Lavigerie and Islam: An Ambiguous Legacy (original) (raw)
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The Review of Faith & International Affairs, 2018
If one day Muslim Americans will be forced to register their identities, then that is the day this proud Jew will register as a Muslim" (Khomami and Sidahmed 2016)-Jonathan Greenblatt, head of the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) "When we were at last together he railed against injustice, particularly injustice against the lowly. He told me he had made a vow-at age seventy-six-that if a certain Algerian who is wanted by both the French police and the Algerian terrorists comes to the Muslim-Christian pilgrimage in Brittany later this month and is arrested, he will enter prison with him" (emphasis added). 1-Herbert Mason on Louis Massignon (1988, 102) "Many times in our private conversations, Massingnon told me how great was his debt to St. Francis of Assisi, whom he considered not only one of the most 'compassionate' men in the history of civilization, but also the first Western Christian to preach, by example, as well as by words, the principle of non-violence, as opposed to the warlike ideology of the Crusades …. to preach the principle that only with love should we confront those who appear to be our enemies."-Giulio Bassetti-Sani, OFM (1974, 33) Louis Massignon (1883-1962) was one of the most important European scholars of Islam in the 20 th century (Hourani 1991a; Hopwood 2003). He has been described by a leading scholar of Shi'ite Islam as "perhaps the greatest academic scholar of Islam that the [Western] world has ever produced" (Nasr 1987, 254; Bill and Williams 2002, 88). He was professor of sociology of Islam, who took a special interest in Islamic mysticism, at the Collège de France, and also was the most important Catholic scholar of Islam in the 20 th century (O'Mahony 2008). His views on Islam were largely responsible for the Catholic Church's more positive approach to Islam and Muslim-Christian dialogue after the Second Vatican Council (O'Mahony 2007). Moreover, Massignon was not only an important figure in the modern history of Islamic Studies in the West, or a seminar figure in the Catholic Church's approach to Islam. His "agenda as an Orientalist were part of the Catholic revival in France in the first half of the twentieth century" (Irwin 2007, 225). Perhaps, he was "the only Islamic scholar who was a central figure in the intellectual life The author would like to greatly thank Anthony O'Mahony, and the anonymous reviews for their comments. 1 Massingnon's is referring to the legend of the "Seven Sleepers of Ephesus" found in the Qur'an and ancient Christian sources. This tradition is commemorated at ancient Christian site in Brittany, France associated today with a Muslim-Christian pilgrimage founded by Massignon for reconciliation between Jews, Christians and Muslims shortly after armed struggle in Algeria started in the 1950's (section 4). Herbert Mason, formerly University Professor of History and Religion, Boston University, was a lifelong friend of Massignon's, and translated into English Massignon's La Passion d' al-Hallaj / The Passion of al-Hallaj (Massignon 1982).
Religions, 2023
Born into a pieds-noir family in Algeria in the first part of the 20th century, Pierre Claverie (1938–1996) realizes that he lived in a colonial bubble, completely ignoring the Algerian and Muslim realities. This “prise de conscience” will constitute the beginning of a deep mystical experience, a true process of “spiritual enlightenment” through which Claverie will try to re-establish himself in the lost meeting of his youth when he used to live in his “Western and Catholic bubble”. His theological path will also be an institutional one: he will become a Dominican monk and Catholic bishop of Orano. Inevitably, his desire to spiritually encounter the Algerian reality in its Muslim identity will make Pierre Claverie reflect on the tension present in the paradox of the concept of religious truth (absolutely unique and/or multiple?). His reflection on the uniqueness/pluralism of religious truth represents a model of post-conciliar theological understanding that is worth examining and that supports a very current approach in today’s religious and social world: understanding/accepting the truth of the other without the impression of betraying one’s own truth. This study aims to deepen the mystical theological reflection of Bishop Pierre Claverie, considered a martyr in the Catholic Church, with regards to the concept of religious truth. It also to tries to understand how this reflection fits into the Catholic theological line inaugurated by the Second Vatican Council (1962–1965).
Looking at the main trends in the scholarly output regarding the history of Franciscan mission, one can only conclude that, until recently, most historians involved in the issue have been under the sway of two closely related and complementary ideologies of mission and the missionary. Historians of missionary endeavors most frequently have subscribed to a Catholic missionary ideology, which received its classical formulation during the age of European expansion, and more in particular during the conquest of the New World. This classic formulation of Catholic missionary ideology presents mission as an organized effort to spread the faith and civilization among primitive indigenous people thus far oblivious of Christianity and its message of redemption. Mission is organized, in that missionaries have been specifically trained for the purpose, either in Europe or abroad. Missionaries can rely on a range of standardized catechistic instruments to teach indigenous peoples a basic set of religious truths and precepts. The missionary effort itself is backed by a network of religious houses and missionary training centers, as well as by regular feedback with overarching administrative bodies that coordinate missionary activities for large geographic areas.
The Downside Review, 2018
St. Francis of Assisi’s dramatic meeting with the Sultan Malek el-Kamel in Damietta, Egypt, during the Fifth Crusade (1213–1221) has become an important part of the contemporary context for Muslim–Christian relations, Middle East politics and international relations. It is well-known among Catholics and medieval historians, but it was Pope John Paul II who coined the term ‘the spirit of Assisi’ which has given this event its prominence and relevance. However, this has been questioned – it is based on limited and contradictory evidence, and why do we need such historical models of positive Muslim–Christian relations? This article, in response to these objections, argues that critical theory, the Frankfurt School and social constructivism as they are developed in the theory of international relations offer a helpful perspective to examine Francis’ encounter with the Sultan, and this shows more clearly why this early Muslim–Christian encounter is relevant for contemporary international...
However, the volume does present some minor flaws. First, several studies presume an extensive background in paleography, therefore limiting the extent of their non-specialized readers; however, this is somewhat compensated by the foresight of the contributors to offer English translations of excerpts they culled from Hincmarian texts and employed, which has the advantage of offering the results of their research to an audience not necessarily proficient in Latin. Secondly, some minor stylistic problems exist, particularly inconsistencies in citation format. Two striking examples are the inconsistent citations of Patrologia Latina on page 37 and the incomplete citation of Heinrich Schrörs's Hinkmar, Erzbischof von Reims: sein Leben und seine Schriften, on page 29, where the first reference employs an abbreviated instead of full citation.
Jesuit and Pietist Missions in the Eighteenth Century. Cross-Confessional Perspectives (ed. by Markus Friedrich & Holger Zaunstöck), 2022
The Institutum Judaicum et Muhammedicum (IJM) in Halle and its staff had many friends and foes. Established by Johann Heinrich Callenberg (1694-1760) in 1728 and supported by a wide international circle of "friends", 1 it was the second major missionary enterprise of Halle Pietism alongside the Danish-English-Halle Mission (DEHM). The primary target group of this institute's missionary activities were Jews, but it also addressed Muslims and (from 1746 on) "Oriental Christians". 2 Thus far, research on the Institutum has focused on the IJM's patrons and on its missionary activities targeting Jews. 3 The interaction with other players in the