Terror in the Name of God: Why Religious Militants Kill
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"Stern's firsthand encounters bring a valuable and much-needed perspective to the problem of religious violence."--Publishers Weekly
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For four years, Jessica Stern interviewed extremist members of three religions around the world: Christians, Jews, and Muslims. Travelling extensively - to refugee camps in Lebanon, to religious schools in Pakistan, to prisons in Amman, Asqelon, and Pensacola - she discovered that the Islamic jihadi in the mountains of Pakistan and the Christian fundamentalist bomber in Oklahoma have much in common. Based on her vast research, Stern lucidly explains how terrorist organizations are formed by opportunistic leaders who - using religion as both motivation and justification - recruit the disenfranchised. She depicts how moral fervour is transformed into sophisticated organizations that strive for money, power, and attention. Jessica Stern's extensive interaction with the faces behind the terror provides unprecedented insight into acts of inexplicable horror, and enables her to suggest how terrorism can most effectively be countered. A crucial book on terrorism, Terror in the Name of God is a brilliant and thought-provoking work.
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Part 1 of this book explores the kinds of grievances that give rise to ter in the name of God. Read the first page
Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Index | Back Cover
Part 1 of this book explores the kinds of grievances that give rise to ter in the name of God. Read the first page
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Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Index | Back Cover
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase
Jessica Stern has boldly gone where few have ventured unless, of course, they are religious fundamentalists intent on terrorism on behalf of their god. She interviewed a wider range of religious fundamentalists - Christians, Jews and Muslims - in an attempt to understand what makes these people tick, in both senses of the meaning.
Investigating an attack on the CIA and asking whether the attack was a jihad, she receives the answer: "No. This was a religious duty. But not jihad. I am not sure whether God will reward me for what I did." (P 176) With answers such as this, usually delivered by seemingly rational people, probably over coffee, it is a inner-world which puzzles, frightens and alienates most people. During four years of its preparation, Stern penetrates deeply this world in this well-researched and carefully organised book. In addition to the interviews, she builds the scene carefully, creating the atmospheres in which the interviews were conducted, atmospheres which would have frightened most people. Not Stern. She pursues her quarry with intellectual and physical vigour. As an American (she lectures at Harvard), she considers much of her evidence from that standpoint, e.g. "In Egypt, Pakistan, Palestine, the Persian Gulf, Syria, Iran, Iraq, Indonesia and increasingly, Africa, a virulent anti-Americanism is gaining ground." (P 286) This edition is a 1958 investigation re-published, with additions and alterations, in 2004. A great deal has happened since then, much of which vindicates her conclusions.
The book is organised into two, each with five sub-divided sections: Part One - Grievances That Give Rise to Holy War, Part Two - Holy War Organisations, ending with recommendations and 80 pages of notes and an index.
This was a brave venture for an academic to undertake, suggesting that relationships were not as complicated in 1958, e.g. for a western lady to travel throughout the Middle East investigating fundamentalism. Having read it, I was still uncertain about my thoughts on fundamentalism and, despite all the interviews and the evidence, I did not understand it any better. (It is not my first book on this subject.)
However, I am pleased I read it and would recommend it to anyone trying to understand fundamentalist terrorism and what can be done by Governments to make their people safer. One worrying conclusion I reached is that the "war on terror" will be no conventional war and that, ultimately, unless our intelligence services are very effective, there is little we can do apart from constant vigilance and, of course, re-education.
Investigating an attack on the CIA and asking whether the attack was a jihad, she receives the answer: "No. This was a religious duty. But not jihad. I am not sure whether God will reward me for what I did." (P 176) With answers such as this, usually delivered by seemingly rational people, probably over coffee, it is a inner-world which puzzles, frightens and alienates most people. During four years of its preparation, Stern penetrates deeply this world in this well-researched and carefully organised book. In addition to the interviews, she builds the scene carefully, creating the atmospheres in which the interviews were conducted, atmospheres which would have frightened most people. Not Stern. She pursues her quarry with intellectual and physical vigour. As an American (she lectures at Harvard), she considers much of her evidence from that standpoint, e.g. "In Egypt, Pakistan, Palestine, the Persian Gulf, Syria, Iran, Iraq, Indonesia and increasingly, Africa, a virulent anti-Americanism is gaining ground." (P 286) This edition is a 1958 investigation re-published, with additions and alterations, in 2004. A great deal has happened since then, much of which vindicates her conclusions.
The book is organised into two, each with five sub-divided sections: Part One - Grievances That Give Rise to Holy War, Part Two - Holy War Organisations, ending with recommendations and 80 pages of notes and an index.
This was a brave venture for an academic to undertake, suggesting that relationships were not as complicated in 1958, e.g. for a western lady to travel throughout the Middle East investigating fundamentalism. Having read it, I was still uncertain about my thoughts on fundamentalism and, despite all the interviews and the evidence, I did not understand it any better. (It is not my first book on this subject.)
However, I am pleased I read it and would recommend it to anyone trying to understand fundamentalist terrorism and what can be done by Governments to make their people safer. One worrying conclusion I reached is that the "war on terror" will be no conventional war and that, ultimately, unless our intelligence services are very effective, there is little we can do apart from constant vigilance and, of course, re-education.
Most Helpful Customer Reviews on Amazon.com (beta)
Amazon.com:
46 reviews
97 of 102 people found the following review helpful
A cogent, well thought out treatise by a serious thinker
26 Sep 2003
Format:Hardcover
I was shocked by the ferocity with which a couple of reviewers panned this book. It reminded me of the initial outcry and emotional vetting that took place right after 9/11. Tellingly, at that moment when a vast majority of the civilian population was screaming for blood, it was the military who pushed for calmer heads to prevail. Knowing your enemy is a big part of suceeding and if we as Americans can be faulted with anything, it's our arrogance. I submit that being able to mentally hold an idea and at the same time not agreeing with it is a level of intellectual prowess not acheived by some reveiwers.
This book is fantastic. I could not put it down. Unlike most books of this sort which by necessity rely primarily on anecdotal evidence, this is serious work. It is closer to hard science in its procedure than most of the rabble rousing goobly gook masquerading as serious books on terrorism.
Prof. Stern is not trying to morally equate anything. She simply tries to expose some terrorist core motivations which are decidedly different from those of a soldier. Traditional phase-line thinking will not win thin war on terrorism. We need more thinkers of Stern's ilk to raise the level of the discourse.
45 of 47 people found the following review helpful
An excellent framework for understanding terrorism
30 Oct 2003
Format:Hardcover
In surveying books on terrorism for my college course, I found this one of the best. Wish it wasn't hardcover!
Stern analyzes the different types of reasons for terrorism (humiliation, alienation, demographics, territory, and history) and explains both on the psychological and sociological level how they operate. She also explains how the different methods of terrorism operate to bring about the psychological trance/bliss state, how terrorists become as well as their logistical operations. She describes charismatic leaders, commanders and cadres, lone wolves, and freelance franchises as forms of organization and the sometimes mixed motives of their members. She discusses terrorist organizations' relationships with states, weapons acquistion and type, recruit training, and techniques to enhance commitment.
The book covers much the same territory that Mark Juergensmeyer's "Terror in the Mind of God" covers. He does it more elegantly, with more depth, and with many of the same insights and conclusions, but Stern provides more information on the nature of organizations and a better categorization of motives. This is the broader book.
If you have strong ideological beliefs or interests in parties involved with or affected by terrorism, you probably won't like the book. Christian terrorism and Jewish terrorism exist, albeit on a vastly lower level than Islamic terrorism at the moment, but the forces behind all kinds of terrorism have much in common, as this book points out. If we can't get past emotional reactions and judgments to understand why and how these terrible and tragic events occur, then we only contribute to their perpetuation, not their alleviation.
42 of 47 people found the following review helpful
Straight from the terrorist's mouth
7 Sep 2003
Format:Hardcover
With the avalanche of books on terrorism and Islam cluttering the bookstores and library shelves, I was hesitant to plunge into this one. I am glad I reconsidered. It is a remarkable account using primary sources, primarily insiders or inmates who have been active in pursuing their perfidious goals. Many are the actual villains in some of the high profile terrorist crimes of our era.
Sparing a lot of details and personalities, you can discover them for yourself, it is enough to say that Stern has traveled the globe to conduct her interviews and compile her research. From American Fundamentalists with their addiction to targeting abortion clinics for destruction; to Hamas; Indonesians, Pakistanis et al committed to their respective jihads, the author gives a comprehensive, and often eye opening glimpse at the inside operations of a vast cross section of groups.
In establishing a common thread of psychological and economic profiles of the recruits for various terrorist groups, Stern provides useful insight for those wishing to comprehend some of the most menacing ideologues in our modern world. The story is all the more remarkable as Stern is an American professor, female, and Jewish; yet she manages, occasionally at potential risk to her safety, to penetrate conservative Muslim strongholds to obtain her information.
This is scholarly, but still well organized and readable, and I highly recommend it as a first stop for anyone seeking to get a good handle on this important issue.
Sparing a lot of details and personalities, you can discover them for yourself, it is enough to say that Stern has traveled the globe to conduct her interviews and compile her research. From American Fundamentalists with their addiction to targeting abortion clinics for destruction; to Hamas; Indonesians, Pakistanis et al committed to their respective jihads, the author gives a comprehensive, and often eye opening glimpse at the inside operations of a vast cross section of groups.
In establishing a common thread of psychological and economic profiles of the recruits for various terrorist groups, Stern provides useful insight for those wishing to comprehend some of the most menacing ideologues in our modern world. The story is all the more remarkable as Stern is an American professor, female, and Jewish; yet she manages, occasionally at potential risk to her safety, to penetrate conservative Muslim strongholds to obtain her information.
This is scholarly, but still well organized and readable, and I highly recommend it as a first stop for anyone seeking to get a good handle on this important issue.
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