Islam in China: Professor James Frankel: Kowloon Masjid Dawah Committee :Nov 20, 2023

 YouTube Video: 

Excellent Lecture with Slides Presentation

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XryyGBM5_z8&t=287s

YouTube Video: Professor James D. Frankel's Journey to Islam: The Quran Motivation: March 25,2026

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1ADpdeR7tIs&t=733s

Professor James D. Frankel was born into a Jewish family and raised with basic religious values. From a young age, he was deeply curious and constantly questioned rabbis about God and religious practices. However, when he couldn’t find satisfying answers, he began to drift away from Judaism and started searching for truth through other religions. He explored different beliefs, studying the Bible and developing love and respect for Jesus, but he could not accept him as God. His journey led him to Buddhism, the Upanishads, and various philosophies. Interestingly, although his close Pakistani friend had gifted him a copy of the Quran years earlier, it remained untouched on his shelf for a long time. Everything changed when he encountered a street dawah conversation that challenged him deeply. In an attempt to prove a point, he finally opened the Quran. Instead of what he expected, he found clarity, truth, and a powerful connection with Allah. That moment marked a turning point in his life, leading him to accept Islam and begin a completely new journey of faith.

Website: James D. Frankel

https://www.jamesdfrankel.com/

Amazon: Islam in China: James D. Frankel

https://www.amazon.com/Islam-China-James-D-Frankel/dp/1784539805

In China there are up to 25 million Muslims living in the country, representing over 1200 years of Chinese-Islamic relations. However, little is known about the historical and contemporary geopolitical relations between China and the Muslim world, or the situation for the diverse groups of Muslims living in China today. In this book, James Frankel studies the rich and dynamic history of Muslims in China from the Tang dynasty (618-907) to the present day. He shows that Muslims in China remain an internally diverse population separated geographically, ethnically, linguistically, economically, educationally, and along sectarian and kinship lines. But despite having its own local flavours and accents, Islam in China is recognisable as the same religious tradition practiced by approximately 1.8 billion Muslims worldwide and Muslims in China are inextricably part of society, living alongside other minorities and amongst the great Han Chinese majority. Tracing 1200 years of history, this book shows that Muslim communities in China have undergone tremendous change, touched by the forces of Chinese history, the development of Islamic traditions outside China, and geopolitics. In highlighting the paradoxical situation in which Chinese Muslims have found themselves - living as both insiders and outsiders to Chinese society and state - the book examines why after so many centuries of habitation and naturalisation, Muslims in China are still stigmatized by their perceived alien origins. The book follows the ‘yin and yang’ of compatibility and difference and the connections and ruptures between two great civilisations.

James D. Frankel is an Associate Professor in the Department of Cultural and Religious Studies and Director of the Centre for the Study of Islamic Culture at The Chinese University of Hong Kong.

Article PDF: Chinese–Islamic Connections: An Historical and Contemporary Overview: James D. Frankel-Journal of Muslim Minority Affairs

http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/13602004.2016.1248175