Author's Preface, Introduction, 1-What is Modernity?; 2-What is Religious Fundamentalism?; 3-The Islamic Vision of Sir Syed; 4-Religious Pluralism and Islam; 5-Tolerance and Islam; 6-Democracy and Islam; 7-The Concept of an Islamic Economic System; 8-Inter-religious Marriage and Islam; 9-Sex Morality and Islam; 10-Modern Penology and Islam; Afterword, Appendix 1 About the Author, Appendix 2 The Quest For The Meaning of Islam, Index

The Call Of Modernity And Islam is a timely and welcome anthology of ten scholarly essays that focus creatively on the urgent need to re-energize Islamic culture and institutions. The essays span an enormous disciplinary range. Professor Khwaja moves back and forth with consummate ease between religion, science, philosophy, history, and the social sciences to paint a fully integrated, big picture of the encounter between Islam and modernity. In this work he applies the intellectual insights of authentic Islamic liberalism to the urgent task of developing the robust institutions and cultural norms that will enable Muslims to survive, compete, and thrive in today's milieu. The result is a nuanced and insightful examination of many perplexing questions. The Author proposes a sensible intellectual framework that shows how the much sought after renaissance of the Islamic world can be achieved. His courage to make a new beginning is rooted in deeply held beliefs about the merciful guidance of God, the absolute veracity of the Quran and the authenticity of His messenger Muhammad. At once scholarly and wise, this book will have a transformative impact on both the lay reader and the specialist. It will appeal greatly to all Muslims who desire to see their faith renewed from within.

Born in 1926, Jamal Khwaja has devoted a lifetime to the challenge of understanding and living the Quran with integrity. His forefathers worked closely with Sir Syed Ahmed Khan, and with Mahatma Gandhi. Khwaja studied philosophy in India and Europe. In 1957 he was elected to the Indian Parliament. However, his engagement with power politics was short lived. In 1962 he returned to his beloved, scholarly and contemplative lifestyle at the Aligarh Muslim University. He retired as Professor and Chairman of the Department of Philosophy. He is the author of seven major books.
Khwaja's work seeks to answer three inter-related questions: Firstly, What does it mean to be an authentic Muslim? Secondly, How should a believer understand and interpret the Holy Quran in the 21st century? And finally, What is the role of Islam in a pluralistic society?
Anyone interested in the intersection of Islam and Modernity will find Khwaja to be a reliable guide. His work is magisterial in scope. It is full of passion but remains balanced in perspective.
Khwaja believes in judiciously creative modernization rooted in the Quran and firmly opposes shallow, unprincipled imitation of the West. His mission is to stimulate serious rethinking and informed dialog between tradition and modernity in Islam.
Khwaja's work is the definitive contemporary discussion regarding the collision of Islam and Modernity. Readers of his work will be in turn, informed, inspired, and intellectually liberated.