Evolution of a Muslim Democrat ― The Life of Malaysia's Anwar Ibrahim

This volume examines the life of Malaysian politician Anwar Ibrahim. Although Allers (PhD, Islamic studies, U. of Wales Trinity Saint David, Wales) adopts a relatively straight-forward narrative approach to the development of Ibrahim's career, certain thematic issues guide the discussion, including Ibrahim's philosophy of Islam's inclusivity of democracy as a normative theological/historical component of the religion, his belief in the compatibility of Islam with the value of human freedom and its sanctity in the democratic process, his conceptualizations of pluralism in the contexts of Islam and Malaysian politics, his (sometimes contradictory) political stands and their impact on Malaysian development, and the importance of ijtihad (or "independent reasoning") for maintaining the development of Islam as a "pragmatic religion." Annotation c2014 Ringgold, Inc., Portland, OR (protoview.com)

Charles Allers earned his PhD in Islamic studies from the University of Wales Trinity Saint David and his D.Min. from Azusa Pacific University. Dr. Allers has been active in serving people in the capacity of church pastor and civic chaplain for over twenty years. He and his wife, Greta, reside in San Diego, California.