Acts of Faith: The Story of an American Muslim, the Struggle for the Soul of a Generation - Softcover

A young Muslim activist explains our critical need to counter the recruitment of youth by religious fundamentalists

Acts of Faith is Eboo Patel’s remarkable account of coming of age and coming to understand what led him toward religious pluralism rather than hatred. His story is a hopeful and moving testament to the power and passion of young people, and to the notion that we find the fulfillment of our identities in the work we do in the world.

“A beautifully written story of discovery and hope.” —President Bill Clinton

"Visionary . . . The tale of a man's increasing understanding that traditions of mercy, compassion, and social justice are embedded in every faith, and accessing them is the key to creating a pluralism that enhances fiath rather than threatening it." —Adam Mansbach, Boston Globe

"Eboo Patel is an exciting new voice of a new America: diverse but not divisive, hopeful but not utopian. He speaks for all of us from a rising generation of bright, brown and bold Americans who have much to offer a country embarking on a new millennium and in need of new blood." —Shaykh Hamza Yusuf, executive director of the Zaytuna Institute

"[Patel] shows how educating a new generation to reject religious intolerance and work for the common good is the only way the world can avoid growing fanaticism and violence. This hopeful book shows the power that is waiting to be engaged for a better future." —Jim Wallis, author of God's Politics

“Eboo Patel has crafted an elegantly written and brilliantly argued manifesto—a call to arms, really—about the importance, not of interfaith dialogue, but of interfaith cooperation. His thesis is simple: children are not born to hate; hatred is taught to them. And in a time when religion is used increasingly to justify bigotry and violence, it is up to people of faith everywhere who believe in peace, and tolerance, and pluralism, to stand up to those who preach hatred in the name of God. Acts of Faith is more than a book, it is an awakening of the mind. It should be required reading for all Americans.” —Reza Aslan, author of No god but God: The Origins, Evolution, and Future of Islam

“A remarkable book by a young Muslim and a Rhodes Scholar with a vast spiritual vision: a future in which young people join hands in service across the lines of religion. Refreshing, honest, and hopeful, it will speak to the soul of a generation yearning for a new way ahead. Give it to every young person in your life—and to yourself.” —Diana Eck, author of A New Religious America: How a ‘Christian Country’ Has Become the World’s Most Religious Diverse Nation

Eboo Patel, Ph.D., is the founder and executive director of the Interfaith Youth Core, an international nonprofit building the interfaith youth movement. He received his doctorate in the sociology of religion from Oxford University, where he studied on a Rhodes scholarship. Eboo is a regular guest on Chicago Public Radio, a regular panelist for the Washington Post/Newsweek On Faith blog, and a frequent contributor to the Op-Ed pages of The Chicago Tribune. Additionally, he has written for The Harvard Divinity School Bulletin, Utne Magazine, The Journal of Muslim Law and Culture and National Public Radio and has been featured on a range of media, including CNN Sunday Morning, NPR's Morning Edition, the PBS documentary Three Faiths, One God, The New Republic, American Public Media, the BBC, and CNN.

He serves on the Boards of the International Interfaith Center, CrossCurrents Magazine and Duke University's Islamic Studies Center and is also an active member of the Council on Foreign Relations' Religious Advisory Committee and the EastWest Institute's Task Force on American Muslims. Eboo is a sought-after speaker whose addresses include the keynote speech at the Nobel Peace Prize Forum with President Jimmy Carter and the Baccalaureate Service Address at the University of Pennsylvania. He is the co-editor of Building the Interfaith Youth Movement: Beyond Dialogue to Action. Eboo is an Ashoka Fellow, part of an elite network of social entrepreneurs with ideas that have the potential to change the world. He lives in Chicago, Illinois.