"Now Ed Husain and another, less well-known, man, Maajid Nawaz, are launching Quilliam (named after a 19th century British convert) as the counter-argument to extremism.
They say Islam in its purest universal form, as the last message of God to mankind, sits perfectly well in modern multicultural societies - providing that Muslims find the right way to express their faith.
And if British Muslims rediscover the purity of the faith, they argue, they can cast off the political and cultural baggage that would see Islam as the enemy of the West.
This is, however, an argument fraught with danger - which is why Quilliam's progress will be interesting to watch.
Quilliam's strategy is to bathe in the media and political spotlight - but to back this up with a coherent grassroots campaign of rigorous ideas.
And so it hopes to become a rolling ball gathering the moss of former Islamists - and the more moss it gathers, the greater its momentum in communities.
Its founders have deliberately avoided using the difficult theological term of "reformation" - but the think tank is determined to sell the idea of a "Western Islam".
The organisation initially in its sights is Hizb ut-Tahrir.
By coincidence, it sent out an e-mail on the morning of Quilliam's launch, calling on supporters to "Stand for Islam" against the onslaught of Western values. It appears to be feeling the heat."
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/7360652.stm
They say Islam in its purest universal form, as the last message of God to mankind, sits perfectly well in modern multicultural societies - providing that Muslims find the right way to express their faith.
And if British Muslims rediscover the purity of the faith, they argue, they can cast off the political and cultural baggage that would see Islam as the enemy of the West.
This is, however, an argument fraught with danger - which is why Quilliam's progress will be interesting to watch.
Quilliam's strategy is to bathe in the media and political spotlight - but to back this up with a coherent grassroots campaign of rigorous ideas.
And so it hopes to become a rolling ball gathering the moss of former Islamists - and the more moss it gathers, the greater its momentum in communities.
Its founders have deliberately avoided using the difficult theological term of "reformation" - but the think tank is determined to sell the idea of a "Western Islam".
The organisation initially in its sights is Hizb ut-Tahrir.
By coincidence, it sent out an e-mail on the morning of Quilliam's launch, calling on supporters to "Stand for Islam" against the onslaught of Western values. It appears to be feeling the heat."
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/7360652.stm
