Avoiding the traps of sensational political exposes and specialized scholarly Orientalism, Carl Ernst in Following Muhammad introduces readers to the profound spiritual resources of Islam while clarifying diversity and debate within the tradition. Framing his argument in terms of religious studies, Ernst describes how Protestant definitions of religion and anti-Muslim prejudice have affected views of Islam in Europe and America. He also covers the contemporary importance of Islam in both its traditional settings and its new locations and provides a context for understanding extremist movements like fundamentalism. He concludes with an overview of critical debates on important contemporary issues such as gender and veiling, state politics, and science and religion.
Translations and foreign editions
Indonesian translation by Anna Farida et al.: Pergulatan Islam di dunia kontemporer : doktrin dan peradaban (Bandung, Indonesia: Mizan, Khazanah Ilmu-Ilmu Islam, 2016).
Russian translation by A. A. Ezhovoy, Sleduya za Muhammadom: Pereosmyslivaya v sovremennom mire. Moscow: Sadra, 2015.
Persian translation by Ghasem Kakaie, Iqtida-yi Muhammad: Nigar-i naw bi-islam dar jahan-i mu`asir. Tehran: Hermes Press, 2011.
Arabic translation by Hamza Halayqa, `Ala Nahj Muhammad: I`adat al-tafkir fil-Islam fil-`alam al-mu`asir. Beirut: Arabic Scientific Press, 2008.
German translation by Kurt Maier, Mohammed folgen: Der Islam in der modernen Welt. Goettingen: Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht GmbH & Co., 2007.
Turkish translation by Cangüzel Güner Zülfikar: Hz. Muhammed’in Yolunda: Günümüz Dünyasında İslâmiyeti Yeniden Düşünmek. Istanbul: Okuyan Us, 2005.
India edition, New Delhi: Yoda Press, 2005.
Korean translation, Seoul: Simsan Munhwa, 2005.
UK edition, Rethinking Islam in the Contemporary World. Edinburgh: University of Edinburgh Press, 2004.