Scholars from various disciplines worked together to present the first interdisciplinary book to address the issue of Islam, secularism and globalization. The book has a clear structure which represents its interdisciplinary approach: the first section addresses the philosophical and historical discussion about Islam and secularism; the second section discusses the topic from an ethnographical and social anthropological viewpoint; and the final section addresses Islam, secularism and globalization from a political viewpoint. This unique collection not only offers innovative research and new material, it also provides empirical examples and theoretical debates, and could therefore also be used as a textbook for courses on Islam, globalization, anthropology, politics, sociology and law.

Is Islam compatible with democracy and the West? How do Muslim communities understand the concept of the secular? How have contemporary Islamic scholars addressed the topic and why? How does living in a secularized context affect the everyday lives of Muslim women living in the west? What about the so-called 'secular' Muslims? These and other questions are discussed in Muslim Societies and the Challenge of Secularization: An Interdisciplinary Approach. A timely collection which, for the first time, explores these themes from a strong interdisciplinary approach.

This book provides theoretical and ethnographic discussion of both the experience of Muslims vis-a-vis the idea of the secular as well as the revival of the discourse of secularism within the western context. Through its interdisciplinary approach and the case studies of different Muslim communities, this book avoids some of the clichés and essentialism which often affect the analysis of secularization and Islam. The collection aims to open a discussion and provide glimpses into current studies on the topic.