- The Oxford Handbook of Religion and Violence
- Contributors
- Introduction: The Enduring Relationship of Religion and Violence
- Violence and Nonviolence at the Heart of Hindu Ethics
- Buddhist Traditions and Violence
- Sikh Traditions and Violence
- Religion and Violence in the Jewish Traditions
- Religion and Violence in Christian Traditions
- Muslim Engagement with Injustice and Violence
- African Traditional Religion and Violence
- Religion and Violence in Pacific Island Societies
- Violence in Chinese Religious Traditions
- The Religious Problem of Evil
- Sacrifice/Human Sacrifice in Religious Traditions
- Martyrdom in Islam
- Starvation and Self-Mutilation in Religious Traditions
- Apocalyptic Religion and Violence
- Cosmic War in Religious Traditions
- Genocide and the Religious Imaginary in Rwanda
- Religious Terrorism as Performance Violence
- Christianity and Torture
- Just War and Legal Restraints
- Religiously Motivated Violence in the Abortion Debate
- Conflicts over Sacred Ground
- Religion and Political Violence
- Rituals of Death and Remembrance
- Violent Death in Religious Imagination
- Religion and Violence from a Sociological Perspective
- Religion and Violence from an Anthropological Perspective
- Religion and Violence from a Psychological Perspective
- Religion and Violence from a Political Science Perspective
- Religion and Violence from Literary Perspectives
- Religion and Violence from Christian Theological Perspectives
- Sacrificial Violence: A Problem in Ancient Religions
- Cities as One Site for Religion and Violence
- Armageddon in Christian, Sunni, and Shia Traditions
- Phenomenal Violence and the Philosophy of Religion
- The Construction of Evil and the Violence of Purification
- Mimetic Theories of Religion and Violence
- Religion and Scarcity: A New Theory for the Role of Religion in Violence
- Ritual, Religion, and Violence: An Evolutionary Perspective
- Divergent Modes of Religiosity and Armed Struggle
- A Sociotheological Approach to Understanding Religious Violence
- Index
Abstract and Keywords
This chapter, which looks at the actual or alleged cases of apocalypticism within contemporary Iranian Shi'ite, Saudi Sunni, and American Christian circles, evaluates the issue of contemporary militant apocalypticism, emphasizing the competition between its American Christian and Islamic versions. The hadith collections present contradictory reports regarding the end-time struggle between the Messiah Jesus and Dajjal. Militant near-term apocalypticism summons the power of religion, imagination, and personal conviction against any serious peace endeavor; demonizes those who work toward such endeavors; and sanctifies those who, once the tribulation or endtimes conflict is underway, kill the peacemakers. The apocalyptic messianism of American dispensationalists, and of the Salafi Sunni figures Safar al-Hawali and Ali al-Timimi, feature scenarios of Middle Eastern and global carnage ending with messianic triumph and theologically grounded rejection of Middle East peacemaking.
Keywords: militant apocalypticism, Iranian Shi'ite, Saudi Sunni, American Christian, Islamic versions, apocalyptic messianism, Safar al-Hawali, Ali al-Timimi
Michael A. Sells is John Henry Barrows Professor of the History and Literature of Islam and professor of comparative literature at the University of Chicago. He writes and teaches in the areas of religion and violence, Arabic poetry, the Qur’an, and mystical literature.
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- The Oxford Handbook of Religion and Violence
- Contributors
- Introduction: The Enduring Relationship of Religion and Violence
- Violence and Nonviolence at the Heart of Hindu Ethics
- Buddhist Traditions and Violence
- Sikh Traditions and Violence
- Religion and Violence in the Jewish Traditions
- Religion and Violence in Christian Traditions
- Muslim Engagement with Injustice and Violence
- African Traditional Religion and Violence
- Religion and Violence in Pacific Island Societies
- Violence in Chinese Religious Traditions
- The Religious Problem of Evil
- Sacrifice/Human Sacrifice in Religious Traditions
- Martyrdom in Islam
- Starvation and Self-Mutilation in Religious Traditions
- Apocalyptic Religion and Violence
- Cosmic War in Religious Traditions
- Genocide and the Religious Imaginary in Rwanda
- Religious Terrorism as Performance Violence
- Christianity and Torture
- Just War and Legal Restraints
- Religiously Motivated Violence in the Abortion Debate
- Conflicts over Sacred Ground
- Religion and Political Violence
- Rituals of Death and Remembrance
- Violent Death in Religious Imagination
- Religion and Violence from a Sociological Perspective
- Religion and Violence from an Anthropological Perspective
- Religion and Violence from a Psychological Perspective
- Religion and Violence from a Political Science Perspective
- Religion and Violence from Literary Perspectives
- Religion and Violence from Christian Theological Perspectives
- Sacrificial Violence: A Problem in Ancient Religions
- Cities as One Site for Religion and Violence
- Armageddon in Christian, Sunni, and Shia Traditions
- Phenomenal Violence and the Philosophy of Religion
- The Construction of Evil and the Violence of Purification
- Mimetic Theories of Religion and Violence
- Religion and Scarcity: A New Theory for the Role of Religion in Violence
- Ritual, Religion, and Violence: An Evolutionary Perspective
- Divergent Modes of Religiosity and Armed Struggle
- A Sociotheological Approach to Understanding Religious Violence
- Index
