WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 9, 2009

CHICAGO AND THE WORLD FORUM

ARC OF CRISIS: THE GREATER MIDDLE EAST AT A CROSSROADS

ADVANCE REGISTRATION IS NOW CLOSED. PLEASE REGISTER AT THE DOOR.

GOD AND GLOBALIZATION IN THE GREATER MIDDLE EAST

Reza Aslan, Author and Senior Fellow, Orfalea Center on Global and International Studies, University of California, Santa Barbara

The watershed events of 1979 undoubtedly led to a rise in the pervasiveness of religious extremism in the greater Middle East. Scholar and writer Reza Aslan avers that despite all the confident predictions about the death of God, religion is a stronger, more global force today than it has been in generations – with the growth of conservative and fundamentalist believers outpacing that of moderates, liberals, the unaffiliated, and atheists. Aslan will discuss the rise of religious fundamentalism from Lahore to Jerusalem, and how globalization has blurred the line between religion and politics in the contemporary greater Middle East.

Reza Aslan is the author of the New York Times bestselling, No god but God: The Origins, Evolution, and Future of Islam, which has been translated into thirteen languages, and How to Win a Cosmic War: God, Globalization, and the End of the War on Terror. He is a cofounder and creative director of BoomGen Studios, a mini studio and media company focusing on creative content from and about the Middle East, as well as the Editorial Executive of Mecca.com, an on-line community for Muslim youth. Born in Iran, he now lives in Los Angeles where he is assistant professor of Creative Writing at University of California, Riverside. He received his B.A. from Santa Clara University, his M.T.S. from Harvard Divinity School, his M.F.A. from the University of Iowa, and his Ph.D. from University of California, Santa Barbara.

His latest book, How to Win a Cosmic War, will be available for purchase and signing following the program.

Additional Materials:

• Reza Aslan, "Naive Obama Gets Iran Results," The Daily Beast
• Reza Aslan, "Obama's Last Iran Option," The Daily Beast
• Reza Aslan, "The Skunk at the Party," The Daily Beast
• Reza Aslan, "The End of the Beginning," Foreign Policy
• Reza Aslan, "Losing the 'war on terror'," Op-Ed, Los Angeles Times
• "How to Win a Cosmic War: God, Globalization, and the End of the War on Terror," Book Review, The Washington Post

InterContinental Hotel
505 North Michigan Avenue
Chicago, IL 60611

5:30 p.m. Cash bar reception
6:00 p.m. Presentation and discussion
7:15 p.m. Program adjournment and book signing

Young Professional Members $10
Members $20
Nonmembers $30
President’s Circle, Corporate Members, and Student Members complimentary

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