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Shariah: What Everyone Needs to Know
Most Americans and Europeans have by now heard of Shariah. In the West, politicians, media commentators, televangelists, and others have stoked fears that Muslims intend to impose a repressive rule based on Shariah in America and Europe. Shariah has been portrayed as a medieval system that oppresses women, stifles human rights, and imposes harsh punishments like stoning and amputation. In reality, however, Shariah is a complex concept that has been interpreted in many ways over time and around the world. It plays a vital role in the lives of Muslims around the world, offering guidance on everything from personal morality to ritual practices, family life, and finance.
In this timely addition to Oxford's What Everyone Needs to Know(R) series, John Esposito and Natana DeLong-Bas offer an accessible and thorough guide to this little-understood, but often caricatured system. The book provides clear and even-handed answers to a wide range of questions, covering the history, development, content, and practice of Shariah. What are its origins? What is a Shariah court and how does it work? How does a person become a Muslim in the eyes of Islamic law? Does Islamic law allow Muslims to marry non-Muslims? What are blasphemy laws, and how are they enforced? How does Islamic law govern trade and contracts of sale? Do Muslims in the West want Shariah Law? Is there a need to protect American and European societies from the imposition of Shariah?
By answering the questions that so many people have about Shariah and its role in Muslim life, this book makes an invaluable contribution to the crucial task of fostering mutual understanding in our globalizing, pluralistic societies.
In this timely addition to Oxford's What Everyone Needs to Know(R) series, John Esposito and Natana DeLong-Bas offer an accessible and thorough guide to this little-understood, but often caricatured system. The book provides clear and even-handed answers to a wide range of questions, covering the history, development, content, and practice of Shariah. What are its origins? What is a Shariah court and how does it work? How does a person become a Muslim in the eyes of Islamic law? Does Islamic law allow Muslims to marry non-Muslims? What are blasphemy laws, and how are they enforced? How does Islamic law govern trade and contracts of sale? Do Muslims in the West want Shariah Law? Is there a need to protect American and European societies from the imposition of Shariah?
By answering the questions that so many people have about Shariah and its role in Muslim life, this book makes an invaluable contribution to the crucial task of fostering mutual understanding in our globalizing, pluralistic societies.
352 pages, Paperback
Published April 11, 2018
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About the author
John L. Esposito
102 books151 followersHe is a professor of International Affairs and Islamic Studies at Georgetown University. He is also the director of the Prince Alwaleed Bin Talal center for Muslim-Christian understanding at Georgetown University.
Esposito was raised a Roman Catholic in an Italian neighborhood in Brooklyn, New York City, and spent a decade in a Catholic monastery. After taking his first degree he worked as a management consultant and high-school teacher. He then studied and received a masters in theology at St. John's University. He earned a PhD at Temple University, Pennsylvania in 1974, studying Islam and held post doc appointments at Harvard and Oxford. He is well-known as a promoter of strong ties between Muslims and Christians and has challenged the Vatican to make greater efforts to encourage such ties.
A specialist in Islam, political Islam, and the impact of Islamic movements from North Africa to Southeast Asia, Dr. Esposito serves as a consultant to the Department of State as well as multinational corporations, governments, universities, and the media worldwide. In 2005, Professor Esposito won the American Academy of Religion's prestigious Martin E. Marty Award for the Public Understanding of Religion. This award honors a scholar who has been exemplary in promoting the public understanding of religion. A prolific writer, Professor Esposito is the author of over 25 books, including What Everyone Needs to Know About Islam, The Islamic Threat: Myth or Reality?, and Unholy War: Terror in the Name of Islam. He is also the Editor-in-Chief of The Oxford Encyclopedia of the Modern Islamic World, The Oxford History of Islam, and The Oxford Dictionary of Islam.
Esposito was raised a Roman Catholic in an Italian neighborhood in Brooklyn, New York City, and spent a decade in a Catholic monastery. After taking his first degree he worked as a management consultant and high-school teacher. He then studied and received a masters in theology at St. John's University. He earned a PhD at Temple University, Pennsylvania in 1974, studying Islam and held post doc appointments at Harvard and Oxford. He is well-known as a promoter of strong ties between Muslims and Christians and has challenged the Vatican to make greater efforts to encourage such ties.
A specialist in Islam, political Islam, and the impact of Islamic movements from North Africa to Southeast Asia, Dr. Esposito serves as a consultant to the Department of State as well as multinational corporations, governments, universities, and the media worldwide. In 2005, Professor Esposito won the American Academy of Religion's prestigious Martin E. Marty Award for the Public Understanding of Religion. This award honors a scholar who has been exemplary in promoting the public understanding of religion. A prolific writer, Professor Esposito is the author of over 25 books, including What Everyone Needs to Know About Islam, The Islamic Threat: Myth or Reality?, and Unholy War: Terror in the Name of Islam. He is also the Editor-in-Chief of The Oxford Encyclopedia of the Modern Islamic World, The Oxford History of Islam, and The Oxford Dictionary of Islam.
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
November 5, 2023
Well written, comprehensive coverage of Sharia in the religious, legal, finance, and medical contexts among different regions and countries of the Muslim
World. However, book did not confront political issues arising today as to why there is so much violence and terrorism, or the causes of the violence and terrorism, I.e. poverty, ignorance, anti-colonialism, anti-western sentiment or something else. However, good background about Islamic society over the ages and how that shaped today’s Islamic nations.
World. However, book did not confront political issues arising today as to why there is so much violence and terrorism, or the causes of the violence and terrorism, I.e. poverty, ignorance, anti-colonialism, anti-western sentiment or something else. However, good background about Islamic society over the ages and how that shaped today’s Islamic nations.
October 17, 2025
An absolutely magnificent introduction to Islamic law for students, members of the academy, or laypersons. It was also a fantastic refresher for me and even spotlighted a few things I didn't know. A highlight is the format and how it breaks topic down as a question and then a response. The clear, direct, and coversational language is great. I also really enjoyed how key concepts are stated in repetition throughout the volume to really drive them home.
June 17, 2020
A good, basic overview of shariah. I wish it had footnotes throughout rather than just the long bibliography at the end, but other than that, my only issue was that it is incorrectly stated that Ramadan ends after 27 days, instead of 29 or 30 (p. 101).
January 10, 2020
Very informative - will be a good reference book. Should not replace conversing with those of the Muslim faith and learning more about them.
December 21, 2021
The book explores the basics of Sharia and its main sections like family law, freedom, war, finance.
One of the main concepts I am happy to learn from the book and see in its content is the difference between Sharia and Islamic Law which is not clear for a lot of people in the current era.
The book offers the wide spectrum of ideas and translation of Sharia across different Muslim generations and how historical events sometimes impact the laws forced in some places.
One of the nice things is mentioning the name of the Islamic terms in Arabic also like faskh, khul, maslahah, shahada, fatwa, mufti, hudud, jihad, etc...
One of the main concepts I am happy to learn from the book and see in its content is the difference between Sharia and Islamic Law which is not clear for a lot of people in the current era.
The book offers the wide spectrum of ideas and translation of Sharia across different Muslim generations and how historical events sometimes impact the laws forced in some places.
One of the nice things is mentioning the name of the Islamic terms in Arabic also like faskh, khul, maslahah, shahada, fatwa, mufti, hudud, jihad, etc...
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews