Seminario: Intolerance and Persecution of Religious Deviance Within Islam

Thursday, 4 March will take place the Forum on Religion Seminar on:

'Intolerance and Persecution of Religious Deviance Within Islam: The Case of the Ahmadiyya Community in Indonesia'

-- Professor John Sidel, Department of Government, LSE

The study of religion includes a rich literature on intolerance and persecution of religious deviance in Christianity, but very little in the context of Islam. This lacuna is especially striking and unfortunate, given the prevalent perceptions in the West of Islam as a faith which is particularly strict in its interpretation and application of religious doctrine. Against this backdrop, Professor Sidel's lecture is intended to subject patterns of religious intolerance and persecution within Islam to comparative analysis and theoretical illumination, situating the case of attacks on Ahmadiyya communities and 'deviant sects' (aliran sesat) in Indonesia since 2005 against a broader history of religious violence in the country and beyond.

The seminar will take place from 5:30-7pm in the Cañada Blanch Room (J116), Cowdray House, Portugal Street, London WC2A 2AE