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Conference
Islam and Rationality: The Impact of al-Ghazālī
Thursday-Saturday, November 10-12, 2011
Mershon Center for International Security Studies
1501 Neil Ave., Columbus, OH 43201
For more information, please visit the official conference webpage
Organizer
Georges Tamer, M.S. Sofia Chair in Arabic Studies, The Ohio State University
Keynote: Eric Ormsby, The Institute of Ismaili Studies, London
"The Comedy of Reason: Strategies of Humor in al-Ghazālī"
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Overview
Abu Hāmid al-Ghazālī (1058-1111) is a central figure in the history of Islamic theology, jurisprudence, philosophy and Sufism. Of Persian origin, he lived and worked in Baghdad and in other intellectual centers of the Muslim world of the 11th and 12th century.
Besides his teaching activity in Baghdad and Tus (in Iran), al-Ghazālī wrote in Arabic and Persian on an enormous variety of subjects, which primarily include theology, Islamic law, logic, philosophy, mysticism, and epistemology. A major concern in his works involves the development of an approach to God which is both Islamic and rational; he also strove to integrate religious rationality in the worship of God and in spiritual life. His eminent works on this topic have been widely influential.
Indeed, in general, the discourse on rationality, as accepted by orthodox Islam, was largely established, articulated, and solidified by al-Ghazālī. Al-Ghazālī's influence was so widespread that he earned, in the medieval period, the unique title "The Proof of Islam" (Hujjat al-Islām); this honorific, merited by his preeminent scholarship, acknowledged the illustrious way in which he combined logic and ethics, knowledge and action, rationality and spirituality, orthodoxy and renewal of religious thought.
To commemorate the 900 year-long legacy of al-Ghazālī, an international and interdisciplinary conference will take place on November 10-12, 2011. Leading scholars in intellectual history, philosophy, Islamic law and theology, and medieval Christian and Jewish thought will convene to discuss vital aspects of al-Ghazālī's work.
Dealing with the increasingly important topic of Islam and rationality, and raising relevant questions related to the inter-religious exchange of ideas, the conference will aim to invigorate discourses between philosophy, religious studies, cultural history, and Islamic studies. The goals of this dialogue are to enhance research of and initiate new studies into the impact of al-Ghazālī's vast work and to create continuing forums for international conversation between scholars and the public on the topics of Islam, reason, and cross-cultural exchange.
Presenting Scholars
Binyamin Abrahamov, Bar-Ilan University in Israel
Ahmad Ahmad, University of California-Santa Barbara
Charles Butterworth, Maryland University
Hans Daiber, Johann Wolfgang Goethe University in Frankfurt
Threse-Anne Druart, Catholic University of America
Avner Giladi, Haifa University in Israel
Scott Girdner, Western Kentucky University
Frank Griffel, Yale University
Steven Harvey, Bar-Ilan University in Israel
Alfred L. Ivry, New York University
Birgit Krawietz, Freie Universität Berlin
Taneli Kukkonen, Canada Research Chair in the Aristotelian Tradition
Luis Xavier Lopez-Farjeat, Universidad Nacional Autonoma de Mexico (UNAM) and Universidad Panamericana
Wilferd Madelung, Institute of Islamic Studies
Yahya Michot, Hartford Seminary
Yasien Mohamed, University of the Western Cape
Eric Omsby, McGill University
M. Sait Ozervarli, Center for Islamic Studies in Istanbul
Sobhi Rayan, Al-Qāsemi Academy College in Israel
Tamar Rudavsky, The Ohio State University
Bilal Sambur, Yıldırım Beyazıt University Ankara-Turkey
Hidemi Takahashi, University of Tokyo
Richard C. Taylor, Marquette University
Panel Chairs
Stephen Dale, The Ohio State University
Richard Davis, The Ohio State University
Daniel Frank, The Ohio State University
Bruce Fudge, The Ohio State University
Jane Hathaway, The Ohio State University
Parvaneh Pourshariati, The Ohio State University
Welcoming Addresses
E. Gordon Gee, President, The Ohio State University
Craig Jenkins, Director, Mershon Center for International Security Studies
Alam Payind, Director, Middle East Studies Center
Mark Shanda, Dean of Arts and Humanities
Dieter Wanner, Associate Provost for Global Strategies and International Affairs
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Georges Tamer
M.S. Sofia Chair in Arabic Studies
Near Eastern Languages and Cultures
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