Ze světa islámu – Musil Alois (2015)

Alois Musil (1868–1944) was one of the most significant Czech Orientalists, who rightfully gained international acclaim. As a Catholic priest and 'an exponent of the Austro-Hungarian court and bourgeois Czechoslovakia,' he was systematically marginalized by the communist regime from textbooks and the national memory. Partial rectifications of this state have only been achieved since the 1990s. Musil's works remain an irreplaceable source of information for researchers to this day. His scientific scope was enormous, and so is the body of work he left behind. He became a co-leader of two Bedouin tribes, and his friendship with the locals allowed him to gather insights used by biblical scholars, ethnographers, religious studies scholars, cartographers, and archaeologists. The unpublished monograph on the history, doctrine, and diverse currents of the youngest monotheistic religion titled 'From the World of Islam' was completed by the author in 1941, but could not be published during the Protectorate period. Musil's perspective on the development of Islam is based on an intimate knowledge of the life practices and attitudes of Muslims, and it still holds value in the mosaic of knowledge. Moreover, as a Catholic priest, it is an important contribution to interreligious dialogue. – Introductory study by Luboš Kropáček, Jaroslav Franc, and Pavel Žďárský. To be published...