Islamic Theology - Fall 2013

(ISL 340/42055, MEL 321/42190, MES 342/42370, R S 358/44295, CTI 375/34265) Prof. Hina Azam Day/Time: TTh 12:30 1:45 Email: hina.azam@austin.utexas.edu Class Location: WEL 3.402 Office: CAL 506 Office Hours: TTh 2:30 3:30 or by appointment

Course Description
Islamic Theology may be understood as that branch of knowledge that comprises the way that Muslims have conceived the natures of God, humanity and the natural world, as well as the relationships between these three. Muslim contemplation of these subjects has given rise to a number of debates and doctrines. Some of these have had to do with issues such as the relationship between human will and the divine will, or the origins of sin. Other disputes have had to do with the nature of governance and the role of the ruler in effecting salvation. These disputes led to the formation of the various theological-political sects, such as Sunnism and Shiism. Yet another area of questioning has had to do with the limits of rational knowledge and possibility of meta-cognitive experience of God, or what is known as Sufism. These three classical areas of inquiry that is, political theory, systematic theology (dogmatics) and mystical theology (theosophy) will form the main areas of focus in this upper division course. This is an upper-division reading and discussion based course that assumes a prior understanding of Islam.

Course Texts
All textbooks are available at the University Co-Op. Any additional readings will be made available in electronic form or through in-class handouts. Gods Rule Government and Islam: Six Centuries of Medieval Islamic Political Thought, by Patricia Crone The Cambridge Companion to Classical Islamic Theology, ed. Tim Winter The Knowledge of God in Classical Sufism, by John Renard

Grading
3 Tests (16% each) Attendance Participation Book Report 48% total 16% 16% 20% 100% Total

Attendance
Regular attendance will be expected. You are permitted two absences without detriment to your grade. Laptops, cellphones and other electronic devices are not permitted in class.

Participation
Class participation is your chance to show your engagement in the course, to demonstrate that you are doing the readings and are willing to contribute to the collective learning environment. Take this aspect of your grade seriously, as it constitutes 16% of your course grade. How to get a good class participation grade: - Contribute to class discussion at least once a week, either by asking a question, answering a question, or offering your perspective. - Make sure you have done the readings and be prepared for discussion.

- Bring your book to class.

Tests
Tests will focus on readings, and will cover readings since the previous test until but not including that days quiz. Tests may not take the whole class period, so you should plan to stay until the end of the class period.

Book Report
Each student will write a report on a title from the provided list. You must inform me of your selection in writing by class day #9. Reports should be 8-10 pages (3000-3500 words), with a proper title/heading and page numbering. Your final paper will be due electronically by midnight of the 26th class day. Late papers may be docked 5% for each day they are late including weekends. Reports will be graded based on content, organization, mechanics and style/diction: - Content: You should provide an overview of the substance of the book, as well as any major theses/arguments. Tell us about the chapter/section divisions and what is covered in each part. Your presentation of the book must engage themes from the course as a whole. - Organization: Your paper should progress an a systematic fashion. Make sure you have a proper introduction, in which you explain what you will be doing in your paper. Make sure paragraphs have clear topic sentences, and dont go off topic. Conclude paragraphs properly. Make sure to provide segues and transitions between sentences, topics and paragraphs. - Mechanics: Your paper should be free of typographical and spelling errors. Know how to use puncuation properly commas, periods, semicolons, colons, quotation marks. Make sure every sentence is syntactically correct with a subject and a predicate. Watch for things like dangling modifiers, parallel construction, and the difference between that and which. - Style: An eloquent, articulate paper will get a higher grade than a clunky one. Work on your diction relentlessly eliminate repetition and superfluous words, vary your word choice, make sure your usage is correct, and write as precisely as possible. More on content: Your paper must include two basic elements: summary/overview of the content, and analysis or critique of the book. Your summary/overview should constitute at least half of your paper, and your analysis/critique should constitute at least one-fourth of your paper. The remaining fourth can be used either way. Planning your time: These books are dense! Do not wait till the last minute to read or write your paper! I have provided recommended dates for completing various stages of your paper, below. Also, please take advantage of the Undergraduate Writing Center to get feedback and help on your paper.

Grading Rubric
Percentage Grade 93-100 90-92 87-89 83-86 80-82 77-79 Letter Grade A AB+ B BC+ Percentage Grade 73-76 70-72 67-69 63-66 60-62 59 and below Letter Grade C CD+ D DF

Note: Final course grades will be rounded to the nearest point, eg: 89.2 = 89 = B+ 89.7 = 90 = A89.5 = 90 = ANote: Students with disabilities may request appropriate academic accommodations from the Division of Diversity and Community Engagement, Services for Students with Disabilities, 512-4716259, http://www.utexas.edu/diversity/ddce/ssd/

CLASS SCHEDULE
Important Dates First day of class Thursday 8/29 Thanksgiving break Thursday 11/28 Sunday 12/1 Last day of class Thursday 12/5 Note: There will be no final exam for this course.

UNIT 1

INTRODUCTION TO THE COURSE; BASIC ISLAMIC COSMOLOGY/DOGMA; THE CLASSICAL DISCIPLINES; KEY THEOLOGICAL TERMS (classes #1-#3)
Introduction to the Course and to Islamic Theology

#1) Thu 8/29

#2) Tue 9/3 Basics of Islamic Cosmology/`Aqida; Key Concepts Winter: chs.1 (Quran, hadith and fundamental beliefs) & 2 (early creed), 19-54 #3) Thu 9/5 Key terms contd Crone: ch.2 (early political history through fitna; sect formation; concepts), 17-32 ch.3 (Umayyad statecraft/political theory, rise of `ulama), 33-47

35pp

30pp

UNIT 2

POLITICAL THEOLOGY (#4-#11)

18pp

#4) Tue 9/10 Early sectarian political trends Crone, chs.4-6 (political doctrines of Kharijites, Mu`tazilites and early Shi`a), 51-69 #5) Thu 9/12 Shi`i political thought Crone, chs.7 & 8 (Shi`ism through the Abbasid period), 70-98 #6) Tue 9/17 Shi`i political thought, contd Crone: ch.10 (Imami Shi`ism), 110-124 #7) Thu 9/19 Early Jama`i-Sunnism Crone, chs.11 (the adth party) and 12 (intro to next unit), 125-147 #8) Tue 9/24 The entry of Greek political philosophy into Islamic thought ch.14 (Greek influence on Islamic political thought), 165-196

28pp

14pp

22pp

31pp

#9) Thu 9/26 Isma`ili political theory Crone, ch.15 (Isma`ili political theory), 197-218 Book report selection due #10) Tue 10/1 Classical Sunni political theory Crone, ch.16 (mature Sunni political theory), 219-255 #11) Thu 10/3 Basic questions: What is the function of government? Crone, ch.18 (functions of Islamic government), 286-314

21pp

36pp

28pp

UNIT 3

SYSTEMATIC THEOLOGY (Class #12-#19)

19pp

#12) Tue 10/8 Classical period of Islamic theology; Test 1 (on Units 1 and 2) Winter: ch.4 (the developed kalam), 77-96 #13) Thu 10/10 Themes: Gods nature Winter: ch.6 (Gods nature), 121-140 #14) Tue 10/15 Themes: Gods existence Winter: ch.10 (Gods existence), 197-217 #15) Thu 10/17 Themes: Gods interaction with the world Winter: ch.9 (Revelation), 180-196

19pp

20pp

16pp

#16) Tue 10/22 Themes: ethics Winter: ch.8 (ethics), 161-179 18pp Recommended date to have completed reading your book and to start writing your paper #17) Thu 10/24 Themes: human moral action Winter: ch.11 (worship), 218-236 & ch.12 (legal phil), 237-257 #18) Tue 10/29 Themes: understanding Gods word Winter: ch.14 (epistemology/hermeneutics), 288-307 #19) Thu 10/31 Themes: eschatology Winter: ch.15 (eschatology), 308-324

38pp

19pp

16pp

UNIT 4

MYSTICAL THEOLOGY (Class #20-27)

#20) Tue 11/5 Overview of Sufism as practice, theory, & institution; Test 2 (on Unit 3) Renard: 11-19 (basic concepts in sufi theosophy) 9pp #21) Thu 11/7 Sarraj Renard: from ch.1 (Sarraj), 65-80 #22) Tue 11/12 Sarraj, continued Renard: from ch.1 (Sarraj), 80-99

15pp

19pp

#23) Thu 11/14 Makki Renard: from ch.3 (Makki), 112-137 #24) Tue 11/19 Makki, continued Renard: from ch.3, (Makki), 196-227 #25) ) Tue 11/21 Makki, continued

25pp

31pp

#26) Tue 11/26 Hujwiri Renard: Translations, ch.4 (Hujwiri), 264-285 Book reports due electronically by midnight on this day THANKSGIVING BREAK THU 11/28-SUN 12/1 #27) Tue 12/3 Ghazali Renard: Translations, ch.7 (Ghazali), 298-326 #28) Thu 12/5 Course Wrap-Up; Test 3 (on Unit 4)

21pp

28pp

BOOK REPORT CHOICES

Sunnism Abrahamov, Binyamin, Islamic Theology: Traditionalism and Rationalism (1998) Watt, W.M., Free Will and Predestination in Early Islam (1948) Watt, W. Montgomery, Islamic Philosophy & Theology Arberry, A.J., Revelation and Reason in Islam (1957) Watt, W.M., Islamic Political Thought Peters, F.E., The Monotheists, in 2 vols. Vol. 2 includes theology. Salem, E. A. Political Theory and Institutions of the Khawarij (1956) Pellat, Charles (ed), The Life and Works of Jahiz, tr. D.M. Hawke (1969) McCarthy, R., The Theology of alAsh'ari (1953) Jackson, Sherman A., On the Boundaries of Theological Tolerance in Islam: Abu Hamid al-Ghazalis Faysal al-Tafriqa (2002) Arnaldez, Roger, Averroes: A Rationalist in Islam (2000) Makdisi, G. (ed.), Ibn Qudamah, Censure of Speculative Theology (1962) The Faith and Practice of al-Ghazali, tr. W. M. Watt The political doctrine of al-Baqillani, by Yusuf Ibish Mutazila Suffering in the Mutazilite theology: Abd al-Jabbars teaching on pain and divine justice, by M. Heemskerk The Physical theory of kalm : atoms, space, and void in Basrian Mutazil cosmology / by Alnoor Dhanani. Moral agents and their deserts : the character of Mu'tazilite ethics / Sophia Vasalou. Islamic Philosophy Fakhry, Majid, History of Islamic Philosophy Ibn Tufayl, Ibn Tufayls Hayy ibn Yaqzan: a philosophical tale, tr. Lenn E Goodman An introduction to Islamic philosophy / Massimo Campanini ; translated by Caroline Higgitt.

An Islamic philosophy of virtuous religions : introducing Alfarabi / Joshua Parens. Islamic philosophy from its origin to the present : philosophy in the land of prophecy / Seyyed Hossein Nasr. An introduction to classical Islamic philosophy / Oliver Leaman. Jewish and Islamic philosophy : crosspollinations in the classic age / Lenn E. Goodman Shiism McDermott, The Theology of AlShaikh alMufid (1978) Sabzavari, Hadi b. Made (d.1878), The metaphysics of Sabzavari, tr. Mehdi Mohaghegh and Toshihiko Izutsu Shi'ism / Heinz Halm ; translated by Janet Watson and Marian Hill. The divine guide in early Shiism : the sources of esotericism in Islam / by Mohammad Ali Amir-Moezzi ; translated by David Streight. Early philosophical Shiism : the Ismaili Neoplatonism of Ab Yaqb al-Sijistn / Paul E. Walker. Belief and law in Imm Shism / Etan Kohlberg. Expectation of the millennium : Shiism in history / edited, annotated, and with an introduction by Seyyed Hossein Nasr, Hamid Dabashi, Seyyed Vali Reza Nasr. Sufism Arberry, A. J. (Arthur John), Sufism, an account of the mystics of Islam. Gavin Picken. Spiritual purification in Islam : the life and works of al-Musib. Inspired Knowledge in Islamic Thought: Al-Ghazali's Theory of Mystical Cognition and Its Avicennian Foundation. The Sufi Doctrine of Rumi, Chittick, William C. Sufism and Theology, Shihadeh, Ayman. Modern/Contemporary Theology Sivan, Emmanuel, Radical Islam: Medieval Theology and Modern Politics Iqbal, Muhammad, The Reconstruction of Religious Thought in Islam Keddie, Nikki, An Islamic Response to Imperialism (on Jamal al-Din al-Afghani) Richard Martin, et al, Defenders of Reason In Islam: Mu'tazilism and Rational Theology from Medieval School to Modern Symbol Islam and Modernity: Muslim Intellectuals Respond, eds. John Cooper et al