Podcast appearances and mentions of asma afsaruddin

Today, Muslim martyrdom is often most associated with the modern phenomenon of suicide bombing. But definitions about martyrdom—and its relationship to jihad—are complex and contested, being the subject of intense scrutiny and debate among Muslim scholars for nearly fourteen centuries. In this episode, we'll examine the development of the Islamic doctrine of martyrdom, from its surprising absence in the Quran through its appearance in the sayings of the Prophet Muhammad, and the different ways in which medieval then modern religious leaders understood martyrdom, not least in its militant form. Nile Green talks to Asma Afsaruddin, author of Jihad:  What Everyone Needs to Know (Oxford University Press, 2022).

In this episode of the Chasing Leviathan podcast, PJ and Dr. Asma Afsaruddin discuss the Islamic concepts of jihad and martyrdom, exploring their complexity and the ways in which Western interpretations of these terms is often divorced from their historical, religious, and social contexts. By working through our assumptions of such terms, we can see the common humanity of those of differing religious, secular, and spiritual traditions.For a deep dive into Dr. Asma Afsaruddin's work, check out her books: Striving in the Path of God: Jihad and Martyrdom in Islamic Thought

May 6-10, 2016 | The fifteenth Building Bridges Seminar, chaired by Professor Daniel A. Madigan, S.J., was held at Georgetown University in Washington, D.C., and the Airlie Center in Warrenton, Virginia. On the first afternoon, a public panel discussion on "Monotheism and Its Complexities” featured Richard Bauckham, Asma Afsaruddin, Christoph Schwöbel, and Sajjad Rizvi providing an overview of the issues the seminar would entertain. Daniel Madigan, S.J., moderated the conversation. During the succeeding three days, selected texts from the Bible, the Qur’an and hadith, the Christian tradition, and the Islamic tradition were studied in plenary and small group sessions. Each morning, the day’s theme and texts were introduced by a lecturer and a respondent. Thus Richard Bauckham spoke on “Worship of the one God in the Biblical witness and the complexities it raises,” with Maria Massi Dakake responding; Asma Afsaruddin on “The affirmation of God’s unity and unicity in Qur’an and hadith and the questions it poses,” with Sidney Griffith responding; Christoph Schwöbel, on “Grappling with the unity question in the elaboration of Christian doctrine,” with Martin Nguyen responding; and Sajjad Rizvi, on “Safeguarding tawhid in the elaboration of the Islamic tradition,” with Janet Soskice responding. The 2016 seminar’s topic, “Affirming the Unity of God,” was perhaps the most central and challenging theological theme that Christian-Muslim dialogue has to address. In previous years, Building Bridges considered subjects such as prayer, justice and rights, religion and science, death and the afterlife, which can be addressed by each tradition almost in isolation from the other. However, on the question of monotheism, Muslims and Christians have been directly and forcefully engaged with one another from the beginning of the Islamic tradition in the Qur’an.

As the title of the monograph suggests, Contemporary Issues in Islam (Edinburgh University Press, 2015) by Asma Afsaruddin, guides the reader through an organized and compelling narrative of reflections on hot-button topics in the modern world. The monograph offers a provocative balance of historical contextualization, close reading of texts, review of key scholars, and political analysis. Given its treatment of topics such as Islamic law, gender, international relations, and interfaith dialogue, the book should prove useful in a graduate or undergraduate context–either as a whole or as individual chapters–particularly as a conversation starter, given the depths to which each chapter points. Although the scope of the book may appear ambitious, Professor Afsaruddin is well-equipped to manage the breadth of her study into a concise, lucid, and well written text. Given her research background in jihad and violence as well as Quranic hermeneutics, moreover, Contemporary Issues in Islam is a mature work that reflects decades of careful research and intellectual synthesis with ample attention to both primary and secondary literature. The monograph will likely appeal not only to scholars and students in religious studies and Islamic studies, but also political science and history as well as journalists. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

As the title of the monograph suggests, Contemporary Issues in Islam (Edinburgh University Press, 2015) by Asma Afsaruddin, guides the reader through an organized and compelling narrative of reflections on hot-button topics in the modern world. The monograph offers a provocative balance of historical contextualization, close reading of texts, review of key scholars, and political analysis. Given its treatment of topics such as Islamic law, gender, international relations, and interfaith dialogue, the book should prove useful in a graduate or undergraduate context–either as a whole or as individual chapters–particularly as a conversation starter, given the depths to which each chapter points. Although the scope of the book may appear ambitious, Professor Afsaruddin is well-equipped to manage the breadth of her study into a concise, lucid, and well written text. Given her research background in jihad and violence as well as Quranic hermeneutics, moreover, Contemporary Issues in Islam is a mature work that reflects decades of careful research and intellectual synthesis with ample attention to both primary and secondary literature. The monograph will likely appeal not only to scholars and students in religious studies and Islamic studies, but also political science and history as well as journalists. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

As the title of the monograph suggests, Contemporary Issues in Islam (Edinburgh University Press, 2015) by Asma Afsaruddin, guides the reader through an organized and compelling narrative of reflections on hot-button topics in the modern world. The monograph offers a provocative balance of historical contextualization, close reading of texts, review of key scholars, and political analysis. Given its treatment of topics such as Islamic law, gender, international relations, and interfaith dialogue, the book should prove useful in a graduate or undergraduate context–either as a whole or as individual chapters–particularly as a conversation starter, given the depths to which each chapter points. Although the scope of the book may appear ambitious, Professor Afsaruddin is well-equipped to manage the breadth of her study into a concise, lucid, and well written text. Given her research background in jihad and violence as well as Quranic hermeneutics, moreover, Contemporary Issues in Islam is a mature work that reflects decades of careful research and intellectual synthesis with ample attention to both primary and secondary literature. The monograph will likely appeal not only to scholars and students in religious studies and Islamic studies, but also political science and history as well as journalists. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

As the title of the monograph suggests, Contemporary Issues in Islam (Edinburgh University Press, 2015) by Asma Afsaruddin, guides the reader through an organized and compelling narrative of reflections on hot-button topics in the modern world. The monograph offers a provocative balance of historical contextualization, close reading of texts, review of key scholars, and political analysis. Given its treatment of topics such as Islamic law, gender, international relations, and interfaith dialogue, the book should prove useful in a graduate or undergraduate context–either as a whole or as individual chapters–particularly as a conversation starter, given the depths to which each chapter points. Although the scope of the book may appear ambitious, Professor Afsaruddin is well-equipped to manage the breadth of her study into a concise, lucid, and well written text. Given her research background in jihad and violence as well as Quranic hermeneutics, moreover, Contemporary Issues in Islam is a mature work that reflects decades of careful research and intellectual synthesis with ample attention to both primary and secondary literature. The monograph will likely appeal not only to scholars and students in religious studies and Islamic studies, but also political science and history as well as journalists. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

As the title of the monograph suggests, Contemporary Issues in Islam (Edinburgh University Press, 2015) by Asma Afsaruddin, guides the reader through an organized and compelling narrative of reflections on hot-button topics in the modern world. The monograph offers a provocative balance of historical contextualization, close reading of texts, review of key scholars, and political analysis. Given its treatment of topics such as Islamic law, gender, international relations, and interfaith dialogue, the book should prove useful in a graduate or undergraduate context–either as a whole or as individual chapters–particularly as a conversation starter, given the depths to which each chapter points. Although the scope of the book may appear ambitious, Professor Afsaruddin is well-equipped to manage the breadth of her study into a concise, lucid, and well written text. Given her research background in jihad and violence as well as Quranic hermeneutics, moreover, Contemporary Issues in Islam is a mature work that reflects decades of careful research and intellectual synthesis with ample attention to both primary and secondary literature. The monograph will likely appeal not only to scholars and students in religious studies and Islamic studies, but also political science and history as well as journalists. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices