Becoming Better Muslims by David Kloos
How do ordinary Muslims deal with and influence the increasingly pervasive Islamic norms set by institutions of the state and religion? Becoming Better Muslims offers an innovative account of the dynamic interactions between individual Muslims, religious authorities, and the state in Aceh, Indonesia. Relying on extensive historical and ethnographic research, David Kloos offers a detailed analysis of religious life in Aceh and an investigation into today's personal processes of ethical formation. Aceh is known for its history of rebellion and its recent implementation of Islamic law. Debunking the stereotypical image of the Acehnese as inherently pious or fanatical, Kloos shows how Acehnese Muslims reflect consciously on their faith and often frame their religious lives in terms of gradual ethical improvement. Revealing that most Muslims view their lives through the prism of uncertainty, doubt, and imperfection, he argues that these senses of failure contribute strongly to how individuals try to become better Muslims. He also demonstrates that while religious authorities have encroached on believers and local communities, constraining them in their beliefs and practices, the same process has enabled ordinary Muslims to reflect on moral choices and dilemmas, and to shape the ways religious norms are enforced. Arguing that Islamic norms are carried out through daily negotiations and contestations rather than blind conformity, Becoming Better Muslims examines how ordinary people develop and exercise their religious agency.
"Winner of the EuroSEAS Social Science Book Prize, European Association for Southeast Asian Studies"
"Becoming Better Muslims is an important contribution to the study of state-Islam relations in Indonesia and beyondIt is beautifully written and therefore provides easy access to a complex topic."---Michael Buehler, Politics, Religion & Ideology
"Kloos’ and Hew’s beautifully written ethnographies present different faces of Indonesian Islam that are equally complex, contrasting and plural in their own ways."---Charlotte Setijadi, Contemporary Southeast Asia
"Becoming Better Muslims is an important contribution to the study of state-Islam relations in Indonesia and beyondIt is beautifully written and therefore provides easy access to a complex topic."---Michael Buehler, Politics, Religion & Ideology
"Kloos’ and Hew’s beautifully written ethnographies present different faces of Indonesian Islam that are equally complex, contrasting and plural in their own ways."---Charlotte Setijadi, Contemporary Southeast Asia
David Kloos is a researcher at the Royal Netherlands Institute of Southeast Asian and Caribbean Studies (KITLV) in Leiden.
| SKU | Unavailable |
| ISBN 13 | 9780691176659 |
| ISBN 10 | 0691176655 |
| Title | Becoming Better Muslims |
| Author | David Kloos |
| Series | Princeton Studies In Muslim Politics |
| Condition | Unavailable |
| Binding Type | Paperback |
| Publisher | Princeton University Press |
| Year published | 2017-11-28 |
| Number of pages | 240 |
| Cover note | Book picture is for illustrative purposes only, actual binding, cover or edition may vary. |
| Note | Unavailable |