Terror and Suicide Attacks: An Islamic Perspective
Edited by Ergün Çapan
First edition published July 2004
This first edition, published in July 2004, is a result of collaborative work by scholars of Islam in Turkey to prepare a special issue for Yeni Umit, a quarterly journal of Islamic sciences. Exhibited first at the Parliament of the World’s Religions (Barcelona, July 2004) and then at the Frankfurt Book Fair (October 2004) Terror and Suicide Attacks: An Islamic Perspective has attracted a lot of attention as a timely publication, especially in the United States. By now 20,000 copies have been sold and there are increasing number of demands for future prints a majority of which coming essentially from interfaith dialogue organizations, think-tank institutes, academics from seminaries, schools of theology, libraries, non-profit charities, and the general reader who are curious about Islam.
The book primarily aims to present solid evidence that Islam is a religion which does not approve of terror or of any type of violence, whatsoever, thus providing some clarity in minds which may be confused about this faith of peace. The approach adopted is objective and rational; terrorism is an issue that cannot be approached emotionally if the intention is to understand and combat it, with the hope of eventually eliminating all terrorist activities. Extensive references to Islam’s most authentic sources—the Qur’an, the Prophet’s example and his sayings—laid the foundation of the articles contributed; we feel that it is important to focus on the truth of the religion, rather than on some misguided representations.
“The current collection reveals in full and in detail the concept of incompatibility and non-acceptance for a faithful Islamic believer, from the position of the Holy Qur’an, to attempt to take away the highest gift of the Almighty, a human life. For the first time, a mass readership is able to acquaint itself with the five ultimate values of perfect Islam: Faith, life, family, mind, and property. . . . The authors being Muslim, and reputable scholars themselves, support the principle idea that life is exclusively in the Hands of God, contrary to the belief of kamikaze terrorists, and underline the fact that murder is unacceptable for a true Muslim believer.”
Prof. Oleg L. Kuznetsov
President
Russian Academy of Natural Sciences
“This book does not have the nature of being published in response to a haughty German’s demand from Muslims to take a stance against violence and terror. Beyond being reactionary, the book is a self-initiative by Muslims as a result of their consciousness of responsibility. It is not a product of defensive reflex, but rather of a sense of honor. And finally, this book is a proposal for interfaith and intercultural dialogue presenting “You and I”; a dialogue for which I almost give no chance of realization.”
Prof. Jörg Becker
President
The Institute of Research for
Communication and Technology
Solingen, Germany
