Nursi Studies

Islamic ethical reasoning involves bringing together information, values and principles in the context of real human needs. The complexity of ethical reasoning requires the ethicist to be able to manage a great deal of information of varying importance as well as conflicting norms. Continue reading →

26 – 27 June 2012

Following the first conference of Social Thought and Sociology in the Contemporary Middle East” by Iranian Sociological Association and its local and international coordinators and supporters, including International Sociological Association ,in Tehran (28-29 May 2011)[1],  the second conference is going to be held in Istanbul, Turkey.     

 Conference theme

The theme of the conference is the origin and development of social thought and theory in the Muslim world. Papers are expected to focus on thinkers and ideas from West Asia/North Africa as well as other parts of the Muslim world that have contributed or that can potentially contribute to building theories and concepts for sociology and philosophy of society. Papers have to go beyond making the claim that this can be done to providing examples of how this is done. The examples of thinkers that are potential sources of social thought and theory are Al-Biruni, Ibn Khaldun, Ziya Gokalp, Said Nursi, Reshit Rıza, Mohammed Abed Al-Jabiri, Allameh Tabatabaii, Ali Shariati and many others. It has frequently been claimed that these are original thinkers who have potential contributions to modern sociology but it has rarely been shown what their sociological contributions are and how sociological concepts and theories can be derived from their works. This conference is expected to provide such focus. Following are the sub-themes of the conference:

The creedal/theoretical foundations of social thought in Islam – the papers of these panels would focus on tradition as a source of sociological theorizing.

1. Early Social Thinkers – papers in these panels would focus on the works of early Muslim thinkers like al-Farabi, Abu Talib al-Makki, al-Biruni and Ibn Khaldun discussing their ideas and theories concerning society.
2. Founders of Social Thought and Theory Outside of the Canon – the papers of these panels would focus on theories and ideas of modern thinkers outside of the Western canon who lived in the modern period and contributed to the systematic understanding of the social world.
3. Developing a New Agenda for Sociology and a New Perspective in Philosophy of Society– the papers of these panels would identify and discuss new and original topics of research that arise from local and regional concerns. The purpose of this sub-theme is to present and discuss examples of how original social theorizing can translate into empirical research projects.

Organizers: Yildiz Technical University; Istanbul Foundation for Science & Culture; Ibn Khaldun Society. Supporting orgnizations are Faculty of World Studies, University of Tehran; Institute for Religion and Contemporary Thought, Mashhad; Institute of Humanities and Cultural Studies, Tehran; Iranian Sociological Association; Department of Social and Behavioral Sciences, American University of Beirut; and Department of Malay Studies, National University of Singapore.

Contact persson: Mr. Hakan Gulerce hakangulerce@istanbul.edu.tr

Languages: English, Turkish

2012-04-22

Call for Papers

4^th Graduate Conference Istanbul (23-24 June, 2012)

Istanbul Foundation for Science and Culture

Bediuzzaman Said Nursi and the Tradition of Religious Renewal (tajdid)

 A well-known Prophetic Tradition (hadith), recorded in the Sunan of Abu Dawud, has it that at the beginning of each century, God would send a person to revivify the Muslim community and help it to renew its faith through a return to the beliefs and practices of the early Muslim community under the leadership of the Prophet Muhammad.

Throughout Islamic history, certain figures have been deemed to fit the description of these promised “renewers” (mujaddidun) and Muslim scholars have written at length about the characteristics of these individuals and the nature of the renewal (tajdid) that they championed.

Bediuzzaman Said Nursi has been identified by the vast number of his followers as amujaddid and is thus one of the most respected scholarly figures in Muslim history. The 4^th Graduate Conference aims to study the various elements of his program of Islamic revival and also to shed light on the points of commonality and difference between Nursi and previous scholars considered to be among the mujaddidun such as Imam Ghazali and Imam Ahmad Sirhindi.

Possible topics may include, but are not limited to:

• Elements of renewal in Bediuzzaman Said Nursi’s work and thought:
  • Morality
  • Scripture and Qur’anic Exegesis
  • Theology
  • Theodicy
  • Authority and Community
  • Religion and Politics
  • Religious Pluralism
  • Methodology and/or Epistemology

Bediuzzaman Said Nursi as a mujaddid in comparison with previous scholars in the tajdidi tradition, e.g.

• Imam Ghazali
• Ibn al-Arabi
• Imam Suyuti
• Imam Ahmad Sirhindi
• Shah Waliullah Dihlawi
• Mawlana Khalid al-Baghdadi

Submission Guidelines:

To submit a proposal, please email an abstract of no more than 250 words to Hakan Gulerce at <hakangulerce@gmail.com> by 1^st March, 2012.

Acceptance notices will be sent by early March 15. Each presentation should last no longer than 20 minutes; please limit your paper submission to 10-15 double-spaced pages. This will be followed by a 20 minute Q&A session. Submissions of papers are due via e-mail (in PDF) onMay 30, 2012. Funding is available for participants to help supplement travel and accommodation expenses.

Also, please send the following as separate attachments in .doc or .pdf format to             hakangulerce@gmail.com:

A covering letter containing the following information: author’s name; title of paper;      institutional affiliation; and contact information (i.e. email, phone number and mailing            address).

PS; Only graduate students who are doing MA  and PhD are invited.

2012-02-14