Islamic Ethics of Life (Studies in Comparative Religion Series): Abortion, War, and Euthanasia

Brockopp (religious studies, Pennsylvania State U.) presents nine studies that examine Muslim responses to the ethics of taking and saving life as embodied in discussions of abortion, war, and euthanasia. Each issue is tackled separately, with sections looking at Islamic treatments of the question in past and contemporary eras. Unlike far too many Western treatments of the broader subject, chapters admit varying strands in Islamic thought and tradition. Although two of the issues picked are seen by the editor to be more of concern to Western ethicists, he argues that the project is necessary to fill a gap in comparative ethics and religion studies. Annotation ©2003 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR

Library Journal

This book takes a detailed look at Islamic teachings regarding the life-and-death ethical issues of abortion, war, and euthanasia. Brockopp (religion, Bard Coll.) assembled the work not to provide specific answers but to "show how Muslims frame the questions in terms of their particular religious viewpoint." The introductory chapter provides a very cogent framework for understanding the historical and current Islamic approach to ethical issues, focusing on the nature and use of primary sources in this field. The nine contributors are all scholars of Islam, and their essays are detailed and comprehensive. The three central issues are addressed in chapters that cover such topics as contemporary Muslim ethics of abortion, saving and taking life in war, and brain death. A glossary is included. Although current popular interest in Islam includes curiosity about the issues covered in this book (especially war), it is meant for serious students of Islam and is written at a level appropriate for upper-level undergraduates and above. Recommended for academic libraries.-Stephen Joseph, Butler Cty. Community Coll. Lib., Pittsburgh Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information.

JONATHAN E. BROCKOPP is an assistant professor of religion at Bard College. The holder of graduate degrees from Yale University, he has published widely in the fields of Islamic law and Islamic ethics. His most recent book, written with Jacob Neusner and Tamara Sonn, is Judaism and Islam in Practice: A Sourcebook. He lives in Rhinebeck, New York.