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Muslim-Christian Workshop on Philosophy-Theology-Science
July 9, 2017 - July 14, 2017
July 9-14, 2017, The Royal Institute for Inter-Faith Studies, Amman, Jordan
The purpose of this conference is to provide a forum for philosophical and theological work by Muslim and Christian philosophy or theology graduate students and early career professors.
Sponsors
- The Kaufman Interfaith Institute
- The Royal Institute for Inter-Faith Studies
Workshop Leaders
- Kelly James Clark, “God and the Brain” Kaufman Interfaith Institute, Grand Valley State University, USA
- Nidhal Guessoum, “Science and Theism”, American University of Sharjah, UAE
Call for Papers
Submissions are restricted to Muslim graduate students and early career professors from any middle eastern country as well as from Morocco, Egypt, Algeria, Turkey, Pakistan and India. Papers must be in English and have philosophical or philosophical-theological (as opposed to, say, purely historical or scientific or exegetical) content (suggested topics below). Electronic submissions (.doc or pdf) are required and should be sent as an attachment to Sue Spears at spearss@gvsu.edu. Submissions should include both the paper and an abstract of 100-200 words. Papers should be 2500-3000 words and prepared for anonymous review. Please include the following in the body of the email:
- Author’s name
- Paper’s title
- Institutional affiliation (if any)
- Word count
Submission deadline is May 31, 2017. Papers will be reviewed by the conference planning committee. Notification of acceptance will be made via email by June 7. We will cover both travel and conference expenses for all accepted presenters.
Suggested Topics
We are aiming more for critical reflection than historical or exegetical constructions of the following issues.
Issues in theism: theistic arguments, rationality and religious belief, the problem of evil, God and morality, the metaphysics of theism (omnipotence, omniscience, immutability, etc), divine authority, free will, human nature, mind-body, miracles, realism/anti-realism, religious experience
Issues in Islamic theology: revelation, the afterlife, the revealed attributes of God, prayer, natural and revealed law, mysticism, the nature of itjihad, faith, philosophy of language, justice, religious diversity
Issues in science and religion: evolution-creation, free will, cognitive science of religion, fine-tuning, the soul, divine action, scientific and religious explanations, human nature, randomness and providence
For further information, contact Professor Kelly James Clark at clarkell@gvsu.edu.
Workshop Schedule
July 9
Dinner
July 10
Morning workshop: Kelly James Clark, “God and the Brain: the science of the mind and the rationality of belief/unbelief
Afternoon: presentations by accepted participants
Evening: banquet
July 11
Morning workshop: Kelly James Clark, “God and the Brain: the science of the mind and the rationality of belief/unbelief
Afternoon: presentations by accepted participants
Evening: banquet
Public Evening Lecture: Nidhal Guessoum, “Was the Universe Created for Humans?”
July 12
Morning workshop: Nidhal Guessoum, “Cosmology and Theism”
Afternoon: presentations by accepted participants
Public Evening Lecture: Kelly James Clark, “Strangers, Neighbors, Friends: Muslim and Christian reflections on compassion and peace”
July 13
Morning workshop: Nidhal Guession, “Evolution and Theism”
Afternoon: presentations by accepted participants
Evening: Closing banquet
July 14
Departures