"The most devout—the prophet, his companions, and their earliest followers—had enjoyed unimaginable success, conquering the entirety of North Africa, then spreading out through Spain and into France within a hundred years of the prophet’s passing.
"Then came the trauma of colonialism, when much of the Muslim world fell under direct, and often brutal, European control.
...
"After centuries of dominance, the various Islamic empires were gradually eclipsed by a rising Europe."Then came the trauma of colonialism, when much of the Muslim world fell under direct, and often brutal, European control.
...
"Perceptions of decline were often overlaid with a kind of theological determinism. Was the decline some sort of divine retribution?
...
"After all, God had promised glad tidings for those who followed his commands, and he had, seemingly, delivered for centuries.
...
"This must have been evidence of their righteousness. That, though, could only mean that the territorial contraction of once-great empires must have been evidence of sin and decadence."
