The Two Year Initiative on Islam and Other Religions

Overview

Visiting Scholars on Islam Program

Religion can be a subject of great controversy. Academia is a place where religion is studied in an environment that attempts to free the mind of the biases and simplifications often found in the day-to-day interchange of ideas between people, as well as within the media.

In a post-9/11 context, there is a strong tendency to reduce the actual complexity of Islam into a stereotypic and monolithic image that distorts factual reality. This does a disservice to the multidimensional nature of Islam and breeds further polarization and conflict. Therefore, at this time it is essential that academia serve as a source of knowledge by providing understanding of the actual breadth of Islam. In so doing academia promotes civic engagement and global awareness in order to prepare people to take their place as global citizens who have cultural literacy in an ever-changing world. As a result the citizens of our country will be educated so as to not confuse certain forms and aspects of this religion with Islam in its entirety. This is all the more necessary because millions of our fellow citizens are Muslims, and simplified views can lead to misunderstanding and to violence within our citizenry.

This free lecture series is the outcome of months of collaborative work by Lane religious and peace studies faculty, staff, and administrators in partnership with the University of Oregon, and is open to the entire community.

Visiting Scholars on Islam Lecture Series

Mission: Community College sees itself as an appropriate venue for the education of those who live throughout Lane County on the crucial topic of Islam.

The Visiting Scholars on Islam Program will bring to our campus scholarly experts on Islam who represent a diversity of backgrounds and offer a plurality of perspectives to the academic study of Islam. The Program will set the tone, provide information, facilitate learning, and engage us in dialogue as we explore and grapple with the complexity of this subject.

Proposal: Lane Community College in conjunction with the University of Oregon will present a series of 8 lectures over a period of two academic years (Winter 2011-Spring 2012) on different topics associated with Islam given by leading national and local scholars in the field.

Attendance will be open to the entire community. The scholars will be asked to treat their subjects and their audiences in a way that promotes rational discourse rather than emotional reaction. The format will allow for the presentation of scholarly views regarding topics within Islam that are especially significant to the public, such as contemporary understanding of Muhammad and the Qur’an, Islam in America, issues pertaining to gender and to race, religious pluralism and interfaith dialogue, Sunni and Shi’i Islam, views on democracy and human rights, modern and progressive Islamic movements, and mysticism.

Subjects will be treated textually, historically, and with an eye toward contemporary situations. Those in attendance will be encouraged to ask questions of the speakers. This too will be in a format that promotes discussion rather than diatribe.

The Visiting Scholars Series will sometimes be in lecture format and sometimes in panel format.