5th International Graduate Conference of Nursi Studies

Posted on June 12, 2013 by nursistudiescom

 

The 5th International Graduate Conference on Nursi Studies took place between the 8th and 10th June this year and consisted of insightful lectures given by prominent scholars in the field of Nursi studies. Graduate students from around the world were also present to articulate interesting insights on Nursi with respect to how his work compares with or draws light on various aspects of life or disciplines – such as economics and cultural forces. The conference was organised by the Istanbul Foundation for Science and Culture and took place in the Akgun Hotel in Istanbul where the guests and speakers were treated to meals and also given time to enjoy the facilities. This conference is the only one to actually give a platform for young scholars to present and discuss the work of Nursi. The scholars and students hailed from a range of places including Singapore, the USA, UK, Turkey, Malaysia, India and Belgium. The conference was not only a great forum for allowing students to present their ideas and receive constructive criticism from academics but it also functioned as a productive platform for networking with other students as well as socialising in a new environment and country.

The first day of the conference featured a lecture by Dr Ian Markham from the Virginia Theological Seminary in the USA. His lecture was titled “Ways of Reading the Risale-i Nur: A Systematic Theology” and included some interesting reflections on how to summarise the way Nursi developed his notion of the relationship between God and mankind. His talk was followed by a discussion and a tea break close to the conference hall. Following the tea break, the first student session took place which was chaired by Dr Ian Markham and which included a presentation titled “Re-thinking Faith: Reading Said Nursi and W. Cantwell Smith Together” by PHD student Serafettin Pektas from the Catholic University of Leuven in Belgium. Serafettin’s talk featured a comparative analysis between the way Nursi and Cantwell Smith approached Islam with respect to whether it can be defined as a “new religion” or not (among other things). The talk was followed by a discussion amongst students and resident scholars. The final talk before lunch was by Salih Sayilgan from The Catholic University of America and was titled “Mapping Nursi’s Readings of the Quran”. Salih discussed how Nursi’s approach to the Quran was effectively a new interpretation of the Divine scripture for the contemporary society of his time. He also mentioned that Nursi’s work mentions deep issues such as that of the Resurrection and the notion of Destiny that can be understood by the ordinary person. After lunch, there was a lecture titled “Islam in The Modern World: Re-thinking Islamic Movements” by Dr Ibrahim Ozdemir from Hasan Kalyoncu University in Turkey. In it, he mentioned the important issue of the challenge of modernity to Islamic thought and socio-political developments and how Nursi shed light on this. After the discussion of the talk, there was a tea break which then led on to the second student session of the day which was chaired by Dr Ozdemir. Nurul Fadiah Johari from the National University of Singapore presented a talk titled “A Nursian Discourse on the Other: An Alternative Paradigm for Inter and Intra-faith Relations”. Her talk examined contemporary issues such as dealing with tensions within multi-cultural societies and resolving them with the emphasis on pluralism and mutual respect that Said Nursi stated in his treatises. Following the discussion of her talk, there was a presentation by Mohammad Zain Yusof from the National University of Malaysia. His talk discussed how the RIsale An-Nur movement in Turkey has functioned as a positive transformative form of social entrepreneurship.

Day two of the conference began with a lecture from Dr M. Sait Ozervarli from Yildiz Technical University in Turkey. Dr Ozervali discussed the importance of approaching Nursi’s treatises with an appropriate understanding of the societal and political conditions which he was exposed to and operating in. Following this talk there was a discussion and a tea break which was followed by the third student session of the conference. Ali Bedir from Mardin Artuklu University in Turkey presented a talk discussing how Nursi’s theological perspective dealt with practical and spiritual issues concerning his students in their daily lives. There was also a presentation by Zeynep Sayilgan from Georgetown University in the USA which discussed how Nursi’s work could be used to construct a theological approach to the problems and challenges of Muslim migration into non-Muslim or foreign lands. Her example case-study was the country of Germany and the experiences of Turkish immigrants and the challenges with respect to integration, identity and support from the faith community. Her presentation was warmly received and considerably constructive criticism was also presented by resident scholars and students. Following lunch there was a lecture by Dr Farid Alatas from the National University of Singapore which explored how Nursi’s work can be used to construct a “social theology” which addresses various societal and psychological issues such as “despair”, “hopelessness” and “alienation” within the context of modern individualist societies. Following the discussion there was a tea break which was followed by a student session which Dr Alatas chaired. Also presenting was Mahshid Turner from Durham University in the UK who gave a talk about how Nursian perspectives shed light on the issue of “sadness” and how difficult emotional situations impacted the lives of Prophets. At the end of the second day of the conference there was a pleasant boat tour that took the students and professors around the Bosphorous as well as a meal that was served on the boat. Many photographs were taken of the beautiful vistas and surroundings by the foreign guests who were experiencing their first tastes of Turkey.

The final day of the conference began with a morning lecture by Dr Colin Turner of Durham University in the UK which focussed on guiding students on how to approach Nursi’s texts in a critical manner. He stated that too many students produced work which did not demonstrate good critical thinking skills or the ability to really analyse things in detail. After the discussion and break there was a student session chaired by Dr Colin Turner which featured a talk by Tubunur Yesihark-Ozkan from Durham University in the UK discussing the Nursian approach to the “problem of evil” and a reflection on historic approaches to this question from different theologans as well as issues of divine pre-destination and free-will.  Also speaking was Puthenpeedikayil Sajid from Jamia Millia Islamia in India who talked about how the Islamic principle of “Zakat” that Nursi mentioned in his works can help shed light on the contemporary implementation or theoretical discourses of Islamic economics and the potential eradication of the problem of poverty. After a discussion and lunch at the hotel, the final student session took place which was chaired by Dr. Ismail Hacinebioglu. Hasan Sherif from Jamia Millia Islamia in India gave a presentation which discussed the need for reform within the Indian Medresa system. He talked about how there was a rather restrictive approach towards Islamic practices and thought and discussed how the Nursian approach could generate a revival of critical thinking and scientific discourse that does not conflict with Islamic theology. The final student presentation was by Dusmamat Karimov of Durham University in the UK who talked about the concept of “Divine Justice” in Nursi’s work as well as order, balance and harmony in the macrocosm of creation and its connection to harmony in the microcosm of the human being.

The conference concluded with a closing session chaired by Dr Faris Kaya of the IFSC and featuring resident scholars Dr Ian Markham, Dr Colin Turner, Dr Sait Ozervarli, and Dr Farid Alatas. They each gave their thoughts and reflections on the conference proceedings which included suggestions on how things could be improved for the next conference. There was a general agreement that more time needed to be given for graduate students to be able to discuss and present their work. The scholars and students found the conference fruitful and productive and there was considerable optimism with respect to the continuing development and dissemination of Nursian thought. Also present throughout the conference were guests from the Washington Theological Consortium who had participated in a study tour in Turkey as part of a Christian-Muslim programme. They offered constructive and positive views on the content and discussion that arose in the conference and were impressed with the depth and freedom of thought that they perceived from those who had read Nursi’s work. After the closing session, the students and scholars travelled to the Topkapi Walls for a meal as well as some closing statements and award ceremonies.