Ethics of War and Peace in Islam: A Shia View

The main purpose of this study is to demonstrate that the Shia perception of war and peace is deeply rooted in the Quran and the Tradition of the Prophet and is defensive in nature. It challenges the views of some of the Shia jurists of earlier centuries regarding jihad. Perhaps the importance of this study is its relevance to prevailing situation in the heartland of the Islamic world the Middle East--and the growing tension between regional players and some Western powers, especially the United States. The increasing possibility of military conflict necessitates a re-examination of religious and ethical principles concerning the conduct of war by all parties involved. It is the first comprehensive study in its kind on this important and timely subject.

About the Author

Mohammad H. Faghfoory is professor of Islamic Studies at the George Washington University and the director of the MA Program in Islamic Studies. In addition to advising graduate students' research and theses, he teaches courses on Qur'an and Hadith, Islamic Political Thought, Sufism, Islamic Philosophy and Theology, Shi‘ite Islam, Islamic Art and Spirituality, Islam, and other related courses.

He received his Master’s degrees in history and Middle East studies from the University of Illinois, and a Master’s degree and a PhD in political science and Middle East studies from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. He has taught at the University of Tehran and has been a visiting scholar at the University of California-Los Angeles, Islamic Manuscripts Specialist at Princeton University, and at the Library of Congress, and adjunct professor of Middle East History at Mary-Washington University in Fredericksburg, Virginia. Dr. Faghfoory has written, translated, and edited twelve books, numerous book chapters, articles, and book reviews. His works have been published by the Cambridge University Press, Kazi Publishers, State University of New York Press, University Press of America, Oxford Encyclopedia of the Muslim World, International Journal of Middle East Studies, the Middle East Journal, and the International Journal of Shi‘i Studies. He has lectured extensively in the United States, Europe, and the Middle East, and participated in interfaith dialogue organized by American media. His most recent work is a translation and annotation with commentary on a two-volume study on Eschatology, published by Kazi Publishers in Chicago, 2017. This year Dr. Faghfoory published two books both by Kazi Press in Chicago: Ethics of War and Peace in Islam: A Shi‘a view; and, Voices of Three Generations: Essays in Honor of Seyyed Hossein Nasr on His 86^th Birthday. Currently, he is working on a book entitled Knowing God, another project on Clergy-State Relations in Iran: 1979-present, and a textbook on Shi‘ite Islam: Religion, Culture, and Politics.