You are on page 1of 2

From Revelation to Scripture:

A Symposium on Divine Speech and Prophetic Inspiration in Islam at the Cambridge


Muslim College
What does it mean to believe that God speaks to humanity through prophets? How does
this idea affect the theological conception of God, and the broader intellectual
development of a religious tradition? Like other religions with Abrahamic roots, Islam is
founded on the idea of the conveyance of a message from God through the medium of
human language. Historically, debate on the nature of revelation and prophecy led to
differing Muslim notions of religious authority and marked several turning points in the
history of Islamic theology, including the pivotal third/ninth century event of the Mihna.
Today, these questions continue to lie at the heart of major theological divisions within
Islam and have often provided the starting point of proposals for reform in contemporary
Islamic thought.
However, partly due to a tendency to focus on natural theology and the
significance of the translated Greek philosophical heritage, the central role of prophecy
and revelation in Islamic theology has not been given sufficient attention by modern
researchers. This symposium aims to address this lacuna in the field by exploring this
central theme in Islamic thought.
We welcome a broad range of participants working in fields related to Islamic
theology, from historians of various periods in Islamic history to scholars of
contemporary issues in Islamic thought. We also invite contributions from practising
Muslim theologians, as well as non-Muslim theologians working in interfaith dialogue
with the Islamic tradition.
Topics of interest include, but are not limited to, the following:

Studies upon the Quran and the Hadith as the revealed sources of the Islamic
tradition.

Comparisons between the Islamic idea of revelation and prophecy with parallel
teachings in other religious traditions.

Revelation and prophecy in various theological and intellectual traditions in


Islam, such as Sunni/Shii, Ashar/Mutazil/Mturd/Hanbal, Falsafa and
Sufism, including concepts of divine inspiration, such as kashf and ilhm.

Revelation and prophecy as the theological framework in which various traditions


of commentary and learning developed. This could include the disciplines of law,

Hadith, tafsr, as well as the hermeneutical principles upon which these traditions
were formulated.

Study of contemporary Muslim thinkers on subjects related to revelation and


prophecy and the continuing relevance of these themes in Islamic thought today.

Practical Details
The symposium will be hosted by the Cambridge Muslim College, an independent
institution aimed at bridging the world of modern academia and traditional Muslim
religious scholarship. It will take place on Saturday 12th September 2015 from 10 am
to 6 pm. Participants will have 30 minutes to present their paper. The presentations will
be followed by open panel discussions. Lunch, dinner and refreshments will be provided
by the College.

Call for Abstracts


Please send a title and abstract of no more than 300 words outlining your presentation to
both rh@cambridgemuslimcollege.org and hbr@cambridgemuslimcollege.org by the
deadline of Friday 10th July. Successful participants will be notified by Friday 14th
August.
We look forward to welcoming you to the symposium.

Dr Harith Bin Ramli and Dr Ramon Harvey (Research Fellows, CMC)


Cambridge Muslim College
14 St Pauls Road
Cambridge
CB1 2EZ
01223 355235
www.cambridgemuslimcollege.org

You might also like