Questions for the Final Examination (June 3, 2021)(2021/01 Thoughts and Cultures of the Islamic World)I. Questions about Kuwait political reforms, rituals and festivals, and the veil in Islam. (50%)① The Kuwaiti Prof. Sheikha Al-Jassem discusses the relationship between state and Islam (religion) in her TV interview. Summarize what she argues in the TV interview. ② Discuss the role of the Kuwait Islamist political groups in the development of democracy in Kuwait. Also discuss the strength and weakness of Kuwait political system and democracy compared to neighboring Arab Muslim countries. (20%)I.-1)-① She asserted that the constitution of Kuwait should be above the Quran and Islamic law in governing the country. She responded by saying that thought of Islamic extremists was dangerous and that, in her opinion, politics and religion should be kept apart.I.-1)-② (Role of the Kuwait Islamist political groups) In 2006 election law reform movement toward the multi-person election, Islamists fportant factor in the political process of Kuwait.(Strength) Kuwait political system is hereditary monarchy. The more hereditary the country, the more likely the power of the state will be concentrated in the royal family, and based on this, the power of the state can be fully concentrated in one direction and purpose. The state religion is Islam, but the constitution guarantees freedom of religion.(Weakness) In many cases, opposition parties are imprisoned for criticizing the king, or gerrymandering is enforced by the king, and in many cases, the level of democracy is not high, as women’s suffrage is only introduced in the 21st century. Criticism of Islam is still banned in Kuwait and is punishable by blasphemy. Missionary activities other religion are also prohibited.① Discuss the main characteristics of the marriage norms and rituals in the contemporary Middle Eastern Muslim society (Morocco) including the role of Islam (religion) in the Moroccan marriage norms and rituals. ② Also dsite is allowed(Muslim man + non-Muslim woman). Muslims are encouraged to look for a spouse on the grounds of compatibility through piety, rather than for good looks, or wealth, or prestige. Both male and female homosexuality are forbidden in Islamic law, although only male homosexuality is explicitly condemned in the QuranI.-2)-② Unlike Islam, Koreans are monogamous and can marry regardless of their religion. Recently, the South Korean government ha legalized same-sex marriage3) In Iran, the women’s dress code has been changed from secularized wearing custom to the religious and conservative veiling custom in contrast to the case of South Korea where it has been changed from a traditional and conservative dress code to the secularized and Westernized one. Please discuss the current secularized and Westernized dress code of the South Korean women from the viewpoint of the religious and conservative Iranian Muslim women. (15%)I.-3) Korean women’s clothing is westernized. Unlike Muslim sngs in the Muslim world (50%)1) ① Discuss the perception of Jordanian public on honor killings and the position of Islamists in Jordan in the debate concerning article 340 of the Jordanian Penal Code. ② The Jordanian Lower House and the scholars committee of the Islamic Action Front in Jordan have opposed to abolish the article 340 of the Jordanian Penal Code. What are their logics? (20%)II.-1)-① The Article 304 of the Jordanian Penal Code states: He who catches his wife, or one of his female un-lawfully committing adultery with another, and he kills, wounds, or injures both of them, is excused from an exemption from penalty. A 2019 survey found that 21% of Jordanians accept honor killings. The result of the survey clearly shows that there are many people who favor Honor Killing in JordanII.-1)-② Their logics are that honor is more important that life of person. For Muslim honor of family is so important that honor killing is okay and article 340 should be remained.2) The Indonesian go Islam in Indonesia. ③ Is it possible to compare the phenomenon of plastic surgery in South Korea and that of female circumcision in the Islamic world? (30%)II.-2)-① Medicalization is a factor for the recent spread of FGM in Indonesia. FGM is no longer being performed by the traditional circumcisers but by midwives at modernized and sanitary hospitals or clinics. The Indonesian Ulema Council, an influential quasi-government body of Muslim scholars: “Banning female circumcision is against human rights, and sharia law.”II.-2)-② (Similarities) Most women are circumcised. According the toe WHO, 90% of Egyptian women are circumcised. According to a report published by UNICEF, “Circumcision is also common in Indonesia, which has a female population of 60 million.” Both countries regulate circumcision. Egypt outlawed circumcision in 2008, and Indonesia abolished it in 2014.(Difference) In Egypt, circumcision has been practiced since 4000 B.C., but it Indonesia, with the progress of Islamizati.
Questions for the Mid-term Examination (April 15, 2021)I. Questions on the popular ‘misconceptions’ and Foundations of Islam. (40%)1. Anderson and Wagner argue that the perception of ‘Islam as an intolerant religion’ is a popular ‘misconception’ about Islam. Answer to the following questions. 1) If you agree with them, explain your reasoning and elaborate the basis of your argument, except what the authors use to support their arguments. If you disagree with them, explain the reasons, and elaborate the basis of your argument. 2) How would you respond if the Indian Cleric Ashraf Mohammed urges your country to introduce Sharia laws, related to anti-social crimes? (20%)I think Islam is an intolerant religion. Because From Theo Van Gogh, who was killed for filming a short film critical of Islam, to people trying to tell the reality of Muslim women's human rights are under threat. Islamic women's rights activist Ayaan Hirsi Ali, who is from Somalia, was also threatened with murder.It is exth the attributes of the judge. Recognition of the God’s absolute oneness in contrast to the Christian belief of the Trinity (God the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit)2. Angel : Angels were created by Allah in light, not only do they not die, but they do not have a human-like sex. Muslim believe they were created lower than humans, and they were created as beings who did not have the same free will as humans, but only obey Allah's will. Judaism and Christianity also believe in angel.3. Apostles : Apostles or Prophets means people chosen by Allah. Muslims testify that Muhammad is the Messenger of God. They believe that Muhammad is the ‘seal of prophets and that God has sent His final and most comprehensive revelations. Christianity believes in Jesus as a god, but Islam and Judaism believe Jesus as a prophet.4. Quran : Muslims believe that Allah's will is communicated through the mouths of the prophets. The Quran is believed to be the last revelation of Allah, delivered to Muhammad ththere is no set number of times and they do not pray in a specific direction.2. Salah : Muslims pray five times a day for the Kaaba in Mecca. These times specified in the Quran and Hadith are as follows. Dawn, noon, mid-afternoon, sunset, night. Prayer performed everywhere.3. Zakat : Giving a certain properties to classes of needy people . Gives 2.5% of their income. All things belongs to God and wealth held by human beings in trust. In Judaism and Christianity, 10% of income is donated.4. Hajj : Hajj is the pilgrimage that all of muslim people must carry out once in a life time. Hajj is annual ritual. It is held from the 8th to 12th of Dhu al-Hijjah, the last month of the Islamic calendar. In Judaism or Christianity, pilgrimage to the Holy Land is not mandatory.5. Ramadan : During Ramadan, you must not eat anything from sunrise to sunset. Food and drink, as well as saliva, should not be swallowed. You should abstain sex.The Fast is regarded principally as a method of spiritual self-puli-Palestinian conflicts and the Oslo peace process. Please discuss their perception and attitudes toward the Israeli-Palestinian conflicts and the Oslo peace process. (20%)Yasser Arafat rejected Clinton’s mediated proposal, mainly on the issues of Jerusalem and Palestinian refugees. Limited return of Palestinian refugeesBill Clinton : Establishment of Independent State of Palestine in Gaza Strip and 94-96% of the West Bank. Israel maintains security borders around the Jordan RiverAPI : The initiative offers normalisation of relations by the Hyperlink "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arab_world" o "Arab world" Arab world with Israel, in return for a full withdrawal by Israel from the Hyperlink "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Israeli-occupied_territories" occupied territories, a "just settlement" of the Hyperlink "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Palestinian_refugee" o "Palestinian refugee" Palestinian refugee problem based on Hyperlink "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/UN_Resolution_194" o " Arabic in education, and local service in peacetime for Arab conscripts to the imperial army.Radicalization followed the 1908 revolution in the empire and the Turkicization program imposed by the Young Turks government.Zionism : It is a nationalist movement that aimed to establish a Jewish nation-state in Palestine, where the land of ancestor of JewsKorean nationalism is bloody but Arab nationalism has a linguistic and cultural ideology.Discuss the leadership of Gamal Abdel Nasser, including his positive and negative contributions to the rise and decline of the Arab nationalism and to the national development of Egypt.Gamal Abdel Nasser, the leader of Egypt, Born in 1918.Positive : He nationalized the Suez Canal. In addition, there are Aswan High Dam, industrialization, land reform, and anti-corruption campaigns. Nasser actively promotes Arab socialism and promotes pan-Arabism.Negative : Extreme inflation occurred and economic growth failed.5. Explain the 2015 Iran nuclear agreement all.
Homework on the Kuwaiti Political ReformsStudent No.: Name :1) Discuss the factors which have contributed to the institutionalization and development of the parliamentary system and democratic institutions in Kuwait.Women's participation in societyIraq invaded Kuwait in 1990. Kuwaiti women wore abbaya to join the national resistance to Iraq's invasion. And even some of them were employed for subversive activities to join the counterattack against Iraq. In return for Kuwaiti women's roles and national loyalty proven in the Gulf War, the Kuwaiti government promised to grant full right to Kuwaiti women and improve their social standings after national independence from Iraq. Then, Kuwaiti women began to re-focus more interests on suffrage.After the end of Gulf War, however, Kuwaiti society returned to patriarchal system under the revived influence of Islamic power. Particularly, Sunni Islamists and conservative tribalists formed the mainstream of opposition against granting suffrage to Ku participation in political activities. Despite many social conflicts based on Muslim religious principles, tribalism and interclass or intersect schism, the Kuwaiti women have steadily participated in their society to overcome unfavorable circumstances, and could finally obtain suffrage in 2005. And in Kuwaiti general election on May 16, 2009, 4 woman candidates were elected to the Parliament of Kuwait.However, the political right of Kuwaiti women still faces obstacles such as political unconcern of many Kuwaiti women domesticated by patriarchal society and Islamist opposition to their political engagement beyond the traditional enclosure of home. Hence, it is expected that the latest advance of Kuwaiti women into parliament will have a leverage on political right of Arab women in neighboring Muslim countries, particularly Saudi Arabia.Political oppositionThe Amir responded to popular demands for elections, which were held on schedule in 1992. The opposition gained representation in Ph as the cancellation of the State Security Court as a violation of the Constitution, the opening of files for officials involved in issues of corruption including the former oil minister of the Sabah royal family, and finally the appointment of a woman as the president of the University of Kuwait. These achievements are attributed to the opposition and they resulted in the strengthening of the growth of the democratic experience in Kuwait.Islamist powerThe influence of Islamic groups in Kuwait's parliamentary and political process is growing rapidly. The Islamic conservative group, which entered the parliament with traditional tribes by the ruling dynasty in order to check the merchant elite group, Arab nationalist camp, and Shia Islamic group, which formed a strong force in the parliament in the 1980s, was a political process that has been active since the 1990s. There was a remarkable increase in power. In particular, the Islamic constitutional movement of the Sunni Muslim Brotherhoprocess.2) Discuss ① the role of the Kuwaiti Islamist political groups in the Kuwaiti democratization processes and ② the relationship between religion (Islam) and democracy in Kuwait.Parliamentary life returned in 1981, and the Muslim Brotherhood again won a few seats. These deputies struck a more confrontational pose toward the government than their predecessors had done. Indeed, the Kuwaiti parliament as a whole became a difficult body for the government to manage, resulting in a second suspension of parliamentary life beginning in 1986. This time the Brotherhood made its stand clearer, participating in (though hardly leading) efforts to call for the restoration of parliament. But it was the 1990 Iraqi invasion and occupation of Kuwait that permanently changed the Brotherhood’s political role, resulting in the creation of the ICM(Islamic Constitutional Movement).Since its founding, the ICM has been dedicated to the proposition that Islamization of Kuwaiti politics and society could s in 1991. At the time, Kuwait was just emerging from Iraqi occupation. Nor was postwar chaos the only obstacle; the parliament that the ICM was seeking to join had been suspended for five years, long before the Iraqi invasion. Fifteen years later, there is much to suggest that the ICM’s strategy has been vindicated: the restoration of the country’s parliament in 1992 has allowed the movement to become a major player in the country’s political life. The Kuwaiti Islamic movement, of which the ICM is a part, has gained greater influence in the society, thriving despite all the turmoil of regional politics. The ICM has also been part of an on-again, off-again parliamentary coalition that has successfully used constitutional prerogatives to pass legislation and question ministers. Those parliamentary prerogatives had been rarely used in the past, partly because on two occasions their use had provoked the amir to suspend parliament. But as much as it has accomplished, the ICM still stands o it.
Homework (2): Review on the paper HYPERLINK "javascript:fn_view('2600746');" “Israel and the Arab Peace Initiative 2002-2014.” Student No.: Name:Elie Podeh, “Israel and the Arab Peace Initiative, 2002-2014: A Plausible Missed Opportunity,” The Middle East Journal, vol. 23, no.2, (April 2012), pp. 89–103. (In Young Chol Choe [Ed.], The Thought and Culture in the Islam World, 2020).1. Summarize the main points of the Arab Peace Initiative (API), which was adopted by the 2002 Arab League Summit in Beirut.The Arab League members unanimously endorsed the peace initiative on March 27. It consists of a comprehensive proposal to end the entire Arab–Israeli conflict. It provides in a relevant part:Complete withdrawal from the occupied Arab territories, including the Syrian Golan Heights, to the 4 June 1967 line and the territories still occupied in southern LebanonAttain a just solution to the problem of Palestinian refugees to be agreed upon in accordance with the HYPERLINK "https://en.wikiped states will do the following: (a) Consider the Arab–Israeli conflict over, sign a peace agreement with Israel, and achieve peace for all states in the region (b) Establish normal relations with Israel within the framework of this comprehensive peace.2. Describe the Israeli positions toward the Arab Peace Initiative (API).Israeli officials have made many different responses ranging from positive, to neutral, to negative. When the plan came out in 2002, the Israeli government rejected the initiative, on the grounds that it would result in the return of a large number of Palestinian refugees into Israel. Israel expressed reservations on "red line" issues on which it stated that it would not compromise. HYPERLINK "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arab_Peace_Initiative" l "cite_note-Haaretz-28" ] HYPERLINK "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oslo_Agreement" o "Oslo Agreement" Oslo Agreement negotiator Joel Singer commented shortly after the Beirut Summit that "the major problem with it is that iirst proposed". HYPERLINK "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shimon_Peres" o "Shimon Peres" Shimon Peres in a meeting with Arab leaders at the HYPERLINK "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_Economic_Forum" o "World Economic Forum" World Economic Forum in HYPERLINK "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jordan" o "Jordan" Jordan in May 2007 said that his government would mount a counter-proposal. An HYPERLINK "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Israeli_Foreign_Ministry" o "Israeli Foreign Ministry" Israeli Foreign Ministry spokesman said that "Israel has no interest in stagnation and unfortunately, if the Arab initiative is take it or leave it, that will be a recipe for stagnation". In October 2008, it was reported that the Israeli government were considering the Saudi offer and Defense Minister HYPERLINK "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ehud_Barak" o "Ehud Barak" Ehud Barak again suggested a counter-proposal. But so far, no Israeli government has made any formal counter-proposal.3. Why Israeli goverately coincided with a series of suicide bombings in Israel, precluding the Israeli leadership from serious consideration of the proposal.4. What are the differences between the conditions of the Bill Clinton’s proposal in 2000 and that of the 2002 Arab Peace Initiative (API)?Bill Clinton’s proposal in 2000The two sides(Israel and Palestine) agreed that the aim of their negotiations is to put an end to decades of conflict and achieve a just and lasting peace.The two sides commit themselves to continue their efforts to conclude an agreement on all permanent status issues as soon as possible.Both sides agree that negotiations based on HYPERLINK "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/UN_Security_Council" o "UN Security Council" UN Security Council Resolutions HYPERLINK "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/UN_Security_Council_Resolution_242" o "UN Security Council Resolution 242" 242 and HYPERLINK "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/UN_Security_Council_Resolution_338" o "UN Security Council Resolution 338 agree that the United States remains a vital partner in the search for peace and will continue to consult closely with President Clinton and Secretary HYPERLINK "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Madeleine_Albright" o "Madeleine Albright" Albright in the period ahead.2002 Arab Peace Initiative(API)Complete its withdrawal from the occupied Arab territories, including the Syrian Golan Heights to the June 4, 1967, line and from the territories still occupied in southern LebanonAttain a just solution to the problem of Palestinian refugees to be agreed upon in accordance with the U.N. General Assembly Resolution 194Accept the establishment of an independent and sovereign Palestinian state on the Palestinian territories occupied since June 4, 1967, in the West Bank and Gaza Strip with East Jerusalem as its capital5. What could be a peaceful solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflicts?The clue to the solution is the attitude of the two peoples. Before thinking of each other as country-to-natiist.
1. Describe the main elements of the Muhammad’s ministry for the propagation of Islam in the seventh century according to the Film ‘Message’a. Equality In the seventh century, Mecca's population consisted of a small number of wealthy merchants and an absolute majority of slaves. Even liberated slaves were practically slaves with owners. Islam, which has claimed complete equality before God from the beginning, emphasizes brotherhood. In the movie, people are all equal regardless of gender or religion. This is a very modern idea and it was supported by many people.