of Arabs, noting correctly that millions of Arabs would identify as Christians, albeit no longer living in the Middle-East. Christians should remember that Muslims don't have a monopoly on massacres and evil behaviour and that the weapons for a Christian are spiritual not military. In much of this it feels as if the author is primarily talking to an American audience that was struggling to come to terms with 9/11.
The book does have the tendency to meander in the manner of a slow moving English river. It could certainly have benefited from some tighter editing and being about 50 pages shorter which ultimately would have given us a sharper, more focused and more useful book.
Written in 2003 it was inevitable that this book would show some signs of ageing, most notably when the author tried to engage in contemporary geo-politics. However the central question remains incredibly relevant and in many ways so does the answers that Catherwood provides.
This book is at its strongest when dealing with history to enlighten the present. Perspectives on the beginnings of Islam as a militaristic enterprise enable you to avoid the mistake of drawing too many parallels with the anomaly of the Crusades vs the expansion of Islam.
Catherwood rightly points out that essentially Islam has posed a violent question to the world for 1400 years now but also depending on how you interpret the Qu'ran that it is entirely possible for many Muslims to argue that Islam is not inherently violent. This apparent paradox pushes you towards a better understanding of the many different traditions within Islam and in particular the notion of jihad and the influence of men like Sayyid Qutb and the mix of religion & politics in Saudi Arabia.
The other interesting historical perspective, which Catherwood is right to highlight, is how important the fall of the Ottaman Empire in 1918 was and why it so disturbed the worldview of fundamentalist Islam. For 1300 years Islam could make a good case to have been ascendant (or at least post the defeat at the gates of Vienna holding its own). But since the First World War, politically Islamic nations have been mostly a tragic, sorry story - compounded by the failure of Arab socialism and the 1967 defeat by Israel.
All of this led to the conviction of a need to purify the house of Islam and, to restore the Caliphate. At the time of writing ISIS was not in existence and it was Osama bin Laden who was the main villain yet subsequent events have only served to gives weight to the authors thesis.
Christians, Catherwood argues, should avoid simplistic stereotypes of Muslims recognising that Islam in Indonesia is not quite the same as Islam in Saudi Arabia or of Arabs, noting correctly that millions of Arabs would identify as Christians, albeit no longer living in the Middle-East. Christians should remember that Muslims don't have a monopoly on massacres and evil behaviour and that the weapons for a Christian are spiritual not military. In much of this it feels as if the author is primarily talking to an American audience that was struggling to come to terms with 9/11.
The book does have the tendency to meander in the manner of a slow moving English river. It could certainly have benefited from some tighter editing and being about 50 pages shorter which ultimately would have given us a sharper, more focused and more useful book.
April 9, 2015
I'm reading this right after Mustafa Akyol's "Islam Without Extremes" and this guy, while he does the valuable service of pointing out, as Akyol does, that neither side is blameless, is too quick to assert that things that Akyol argues are cultural are essential to Islam, while not part of christianity. If you're not a christian, I'd go with Akyol's book, which goes into more depth and doesn't have all the christian cheerleading this book does. He manages not to know that Mustafa Kemal and Kemal Ataturk were the same person, which makes me even more dubious of his scholarship. He also repeats himself too much.
May 9, 2016
American's should read this to better understand.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews