Conviction and Conflict: Islam, Christianity and World Order

Bishop Michael Nazir-Ali was born of mixed parentage - his mother a Muslim and his father a Christian. At an early age, he opted for the faith of his father and went to Cambridge to study theology. He is only the second non-white Bishop to be appointed in England and the first to be appointed a diocesan bishop.

In this new book, the author examines the roots of religious conflict in the modern world, something he is well qualified to do. He is a consultant to the Prime Minister on Muslim affairs. Religion is now a key issue, possibly the key issue, in the major conflicts of the world and the author's views are taken with the greatest seriousness.

In the opening section of the book, the author sets out some fundamental guidelines on the role of religion in society and its relationship to nationalism, ideology and political institutions. For this section the Bishop has drawn on exceptionally interesting interviews that he carried out with the Chief Justice of Pakistan.

He examines Christian-Muslim dialogue with particular relationship to the Dhimma system and the rise of Arab, Indian and Turkish nationalism. Of particular concern is the relationship of religion to law and the justifiability of armed conflict.

In the final section the author argues a way forward based on a wider exchange between cultures and countries but always by discussing Islam on its own terms rather than through the views of outsiders.