Daughters of Islam: Building Bridges with Muslim Women

by Miriam Adeney

Their clothing is often distinctive. Their values are strongly held. They love their families. They comprise nearly one-tenth of the world's population, and they live everywhere around the globe. These are women of Muslim background. Many still belong to Islam, but some now belong to Christ. In Daughters of Islam Miriam Adeney introduces you to women like Ladan, Khadija and Fatma. You'll learn about their lives, questions and hopes. You'll learn how they are both representative of and unique among their Arab, Iranian, Southeast Asian and African sisters. And you'll discover what has drawn them to Christ. Adeney explores the many interwoven threads that make up daily experience for Ladan, Khadija, Fatma and their sisters, including As you enter into the lives of Ladan, Khadija and Fatma, you'll gain insight into how to relate to other women of Muslim background--and how to introduce them to Christ.

Genres: Islam, Christian, Nonfiction, Middle East

224 pages, Paperback

First published February 5, 2002

Reviews

[Hannah Wenig · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book expanded my limited understanding of women in the Muslim World. It allowed me to catch a better glimpse of various lives of Muslim women and how they came to Christ. It gave practical insights into Islam and how the gospel can be shared well. I enjoyed the different perspectives and stories about how God has and is pursuing the hearts of Muslim women around the world. These stories frequently made me stop for a moment, in awe, looking up in the sky, with no words - God’s love through Jesus Christ is powerful.
I would definitely recommend this book to learn more about how God is working in those who practice Islam and how you can be a part of that work - if anything, giving real examples of his grace and mercy in the heart of a woman who does not know Christ as Lord.

[Melodie Pearse · Rating 4 out of 5]

I am always skeptical about these types of books for various reasons, however, I find Adeney's research and personal experiences rather refreshing. The book reads like an ethnography, which I appreciate because it feels similar to my former classes on Middle Eastern history, culture, and religion. In fact, many of the sources Adeney sights are credible, diverse narratives that I am already familiar with due to these classes. Adeney has a lot of knowledge to give to people who feel called to the Middle East. She clearly values and honors Islamic culture while simultaneously acknowledging and reflecting on imperfections in Western culture. "... The world of Arab women is a rich mosaic. But in the end, every woman is an exception." She is careful not to stereotype or over generalize. Additionally, Adeney includes teachings from multiple sects of Islam and personal narratives that reflect the lives of women from various Muslim social backgrounds and nationalities. Overall, she has added a well-rounded perspective to the discourse on Muslim women.

[Patrick Schlabs · Rating 2 out of 5]

Encouraging stories of Islamic women how have come to have come to faith in Christ. Readable, but poorly laid out.

[Rachael · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have a friend working with Afgan refugees and I wanted to understand more of who those women are. I've had this book on my shelf for a long time, and I'm glad I kept it through 6 moves. She gives stories of women from all over who are Muslim or are Muslim-background believers. The author even has practical suggestions for women in various stages and situations to flourish where God has put them.

[Jonathan · Rating 2 out of 5]

Adeney writes really engaging stories of Islamic women, especially those who had converted to Christianity. The stories are good, though sometimes seem to be a little too uniformly glowing and a little too often trying to prove the same points. The book feels really focused on “what does it take to make Muslim women into Christians”, and misses a lot of the broader questions that are found within such an objective, including the questions that even making that statement brings up. The chapter on money matters and social justice, chapter 13, surprised me quite a bit – it was on point and accurate, quite well-informed about the importance of financial and poverty issues and making great suggestions for how to address these appropriately without causing more harm than good. I only wish that a more holistic approach had been integrated into the entire book. I really don’t want to be too critical of the book because _ says what she has to say quite well, but what she has to say involves a narrow spectrum of the questions that those who minister among Muslim women should be asking themselves.

[Noel · Rating 2 out of 5]

This doesn't seem to be what I expected, so I'm putting it straight onto my available list.

OK - I decided to give it a try. I very much enjoyed some of the descriptions of the Muslim woman's world; the author took some very distinct women, from varied lives and backgrounds and described their environments and lives. Extremely interesting. She juxtaposed Islam and Christianity on several biblical thoughts, also interesting. Where I lost it was where she had these women converting to Christianity - even though I'm a Christian (sort of, and by her standards a very lousy one) and I don't particularly care for the subleties of the Muslim faith, I found this part disturbing and skimmed through most of it.

[Dana · Rating 4 out of 5]

Finished this up right before I went off to Egypt and Jordan as I wanted to familiarize myself a bit with Muslims. This book was very interesting, informative, and very easy to read. I highly recommend it to all my Christian friends because if you don't yet have any Muslim friends you most likely will soon enough and this book is a great introduction to Muslims, their beliefs, and how to interact with them. I was very encouraged by the book and now feel much more ready to engage Muslim women.

[Diane · Rating 4 out of 5]

Written by a Christian anthropologist, this book looks at the lives of Muslim women, and offers suggestions on how to reach out to them. The author provides a lot of good insights and interesting anecdotes, many of which aren't available elsewhere. However, her writing style is a little hard to follow. She tends to jump abruptly from one topic to a completely different one.

[Heidi · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really enlightening/interesting to get the perspectives, attitudes, and general cultural roles of Islamic women. Goes against or gives a very different spin on many things that are taken for truth about women in that culture.

[Andy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Este es el mejor libro disponible sobre los retos y las oportunidades particulares de llegar a las mujeres musulmanas, sin las cuales no existe una comunidad de creyentes perseverante. Un recurso indispensable.

[Rebekah · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very informative...but through great stories. Helps one to see how to make an easy connection with Muslim women.

[Rachel Nelson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great book! Give great insight into other cultures.

[Ashley · Rating 4 out of 5]

Inspiring and practical applications on sharing with muslim friends

[Stacey · Rating 5 out of 5]

Informative and engaging. I particularly enjoyed the chapter on Indonesian women.