The Abode of Peace: Spirituality and Harmony in Islam

Islamic Peace Studies Second Annual Conference – March 21-23, 2019

This conference explores the spiritual dimension of peace in Islam. Negative peace has been defined as the absence of violent conflict and concerns security arrangements. Positive peace has been defined as actions, policies, and attitudes that promote peace. Our concern here is with positive peace, and with its inner manifestations, in affect, attitude and personal behavior. Sufism has been a major site of such peace-related themes, but they appear in other arenas of Islamic practice as well. 

Thursday, 3/21 (Michigan League, Michigan Room, 911 N. University Ave.)

6:00pm | Dinner at Michigan Room

7:00pm | Evening Keynote Lecture with  Dr. Irfan Omar (Marquette University). Reframing Peace: Muslim Stories of Peacemaking for the 21st Century

Friday, 3/22 (Weiser Hall, Event Space 1010, 500 Church St.)

9:00am | Breakfast

10:00am | Welcoming Remarks. Pauline Jones and Samer Ali, University of Michigan          

10:15am | Sulh: Social Peace and Peacemaking in the Qur’an. Juan Cole, University of Michigan

11:00am | Discussion   

11:30am | States of Quietude: The Sufi Concepts of Certainty, Contentment, Satisfaction, Tranquility, and Trust in God. Alexander Knysh, University of Michigan

12:15pm | Discussion

2:00pm |  A Sufism for Our Time: The Egyptian Society for Spiritual and Cultural Research. Valerie Hoffman, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign

2:45pm | Discussion

3:15pm| Curing and Converting: The Legacy of Islamic Physicians in Asia. Jennifer Nourse, University of Richmond

4:00pm | Discussion

4:30pm | Roundtable discussion (Panelists and audience)

5:30pm | Close

Saturday, 3/23 (Community Room, Ann Arbor Reformed Christian Church, 1717 Broadway St.)

6:00-8:30pm| Community Dinner and Islamic Peace Presentations

Dinner will begin at 6:00pm and presentations at 6:30pm. Presentations by Professors Juan Cole, Alexander Knysh, Jennifer Nourse, and Irfan Omar.

Funding for this project comes from the International Institute Enterprise Fund. This event series is free and open to the public. 

Cosponsors: African Studies Center, Global Islamic Studies Center, Center for South Asian Studies, Center for Southeast Asian Studies, Digital Islamic Studies Curriculum, Department of Middle East Studies, Michigan State University's Muslim Studies Program, Interfaith Council for Peace and Justice, and the Ann Arbor Christian Reformed Church