'Ulama', Politics, and the Public Sphere

Meir Hatina is a lecturer in the Department of Islamic and Middle Eastern Studies, at the Institute for Asian and African Studies, Hebrew University of Jerusalem

A Note on Transliteration Preface Introduction. 'Ulama' and Modernity: A Reappraisal Part One. The 'Ulama' of Egypt 1. A Historical Sketch 2. Modernization and Protest Part Two. Azharis and the 'Urabi Revolt, 1881-1882 3. Islam and Dissidence 4. In Defense of Religion and Homeland 5. Exile as a Prism for Cultural Interaction Part Three. Confronting a Changing World 6. Debating Islam 7. Al-Azhar and the Egyptian Nation-State 8. 'Ulama' in the Middle East: A Comparative Perspective 9. Conclusion Notes Bibliography

"Drawing on a wide range of secondary and primary sources in Arabic, the author presents a detailed account of Egypt's ulama. Contrary to the standard scholarly view, which presents the ulama as quietly succumbing to the forces of modernization, the author demonstrates that the clerics reacted in complex and diverse ways. In so doing, he provides the ulama with agency, turning them into historical actors who shaped their fate at a crucial juncture in modern Middle East history. The book fills a major gap in the academic literature."-John Calvert, Creighton University