Washington, D.C. For much of the 20th century, social scientists and policymakers argued that democratization and modernity would render religion insignificant and irrelevant. They were wrong, says Timothy Shah, senior Pew Forum fellow in religion and world affairs, who contends religion is booming in many countries and democracy has given religious leaders a growing political […]
That May Depend on How You Define It – and Who Are the Targets
Key West, Florida Some of the nation’s leading journalists gathered in Key West, Florida, in May 2006 for the Pew Forum’s biannual Faith Angle conference on religion, politics and public life. Conference speaker Michael Cook, widely considered among the most outstanding scholars on the history of Islam, is the author of several classic works on […]
Hay-Adams Hotel Washington, D.C. The relationship between Islam and the West will be a defining feature of the 21st century, particularly in the Middle East. How should U.S. policymakers engage with the Muslim world? Will the spread of democracy throughout the Muslim world blunt the militant forces generating terrorism? How will European governments and populations […]
Summary of Findings The public is paying a great deal of attention to major overseas events – the reported terrorist plot against U.S. trans-Atlantic jet liners, the war in Lebanon, as well as the ongoing violence in Iraq. However, there is little indication that these dramatic stories have materially changed public attitudes. Worries about another […]
Washington, D.C. Anwar Ibrahim has been called a leading force for reform in Malaysia and has written extensively on the political influence of Islam in Southeast Asia. After serving from 1993 to 1998 as Malaysia’s deputy prime minister, Anwar was considered the heir apparent of Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad until he was abruptly fired and […]
National Defense University Washington, D.C. The Pew Forum co-sponsored a symposium with the National Defense University’s School for National Security Executive Education on “Religion, Conflict and the Global War on Terrorism in Latin America.” A panel entitled “Islam and the Global War on Terrorism in Latin America” featured Col. Curtis Connell, USAF, and Vitoria Peres […]
The Differences that Divide Us are Much Smaller than Those that Set Us Apart from the Rest of the World