In what ways did pre-modern Muslims express their love and longing for the Prophet? This talk highlighted the variety of expressions of prophetic love among scholars of al-Andalus and the Maghrib, ranging from highly mystical commentaries upon his names and his supreme station to praise poems and eulogies dedicated to his blessed sandals.
Date: Thursday, November 30, 2017
Time: 6:00pm Reception; 6:30pm Talk
Where: Conference Hall, Main Bldg, American Islamic College
Yousef Casewit is an Assistant Professor of Qur’anic Studies at the University of Chicago Divinity School. He specializes in the Qur’anic Studies, Andalusi and Maghribi intellectual history, and Sufism. He has several publications, including a critical edition of A Qurʾān Commentary by Ibn Barrajān of Seville (Brill TSQ Series, 2015). His study on Ibn Barrajan, The Mystics of al-Andalus, was published in April 2017. He is currently working on a critical edition, translation, and analytical examination of the “Commentary on the Beautiful Names of God” (Sharḥ asmāʾ Allāh al-ḥusnā) by the celebrated North African poet and gnostic ʿAfīf al-Dīn al-Tilimsānī (d. 690/1291). Born in Egypt and raised in Morocco, he is fluent in Arabic, French and Spanish. Yousef has traveled throughout the Islamic world, and has studied with Muslim scholars in Morocco, Syria, and Mauritania.
American Islamic College, along with other sponsors, hosted speakers with unique perspectives into the life of M. Cherif Bassiouni. The presentations offered an insight into his life as a scholar and activist, alongside with legacy of his work. David Scheffer from Northwestern University Pritzker School of Law, Mansa Bilal Mark King, Professor of Sociology from Morehouse College, and Louise Cainkar, Professor of Sociology and Social Justice from Marquette University gave presentations. The forum provided opportunities to directly interact with the speakers and with the audience to build a better understanding of what the work of Professor Bassiouni meant to the Muslim community and to the rights of the oppressed.
Date: Sunday, November 12, 2017
Time: 2pm – 5pm
Where: Conference Hall, Main Bldg, American Islamic College
Address: 640 W. Irving Park Rd, Chicago, IL 60613
Additional Parking: 613 W. Bittersweet Place
FREE & OPEN TO THE PUBLIC
David Scheffer, Northwestern University Pritzker School of Law
“Cherif Bassiouni: The Oracle of International Criminal Law”
Mansa Bilal Mark King, Sociology, Morehouse College
“Observations on the international decade for people of African descent”
Louise Cainkar, Sociology & Social Justice, Marquette University
“Seeking Justice for the Silenced: From the Middle East to the USA”
How have Syrians lived the uprising and war transforming their country? We Crossed a Bridge and It Trembled: Voices from Syria tells this story exclusively through the voices of Syrians themselves. Based on interviews that the author conducted with more than 300 Syrian refugees across the Middle East and Europe since 2012, the book is a mosaic of personal reflections that together form a testament to the courage and resilience of the Syrian people.
Date: Tuesday, November 7, 2017
Time: 6:00pm Reception; 6:30pm Talk
Where: Conference Hall, Main Bldg, American Islamic College
“An essential addition to the emerging body of literary reportage from Syria in English.”
New York Times Book Review
“A powerful must read book for anyone wanting to understand what’s happening in Syria and why it matters.”
Chicago Review of Books
“Everyone talks about Syrians, but very few actually talk to them … We Crossed a Bridge and It Trembled bucks the trend … These heart-stopping tales of torment and triumph are perfectly enchained, chronologically and thematically, to reflect the course of the crisis.”
The Guardian
A book signing will follow the lecture. The author is selling them with a generous discount of $15. Please plan to bring cash or check!
Wendy Pearlman is the Martin and Patricia Koldyke Outstanding Teaching Associate Professor of Political Science at Northwestern University, where she specializes in the comparative politics of the Middle East. She is the author of three books, We Crossed A Bridge and It Trembled: Voices from Syria (HarperCollins 2017), Violence, Nonviolence, and the Palestinian National Movement (Cambridge University Press, 2011) and Occupied Voices: Stories of Everyday Life from the Second Intifada(Nation Books, 2003), as well as dozens of essays, academic articles, or book chapters. Pearlman holds a BA from Brown University, an MA from Georgetown, and a PhD from Harvard. She speaks Arabic and has studied or conducted research in Spain, Germany, Morocco, Egypt, Lebanon, Jordan, Turkey, Israel, and the West Bank and Gaza Strip.
