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''Islam: Beliefs and Teachings'' is an internationally recognised book by Ghulam Sarwar of the Muslim Educational Trust . It was published by Sarwar as the first English textbook for Madrasa students in Britain. OVERVIEW Many of the Trust's publications, particularly ''Islam: Beliefs and Teachings'', are sometimes offered in non-Muslim Religious Education classes across the United Kingdom , Europe and the World but are predominantly found as a standard text within Muslim schools across Britain, Europe and the rest of the World. Ed Husain writes extensively about this book in his expose of Islamic extremism, '' The Islamist ''. He says that ''"At school, Sarwar's was the main textbook for those studying RE."'' ''The Islamist'', pp 20-22 and that ''"Today, in British schools, Sarwar's book continues to be used in RE classrooms"'' and that ''"In mosques and Muslim homes across Britain it is promoted as an introductory text for young Muslims."'' As of Amazon.co.uk sales rank it reached #157,453. PUBLICATION DETAILS
Overseas editions: French, Norwegian, Romanian, Chinese and Bengali Inside book cover Sarwar notes in his preface to the 8th Edition, January 2006, that ''"I feel humbled to note that 275,000 copies of my book 'Islam: Beliefs and Teachings' have been printed in England since 1980"''. Author's preface to the 8th edition, page 7, January 2006. APPROVING CRITIQUE The Independent newspaper call it a ''"popular school textbook"'' http://www.independent.co.uk/arts/books/reviews/article2537295.ece The Times newspaper say that it is a ''"standard text for Muslim religious education"'' http://entertainment.timesonline.co.uk/tol/arts_and_entertainment/books/article1702333.ece CRITICAL RECEPTION Husain states that ''"The first book I read about Islam in English was ''Islam: Beliefs and Teachings'' by Gulam Sarwar"'' and goes on to state that after only being taught about Islam orally by his family, Sarwars book ''"filled a gap"''. As he was taught that Islam and politics do not mix he says that ''"one part of the book has stayed with me."'' This being the chapter "Political System in Islam" . He says that Sarwar said that Politics within Islam is fundamental. Husain goes on to say that ''"What I did not know at school was that Sarwar was a business management lecturer, not a scholar of religion. And he was an activist in the organisations that he mentioned Muslim Brotherhood and Jamat-e-Islami ]. Sarwar's book was not the dispassionate educational treatise it purported to be."'' and that ''"He was also the brains behind the separation of Muslim children from school assemblies into what we called 'Muslim assembly', managed by the Muslim Educational Trust (MET) which Sarwar is the Director . What seemed like an innocuous body was, in fact, an organisation with an agenda. In my school, a Jamat-e-Islami activist named Abdul Rabb represented the MET and awarded us trophies and medals for our performance in MET exams. Ostensibly it all seemed harmless, but the personnel all belonged to Jamat-e-Islami front organisations in Britain. Their key message was that Islam was not merely a religion but also an ideology that sought political power and was beginning to make headway."'' However, when Husain quotes Sarwar on page 21 of ''The Islamist'' regarding politics and Islam (page 169 of Sarwar's book), he does so but, although not wrong, he words the quoting very differently to what is actually written in Sarwar's book. Additionally, as discussed above, Husain mentions that ''"What I did not know at school was that Sarwar was a business management lecturer, not a scholar of religion."'' However, it says clearly in Sarwar's book that he ''"obtained his first degree in Commerce and a masters in Business Management from the University of Dhaka, Bangkladesh"'' and that ''"For three years he taught Business Management to first-degree students in City College"''. It must be also noted that the book was written in collaboration with Usamah K. Ward , Prof Dr. Muhammad Abdul Jabbar Beg , Dr. Faruq Nurul Arefin , Dr. Muhammad Qamarul Hasan and Nasreen Sarwar , Farhat Yasmeen Sarwar , Ruqaiyyah Waris Maqsood ( Rosalyn Kendrick ) (former head of Religious Studies) and Syed Dohan Nuh . COPYRIGHT INFRINGEMENT Sarwar writes in the preface ot the 8th Edition that:
NOTES AND REFERENCES SEE ALSO EXTERNAL LINKS
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