My new Introduction to the second edition to a volume on the study of Islam at US universities
I reject the sterile binaries that have suffocated Islamic studies. My vision: rigorous epistemic integration where classical Islamic thought genuinely cross-pollinates with modern disciplines—history, anthropology, ethics, philosophy. I want tradition to be a living, contested, plural arena, not a museum relic. I champion constructive disagreement (ikhtilaf) as generative force, intellectual fearlessness as scholarly virtue. Muslims and non-Muslims must collaborate as equals in what I call “cultural hermeneutics”—creative translation and philosophical synthesis that honors textual depth while embracing contemporary complexity. The academy thrives when tradition dialogues with knowledge of the present. We must refuse the false choice between authenticity and relevance.
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