My entire academic career, both western university and seminary, was dedicated to studying the world’s leading religious traditions. One of the greatest fortunes I had was to learn the wisdom, complexity, and nuances of centuries of wisdom, theology, and spiritual practices. While this 20 year journey started broad, it eventually narrowed over the years and took a deep dive into Islam. My interest in Islamic Studies is twofold:
- The intersection of theology/religious law and the modern condition. Things like how Islam operates on a state level, how the secular nature of the modern nation state is dealt with, the rise of the modern banking system, just-war theory in light of the nature of modern warfare, etc.. are issues that I find fascinating and am super fortunate to have witnessed first-hand through my various engagements over the past two decades.
- Islam as a philosophy of first-principle thinking providing an operating system that synthesizes complex issues into their basic components, allowing one to innovate and thrive in complex, fluid environments. This is largely based on Islam’s elaborate system of jurisprudence (known as uṣūl a-fiqh) and its intersection with spiritual practices (known as Sufism) that inculcates these first principles into daily habits and practices.
To this effect, the majority of my thoughts and efforts are going into a new platform: Making Sense of Islam.