Description
Islam has been in existence as a world religion for more than fourteen centuries. Its main mission has been to provide mercy to the whole mankind (Chapter 21: Al-Anbiya', verse 107). Muslims built a majestic Islamic civilisation and for more than 800 years, dominated one of the largest empire on the face of the earth. This civilisation has tremendously contributed to mankind in the fields of science, the arts, skills of exploration, navigation, trade and industry. Yet, till this day Islam remains a misunderstood religion, both by the Muslims and more so, the non-Muslims.
The Prime Minister of Malaysia, Dato Seri Dr. Mahathir Bin Mohamad succinctly gave his own account of the reasons for the misunderstanding when he addressed scholars at Oxford in 1996. As an eminent and respected statesman of the Muslim world, his simple, clear, logical and thought-provoking discourse provides an excellent impetus for further discussion on this important subject.
This book is a faithful record of a symposium organised by the Institute Of Islamic Understanding Malaysia (IKIM) and the Oxford Centre For Islamic Studies (OCIS), on the theme "The Islamic World and Global Cooperation: Preparing for the 21st Century", which brought together distinguised academicians and practitioners from various parts of the world with the objective of, demystifying the misconception and enhancing the understanding of Islam, while finding the best course of action for Muslims and non-Muslims to take, to make this world a much better place to live in.
