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If piety, faith, and conviction constitute one side of the religious coin, then imperfection, uncertainty, and ambivalence constitute the other. Yet, scholars tend to separate these two domains and place experiences of inadequacy in everyday religious life – such as a wavering commitment, religious negligence or weakness in faith – outside the domain of religion ‘proper.’ Straying from the Straight Path breaks with this tendency by examining how self-perceived failure is, in many cases, part and parcel of religious practice and experience. Responding to the need for comparative approaches in the face of the largely separated fields of the anthropology of Islam and Christianity, this volume gives full attention to moral failure as a constitutive and potentially energizing force in the religious lives of both Muslims and Christians in different parts of the world.

The legal treatment of sexual behavior is a subject that receives little scholarly attention in the field of Middle East women’s studies. Important questions about the relationship between sexuality and the law and about the societies enforcing that relationship are rarely addressed in the current literature. Elyse Semerdjian’s “Off the Straight Path” takes a bold step toward filling that gap by offering a fascinating look at the historical progression of the treatment of illicit sex under Islamic law. Semerdjian provides a comprehensive review of the concept of zina, i.e., sexual indiscretion, by exploring the diverse interpretation of zina crime as presented in a variety of sources from the Qur’an and hadith to legal literature. She then delves into the history of legal responses to zina within the specific community of Aleppo, Syria. Drawing on a wealth of shari‘a court records, Semerdjian provides a realistic view of Syrian society during the Ottoman period. With vivid detail, she describes specific women’s lives and experiences as their cases are presented before the court. Semerdjian argues that the actual treatment of zina crimes in the courts differs substantially from sentences prescribed by codified Islamic jurisprudence. In contrast to the violent corporal punishments dictated in the Islamic legal code, the courts often punished crimes of sexual indiscretion with nonviolent sentences, such as removal from the community. Employing exceptional insight, “Off the Straight Path” presents a powerful challenge to the traditional view of Islamic law, enabling a richer understanding of Islamic society.

Islam--the Straight Path is a concise presentation of the history and spread of Islam and of the beliefs and obligations of Muslims as interpreted by some outstanding Muslim scholars of our time from Turkey, Egypt, Syria, Lebanon, Iraq, Iran, Pakistan, Indonesia, and China. The essays present a vivid picture of this faith which exerts tremendous influence on its votaries and has found its home from Morocco to Indonesia and China. The work is a portrayal of Islam as it is, with chapters devoted to subjects such as The Origin of Islam, Ideas and Movements in Islamic History, Islamic Beliefs and Code of Laws, The Rational and Mystical Interpretations of Islam, Shi'a, Islamic Culture in Arab and African Countries, Islamic Culture in Turkish Areas, Muslim Culture in Pakistan and India, Islamic Culture in China, Islam in Indonesia, and, Unity in Diversity in Islam. Each chapter epitomizes a subject which could scarcely be covered adequately in a whole book .

The inspiring story of one man's exploration of indigenous healing in a culture fighting to preserve its spiritual health. • A firsthand account of a little-known healing tradition. • A dramatic story of self-transformation by a well-respected Harvard-educated anthropologist. In the late 1970s Richard Katz, a clinical psychologist trained in anthropology, spent two years living in a remote island community in Fiji, hoping to record the practices of its healers. At the foundation of their healing, he discovered, was the concept of the straight path, a journey through life whose truth is revealed only to the extent that it is searched for with honesty and faith. It is a way of healing that in its very essence is a way of living, a path that emphasizes the spiritual dimensions of health and the relevance of these to the community. But while interviewing healers at work, Katz was drawn into an increasingly suspenseful drama. Unexplained deaths, rumors and suspicions, and the intrusion of a zealous evangelist rocked the village and soon revealed to the author the dangerous alternative to the straight path: the misuse of power that some call witchcraft. The Straight Path of the Spirit is an engrossing story of indigenous healers and a dramatic account of cultures in collision. Through the story of his own self-transformation, Katz reveals not only those aspects of life essential for the Fijians as they struggle to hold onto their identity, but also what is of importance to all of us who seek to retain our humanity.

"Hermie knows he should stay on the straight path. But oh, would you look at that juicy pear! And boy, doesn't Milt like he's having fun! And my, Caitlin looks pretty today! Finally, with a little help from friends, Hermie realizes that staying on the straight path is the only way to go."--Cover back.

Two friends . . . Two brothers . . . Two weddings . . . Too many secrets . . . Colleen MacGregor rededicated her life to God when she met and married Terence Hayworth. However, her happily-ever-after will have to wait, because she has some serious dragons to slay to sustain her marriage and keep her friendship with Gina Price intact. After fifteen years of friendship, Colleen must now draw the line and stop telling Gina everything. What did God do to her friend? Gina finds it hard to deal with Colleen's newfound faith. She thinks Colleen has become self-righteous, subjecting Gina to her holy tirades whenever the mood strikes. When Gina begins dating one brother, while simultaneously falling in love with the other, boy, does she get an earful! Gina, however, is way too busy trying to sort her way through her own murky feelings to worry about her soul. Her heart wants what it wants. Michelle Lindo-Rice explores the complicated world of female friendships. Can a friendship survive when one friend becomes saved?