“Building the World” in a Global Age

Abstract

Islam has become the emblem of many resurgent nationalisms and violent “fundamentalisms” that have emerged in the Middle East in reaction to globalization. But this version of Islam does not stand alone; there are indeed multiple Islams, and for all the attention to the extremism and violence symbolized by the 9/11, 2001 terrorist attacks reluctant awareness has begun to seep in of a far more important, diverse, and vital transnational Islamic mainstream. Known in Arabic as the wasatiya, the Islamic mainstream claims hundreds of millions of adherents and is growing steadily.