In this first part we take a look at the Ottoman ulema in the early period, the issue of the 'caliphate', Sultan Fatih's ilmiyah reforms and Sultan Selim's defeat of the Mamluks and the response of the Arab ulema and the independence of the ulema system.

Dr Shadi Hamid discusses American liberalism, the trends towards nativism, exemplified in the near re-election of Donald Trump last year but also how he reconciles his liberal worldview with his Islamic faith.

We have brought together two Islamic thinkers and scholars that have been working for some time on rethinking Islamic governance. Ustadh Iyad Hilal runs the al-Arqam Academy in California and is a regular imam and khateeb at Masajids across his state. Kamal Hussein is a lecturer and legal expert who recently delivered a paper to academics and scholars on ‘al Sultan-al Ummah’ the authority of the Ummah

This week we bring together two commentators and analysts to make sense of the regional and international dimensions to the crisis. Sami Hamdi is the Editor-in-Chief of the International Interest. Ibrahim Moiz is a writer on South Asia with considerable insight into Afghanistan and Pakistan.

The project to reform Islam has certainly become a popular pursuit, especially of western-based think tanks and policy institutes. This week we bring together two scholars, each on either side of the reform debate, Mustafa Akyol and Dr Ovamir Anjum.

This week we have probably one of the most learned authorities on the subject. Professor Joseph Kaminski from the University of Sarajevo has recently published a really important academic work on the subject, titled Islam, Liberalism, and Ontology.

In this episode, we talk to Dr Yakoob Ahmed, an Ottoman specialist on decline and what he calls a collective Muslim amnesia as Ottoman history is erased from our lives.

In this episode, we talk to Ustadh Iyad Hilal from al-Arqam Institute about how Muslims should understand this Masjid and its precincts.

Farhat Amin speaks to Zara Choudhary founder and Editor-in-Chief of Sacred Footsteps. Zara talks about her recent article "Unveiling the Algerienne, French colonial photography", which looks at the central obsession of French colonialism to unveil Muslim women.

This week we discuss the politics of Palestine with the veteran commentator Dr Azam Tamimi. Dr Tamimi is no stranger to the debate, he has thoughtfully and with consistency raised the issues of Palestine at immense personal cost.