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The Tenth Parallel: Dispatches from the Fault Line Between Christianity and Islam
A riveting investigation of the jagged fault line between the Christian and Muslim worlds
The tenth parallel—the line of latitude seven hundred miles north of the equator—is a geographical and ideological front line where Christianity and Islam collide. More than half of the world's 1.3 billion Muslims live along the tenth parallel; so do sixty percent of the world's 2 billion Christians. Here, in the buzzing megacities and swarming jungles of Africa and Asia, is where the two religions meet; their encounter is shaping the future of each faith, and of whole societies as well.
An award-winning investigative journalist and poet, Eliza Griswold has spent the past seven years traveling between the equator and the tenth parallel: in Nigeria, the Sudan, and Somalia, and in Indonesia, Malaysia, and the Philippines. The stories she tells in The Tenth Parallel show us that religious conflicts are also conflicts about land, water, oil, and other natural resources, and that local and tribal issues are often shaped by religious ideas. Above all, she makes clear that, for the people she writes about, one's sense of God is shaped by one's place on earth; along the tenth parallel, faith is geographic and demographic.
An urgent examination of the relationship between faith and worldly power, The Tenth Parallel is an essential work about the conflicts over religion, nationhood and natural resources that will remake the world in the years to come.
The tenth parallel—the line of latitude seven hundred miles north of the equator—is a geographical and ideological front line where Christianity and Islam collide. More than half of the world's 1.3 billion Muslims live along the tenth parallel; so do sixty percent of the world's 2 billion Christians. Here, in the buzzing megacities and swarming jungles of Africa and Asia, is where the two religions meet; their encounter is shaping the future of each faith, and of whole societies as well.
An award-winning investigative journalist and poet, Eliza Griswold has spent the past seven years traveling between the equator and the tenth parallel: in Nigeria, the Sudan, and Somalia, and in Indonesia, Malaysia, and the Philippines. The stories she tells in The Tenth Parallel show us that religious conflicts are also conflicts about land, water, oil, and other natural resources, and that local and tribal issues are often shaped by religious ideas. Above all, she makes clear that, for the people she writes about, one's sense of God is shaped by one's place on earth; along the tenth parallel, faith is geographic and demographic.
An urgent examination of the relationship between faith and worldly power, The Tenth Parallel is an essential work about the conflicts over religion, nationhood and natural resources that will remake the world in the years to come.
336 pages, Kindle Edition
First published August 1, 2010
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About the author
Eliza Griswold
17 books118 followersEliza Griswold is an American journalist and poet. She was a fellow at the New America Foundation from 2008 to 2010 and won a 2010 Rome Prize from the American Academy of Arts and Letters.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 168 reviews
January 13, 2013
The concept of this book is a fascinating one: the Tenth Parallel, which runs around the earth 700 miles north of the equator, could be thought of as the dividing line between warring religions. Griswold makes the point that north of the tenth parallel, the Arab/Muslim religion and culture largely holds sway, while below, in Africa at least, Christian and indigenous religions mix. She has put her finger on a critically important subject and has found an area of the world where that divide can be witnessed within one country.
Griswold is the daughter of Frank Griswold, former bishop of the Episcopal Church. She travelled with her family in Africa and later as a journalist in the entourage of Bill Graham. Her background, therefore, informs her interest in the religious divide, and we may assume she brings both experience and a certain amount of access with her history. She doesn’t, however, have an obvious religious bias, but points out abuses, overstepping, political purpose, and overweening personal aggrandizement on both sides of the religious divide. She makes important points: changes in climatic conditions on the continent in Africa are forcing a mixing of religious cultures that have been traditionally separate; poverty and famine are exacerbating religious conflicts; both sides are eagerly trying to gain converts through political and economic means.
Having given credit to Griswold for staking out an important area of the world, the sub-Saharan region of Nigeria, Somalia, and Ethiopia, I had to leave half this book unread (I had the audio version) because of the diffuse and fractured manner of presentation. I note the author is a poet as well as a journalist. There was, perhaps, a little too much description of local color. Griswold’s descriptions distracted me from the points she was trying to make. (I have an indelible picture of Billy Graham’s ostrich-skin boots, and the house and face of a Somalian religious warlord.)
Griswold travelled to remote and dangerous sites to conduct interviews, but somehow what she came away with was less impressive than her getting there and back in one piece. There may have been too much running around and too little analysis in this account. I couldn’t help but feel this was one reporter who had the instincts for an important story, but was unnecessarily kinetic in her pursuit of it. There is always a wide audience for a tight analysis of a conflict area, with historical elements woven in. The audio reading was very fast (and the reader, Tavia Gilbert, has a disconcertingly young-sounding voice), but I began to suspect I was getting the same material again and again. I even checked my discs to make sure I was going forward rather than backwards. This could have used a far less indulgent editor, and instead have given us a pinpointed analysis that doesn’t get buried with fact-slinging.
I am curious now why this was recommended by someone at Politics and Prose, the independent bookstore in Washington, D.C. While the subject is undoubtedly an important one, the narrative cannot rank with the best.
Griswold is the daughter of Frank Griswold, former bishop of the Episcopal Church. She travelled with her family in Africa and later as a journalist in the entourage of Bill Graham. Her background, therefore, informs her interest in the religious divide, and we may assume she brings both experience and a certain amount of access with her history. She doesn’t, however, have an obvious religious bias, but points out abuses, overstepping, political purpose, and overweening personal aggrandizement on both sides of the religious divide. She makes important points: changes in climatic conditions on the continent in Africa are forcing a mixing of religious cultures that have been traditionally separate; poverty and famine are exacerbating religious conflicts; both sides are eagerly trying to gain converts through political and economic means.
Having given credit to Griswold for staking out an important area of the world, the sub-Saharan region of Nigeria, Somalia, and Ethiopia, I had to leave half this book unread (I had the audio version) because of the diffuse and fractured manner of presentation. I note the author is a poet as well as a journalist. There was, perhaps, a little too much description of local color. Griswold’s descriptions distracted me from the points she was trying to make. (I have an indelible picture of Billy Graham’s ostrich-skin boots, and the house and face of a Somalian religious warlord.)
Griswold travelled to remote and dangerous sites to conduct interviews, but somehow what she came away with was less impressive than her getting there and back in one piece. There may have been too much running around and too little analysis in this account. I couldn’t help but feel this was one reporter who had the instincts for an important story, but was unnecessarily kinetic in her pursuit of it. There is always a wide audience for a tight analysis of a conflict area, with historical elements woven in. The audio reading was very fast (and the reader, Tavia Gilbert, has a disconcertingly young-sounding voice), but I began to suspect I was getting the same material again and again. I even checked my discs to make sure I was going forward rather than backwards. This could have used a far less indulgent editor, and instead have given us a pinpointed analysis that doesn’t get buried with fact-slinging.
I am curious now why this was recommended by someone at Politics and Prose, the independent bookstore in Washington, D.C. While the subject is undoubtedly an important one, the narrative cannot rank with the best.
April 5, 2013
This is an on-site rendition of the ‘Clash of Civilizations’. Ms Griswold goes boldly to outposts in Africa and Asia to meet radical (and rabid) Christians and Muslims. By radical I mean people who may kill because of words written in their so-called sacred texts.
But the book goes beyond that, as Ms Griswold explores the why and the localities of these conflicts. She puts a historical and geographical context in her interviews. There are different manifestations of these ‘radicals’ – some, like in Nigeria, seem to have exhausted hate and rhetoric and hopefully the truce established will not expire. What is also apparent with these religious extremists is their intolerance of liberal religious views in the West. Religions in the Western world receptive to Gays, pro-choice, woman’s rights, general openness to sexuality … are an apostasy to fundamentalist Christians and Muslims in the tenth parallel. There is another religion in the areas discussed by Ms. Griswold where there are no shades of grey. Sometimes we have a view of this in the U.S. when abortion clinics are bombed. But I don’t know how the ‘born-again’ evangelicals in the U.S. would fit in or adapt to Africa or Asia. As the writer points out, religion in these countries is a way of life because there is no government infrastructure that they can rely on for social and economic support.
There is among both Muslims and Christians in Africa and Asia a strong tendency to revert and restore a view of the way religion was several centuries ago – a literal view of the Quran or the Bible. So this is another clash with modernity. It is difficult to see a resolution of this religious conflict with modernity. It did seem that Muslims in Malaysia were successful at this.
This book does have more of a focus on Christianity and Ms. Griswold (in my opinion) is more comfortable in that milieu, but there are several excellent encounters with Muslim fundamentalists, particularly in Somalia and Asia. Ms. Griswold is a keen observer and is able to provide several perspectives when she is conducting an interview.
But the book goes beyond that, as Ms Griswold explores the why and the localities of these conflicts. She puts a historical and geographical context in her interviews. There are different manifestations of these ‘radicals’ – some, like in Nigeria, seem to have exhausted hate and rhetoric and hopefully the truce established will not expire. What is also apparent with these religious extremists is their intolerance of liberal religious views in the West. Religions in the Western world receptive to Gays, pro-choice, woman’s rights, general openness to sexuality … are an apostasy to fundamentalist Christians and Muslims in the tenth parallel. There is another religion in the areas discussed by Ms. Griswold where there are no shades of grey. Sometimes we have a view of this in the U.S. when abortion clinics are bombed. But I don’t know how the ‘born-again’ evangelicals in the U.S. would fit in or adapt to Africa or Asia. As the writer points out, religion in these countries is a way of life because there is no government infrastructure that they can rely on for social and economic support.
There is among both Muslims and Christians in Africa and Asia a strong tendency to revert and restore a view of the way religion was several centuries ago – a literal view of the Quran or the Bible. So this is another clash with modernity. It is difficult to see a resolution of this religious conflict with modernity. It did seem that Muslims in Malaysia were successful at this.
This book does have more of a focus on Christianity and Ms. Griswold (in my opinion) is more comfortable in that milieu, but there are several excellent encounters with Muslim fundamentalists, particularly in Somalia and Asia. Ms. Griswold is a keen observer and is able to provide several perspectives when she is conducting an interview.
January 17, 2019
I never would have thought that I would lead off describing this book by saying, "Griswold's writing is spectacular in its clarity." The author's trip around the middle band of the globe, and step-by-step dissection of the spots on that band in which Muslims and Christians have grappled for centuries, has many compelling moments--not the least of which was the decision of the British empire to make a point about Muslim antagonists-to-the-Commonwealth by killing one of these leaders *and then remapping his city, Khartoum, in the pattern of the British flag.* (I haven't Google Earthed it yet, but apparently this layout remains today.
Griswold does a fine job of elucidating one of the hairiest latitudes on the earth, where all forces seem to combine to make the residents miserable. She provides excellent background of both Christianity and Islam's history in Africa, for example--I've made it through the Nigeria and Sudan chapters so far, and am amazed at the descriptions of missionary worldviews both past and preset. (Apparently Franklin Graham, Billy's son and the heir to that multi-million dollar empire, flies there frequently in his bush plane with his own agenda of evangelization.) In contemporary missionary hospitals, doctors mark patient charts with plus or minus signs to indicate whether a patient has been "saved" or not (in the heavenly sense, not the medical sense); the mark apparently influences decisions about when a patient might be scheduled for operation, for example (that is, "-" could translate into a week longer wait for a transplant, in the hopes that the patient will receive Christ before the operation).
So, so much to ponder here. Well worth the read--and not at all dry, like so many contemporary political texts are.
Griswold does a fine job of elucidating one of the hairiest latitudes on the earth, where all forces seem to combine to make the residents miserable. She provides excellent background of both Christianity and Islam's history in Africa, for example--I've made it through the Nigeria and Sudan chapters so far, and am amazed at the descriptions of missionary worldviews both past and preset. (Apparently Franklin Graham, Billy's son and the heir to that multi-million dollar empire, flies there frequently in his bush plane with his own agenda of evangelization.) In contemporary missionary hospitals, doctors mark patient charts with plus or minus signs to indicate whether a patient has been "saved" or not (in the heavenly sense, not the medical sense); the mark apparently influences decisions about when a patient might be scheduled for operation, for example (that is, "-" could translate into a week longer wait for a transplant, in the hopes that the patient will receive Christ before the operation).
So, so much to ponder here. Well worth the read--and not at all dry, like so many contemporary political texts are.
July 24, 2014
Both insightful and intrepid, Eliza Griswold journeyed through Africa and Asia along the tenth parallel, the line of latitude 700 miles north of the equator where nearly 25% of the world’s Muslims and Christians compete for resources, converts and political power. A poet with an ear for simple but evocative language, Griswold takes the reader through the dust of encroaching desertification as she attends an indigenous Indonesian wedding, meets with African rape victims, sits with a Muslim religious leader as he tries to resolve local disputes, and observes an election where voters line up in a barren field behind the candidate of their choice.
After reading about her meetings with the homosexual and Muslim denouncing Anglican Bishop Akinola of Nigeria I still have no sympathy with his views, but I now have some understanding of why he thinks the way he does. Griswold’s own empathy serves her well; believers on both sides of the religious divide open up to her. As an agnostic daughter of the former presiding bishop of the Episcopal Church, Griswold even shares a flash of private connection with crusading evangelist Franklin Graham when she meets him in Africa—though they have very different ideas they are both PKs, preacher’s kids, with childhoods that were a struggle between belief and rebellion. My copy of THE TENTH PARALLEL is tabbed with more than 30 post-it notes marking sections I thought were so perceptive and illuminating I knew I’d want to read them again.
After reading about her meetings with the homosexual and Muslim denouncing Anglican Bishop Akinola of Nigeria I still have no sympathy with his views, but I now have some understanding of why he thinks the way he does. Griswold’s own empathy serves her well; believers on both sides of the religious divide open up to her. As an agnostic daughter of the former presiding bishop of the Episcopal Church, Griswold even shares a flash of private connection with crusading evangelist Franklin Graham when she meets him in Africa—though they have very different ideas they are both PKs, preacher’s kids, with childhoods that were a struggle between belief and rebellion. My copy of THE TENTH PARALLEL is tabbed with more than 30 post-it notes marking sections I thought were so perceptive and illuminating I knew I’d want to read them again.
December 7, 2010
I really like this book for a number of reasons, but first I will say that I almost didn't read it because I generally don't like books that claim some specific place, time or event as something that changed or will change the world - but this subtitle "dispatches from the fault line between Christianity and Islam" appealed - I would have passed it was "the line around the world that will determine who controls the 21st century" or something similar. The second reason I nearly didn't read it is I was not familiar with the author and her biography seemed a bit thin for such a weighty topic. I was wrong and I am very glad I read this book. Her writing skills, synthesis of complexity, objectivity (with some key personal insights) and plain old fashioned courage impressed me to no end.
I have spent quite a bit of time in the places (or near the places) she discusses. Mostly as a biologist but inevitably participating in aid work or at least being surrounded by that community. Her core story is about the historical and modern conflict between Islam and Christianity and the sheer demographic battle that is going on. At first I thought the 10th parallel idea to be a little contrived when I looked at a world map, but it wasn't long before I remembered the whole 10/40 evangelical plan and realized she is discussing real facts. I tend to avoid fundamentalists and evangelicals of any persuasion and this book gave my at least agnostic sensibilities a fresh jolt in a structured and well thought presentation.
Remarkably, what impressed me most about this book was not the writing about Africa and Asia and the 10th parallel - it was that it helped me understand some of the apparently ridiculous things you hear about here in the States. Why on earth would Oklahoma ban sharia law? She explains and even travels with evangelicals from the States who are extensively invested in this issue across Africa so it is almost natural that their "constituents" are contributing money and engaged in this issue - I had no idea about that just reading the NY Times. I think the same fault line disagreement on other issues like places mosques in small towns (or NY City) and burning the Koran in Florida come into focus through her writing about the passion of Christian evangelicals - she is never explicit about this argument but it was a perhaps unintended but insightful revelation to me.
Check it out.
Mike Gellerman
Berkeley, CA
I have spent quite a bit of time in the places (or near the places) she discusses. Mostly as a biologist but inevitably participating in aid work or at least being surrounded by that community. Her core story is about the historical and modern conflict between Islam and Christianity and the sheer demographic battle that is going on. At first I thought the 10th parallel idea to be a little contrived when I looked at a world map, but it wasn't long before I remembered the whole 10/40 evangelical plan and realized she is discussing real facts. I tend to avoid fundamentalists and evangelicals of any persuasion and this book gave my at least agnostic sensibilities a fresh jolt in a structured and well thought presentation.
Remarkably, what impressed me most about this book was not the writing about Africa and Asia and the 10th parallel - it was that it helped me understand some of the apparently ridiculous things you hear about here in the States. Why on earth would Oklahoma ban sharia law? She explains and even travels with evangelicals from the States who are extensively invested in this issue across Africa so it is almost natural that their "constituents" are contributing money and engaged in this issue - I had no idea about that just reading the NY Times. I think the same fault line disagreement on other issues like places mosques in small towns (or NY City) and burning the Koran in Florida come into focus through her writing about the passion of Christian evangelicals - she is never explicit about this argument but it was a perhaps unintended but insightful revelation to me.
Check it out.
Mike Gellerman
Berkeley, CA
February 4, 2018
A great read, with accurate depictions of the humanly hypocritical and situationally paradoxical events that occur on the fault line between these two great religions.
I have lived and visited all countries mentioned in this book and have felt the “civilized” tension between both religions knowing that more ugly versions of that tension are taking place not very far away. I have sat at tables where members of both faiths have expressed their dissatisfaction and distrust of members of the opposite faith using crude words like snakes, schemers and immoral. In Nigeria, Indonesia and the Philippines it was rather extreme. Many felt that I was either living in denial or too much of an idealist or a “liberal carefree” product of a privileged international upbringing. Many were surprised to hear that I try and do my prayers on time and have read the Bible with great respect, appreciation and noting of the similarities in message.
I therefore believe that any harm done between religions especially the Abrahamic ones due to their close comparability is mostly due to an inherent bias (tribalism and all its traits of power and control) in human beings (and most warm blooded carnivorous animals for that matter) that is further fueled by amateurish short sightedness, impulsiveness and unaccountability. The failure of many states to provide to ALL their people and ensure their basic rights has also driven communities to fend for themselves with all the inclusiveness and disenfranchisement that entails.
As a Muslim, I actively believe in my choice of faith yet also strongly relate and admiringly relate to my Christian and Jewish believers. In support I have attended Mass many times and observed many Yamim Tovim. The spirituality I felt and my love for honest faith in one God has made me an even better Muslim. My experience has been different in all countries I lived in from conservative Saudi Arabia, modernist Malaysia, dirigiste Singapore, to liberal Sweden and many other countries in between. My only memories of debasing disagreements and issues usually occurred with those who either did not know their faith well (including myself many times) or did not care or relate and their only reason for a arousing conflict is personal, familial, argumentative or hate driven.
I have lived and visited all countries mentioned in this book and have felt the “civilized” tension between both religions knowing that more ugly versions of that tension are taking place not very far away. I have sat at tables where members of both faiths have expressed their dissatisfaction and distrust of members of the opposite faith using crude words like snakes, schemers and immoral. In Nigeria, Indonesia and the Philippines it was rather extreme. Many felt that I was either living in denial or too much of an idealist or a “liberal carefree” product of a privileged international upbringing. Many were surprised to hear that I try and do my prayers on time and have read the Bible with great respect, appreciation and noting of the similarities in message.
I therefore believe that any harm done between religions especially the Abrahamic ones due to their close comparability is mostly due to an inherent bias (tribalism and all its traits of power and control) in human beings (and most warm blooded carnivorous animals for that matter) that is further fueled by amateurish short sightedness, impulsiveness and unaccountability. The failure of many states to provide to ALL their people and ensure their basic rights has also driven communities to fend for themselves with all the inclusiveness and disenfranchisement that entails.
As a Muslim, I actively believe in my choice of faith yet also strongly relate and admiringly relate to my Christian and Jewish believers. In support I have attended Mass many times and observed many Yamim Tovim. The spirituality I felt and my love for honest faith in one God has made me an even better Muslim. My experience has been different in all countries I lived in from conservative Saudi Arabia, modernist Malaysia, dirigiste Singapore, to liberal Sweden and many other countries in between. My only memories of debasing disagreements and issues usually occurred with those who either did not know their faith well (including myself many times) or did not care or relate and their only reason for a arousing conflict is personal, familial, argumentative or hate driven.
November 9, 2012
I think reading too much into this book would be mistake. This is journalism and travelogue more than it is a thesis on religion in the century ahead. If you want to dig for deep answers or conclusions about the relationship between Islam and Christianity in this book, then that’s probably a mistake. Griswold went on some incredible travels over 7 years, and she does this difficult topic justice with meticulous writing, and humanizing interviews.
But the title of this book is misleading; it’s a sexy title and the topic is controversial and emotionally charged enough to attract some fiercely opinionate readers. This book is a series of reports, a series of vignettes, a series of faces and hardships from flash points of religious violence. It has a thesis (resource competition and politics exacerbate the tension between the two largest religions, that meet along the 10th parallel of the world), but this book is no thesis. It is no grand argument. It’s a series of faces mixed with some light, but smart, history and contemporary politics.
For me, as in Kaplan’s Monsoon, the real litmus test for this book were Griswold’s chapters on Indonesia—-a country I feel I know quite well having lived here for 3 years. And her chapters on Indonesia are solid. I learned a few (unflattering) things about Indonesia that I did not know before—-400 churches have been burned or shut down over the past 10 years in Indonesia, and churches need a variety of signatures from Muslim leaders in a community just to be built-—and her writing is free of hyperbole.
But what made this book a solid read for me is not the sexy, misleading title or even the topic itself which originally drew me to the book. What made this book is the journalist/poet that Griswold is. She’s no academic; she’s no religious researcher. She’s a poet, journalist, and traveler, and the people she meets and the brief relationships she forms with them have greater depth and power than the messy issues that are the draw of this book.
But the title of this book is misleading; it’s a sexy title and the topic is controversial and emotionally charged enough to attract some fiercely opinionate readers. This book is a series of reports, a series of vignettes, a series of faces and hardships from flash points of religious violence. It has a thesis (resource competition and politics exacerbate the tension between the two largest religions, that meet along the 10th parallel of the world), but this book is no thesis. It is no grand argument. It’s a series of faces mixed with some light, but smart, history and contemporary politics.
For me, as in Kaplan’s Monsoon, the real litmus test for this book were Griswold’s chapters on Indonesia—-a country I feel I know quite well having lived here for 3 years. And her chapters on Indonesia are solid. I learned a few (unflattering) things about Indonesia that I did not know before—-400 churches have been burned or shut down over the past 10 years in Indonesia, and churches need a variety of signatures from Muslim leaders in a community just to be built-—and her writing is free of hyperbole.
But what made this book a solid read for me is not the sexy, misleading title or even the topic itself which originally drew me to the book. What made this book is the journalist/poet that Griswold is. She’s no academic; she’s no religious researcher. She’s a poet, journalist, and traveler, and the people she meets and the brief relationships she forms with them have greater depth and power than the messy issues that are the draw of this book.
March 7, 2011
Though the stories are compelling, the theme is pretty much the same throughout. Islam and Christianity are in conflict, says the author, all along the global belt between the equator and 10 degrees north in Africa and Asia. Sometimes, Muslims are the evil doers, sometimes it's Christians. All are afraid of being swallowed by the other religion, and nearly all live in somewhat precarious circumstances, where vulnerability is an ever present reality. And this conflict is likely to continue.
While the validity of the stories is unassailable and touching, these accounts do not reflect the main currents of these two great religions. In fact, they really represent the exceptions -- the sad and tragic exceptions in many cases. Throw into competition for scare land and resources two groups of divergent beliefs (religious, political, cultural or military), and you will inevitably have this kind of story. So while I learned a great deal about conditions in the countries described, I don't think I learned very much about how Islam and Christianity are going to interact at all earth's latitudes and in all earth's cultures.
While the validity of the stories is unassailable and touching, these accounts do not reflect the main currents of these two great religions. In fact, they really represent the exceptions -- the sad and tragic exceptions in many cases. Throw into competition for scare land and resources two groups of divergent beliefs (religious, political, cultural or military), and you will inevitably have this kind of story. So while I learned a great deal about conditions in the countries described, I don't think I learned very much about how Islam and Christianity are going to interact at all earth's latitudes and in all earth's cultures.
June 10, 2020
I’ve been meaning to read this book for about a decade. And I confess the 2019 edition did not contain many references to any events post 2008 that make me feel like a more recent edition is needed. But I’m glad I finally read it; the prose was beautiful and the topic is the most interesting and all-encompassing thesis I have read it a while. Geographic and social forces have made the 10th parallel a fault line between Islam and Christianity in Asia and Africa, but in actuality inter- and intra- sectarian issues and struggles for resources and political power undergirds most of the conflict. I learned a lot and enjoyed every chapter. It’s definitely not chronological or linear (no pun intended) except in that the sections move from west (Nigeria) to East (the Philippines) along the tenth parallel. Griswold is a badass who has talked to many different men and women entrenched in the “fault line” about ideologies she does not share and that can sound pretty scary and combative. From Christians who believe she will go to hell to Muslims who believe she is a representative of the infidel West, she gives all her sources a fair representation.
June 28, 2021
In 2009, a unique thing happened. Many American Episcopalian pastors sought out bishops from Africa for their ordination. The Anglican Church of North America was born and over a thousand churches left the Episcopalian Church of North America to join this church rather than remain under the bishops in North America. Why? Because the Episcopalian Church, headed by Frank Griswold felt it was perfectly fine to ordain openly gay pastors. The Anglicans in Africa were at the forefront of those condemning this heresy and many godly Episcopalian leaders agreed. Frank Griswold, the head of the Episcopal Church in the US was forced to resign amidst the controversy.
At first glance, this book has absolutely nothing to do with that. It is supposed to be a travelogue about observations made by someone who has traveled along the tenth parallel. But as I was reading, I kept feeling that the author didn't really know what she was talking about. Her descriptions of both Islam and Christianity, as well as her "explanations" of motivations, seemed incredibly naive. I kept thinking, she doesn't really know what she is talking about at all.
It got so bad that a little past halfway in, I stopped and did a little digging. With her education, background, and experience it became clear that she really does know a lot more than it appeared. She wasn't naive. She is deliberately obfuscating. Why would she do that? She has an ax to grind. Eliza Griswold is the daughter of Frank Griswold. It was her father who was at the heart of the controversy within the Episcopalian Church. And it was Evangelicals and the African Anglican church that was on the front lines condemning those liberal views. Those are the two groups of Christians she keeps meeting in her travels. Eliza Griswold has no interest in objectivity.
And I have no interest in reading any further. I give it a second star because this is a good idea for a book that needs to be written. But she has clearly demonstrated that she is not capable of being the one to write it.
At first glance, this book has absolutely nothing to do with that. It is supposed to be a travelogue about observations made by someone who has traveled along the tenth parallel. But as I was reading, I kept feeling that the author didn't really know what she was talking about. Her descriptions of both Islam and Christianity, as well as her "explanations" of motivations, seemed incredibly naive. I kept thinking, she doesn't really know what she is talking about at all.
It got so bad that a little past halfway in, I stopped and did a little digging. With her education, background, and experience it became clear that she really does know a lot more than it appeared. She wasn't naive. She is deliberately obfuscating. Why would she do that? She has an ax to grind. Eliza Griswold is the daughter of Frank Griswold. It was her father who was at the heart of the controversy within the Episcopalian Church. And it was Evangelicals and the African Anglican church that was on the front lines condemning those liberal views. Those are the two groups of Christians she keeps meeting in her travels. Eliza Griswold has no interest in objectivity.
And I have no interest in reading any further. I give it a second star because this is a good idea for a book that needs to be written. But she has clearly demonstrated that she is not capable of being the one to write it.
September 13, 2010
The tenth parallel is the line of latitude seven hundred miles north of the equator where the religions of Islam and Christianity meet and conflict. More than 60 percent of the world's 2 billion Christians live along the 10th parallel — along with half the world's 1.3 billion Muslim population.
Griswold traveled and researched for seven years in the countries of Sudan, Nigeria, Indonesia, Malaysia and the Philippines. Writing her observations and recounting her interviews with both Christians and Muslims, she clarifies with a reporter’s pen how religion determines the political, social and economic realties of each country. It was an amazing discovery to learn about each individual history and political situation.
I would recommend this book to everyone since it opens a window into the present situation behind terrorism. Religion has always played such a huge role in history and in our contemporary society the relationship between faith and world power is overwhelming.
Griswold traveled and researched for seven years in the countries of Sudan, Nigeria, Indonesia, Malaysia and the Philippines. Writing her observations and recounting her interviews with both Christians and Muslims, she clarifies with a reporter’s pen how religion determines the political, social and economic realties of each country. It was an amazing discovery to learn about each individual history and political situation.
I would recommend this book to everyone since it opens a window into the present situation behind terrorism. Religion has always played such a huge role in history and in our contemporary society the relationship between faith and world power is overwhelming.
May 15, 2011
Well worth reading for those wishing to understand and put a human face on conflicts in Nigeria, Sudan, Somalia, Indonesia, Philippines, and Malaysia, many of which are crystallizing around tensions between Christians and Muslims. Many of the difficulties are caused by economic, cultural, and political problems in which religion has become a group identifier or unifier. Also, fundamentalists on both sides push matters to extremes and violence, rather than seeking ways to compromise or deescalate situations. Moderate majorities have a hard time hanging on to values such as tolerance and women's rights (such as they are); in places like Somalia, the situation is so deteriorated that it is simply chaos destructive to any normal way of life. I was surprised how greatly American Christians, sometimes with US government support, are involved in creating/exacerbating these conflicts, particularly through missionary efforts. The book is very well written and gripping throughout.
April 16, 2014
Wonderful reportage of the 'clash' between Islam and Christianity along the 10th parallel. Really it is a story about climate change and scarce resources, and those bearing the brunt of the rich world's destruction of the environment seeking solace in identity. Griswold humanises her subjects, from televangelists to terrorists, while putting their beliefs and actions in its proper historical and global context. I had no idea how strong links between Christianity and US foreign policy is - going back two centuries - nor quite how globalised and insidiious the Salfist movement has become especially in education.
It's not just a battle between the two great world religions, but within them, and between farmer and fisherman, herder and settler, landlords and peasants. At times the repeated mention of the tenth parallel seems a little contrived, but overall this is a superb, informative and essential read for anyone interested in the global south.
It's not just a battle between the two great world religions, but within them, and between farmer and fisherman, herder and settler, landlords and peasants. At times the repeated mention of the tenth parallel seems a little contrived, but overall this is a superb, informative and essential read for anyone interested in the global south.
November 13, 2010
Eliza Griswold traveled the 10th parallel circling the globe, although she visited just Africa, Malaysia, Indonesia etc... for a riveting account of the cultural fusion of Islam and Christianity. I liked this because I felt like her actually being in these places and talking with these people captured more of the "truth" than can usually be found in magazines and the media at large.
Read
October 11, 2010This is our book for the month in the Aslan Media Book Salon. Join the group and discuss!
October 13, 2015
Beautifully written, and graciously open the myriad of complexities in the world between Islam and Christianity.
December 7, 2016
(This is one of several books I have reviewed recently that pertains in part to Islam and its relationship with Christianity, culture, and human rights and the review should be taken in the context of the other reviews. See the list at the bottom of the post.)
This is an excellent book that ought to be popular in missiological circles and might be required reading in a World Civilizations class somewhere. The author travels parts of the 10th parallel, a dividing line and uneasy mixing point of Christianity and Islam around the world. Christianity and Islam are both "in a revival" today and growing along the parallel, tribes on both sides increasingly competing for resources. There are 493 million Christians living below the 10th parallel, 367 Muslims above, writes Eliza Griswold. That's roughly 60 percent of the world Christian population, and about half the Muslim population. Both religions have distinctives in various locales, often times the religions grafting over earlier syncretic practices. But recent revivals also mean more conservative strains of both religions are growing; this has violent implications. This book is a great picture of these hotspots around the globe. My wife used to live along the 10th parallel in Niger, so I found the West African sections of the book most noteworthy.
If you're interested in learning more about the book, check out Terry Gross' interview with the author on Fresh Air. I am not sure what motivates the author to write a book like this, she writes introspectively at times like she is on her own quest. That makes the book less boring, but might get in the way of her observations too much for others. Cultures along much of the 10th parallel are not kind to unaccompanied single women, but it's not clear if she had traveling companions in her seven years of travels. In one particular scene in 2003, she travels to Sudan with Franklin Graham to tour President Omar al-Bashir's palace where Graham and Bashir joke with each other about who would proselytize whom. Griswold is the daughter of a liberal Episcopalian minister who is opposed to Graham's evangelicalism. Graham would converse with Griswold over dinner, perhaps hearkening back to his own wandering past; she may have been skeptical but lets Graham lead her in the "sinner's prayer" and he later sends her a Bible (which she keeps for six years). Graham's charity, Samaritan's Purse, does an admirable amount of good around the world but there is a bit of a Western arrogance and awkwardness to his operation.
Non-Pentecostal American Christians have been concerned in recent years in the explosion of Pentecostalism in Africa, particularly that connected to the prosperity Gospel. 1/4 of African Christians are now Pentecostal and the number is growing faster than the population. The typical Protestant Christian is now an African woman, something that seems counter-intuitive. Likewise, 80 percent of Muslims live outside the Middle East even if the majority of literature on Islam tends to focus on the region of its birth.
Griswold wants to see "how both sides live," and attends events like an interfaith meeting in Nigeria. She recounts the history of the region, such as the story of Usman dan Fodio, a Muslim cleric who led his followers into exile in 1802 and preached reform that led to a West African-wide jihad/rebellion. The picture of a Muslim scholar publishing works in West Africa in a sort of caliphate seems somewhat unusual today. Sufi Islam mixes uneasily with Sunni Islam in these parts. In many places, Muslim tribes tend to have a more nomadic tradition whereas Christians are farmers.
The author notes an Emir in Nigeria who actively protects Christians from some of the violent uprisings of Muslim groups. Griswold notes that Muslim history records Muhammad showing mercy in his conquests, granting amnesty and giving up at least one opportunity for revenge. The author gives a brief history of African Christianity. One aspect was an early treaty with Christians in Nubia (Sudan) who had successfully repelled Muslim armies in the 7th treaty; the treaty lasted 600 years. (The Ashitname escapes the author's attention but is one historical document housed in Turkey in which Muhammad granted protection to monks and priests in St. Catherine's Monastery, including exemption from taxes, something that is long-forgotten in the 2016 mindset of ISIS.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ashtina...)
Griswold traces the explosion in Christianity today to the evangelical missions push spearheaded by the YMCA in the 1800s. As the YMCA evolved, it went to port cities and other places where migrants might be likely to congregate. There are other Christian missions organizations, particularly as America grew and developed, that do not come onto Griswold's radar. Advancements in transportation also helped steadily increase attendance at the Hajj, which led to more Islamic missionaries as well. The post-WWII order put America at the front of operations involving aid and combating Communism. The author writes that this supported further evangelization. She cites a few anecdotes, such as Franklin Graham sending Bibles to Saudi Arabia in 1991 (and angering Gen. Schwarzkopff), but I would note that the the entire history of 20th century US foreign policy had mixed results for foreign missions and any aid benefiting Christian groups not quite so overt. My reading of works by missionaries and diplomats in the 1800s suggests that US policy was more overtly religious then, but the foreign policy itself was weak as the US was not a global superpower.
The British Empire often engaged in curbing missionary activities in areas, in order to keep the peace. In Sudan, Britain forbid Christians proselytizing above the 10th parallel. A would-be Mahdi arose and confronted Britain at great cost. When he died, there were decades of civil war and an actual line in the sand had to be drawn as a border. This legacy continues as most of the Christian work happens in the South of the country. After Sudan gained independence in 1956, lines were more tightly drawn as a new Muslim government seized mission schools and other Christian entities. The Muslim Brotherhood took root in Sudan after being ousted by Abdul Nasser in Egypt and did well in Sudan. In 1989, then-Col. Bashir led troops in a coup and has been in power ever since.
Famine has been one of the primary causes of war in the Sudan and elsewhere. Floods and drought both unite and divide in Africa. The author cites an Islamic belief that sin causes desert. Nigeria in the West had similar problems as in the East, there and elsewhere some Christian-affiliated groups are perhaps more well-known for atrocities against Muslims. She spent time among evangelical Christian and fundamentalist Muslims leading enthusiastic congregations in armed conflict against one another. The author also notes the conflicts in Ethiopia and Africa as well as their historic ties to Christianity. (Ethiopia even claims to house the Ark of the Covenant.) Now there are also Islamic-principled business entities that sound very similar to the Hizmet movement of Turkish cleric Fetullah Gülen, which is known to be active in Africa. (The author must have been ignorant of Gülenist work at the time of writing as she does not mention it or connect the dots.) Griswold writes that Christians in the East blame Christians in the West for not preaching the Gospel themselves, for not doing more in the way of aid, business, and other endeavors that might help their plight. Many in the West would agree with this criticism, particularly when they see the prosperity Gospel gaining such traction (the author visits a Nigerian megachurch). The author does note the increasing work of "creative access" missionaries, noting one connected to a major Western denomination that runs a fitness center in Africa.
From Africa, Griswold takes the reader to SE Asia. There, she witnesses a much more contentious atmosphere. She actually gets to interview and spend time with the Burnhams, the YWAM family that was kidnapped and held for 10 years. She notes the history of Dutch missionaries colonizing Indonesia. Now, there is increasing conservatism and division. Atrocities and revenge are becoming more common, as is weaponized rape on both sides. This part of the book paints Islam as darker. She notes one sector of Indonesia that has implemented Sharia law and the change now that vice squads keep tabs on young people as you might see in Saudi Arabia. She is clearly describing the spread of Wahabbism, (I would note that it was criticized as such by Sec. of State Clinton during the author's work) but does not spell that out. Griswold writes of American aid money flowing to Islamic causes with closer ties to the government while nothing goes to persecuted Christians. Christian charities and orphanages tend to be hated for proselytizing as well as educating girls. The pluralism ostensibly maintained by Suharto from 1967-1998 seems to have quickly given way to something else. After the rescue of the Burnhams, the US military quickly shifted from a hostage rescue to developing Indonesia's abilities to fight counterinsurgency as active Al Qaeda-affiliated cells were found in the country.
The same thing appears to be unfolding in Malaysia, perhaps the most technologically-advanced Muslim country in the world. Christians there may not proselytize or use the name of Allah for "God"-- which is difficult because that has been the traditional word for "God" in Malay (and other languages). Supposedly, the Malay government pays people to convert from other religions to Islam. A person'a religion is on their government-issued IDs, and that creates identification and pressure to convert. Sharia-based law is becoming more common.
Some Filipinos have publicly converted to Christianity only to go back to something else. Griswold notes a gathering of ex-Filipino pastors who are now Muslims. Some have converted for economic reasons, others because they have been caught in gross sin and were forced to resign. In all of these countries, native beliefs make contextualizing the Gospel a particular challenge. I was struck by one particular anecdote: a missionary/pastor explained the difficulty of sharing the Gospel and doing Church with one tribe because they believe that only evil spirits consume flesh, hence the Eucharist becomes difficult to explain even to the converted.
The author attends a Voice of the Martyrs conference. She is sympathetic with Christians who are being persecuted, particularly for Christian education, aid, and orphanage operations that are shut down in the name of Islam. But being a martyr is more complicated than just dying for faith. In Sudan, it had as much to do with tribe and race and history as it did faith. The author notes that in doing counterinsurgency and training foreign armies to fight terrorism, American weaponry simply increases the death toll on all sides. The most violent conflicts tend to be about the power of determining who gets to define what the "true" religion is-- who decides what it means to be a Muslim, Christian, or member of a particular tribe or ethnicity. In some cases, she's found stories of remarkable cooperation in the least-likely of situations. There is truth in Griswold's words, but her book does not reach any clear-cut conclusions in her mind; it's not particularly clear if or how her travels have changed her convictions.
The afterword is the story of Reverend Abdou in Niger. He travels some distance in the region to show a Jesus film. He doesn't seem prepared, has a clumsy approach, things don't go well. He evangelizes simply out of his love for Jesus and is glad to have converted, and makes no money from his efforts. From this, Griswold concludes that people and their internal faith are "complicated and not label-worthy."
I give this book four stars out of five. I note above some of the omissions, and there is a larger ambiguity about the text as the author seems to try hard not to draw conclusions or examine herself too deeply. I imagine she has seen much more than could fit in one volume. But it is a great view of several countries and very conversation-provoking.
------------------------------------
Other books helpful for understanding the above:
Books on reform, human rights, and the interaction of Islam with cultures:
Desperately Seeking Paradise - Ziauddin Sardar (5 stars)
Sam Harris and Maajid Nawaz - Islam and the Future of Tolerance (1.5 stars)
Reza Aslan - No god but God - The Origins and Future of Islam (2.5 stars)
Infidel - Ayaan Hirsi Ali (4.5 stars)
Heretic - Ayaann Hirsi Ali (4 stars)
Headscarves and Hymens - Mona Eltahawy (4 stars)
I Am Malala - Malala Yousafzai (5 stars)
I Am Nujood, Age 10 and Divorced by Nujood Ali (4.5 stars)
In the Land of Invisible Women - Qanta Ahmed (4.5 stars)
Between Two Worlds - Zainab Salbi (5 stars).
City of Lies - Ramita Navai (3 stars)
Reading Lolita in Tehran - (3 stars)
Half the Sky - Nick Kristof and Sheryl WuDunn (4 stars)
Seeking Allah Finding Jesus - Nabeel Qureshi (4.5 stars)
Books on the History of Islam, The Middle East, and Arab nations:
A Very Short Introduction to the Koran - Michael Cook (4.5)
A Very Short Introduction to Islam - Malise Ruthven (3 stars)
In the The Shadow of the Sword - Tom Holland (4 stars)
In God's Path - The Arab Conquests and the Creation of an Islamic Empire - Robert G. Hoyland (4 stars)
Great World Religions: Islam (The Great Courses)- John Esposito (1.5 stars)
Destiny Disrupted: A History of the World Through Islamic Eyes - Tamim Ansary (4.5 stars)
Brief History of the Middle East - Peter Mansfield (3.5 stars)
History of the Arab Peoples by Albert Hourani (4.5 stars)
The United States and the Middle East 1914-2001 (Great Courses) by Salim Yuqub (3.5 stars)
Islam Unveiled - Robert Spencer (1.5 stars)
Lawrence in Arabia - Scott Anderson (5 stars)
This is an excellent book that ought to be popular in missiological circles and might be required reading in a World Civilizations class somewhere. The author travels parts of the 10th parallel, a dividing line and uneasy mixing point of Christianity and Islam around the world. Christianity and Islam are both "in a revival" today and growing along the parallel, tribes on both sides increasingly competing for resources. There are 493 million Christians living below the 10th parallel, 367 Muslims above, writes Eliza Griswold. That's roughly 60 percent of the world Christian population, and about half the Muslim population. Both religions have distinctives in various locales, often times the religions grafting over earlier syncretic practices. But recent revivals also mean more conservative strains of both religions are growing; this has violent implications. This book is a great picture of these hotspots around the globe. My wife used to live along the 10th parallel in Niger, so I found the West African sections of the book most noteworthy.
If you're interested in learning more about the book, check out Terry Gross' interview with the author on Fresh Air. I am not sure what motivates the author to write a book like this, she writes introspectively at times like she is on her own quest. That makes the book less boring, but might get in the way of her observations too much for others. Cultures along much of the 10th parallel are not kind to unaccompanied single women, but it's not clear if she had traveling companions in her seven years of travels. In one particular scene in 2003, she travels to Sudan with Franklin Graham to tour President Omar al-Bashir's palace where Graham and Bashir joke with each other about who would proselytize whom. Griswold is the daughter of a liberal Episcopalian minister who is opposed to Graham's evangelicalism. Graham would converse with Griswold over dinner, perhaps hearkening back to his own wandering past; she may have been skeptical but lets Graham lead her in the "sinner's prayer" and he later sends her a Bible (which she keeps for six years). Graham's charity, Samaritan's Purse, does an admirable amount of good around the world but there is a bit of a Western arrogance and awkwardness to his operation.
Non-Pentecostal American Christians have been concerned in recent years in the explosion of Pentecostalism in Africa, particularly that connected to the prosperity Gospel. 1/4 of African Christians are now Pentecostal and the number is growing faster than the population. The typical Protestant Christian is now an African woman, something that seems counter-intuitive. Likewise, 80 percent of Muslims live outside the Middle East even if the majority of literature on Islam tends to focus on the region of its birth.
Griswold wants to see "how both sides live," and attends events like an interfaith meeting in Nigeria. She recounts the history of the region, such as the story of Usman dan Fodio, a Muslim cleric who led his followers into exile in 1802 and preached reform that led to a West African-wide jihad/rebellion. The picture of a Muslim scholar publishing works in West Africa in a sort of caliphate seems somewhat unusual today. Sufi Islam mixes uneasily with Sunni Islam in these parts. In many places, Muslim tribes tend to have a more nomadic tradition whereas Christians are farmers.
The author notes an Emir in Nigeria who actively protects Christians from some of the violent uprisings of Muslim groups. Griswold notes that Muslim history records Muhammad showing mercy in his conquests, granting amnesty and giving up at least one opportunity for revenge. The author gives a brief history of African Christianity. One aspect was an early treaty with Christians in Nubia (Sudan) who had successfully repelled Muslim armies in the 7th treaty; the treaty lasted 600 years. (The Ashitname escapes the author's attention but is one historical document housed in Turkey in which Muhammad granted protection to monks and priests in St. Catherine's Monastery, including exemption from taxes, something that is long-forgotten in the 2016 mindset of ISIS.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ashtina...)
Griswold traces the explosion in Christianity today to the evangelical missions push spearheaded by the YMCA in the 1800s. As the YMCA evolved, it went to port cities and other places where migrants might be likely to congregate. There are other Christian missions organizations, particularly as America grew and developed, that do not come onto Griswold's radar. Advancements in transportation also helped steadily increase attendance at the Hajj, which led to more Islamic missionaries as well. The post-WWII order put America at the front of operations involving aid and combating Communism. The author writes that this supported further evangelization. She cites a few anecdotes, such as Franklin Graham sending Bibles to Saudi Arabia in 1991 (and angering Gen. Schwarzkopff), but I would note that the the entire history of 20th century US foreign policy had mixed results for foreign missions and any aid benefiting Christian groups not quite so overt. My reading of works by missionaries and diplomats in the 1800s suggests that US policy was more overtly religious then, but the foreign policy itself was weak as the US was not a global superpower.
The British Empire often engaged in curbing missionary activities in areas, in order to keep the peace. In Sudan, Britain forbid Christians proselytizing above the 10th parallel. A would-be Mahdi arose and confronted Britain at great cost. When he died, there were decades of civil war and an actual line in the sand had to be drawn as a border. This legacy continues as most of the Christian work happens in the South of the country. After Sudan gained independence in 1956, lines were more tightly drawn as a new Muslim government seized mission schools and other Christian entities. The Muslim Brotherhood took root in Sudan after being ousted by Abdul Nasser in Egypt and did well in Sudan. In 1989, then-Col. Bashir led troops in a coup and has been in power ever since.
Famine has been one of the primary causes of war in the Sudan and elsewhere. Floods and drought both unite and divide in Africa. The author cites an Islamic belief that sin causes desert. Nigeria in the West had similar problems as in the East, there and elsewhere some Christian-affiliated groups are perhaps more well-known for atrocities against Muslims. She spent time among evangelical Christian and fundamentalist Muslims leading enthusiastic congregations in armed conflict against one another. The author also notes the conflicts in Ethiopia and Africa as well as their historic ties to Christianity. (Ethiopia even claims to house the Ark of the Covenant.) Now there are also Islamic-principled business entities that sound very similar to the Hizmet movement of Turkish cleric Fetullah Gülen, which is known to be active in Africa. (The author must have been ignorant of Gülenist work at the time of writing as she does not mention it or connect the dots.) Griswold writes that Christians in the East blame Christians in the West for not preaching the Gospel themselves, for not doing more in the way of aid, business, and other endeavors that might help their plight. Many in the West would agree with this criticism, particularly when they see the prosperity Gospel gaining such traction (the author visits a Nigerian megachurch). The author does note the increasing work of "creative access" missionaries, noting one connected to a major Western denomination that runs a fitness center in Africa.
From Africa, Griswold takes the reader to SE Asia. There, she witnesses a much more contentious atmosphere. She actually gets to interview and spend time with the Burnhams, the YWAM family that was kidnapped and held for 10 years. She notes the history of Dutch missionaries colonizing Indonesia. Now, there is increasing conservatism and division. Atrocities and revenge are becoming more common, as is weaponized rape on both sides. This part of the book paints Islam as darker. She notes one sector of Indonesia that has implemented Sharia law and the change now that vice squads keep tabs on young people as you might see in Saudi Arabia. She is clearly describing the spread of Wahabbism, (I would note that it was criticized as such by Sec. of State Clinton during the author's work) but does not spell that out. Griswold writes of American aid money flowing to Islamic causes with closer ties to the government while nothing goes to persecuted Christians. Christian charities and orphanages tend to be hated for proselytizing as well as educating girls. The pluralism ostensibly maintained by Suharto from 1967-1998 seems to have quickly given way to something else. After the rescue of the Burnhams, the US military quickly shifted from a hostage rescue to developing Indonesia's abilities to fight counterinsurgency as active Al Qaeda-affiliated cells were found in the country.
The same thing appears to be unfolding in Malaysia, perhaps the most technologically-advanced Muslim country in the world. Christians there may not proselytize or use the name of Allah for "God"-- which is difficult because that has been the traditional word for "God" in Malay (and other languages). Supposedly, the Malay government pays people to convert from other religions to Islam. A person'a religion is on their government-issued IDs, and that creates identification and pressure to convert. Sharia-based law is becoming more common.
Some Filipinos have publicly converted to Christianity only to go back to something else. Griswold notes a gathering of ex-Filipino pastors who are now Muslims. Some have converted for economic reasons, others because they have been caught in gross sin and were forced to resign. In all of these countries, native beliefs make contextualizing the Gospel a particular challenge. I was struck by one particular anecdote: a missionary/pastor explained the difficulty of sharing the Gospel and doing Church with one tribe because they believe that only evil spirits consume flesh, hence the Eucharist becomes difficult to explain even to the converted.
The author attends a Voice of the Martyrs conference. She is sympathetic with Christians who are being persecuted, particularly for Christian education, aid, and orphanage operations that are shut down in the name of Islam. But being a martyr is more complicated than just dying for faith. In Sudan, it had as much to do with tribe and race and history as it did faith. The author notes that in doing counterinsurgency and training foreign armies to fight terrorism, American weaponry simply increases the death toll on all sides. The most violent conflicts tend to be about the power of determining who gets to define what the "true" religion is-- who decides what it means to be a Muslim, Christian, or member of a particular tribe or ethnicity. In some cases, she's found stories of remarkable cooperation in the least-likely of situations. There is truth in Griswold's words, but her book does not reach any clear-cut conclusions in her mind; it's not particularly clear if or how her travels have changed her convictions.
The afterword is the story of Reverend Abdou in Niger. He travels some distance in the region to show a Jesus film. He doesn't seem prepared, has a clumsy approach, things don't go well. He evangelizes simply out of his love for Jesus and is glad to have converted, and makes no money from his efforts. From this, Griswold concludes that people and their internal faith are "complicated and not label-worthy."
I give this book four stars out of five. I note above some of the omissions, and there is a larger ambiguity about the text as the author seems to try hard not to draw conclusions or examine herself too deeply. I imagine she has seen much more than could fit in one volume. But it is a great view of several countries and very conversation-provoking.
------------------------------------
Other books helpful for understanding the above:
Books on reform, human rights, and the interaction of Islam with cultures:
Desperately Seeking Paradise - Ziauddin Sardar (5 stars)
Sam Harris and Maajid Nawaz - Islam and the Future of Tolerance (1.5 stars)
Reza Aslan - No god but God - The Origins and Future of Islam (2.5 stars)
Infidel - Ayaan Hirsi Ali (4.5 stars)
Heretic - Ayaann Hirsi Ali (4 stars)
Headscarves and Hymens - Mona Eltahawy (4 stars)
I Am Malala - Malala Yousafzai (5 stars)
I Am Nujood, Age 10 and Divorced by Nujood Ali (4.5 stars)
In the Land of Invisible Women - Qanta Ahmed (4.5 stars)
Between Two Worlds - Zainab Salbi (5 stars).
City of Lies - Ramita Navai (3 stars)
Reading Lolita in Tehran - (3 stars)
Half the Sky - Nick Kristof and Sheryl WuDunn (4 stars)
Seeking Allah Finding Jesus - Nabeel Qureshi (4.5 stars)
Books on the History of Islam, The Middle East, and Arab nations:
A Very Short Introduction to the Koran - Michael Cook (4.5)
A Very Short Introduction to Islam - Malise Ruthven (3 stars)
In the The Shadow of the Sword - Tom Holland (4 stars)
In God's Path - The Arab Conquests and the Creation of an Islamic Empire - Robert G. Hoyland (4 stars)
Great World Religions: Islam (The Great Courses)- John Esposito (1.5 stars)
Destiny Disrupted: A History of the World Through Islamic Eyes - Tamim Ansary (4.5 stars)
Brief History of the Middle East - Peter Mansfield (3.5 stars)
History of the Arab Peoples by Albert Hourani (4.5 stars)
The United States and the Middle East 1914-2001 (Great Courses) by Salim Yuqub (3.5 stars)
Islam Unveiled - Robert Spencer (1.5 stars)
Lawrence in Arabia - Scott Anderson (5 stars)
January 18, 2024
My Amazon review on May 8, 2018: Interesting, but she misses the forest for the trees
First off, you have to tip your hat to the author for the courage to wander into these areas. She had no small measure of good fortune in not becoming another journalist victim. She provides a level of nuance and insight into these issues that your daily news simply cannot or will not begin to match. What you don't have to tip your hat to is her relentless efforts to downplay the true nature of Islam and governments that are run by Islamists be they 'democratic' (Malaysia) or dictatorial (Saudi Arabia). The very fact she points out, that in many of these countries it a crime (a civil crime, not just a religious one) to leave the 'faith' of Islam shows how morally bankrupt they are when it comes to any western notion of freedom. In fact, according to Wikipedia 'the majority of modern Islamic jurists continue to regard apostasy as a crime deserving the death penalty' (citation available). Think about that, hard. This is 2018, things are not changing in the Muslim world. Rather they are regressing toward 7th century interpretations in more places than not. This is what you get today and will get tomorrow in an Islamic majority country. Because this is what the majority of Muslims want--Sharia law which codifies such barbarity. If there is one thing about Islam that should bother you deeply it is this fact. There is not a 'Christian' nation (of which there are basically none) on earth that has laws like this. And American liberals (and their CAIR cheerleaders) want to call people here 'islamophobic'! What then should we call even 'democratic' Muslim countries like Malaysia where proselytizing to Muslims is also a crime? Yet she either ignores it or acts like it is no big deal. Similar laws in the non-Muslim world simply do not exist. So even though she bravely immersed herself in the nuances of the 'clash' of religions and provides some interesting insight into other factors contributing to problems between the faiths, she is utterly blind (whether willfully or not is hard to tell) to the true reality of Islam. It is in for the long game, always has been and always will be. And the West ignores that to it's peril.
First off, you have to tip your hat to the author for the courage to wander into these areas. She had no small measure of good fortune in not becoming another journalist victim. She provides a level of nuance and insight into these issues that your daily news simply cannot or will not begin to match. What you don't have to tip your hat to is her relentless efforts to downplay the true nature of Islam and governments that are run by Islamists be they 'democratic' (Malaysia) or dictatorial (Saudi Arabia). The very fact she points out, that in many of these countries it a crime (a civil crime, not just a religious one) to leave the 'faith' of Islam shows how morally bankrupt they are when it comes to any western notion of freedom. In fact, according to Wikipedia 'the majority of modern Islamic jurists continue to regard apostasy as a crime deserving the death penalty' (citation available). Think about that, hard. This is 2018, things are not changing in the Muslim world. Rather they are regressing toward 7th century interpretations in more places than not. This is what you get today and will get tomorrow in an Islamic majority country. Because this is what the majority of Muslims want--Sharia law which codifies such barbarity. If there is one thing about Islam that should bother you deeply it is this fact. There is not a 'Christian' nation (of which there are basically none) on earth that has laws like this. And American liberals (and their CAIR cheerleaders) want to call people here 'islamophobic'! What then should we call even 'democratic' Muslim countries like Malaysia where proselytizing to Muslims is also a crime? Yet she either ignores it or acts like it is no big deal. Similar laws in the non-Muslim world simply do not exist. So even though she bravely immersed herself in the nuances of the 'clash' of religions and provides some interesting insight into other factors contributing to problems between the faiths, she is utterly blind (whether willfully or not is hard to tell) to the true reality of Islam. It is in for the long game, always has been and always will be. And the West ignores that to it's peril.
September 27, 2019
Somehow I failed to get this book on my Currently Reading list so have set an arbitrary start date. This is not a book for the faint of heart. I saw many adjectives describing the author, Eliza Griswold, but I'm not sure if "intrepid" was one. "Courageous" is another that comes to mind. This white woman traveled the 10th parallel through Africa and Asia meeting with Muslims and Christians, with pastors, missionaries, terrorists, presidents, leaders, ordinary people. Her writing is clear and concise, the descriptions are wonderful. She writes in an easy-to-understand manner, but does not "dummy down" and is not afraid to use big words. I learned a lot about geography - the geography I learned in 7th grade many, many years ago is no longer applicable. Besides geography, this book belongs in the history section, the religious study section, the travel section, ecology section. The chapters I really struggled with were in Somalia. Basically the only things I knew about Somalia were that it was a coastal country and pirates from there hijacked ships and held them for ransom. I had no idea how difficult the struggle for survival was. The chapter I liked the best was "The Greatest Story Ever Told" about indigenous people in Malaysia struggling to hold onto their culture and traditions where the only options seem to be Islam or Christianity. In the Epilogue Ms. Griswold writes: "Religious strife where Christians and Muslims meet is real and grim, but the long history of everyday encounters of believers of different kinds, shouldering all things together, even as they follow different faiths, is no less real." The book abounds with interesting statistics. Here is just one: 60% of all Christian martyrs have been killed since the beginning of the 20th century.
January 9, 2022
Ms Griswold sums up the theme of Tenth Parallel nicely for the reader in the penultimate chapter of her dispatches from the Philippines...
"Islam, and Islamic rebellion, like its Christian counterpart, meant whatever anyone wanted it to, and could be manipulated accordingly. I had seen this in Nigeria, Somalia, Indonesia, Malaysia, and Sudan: religious identity as a way to guarantee and control resources."
While primarily a statement about religious leadership, or perhaps more appropriately, leadership cloaked in religious demagoguery, she later observes, "Worship often took the form of celebration, and for all I'd seen of religion's divisive power, for most people, their faith was, above all, about finding joy."
I think these are powerful statements which, in combination, may illuminate the foundations of religious conflict more than treatises on the history of this conflict or that. Ms Griswold does an admirable job of providing the anecdotes which support these observations. I'm not sure the "tenth parallel" metaphor does much for me, but there is a consistent theme to the stories, which many collections of anecdotes often lack.
Ms Griswold's writing reinforces lessons from my own travels. At the end of the day, despite whatever conflicts, traditions, prejudices, or geographies separate us, we're all basically the same with common desires and aspirations. If we want to, we can create conflict out of common goals, and there are many who excel at that.
"Islam, and Islamic rebellion, like its Christian counterpart, meant whatever anyone wanted it to, and could be manipulated accordingly. I had seen this in Nigeria, Somalia, Indonesia, Malaysia, and Sudan: religious identity as a way to guarantee and control resources."
While primarily a statement about religious leadership, or perhaps more appropriately, leadership cloaked in religious demagoguery, she later observes, "Worship often took the form of celebration, and for all I'd seen of religion's divisive power, for most people, their faith was, above all, about finding joy."
I think these are powerful statements which, in combination, may illuminate the foundations of religious conflict more than treatises on the history of this conflict or that. Ms Griswold does an admirable job of providing the anecdotes which support these observations. I'm not sure the "tenth parallel" metaphor does much for me, but there is a consistent theme to the stories, which many collections of anecdotes often lack.
Ms Griswold's writing reinforces lessons from my own travels. At the end of the day, despite whatever conflicts, traditions, prejudices, or geographies separate us, we're all basically the same with common desires and aspirations. If we want to, we can create conflict out of common goals, and there are many who excel at that.
March 16, 2017
Since Griswold is a Christian (or at least was raised Christian - it's not too clear whether she still practices), she did a good job of showing both sides of the Islamic/Christian conflict. She does a pretty thorough job of covering several different countries where it continues to cause bloodshed.
There were some quotes from those she interviewed that I liked, and here are some of them:
"America tolerates God. Africa celebrates God. We're called the continent of darkness; but that's when you appreciate the light. Jesus is the Light."
From an Orang Asli she interviews (not verbatim): Americans don't care what's happening in other places, do they? Does need keep people closer to God and God closer to them? I wonder, is there a place for God's word in the lives of people who have everything? Because we're so poor and in need, we take our religion very seriously.
There's the recounting of an interaction between the author and an imam. They see a memorial erected in the shape of a cross that reads, "God bless our fallen brothers." The imam explains that it symbolizes that God is with the American people, and that the American people have to return to God." When asked where he heard it, the imam replied, "Last time I was here, a young guy told me that." When the author reaches for her notebook to write it down, he says, "No, not a 'young guy', say an 'Elder'." Then he says, "Just say an anonymous American."
This passage was interesting to me, since LDS missionaries are comprised of a great many American "young guys" referred to as "Elders". It also sounds like something one of them would say. However, I don't remember where in Africa the monument was, and it's likely to have been in a place not open to Christian proselytizing. In any case, the comment piqued my interest.
Overall I learned an awful lot about the ongoing bloody conflict between Islam and Christianity that is far more widespread and gruesome than I had any idea. I Googled some of the incidents Griswold mentioned, and terrible images displayed. There is an awful lot of ugly in this book, and I felt like Griswold does a good job of painting the picture.
There were some quotes from those she interviewed that I liked, and here are some of them:
"America tolerates God. Africa celebrates God. We're called the continent of darkness; but that's when you appreciate the light. Jesus is the Light."
From an Orang Asli she interviews (not verbatim): Americans don't care what's happening in other places, do they? Does need keep people closer to God and God closer to them? I wonder, is there a place for God's word in the lives of people who have everything? Because we're so poor and in need, we take our religion very seriously.
There's the recounting of an interaction between the author and an imam. They see a memorial erected in the shape of a cross that reads, "God bless our fallen brothers." The imam explains that it symbolizes that God is with the American people, and that the American people have to return to God." When asked where he heard it, the imam replied, "Last time I was here, a young guy told me that." When the author reaches for her notebook to write it down, he says, "No, not a 'young guy', say an 'Elder'." Then he says, "Just say an anonymous American."
This passage was interesting to me, since LDS missionaries are comprised of a great many American "young guys" referred to as "Elders". It also sounds like something one of them would say. However, I don't remember where in Africa the monument was, and it's likely to have been in a place not open to Christian proselytizing. In any case, the comment piqued my interest.
Overall I learned an awful lot about the ongoing bloody conflict between Islam and Christianity that is far more widespread and gruesome than I had any idea. I Googled some of the incidents Griswold mentioned, and terrible images displayed. There is an awful lot of ugly in this book, and I felt like Griswold does a good job of painting the picture.
May 30, 2019
A well-researched look at the conflicts in areas of the world where Christianity and Islam physically meet. Griswold follows the 10th parallel from Nigeria, Sudan, Indonesia, and the Philippines and talks with government officials, jihadists, missionaries, and everyday people at the intersection of these two great religions. She connects the rising conflicts along this line to the fight for resources and opportunities. Where Christians and Muslims have co-existed for centuries, conflicts and tension are mounting due to extreme poverty, climate change, globalization, and western supply of weapons. I appreciated the style of the book - Griswold travels along the tenth parallel to different countries drawing out similarities and differences in the tension. Especially for the western reader, this book is a cautionary tale in what can go wrong when religious proselytizing is used for political purposes. A fantastic read for anyone seeking to understand crisis that is too often simplified to just "global war on terror" in the west.
August 22, 2019
Journalists do not always make the best writers. Reporting on moments of drama and conflict in pithy, short prose does not lend itself to book-length analysis that can tie disparate pieces together. But Eliza Griswold is no ordinary journalist and this is no ordinary book. The Tenth Parallel is powerful, insightful, confounding, and beautiful. Griswold tackles thorny religious, cultural, and geopolitical conflict with incredible deftness and respect, revealing so much about worlds I barely knew existed. Even more refreshing, she breaks down shoddy stereotypes without rebuilding with some new artificial lattice. What is left is a world rich in religion, beliefs, conflict, and uncertainty. It is a confusing world too, one that leaves me hungering to understand more and to proceed with greater humility in the realm of foreign policy.
Read more at https://znovels.blogspot.com/2019/08/...
Read more at https://znovels.blogspot.com/2019/08/...
January 3, 2023
Well researched and unbiased. The author did an excellent job putting this book together and showing both the Christian and the Muslim perspective. Honestly, both sides seem almost interchangeable. Fighting, fighting, and more fighting. One group oppresses the other. There are no good guys. There are just the oppressors and the victims, over and over again, and which group is which changes based on the power structure in that particular location. It's incredibly sad. Hopefully as humankind we can find a way to do better, and soon.
Far and away, my favorite part was the former Al Qaeda militiaman who now makes a living selling holistic health cures door to door. I giggled and giggled imagining it.
Far and away, my favorite part was the former Al Qaeda militiaman who now makes a living selling holistic health cures door to door. I giggled and giggled imagining it.
January 16, 2023
The Tenth Parallel is a brave and poignant work that attempts to bring light to the centuries-old feud between Christianity and Islam. Rather than relying on the outlook of the west, Griswold travels to the very countries that serve as a spiritual battlefield. In doing so, she observes the ways that politics, land, and morality have driven each religion, as well as how each has shaped and pushed the other to what they are now. Somehow without directly asking, Griswold calls into question the morality of the drive to reach and convert the whole world to one religion, following radicals on both sides of the debate, sprinkling in personal experience with great balance to the facts and histories that each country held.
January 24, 2025
This is a book that is dense with information but still entirely readable. Griswold profiles the competing communities of Muslims and Christians in six countries across the 10th parallel: Nigeria, Sudan, Somalia, Indonesia, Malaysia, and the Phillipines. Americans know so little about the history or current events in any of these countries. Griswold points out that 80% of Muslims in the world do NOT live in the Middle East. leading me to conclude that a book like this, which builds our understanding of other regions, is an important contribution. All that said, I agree with other reviews that point out that the presentations of each country feel disparate, which leaves me as a reader wondering if I've truly understood what was intended.
May 3, 2021
the best explanation I have read about the conflict(s) between Christianity and Islam. Ms Griswald travels along the tenth parallel 9when you read the book you will understand why) speaking with those on the front lines. It is a journey I can't imagine anyone taking, often on foot and often, it seems, on the front line where either side or both sides might kill you by mistake or on purpose.
This seems like a book everyone involved in foreign policy in Washington DC should read, which means, of course, that probably none of them have read it. Instead of arguing with people about Islam ask them to first read this book because the answers are there, if you put in the effort.
This seems like a book everyone involved in foreign policy in Washington DC should read, which means, of course, that probably none of them have read it. Instead of arguing with people about Islam ask them to first read this book because the answers are there, if you put in the effort.
December 29, 2018
Excellent
Ms. Griswold takes the reader into the border regions of Christianity and Islam and honestly shares her astute observations. I am enriched by her knowledge about the cultural, political, social, historical and geographical contexts in each journalistic adventure. Her insightful reporting is written clearly and purposefully, and frequent interjections of poetic descriptions delighted me. She also understands that faith is as complex as humanity, and is not to be trivialized as anachronistic or irrelevant. I highly recommend this book.
Ms. Griswold takes the reader into the border regions of Christianity and Islam and honestly shares her astute observations. I am enriched by her knowledge about the cultural, political, social, historical and geographical contexts in each journalistic adventure. Her insightful reporting is written clearly and purposefully, and frequent interjections of poetic descriptions delighted me. She also understands that faith is as complex as humanity, and is not to be trivialized as anachronistic or irrelevant. I highly recommend this book.
September 28, 2024
The Tenth Parallel is about the line of latitude 10 degrees north of the Equator, where across half the globe, it is quite literally the divide between Christians and Muslims. Griswold takes the reader to 7 different countries where the tenth parallel is effectively a war zone
Griswold is a great writer and a great journalist, but it never felt like she connected the stories to each other, even between chapters in the same country. But, I learned a lot about conflicts I had only vaguely been aware of and some I had never heard of at all. Will definitely read her work again.
Griswold is a great writer and a great journalist, but it never felt like she connected the stories to each other, even between chapters in the same country. But, I learned a lot about conflicts I had only vaguely been aware of and some I had never heard of at all. Will definitely read her work again.
December 16, 2022
The 10th parallel is a hotbed of clash of religion and culture. From Sudan, ethiopia, somali, malaysia, indonesia, phillipines, are divided across 10th parallel. Both religions want to assert themselves, and spread, leading to constant rife, often very violent. Currently around 200-400 million people in world are considered religiously persecuted. Author has worked really hard and have given a vivid, intesresting but horrifying account of the divide.
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