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An introduction to a series of articles entitled, "Voices within Islam: four perspectives on tolerance and diversity" notes that the articles cover several issues: Islam's compatibility with democracy, Islam's relationship with political violence, and the themes of renewal, tolerance, and dissent in Islam. Brief biographical sketches of each of the authors are presented in the introduction. In "Radicalism emerges from tyranny," Gamal al-Banna argues that the tyranny of Egypt's secular government in the 1950s and 1960s led to the rise of radical, violent Islamic groups. A cycle of violence between the governments and the Islamic movements ensued. In "A call for reformation," Muhammad Shahrur argues that violent Islamic religious groups reflect important distinctions between Western and Muslim societies, eg, a perceived religious obligation to obey rulers in Islam, the comprehensive nature of Islamic law, and anachronistic thinking in the Muslim world. It is argued that Islam has not made enough changes in response to modern ideas about science, technology, politics, or civil rights. Muslims should create a contemporary Islamic theory on state and society that incorporates more modern ideas, and Islamic law should be reinterpreted from a modern perspective. In "Freedom of thought and religion," Mohsen Kadivar argues that the Koran mandates that Muslims refrain from imposing their faith on non-Muslims, and indicates that everyone has the right to choose their own faith. Similarly, in "Islam and tolerance," Mohammad Boujnourdi contends that tolerance of other religions is a basic principle of Islam.