The Great Theft

"I can recommend everything that Khaled Abou El Fadl has ever written. He has written great books on tolerance in Islam. His view is that extremists have hi-jacked his religion, and he presents an alternative, tolerant version of Islam. There is an argument going on in Muslim communities about whether or not a reformation, a revival of Islam is needed. He is the person to discuss this – he is educated in Islamic law, theology and jurisprudence and it would be great for people to read this book and to see that there is a push-back within the Islamic community against extremism. He has the background to give him authenticity and authority within Islam. The extremists used to have a fringe, cult-like thing about them, but they have spread very successfully because al Qaeda and other groups like that have made arguments to people who don’t have the education to counter them. Surveys in Europe have shown that the people most likely to be radicalised are those with no religious training or background, because they have no inoculation against the arguments."