John Esposito

John Esposito

Founding director, Prince Alwaleed bin Talal Center for Muslim-Christian Understanding, Georgetown University

“On Faith” panelist John L. Esposito is professor of religion, international affairs and Islamic studies at Georgetown University. He also is founding director of the Prince Alwaleed bin Talal Center for Muslim-Christian Understanding at Georgetown’s Edmund A. Walsh School of Foreign Service. A specialist in Islam, political Islam and the impact of Islamic movements from North Africa to Southeast Asia, Esposito is editor-in-chief of The Oxford Encyclopedia of the Modern Islamic World (4 vols.), The Oxford History of Islam, The Oxford Dictionary of Islam, and The Islamic World: Past and Present (3 vols.). His more than 30 books include: Unholy War: Terror in the Name of Islam, What Everyone Needs to Know About Islam, World Religions Today (with D. Fasching & T. Lewis), The Islamic Threat: Myth or Reality?, Islam: The Straight Path; Islam and Politics; Islam and Democrac, Makers of Contemporary Islam (with J. Voll) and Islam and Secularism in the Middle East (with A. Tamimi). A consultant to the State Department and corporations, Esposito was appointed to the World Economic Forum’s Council of 100 Leaders and to the High Level Group of the United Nations Alliance of Civilizations. He is a recipient of the American Academy of Religion’s 2005 Martin E. Marty Award for the Public Understanding of Religion and of Pakistan’s Quaid-i-Azzam Award for Outstanding Contributions in Islamic Studies Close.

John Esposito

Founding director, Prince Alwaleed bin Talal Center for Muslim-Christian Understanding, Georgetown University

“On Faith” panelist John L. Esposito is professor of religion, international affairs and Islamic studies at Georgetown University. He also is founding director of the Prince Alwaleed bin Talal Center for Muslim-Christian Understanding at Georgetown’s Edmund A. Walsh School of Foreign Service. more »

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Anglican Tensions Runneth Over

In fact, Archbishop Rowan Williams was not calling for implementation of Shariah law but simply signaling the need for addressing/discussing a question/issue that is inevitable. Muslims should have the same rights and choice that Orthodox Jews and Catholics already enjoy.

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All Comments (4)

The Moderate:

John:

"Muslims should have the same rights and choice that Orthodox Jews and Catholics already enjoy."

Which rights would those be?

Enforcing "No Go" zones in England where no one but Moslems are safe?

Executing a young college student for questioning hidebound traditions of faith?

Raping women for being on the street without a familial guardian?

Indoctrinating children and teens as suicide bombers?

The Moderate:

John:

"Muslims should have the same rights and choice that Orthodox Jews and Catholics already enjoy."

Which rights would those be?

Enforcing "No Go" zones in England where no one but Moslems are safe?

Executing a young college student for questioning hidebound traditions of faith?

Raping women for being on the street without a familial guardian?

Indoctrinating children and teens as suicide bombers?

Michael:

Anglican tensions runneth over? Thats hardly the point, but another of your employment of the Islamic doctrine of dissumulation (taqiyya). Does Sharia law allow any secular legal or political order above it, or does it seek supremacy? You know the answer to that very well.

Williams was responding to the growing issue of unintegrated and antagonistic communities and parallel structures developing in Britain, Muslim communities and Islamic structures seeking conformity (submission) to Sharia law. Other Brits, Muslims who do not see Sharia as divine and necessary, Christians, and Anglicans disagreed with him. Here are two Anglican respondents, one a former-Muslim now Anglican canon: http://www.barnabasfund.org/news/archives/article.php?ID_news_items=386; and another the Anglican bishop in northern Nigeria: http://www.virtueonline.org/portal/modules/news/article.php?storyid=7730

Concerned The Christian Now Liberated:

To All Muslims,

Your problems go beyond the Bin Ladens, the Shiite Iranian crazies and the Sunni "Wannabees" of Saudi Arabia.

The problems are in the basic foundations of Islam itself as one can see from the following:

1. Belief in "pretty/ugly wingie thingies"

2. Belief that an hallucinating, illiterate Arab did actually talk to the "pretty Gabriel" in the hot "Gabe" cave and therein received the warmongering and anti-female words and resultant laws now listed in the koran.

3. That Sunnis are superior to Shiites in all aspects of life. And Shiites think the same way about Sunnis.

4. That Islam is perfect and the koran inherently condones no sin even though the 24/7, 800 year-old blood feud between Sunnis and Shiites gives significant credence that greed, hate, suicides, assassinations, maiming, and murder are condoned by the koran. Having multiple wives also gives significant credence to the sins of rape, adultery, lust and polygamy. The condoned treatment of these wives gives credence that the koran allows the sins of hatred, anger and greed.

These are tough issues. Address them, correct them then ask again to be allowed into the civil world!!!!!

And accusing someone of spreading hate and lies does not work when these "someones" are simply listing the facts. If you have counter points about your beliefs then list them. Hiding behind imams and clerics blinded by 1400 years of brainwashing serves no purpose other than to secure a dishonet living for said imams and clerics.

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