Introduzione all'Islam RA0304

Upon completion of this course, students will have acquired a good knowledge of the basic elements of Islam, as religion (creeds, rituals, ethics, laws), society, politics and history. They will be capable of understanding the varied presence of Islam in their respective country and also ready to be involved in an interreligious dialogue for a personal and common assessment. This objective will be met by means of the following learning activities: 1. Attendance at lessons. 2. Expositions by the professor. 3. Interaction of the students, principally by reading passages of the Kuran. 4. Reading some suggested bibliographical references.

1. The Formation of the Islamic Tradition: Islam in Global Perspective today, Arabia: the cradle of Islam, The Religious Pre-Islamic Near East, The Life of Muhammad: Prophet of Islam, The Qur’an: origin, text and context, The Tradition Literature (Hadith). 2. The Expansion of Islam: The Conquests, The Conversions, The Prophet’s Successors (The Caliphs, Sunnis and Shia), The Twelvers, The Ismailis, The “Assassins”, The Kharijites. 3. Islamic Institutions: Beliefs and Practices (the Five Pillars),Islamic Law and Ethics, The Schools of Islamic Law, Ritual Purity, Acts of Worship, Marriage and Divorce. 4. Islamic Theology and Philosophy: Freedom and Determinism, God’s Attributes, Anthropomorphism, Faith and Works, Leadership, Prophecy and Revelation, Mysticism and Spirituality. 5. Sufism: Stages on the Path, The Spiritual Master, Brotherhoods, Rituals. 6. Crisis and Renewal in Islamic History: Turks, Crusaders, Mongols, Revival and Reform, The Ottomans, The Safavid and Mughal Empires, The Rise of European Power, The ‘Ulama’, Sufi Reformers, The Wahhabi Movement, Islam and Modernity, The Abolition of the Caliphate, Nationalism, Secularism, The Salafi Movement, The Muslim Brotherhood, Jihad, Family Law. 7. Islam in the Twenty-First Century: The Challenge of Pluralism, Wahhabism, Islamic Liberalism, Islamic Feminism. The Challenges of Modernity in Islam: woman status, family values, jihad, modern culture, faith and reason. 8. Relationships with Christianity and Judaism: clashes and encounters.

BROWN D.W., A new introduction to Islam (Oxford, Wiley-Blackwell 2009); Bibliography: The Qur'an: English translation and Parallel Arabic text, rev. ed. (transl. by M.A.S. ABDEL HALEEM) (Oxford, Oxford University Press 2010); ALLEN R. SHAWKAT L. TOORAWA, Islam: A Short Guide to Faith (Grand Rapids, Eerdmans 2011); ESPOSITO J.L., Islam, the Straight Path (Oxford, Oxford University Press 1998); LINGS M., Muhammad: His Life Based on the Earliest Sources, rev. ed. (Rochester, Inner Traditions 2006); RENARD J., Responses to 101 Questions in Islam (Mumbai, Paulist Press 2005); DENNY F.M., An Introduction to Islam (New York, Pearson Prentice Hall 2011); TROLL C.W., Muslims ask, Christian answer (London, New City Press 2005); WAINES D., An Introduction to Islam (Cambridge, Cambridge Univ. Press 1995).