Manning the Barricades: Islam According to Saudi Arabia's School Texts

The Saudi educational system has been criticized in the United States for allegedly inciting anti-Western sentiments, but is this criticism deserved? The present article is based on a reading of the kingdom's mandatory religion texts in the subjects of Islamic jurisprudence, hadith, and tawhid for the 9th through 12th grades. It reveals that, while the texts do include repetitive warnings about dealing with non-Muslims, much of the criticism reflects a selective reading and imputes hostile messages to the texts when, on the whole, it is fear and defensiveness that are implied. The article suggests that the religion curriculum fails to give Saudi students an adequate appreciation of the varieties of Islamic interpretation, and that the method of instruction does not serve the development of critical thinking skills.