Book contents
- Heroes to Hostages
- The Global Middle East
- Heroes to Hostages
- Copyright page
- Dedication
- Contents
- Figures
- Preface
- Acknowledgments
- A Note on Transliteration
- Introduction Heroes or Hostages
- Part I Uncertain Overtures (1796–1914)
- 1 Pluralist Persia
- 2 “The Portals of Persepolis”
- 3 A Martyr and Many Masters
- Part II Desultory Modernities (1914–1941)
- Part III Cataclysms (1941–1963)
- Part IV A Troubled Middle East (1960–1979)
- Part V The Schism (1978–1988)
- Bibliography
- Index
1 - Pluralist Persia
A Land of Many Religions
from Part I - Uncertain Overtures (1796–1914)
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 03 August 2023
- Heroes to Hostages
- The Global Middle East
- Heroes to Hostages
- Copyright page
- Dedication
- Contents
- Figures
- Preface
- Acknowledgments
- A Note on Transliteration
- Introduction Heroes or Hostages
- Part I Uncertain Overtures (1796–1914)
- 1 Pluralist Persia
- 2 “The Portals of Persepolis”
- 3 A Martyr and Many Masters
- Part II Desultory Modernities (1914–1941)
- Part III Cataclysms (1941–1963)
- Part IV A Troubled Middle East (1960–1979)
- Part V The Schism (1978–1988)
- Bibliography
- Index
Summary
The narrative begins with the establishment of the American Presbyterian Mission in northwestern Iran. American missionaries discovered Iran at a moment of cultural and social crisis after the Russo-Persian Wars. Iran grappled with a mixed religious environment, which, while dominated by Shia communities, had accommodated peoples of different faiths, including Zoroastrians, Jews, and Christians. The relationship with the new Babi group and its offshoot Bahaism proved more problematic because of the unique challenges they posed.
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- Heroes to HostagesAmerica and Iran, 1800–1988, pp. 17 - 36Publisher: Cambridge University PressPrint publication year: 2023