Aims

1. Students should gain insight into the polysemous nature of the term Islam as a system of mysticism, ethics, creed, worship and rituals.
2. Students should be able to sketch out the origin and development of the early Islam in the light of the most important moments in the life of the prophet Mohammed.
3. Students should be able to clarify and give examples about the development and singularity of the Koran and Sunna as founding Islamic sources of faith.
4. Students should have gained insight into the origin and the singularity of the most important Islamic groups of faith (Sunnites and Shia Muslims).
5. Students should be able to interpret succintly the Islamic sciences (exegisis of the Koran, hadieth-science, theology, law, mysticism, philosophy). For each of these sciences they should be able to indicate the singularity and illustrate the most important minds.
6. Students should be able to describe in their own words the history of the presence of Muslims in Belgium. They should also be able to describe in their own words how Muslims (in Belgium) deal with rituals of birth, marriage and death.

Previous knowledge

This course requires no specific previous knowledge.

Content

• The introduction comprises a clear delineation of the notion 'Islam'. It will focus on the polysemous nature of the term 'Islam' as mysticism, ethics, creed, worship and rituals. This methodological definition outlines the background and basic position for the rest of the course.
• The biography of the prophet Mohammed: pre-Islamic Arabian society and the life of the prophet.
• The Koran: the way in which the Koran as a book came into being, meaning and recitation of the Koran, the ethical framework of the Koran.
• The Sunna: meaning and statute of the Sunna, introduction to 'hadieth'.
• Schisms in the community of the Islam after the death of the prophet Mohammed.
• Exegesis of the Quran (tafsier) and science of hadieth: introduction to the most important minds.
• Islamic law (fiqh): introduction, historical evolution and introduction to the most important thinkers.
• Islamic theology (kalaam) and philosophy (falsafa): introduction, historical evolution and introduction to the most important thinkers.
• Islamic devoutness and mysticism: introduction, historical evolution and introduction to the most important thinkers.
• Focus on Muslims in Belgium: history of the Islamic presence in Belgium, creation of mosques, recognition of the Islamic religion and a more shaded meaning to the concept 'the society of Muslims in Belgium'.
• Focus on the Islamic calendar (feasts and rituals) and the way in which Muslims in Flanders deal with rituals of birth, marriage and death.

Course material

Text book
Slides, transparencies, courseware

Is also included in other courses

• Bachelor of Theology and Religious Studies (Abridged Programme) 105 ects.
• Bachelor of Theology and Religious Studies 180 ects.
• Bachelor of Political and Social Sciences 180 ects.
• Bachelor of Philosophy (Option: Theology and Religious Studies) 180 ects.
• Bachelor of Language and Area Studies: Arabic and Islamic Studies 180 ects.