Contemporary Islamic Ethics (ET-655) Fall 2020 Hartford Seminary Instructor: Hossein Kamaly Imam Ali Chair in Shia Studies Meeting Time: Thursdays: 6:00-8:00PM Online (Zoom) This course explores five ethical issues of urgent contemporary relevance, doing so in the light of the teachings of the Quran, the normative conduct (sunna) of the Prophet Muḥammad and the historical evolution of Muslim thought and practice. These issues are: 1) the nature and scope of civic rights and liberties. 2) Ethics and the critique of inequality–wealth and poverty. 3) ethical concerns and legal punishments. 4) biomedical ethics; and 5) environmental ethics. Each topic will be discussed over one or two weeks of class time. During the first four weeks of the semester, the course will establish the foundations of ethical life and the meaning of justice in Islam, building a framework around scriptural, textual, and analytic sources from Muslim history. Contemporary Islamic Ethics (ET-655) Hartford Seminary Fall 2020 Syllabus: First Draft 10th September 2020 (Subject to multiple revision): Pedagogy: This course is based on reading and in-depth discussion: Primary and secondary sources are read and discussed in the light of classical and contemporary theories of ethics. The combination of primary sources with contemporary studies makes the material relevant and engaging to the students. Teaching is comprised of both synchronously delivered and asynchronously provided components. This method is bound to present challenges for the students and the instructor alike, but hopefully it will work. Prerequisites: Genuine interest in learning and a general familiarity with the history and teachings of Islam, broadly conceived, are required. Background material will be reviewed in class. Working knowledge of any language other than English would be welcome. Required Work & Evaluation: On the average, 50-120 pages of readings are assigned per week. Students should prepare for class by reading all assigned texts for each session. Online participation & Attendance: Attendance, keeping up with assigned readings and active participations are important in this class. Note: More than two unexcused absences result in a failing grade. Offline discussion Students are expected to respond to assigned readings before each class session by posting questions and comments on weekly discussion threads on CANVAS. Reponses posted closer than three hours to class time will be disregarded. Writing assignments: 1) Three short responses (each about 750 words in length): One on the foundations of Islamic ethics + Two on two of the five contemporary topics to be covered in class. 2) A final research paper, ca. 3500 words: specific topic to be decided in conference with the instructor. Topics will be assigned in class. (Progress to be assessed beginning the fifth week of the semester). Note: Late submissions are not accepted. Contemporary Islamic Ethics (ET-655) Hartford Seminary Fall 2020 Grading: The following formula will be used to calculate the final grade for each student: Regular and timely online attendance & participation (15%) + Short responses (15%) + Mid-term Exam (15%) + Final Paper (30%) Selected Course Bibliography sorted alphabetically by the author: 1. Al-Attar, Mariam. “Ethical presuppositions of the Qur’ān and the Ḥadīth,” pp. 11-25 in Islamic Ethics Divine Command Theory in Arabo-Islamic Thought. Routledge, 2010. 2. Clarke, Morgan; Eich, Thomas; and Schreiber, Jenny. The Social Politics of Islamic Bioethics. Die Welt des Islams, 2015, Vol. 55, Issue 3/4, Special Theme Issue: The Social Politics of Islamic Bioethics (2015), pp. 265-277. 3. Fakhry, Majid. “Aḥmad Ibn Muḥammad Miskawayh (d. 1030), Chief Moral Philosopher of Islam,” pp. 107-130 in Ethical Theories in Islam (Brill, 1991). 4. Fakhry, Majid. “The Quranic Ethos,” pp. 11-30 in Ethical Theories in Islam (Brill, 1991). 5. Fakhry, Majid. “Theological Ethics,” pp. 31-60 in Ethical Theories in Islam (Brill, 1991). 6. Fakhry, Majid. Religious Morality & the Ascetic Ideal; Otherworldly & Mundane Trends, Abuʾl-Ḥasan al-Māwardī (d. 1058); Traditionalism & Pragmatism: ꜥAlī ibn Aḥmad ibn Ḥazm; pp. 151-175 in Ethical Theories in Islam (Brill, 1991). 7. Gatrad, A. A. & Sheikh, A. Medical Ethics and Islam: Principles and Practice. Archives of Disease in Childhood, 1/2001, Volume 84, Issue 1, pp. 72-75. 8. Ghaly, Mohammed. Biomedical Scientists as Co-Muftis: Their Contribution to Contemporary Islamic Bioethics. Die Welt des Islams, 2015, Vol. 55, Issue 3/4, Special Theme Issue: The Social Politics of Islamic Bioethics (2015), pp. 286-311. 9. Izutsu, Toshihiko. “The Islamization of Old Arab Virtues: Generosity, Courage, Loyalty, Veracity, Patience” pp. 74-104 in Ethico-Religious Concepts in the Qur'an (McGill- Queen's University Press, 2002). 10. Kia, Mana. Adab as Ethics of Literary Form and Social Conduct: Reading the Gulistān in Late Mughal India. 11. Kamaly, Hossein. O Believers: The Quranic Call. 12. Kamaly, Hossein. Selections from Ethical Ḥadith. 13. Khalid, Fazlun. Islam and the Environment – Ethics and Practice an Assessment. Religion Compass 4/11 (2010): 707–716. 14. Markham, Ian & Ozdemir, Ibrahim. Globalization, Ethics and Islam: The Case of Bediuzzaman Said Nursi. Routledge, 2016. 15. Monajed M. Murad, Monajed M. Islamic Environmental Stewardship: Nature and Science in the Light of Islamic Philosophy. In Union Seminary Quarterly Review, September 2015. 16. Parrott, Justin. Al-Ghazali and the Golden Rule: Ethics of Reciprocity in the Works of a Muslim Sage. JOURNAL OF RELIGIOUS & THEOLOGICAL INFORMATION. 2017, Vol. 16, No. 2, pp. 68-78. 17. Plato’s Euthyphro. 18. Sachedina, Abdulaziz Abdulhussein. “No Harm, No Harassment” Major Principles of Health Care Ethics in Islam. In David E. Guinn (ed.), Handbook of Bioethics and Religion (Oxford University Press, 2006). 19. Al-Shaar, Nuha. “Ṣadaqa and the Social imaginary,” pp. 158-195 in Ethics in Islam: Friendship in the Political Thought of Al-Tawhidi and his Contemporaries. Routledge, 2017. Contemporary Islamic Ethics (ET-655) Hartford Seminary Fall 2020 20. Skovgaard-Petersen, Jakob. A Typology of Fatwas. Die Welt des Islams, 2015, Vol. 55, Issue 3/4, Special Theme Issue: The Social Politics of Islamic Bioethics (2015), pp. 278- 285. 21. Ṭūsī, Naṣir al-Din al-. The Nasirian Ethics. Translated from Persian by G. M. Wickens, 1964. Note: This course description, syllabus, and reading list is subject to multiple revisions. For updates, visit CANVAS. Contemporary Islamic Ethics (ET-655) Hartford Seminary Fall 2020 .