THE AMERICAN UNIVERSITY OF PARIS

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1 THE AMERICAN UNIVERSITY OF PARIS COURSE TITLE: Islam: Religion and Law COURSE NO: IS 5050 PREREQUISITES: None SEMESTER: Fall 2013 PROFESSOR: Ali Rahnema CREDITS: 4 CLASS Mon. & Thurs. 13:45 15:05 ROOM NO: G-44 SCHEDULE: OFFICE HOURS: Mon. & Thurs. 15:10 16:40 PERIOD (S): 4 CONTACT: Office: Grenelle 33. Office phone number: rahnema@aup.fr COURSE DESCRIPTION: This course aims to familiarize students with the topic of Islam through the three portals of historical, religious and legal analysis. This course needs to start with the pre-history and history of Islam. The historical point of entry seeks to generate an understanding of the land, people, customs and the culture in which Islam was born and which it sought to change. With such an understanding, the course needs to familiarize students with the agent of change, the Prophet, his message, invitation and path during his life-time. An understanding of Muhammad, the man and the Messenger is indispensable to understanding the faith as his words, acts, behaviour and demeanour, not only constitutes the ideal model of Islamic behaviour, but in time became an undisputable pillar of the faith. Muhammad the man must have been influenced by the conditions, customs and cultures of the land. Knowledge of the context in which his words were uttered and his acts were carried out will help our understanding of the message that Muhammad was conveying. The second task of this course is to provide an understanding of Islam as a belief and a faith. The affirmation of the faith begins with monotheism. The believer is distinguished from the unbeliever. The believer is then required to perform certain acts demonstrating commitment and faith to Islam. The correct practice or work takes the believer to a higher stage of piety. The second part of this course surveys the Islamic scale system of distinguishing correct from incorrect practices. Finally in this part of the course, we will turn to the four-fold division of Islamic knowledge or understanding on the basis of the sacred law. The last part of this course will address the development of the right path of religion or the Shari a. Under this rubric, first the development of Islamic law with an eye to the topics of how, why and when will be assessed. In this part of the course, close attention will be paid to the understanding and analysis of the four sources or proofs of the Shari a. On the basis of textual studies of the Qur an an attempt will be made to identify trends and tendencies in Islam s manner and style of initiating change and reform in the old practices of the community. The course will finish with a survey of Shi ism. STUDENT LEARNING GOALS: 1. Arabia s pre-islamic history, monotheism, polytheism and monotheism from the perspective of Islamic historiography. 2. The Prophet in Mecca and Medina. 3. The teachings of Islam, its audience, the principles of the faith, orthodoxy and orthopraxy. 4. Islamic law, the Shari a, its sources and its implications in terms of managing an Islamic society. 5. Shi i Islam and the four schools of Sunni Islam.

2 Required Texts: 1. The Holy Qur an. Text, Translation and Commentary: Abdullah Yusuf Ali 2. M.H. Kemali, Principles of Islamic Jurisprudence, 3 rd Edition 3. N. Robinson, Islam: A Concise Introduction 4. A. A. Mawdudi, Let Us Be Muslims 5. K. Armstrong, Muhammad, Prophet for our Time GRADING: 1. Mid-Term Exam: 30% 2. Final Exam: 30% 3. Paper: 40% The paper for the course could be an individual or a cooperative work of two people. The size of a single authored work will be approximately 4,000 words and that of a collective paper approximately 7,000 words. The topic of the paper will be determined by the students. The research source, however, has to be anchored in the evidences and proofs of the Shari a. The analysis has to be conducted within the framework of the primary, secondary and tertiary Islamic sources that have been historically developed and articulated in class. This does not exclude the use of non-shari a based sources to support an argument, but the paper cannot be solely based on non-shari a sources. Topics include, but are not limited to: Islam s view of: Christianity, Judaism, prophets before Muhammad, faith (iman), piety (taqwa), women s clothing, women s rights, polygamy, giving witness, gender mixing, consumption of alcoholic drinks, slavery, coercion, people of the book, accumulation of wealth, private property, interest rate, Islamic tax on Muslims and non-muslims, the rights of non-muslims in the Islamic community, distribution of income and social justice, justice, inheritance, righteous acts, idolatry, political rule, reason, science, Islamic punishments, fighting for the cause of God, profligacy, gambling, uncertainty and risk, apostasy. COURSE OUTLINE: 1. Pre- Islamic background M. Rodinson, Mohammad, Introducing a world 1-10, Introducing a land D. Brown, A New introduction to Islam, Islamic origins 1-34 R. Aslan, No God But God, The Sanctuary in the Desert Pre-Islamic Arabia 3-32 A. Salahi, Muhammad, Man and Prophet, A Glance Back in History, 1-23 and The Makkan Scene at the Start of Prophethood, pages 2. Muhammad I. K. Armstrong, Muhammad: Chapter 1, Mecca Chapter 2, Jahiliyyah Chapter 3, Hijrah

3 Chapter 4, Jihad Chapter 5, Salam 215 pages 3. Belief and Faith I. N. Robinson, Islam: A Concise Introduction: Chapter 8, Ritual Prayer Chapter 9, Zakat Chapter 10, Ramadan Chapter 11, The Pilgrimage II. A.A. Mawdudi, Let Us Be Muslims: Chapter 13, Meaning and Blessing of the Prayer Chapter 17, Meaning and Blessing of Fasting Chapter 18, True Spirit of the Fasting Chapter 19, Fundamental Importance of Zakah Chapter 20, Meaning of Zakah Chapter 21, Specific Injunctions of Zakah Chapter 25, Restoration of True Hajj Chapter 28, Meaning of Jihad 120 pages 4. The Shari a I. N. Robinson, Islam: A Concise Introduction, Chapter 12, The Sharia II. A. Rahnema, International review of public policy. Vol. 9, Islamic Jurisprudence and Public Policy III. M. H. Kamali., Principles of Islamic jurisprudence: Chapter One, Introduction to Usul al-fiqh Chapter Two, The First Source of the Shariah: The Qur an Chapter Three, The Sunnah Chapter Eight, Ijma or Consensus of Opinion Chapter Nine, Qiyas (Analogical Deduction) Chapter Twelve, Istihsan, or Equity in Islam Chapter Thirteen, Masalahah Mursalah (Consideration of Public Interest) 185 pages 5. Schools of Law A. A. Qadri, Islamic Jurisprudence in the modern world, Schools and sects: Sunni Hanafi, Maliki, Shafi i, Hanbali M. W. Watt, Islamic philosophy and theology, The consolidation of Sunnism, M. W. Watt, The formative period of Islamic thought : a) The Kharijites pp. 9-38

4 b) Aspects of Sunnite consolidation M. Momen, An Introduction to Shi i Islam, The question of succession to Muhammad The Imamate Doctrines, ritual practices pages General Bibliography: 1. N. Abu Zayd, Rethinking the Qur an 2. K. Ahmad, Islam: Its meaning and message 3. M. Arkoun, Islam: To Reform or to Subvert 4. R. Aslan, No God But God 5. J. Bowker, What Muslims Believe 6. A.C. Brown, Hadith 7. D. Brown, A New Introduction to Islam 8. J. Burton, An Introduction to the Hadith 9. N.J. Coulson, A History of Islamic Law 10. C. W. Ernst, Rethinking Islam in the Contemporary World 11. J. L. Esposito, Islam, The Straight Path 12. W. Hallaq, An introduction to Islamic law 13. W. Hallaq, Shari'a: theory, practice, transformations 14. W. Hallaq, The origins and evolution of Islamic law 15. M. Lings, Muhammad 16. M. Muslehuddin, Philosophy of Islamic law and the Orientalists 17. A.A. Qadri, Islamic Jurisprudence in the modern world 18. T. Ramadan, In the Footsteps of the Prophet: Lessons from the Life of Muhammad 19. N. Robinson, Discovering the Qur an 20. M. Rodinson, Mohammed 21. A. Saeed, Interpreting the Qur an 22. A. Salahi, Muhammad, Man and Prophet 23. J. Schacht, An Introduction to Islamic Law 24. M. Sedgwick, Islam and Muslims ATTENDANCE POLICY: Students studying at The American University of Paris are expected to attend ALL scheduled classes, and in case of absence, should contact their professors to explain the situation. It is the student s responsibility to be aware of any specific attendance policy that a faculty member might have set in the course syllabus. Academic Affairs will excuse an absence for students participation in study trips related to their courses. Attendance at all exams is mandatory. IN ALL CASES OF MISSED COURSE MEETINGS, THE RESPONSIBILITY FOR COMMUNICATION WITH THE PROFESSOR, AND FOR ARRANGING TO MAKE UP MISSED WORK, RESTS SOLELY WITH THE STUDENT. Whether an absence is excused or not is ALWAYS up to the discretion of the professor or the department. Unexcused absences can result in a low or failing participation grade. In the case of excessive absences, it is up to the professor or the department to decide if the student will receive an F for the course. An instructor may recommend that a student withdraw, if absences have made it impossible to continue in the course at a satisfactory level. Students must be mindful of this policy when making their travel arrangements, and especially during the

5 Drop/Add and Exam Periods. ENGLISH LANGUAGE PROFICIENCY STATEMENT: As an Anglophone university, The American University of Paris is strongly committed to effective English language mastery at the graduate level. Most courses require scholarly research and formal written and oral presentations in English, and AUP students are expected to strive to achieve excellence in these domains as part of their course work. To that end, professors include English proficiency among the criteria in student evaluation, often referring students to the university Writing Lab where they may obtain help on specific academic assignments. Proficiency in English is monitored at various points throughout the student's academic career, most notably during the admissions and advising processes, while the student is completing general education requirements, and during the accomplishment of degree program courses and senior theses.