In our December 2001/January 2002 issue, Khaled Abou El Fadl opened a discussion on the place of pluralism and tolerance in Islam. While Abou El Fadl argued for the centrality of tolerance, kindness, and justice in the Qur'an, he also insisted that Islamic scriptures, like all religious texts, provide "possibilities for meaning, not inevitabilities." So the argument against Islamic fundamentalism cannot simply be textual. In this issue, the discussion continues. Three prominent students of Islam engage Abou El Fadl's comments about the history of Islam, the nature of religious interpretation, and the contemporary role of Islamic "puritans."    

—Joshua Cohen