The Fall and Rise of the Islamic State (Council on Foreign Relations)

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The Fall and Rise of the Islamic State (Council on Foreign Relations)

Editorial Review

Perhaps no other Western writer has more deeply probed the bitter struggle in the Muslim world between the forces of religion and law and those of violence and lawlessness as Noah Feldman. His scholarship has defined the stakes in the Middle East today. Now, in this penetrating book, Feldman tells the story behind the increasingly popular call for the establishment of the shari'a--the law of the traditional Islamic state--in the modern Muslim world.

Western powers call it a threat to democracy. Islamist movements are winning elections on it. Terrorists use it to justify their crimes. What, then, is the shari'a? Given the severity of some of its provisions, why is it popular among Muslims? Can the Islamic state succeed--should it? Feldman reveals how the classical Islamic constitution governed through and was legitimated by law. He shows how executive power was balanced by the scholars who interpreted and administered the shari'a, and how this balance of power was finally destroyed by the tragically incomplete reforms of the modern era. The result has been the unchecked executive dominance that now distorts politics in so many Muslim states. Feldman argues that a modern Islamic state could provide political and legal justice to today's Muslims, but only if new institutions emerge that restore this constitutional balance of power.

The Fall and Rise of the Islamic State gives us the sweeping history of the traditional Islamic constitution--its noble beginnings, its downfall, and the renewed promise it could hold for Muslims and Westerners alike.

Customer Reviews:

• Avg. Customer Rating: 3.0 / 5.0
• Please read some real Islamic history instead
  I would like to encourage anyone who buys this book to at least do yourself the favor of reading some standard historical works related to Islamic history, especially those parts which Noah Feldman uses to support his thesis in this book. If Feldman had submitted this work to any peer-reviewed scholarly journal it would have been rejected, as it is filled with unsupported characterizations, historical inaccuracies and, where there is sourcing at all, endnotes which do not support his thesis. This work is so... more info
• Cool headed scholar
  It appears Feldman, has stayed true to his scholarly understanding of what Islam is all about, and has not been overtaken by present time demonization of Islam. In reality Islam is modification on Judaism , while accepting the best of Christianity. Saudis, Talaban and Alghadeh are not Islam. They are every thing that Islam negated. Gilded palaces of Saudi Family is not Islamic, restricting women and covering them head to toe is not Islamic, worshiping money is not Islamic. What you see in Islamic world... more info
• A smart and balanced look at the history of the shari'a
  Before I started reading through The Fall and Rise of the Islamic State, tried to also read through several reviews of the book to get a sense of what criticisms were out there. The handful of reviews on Amazon tended to be negative and I made note of the criticisms levied against Feldman. After reading the book, I can't help but notice that Feldman is being criticized for things he didn't say or that the main point of the book is being misrepresented (at least by reviewers here).
  First and foremost,... more info
• How Islamic state will arise
  Algerian leader Houari Boumédienne said at the United Nations in 1974:
  "One day, millions of men will leave the Southern Hemisphere to go to the Northern Hemisphere. And they will not go there as friends. Because they will go there to conquer it. And they will conquer it with their sons. The wombs of our women will give us victory."
  Al-Jazeera's Sheikh Yusuf Al-Qaradhawi, who is widely hailed as a moderate reformer in the West. said:
  "Islam will return to Europe as a conqueror and... more info

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