top of page
BTI Consortium | Last Updated August 15, 2025 - 11:00AM
ISLAMIC STUDIES
School
Harvard Divinity School
HDS 3057
Intro to Islam through Prophetic Traditions
BTI Category
Semester
Islamic Studies
FA25
This course will engage in a critical reading and analysis of well-known Muslim prophetic traditions and a study of the practices of the Prophet Muhammad. Through analysis of Muslim prophetic traditions, such as “Hadith Jibril,” we will develop an understanding of the Islamic value systems, Islamic manners/etiquette and Prophetic Character. The fundamental building blocks such as Islam (the physical surrender of the body), Iman (internal truth), and Ihsan (excellence and beauty) will be closely examined. We will focus on Muslim spiritual care through these building blocks during the semester. We will also develop a framework for understanding core Islamic sciences, such as: Jurisprudence, creed/theology, and spiritual purification. Throughout various modalities and exercises, we will study how this framework can enable a deeper understanding of the practical issues affecting the lives of Muslims. We will have expert guest speakers from different disciplines such as pastoral care/chaplaincy (ministry), poetry & literature, counseling, psychology, education, social work, and medicine throughout the semester. These specialists will give us perspectives and practical tips on how prophetic traditions are applied in a Muslim’s life. This course will provide a basic understanding of the Islamic religion through the eyes of Muslims, while providing an in-depth understanding of the various dimensions of Islamic practices. Students from different backgrounds, with or without prior experience with Islam, will find much enrichment in this course diving into the practice through the lenses of prophetic traditions.
Professor
Class Day & Time
Kumek
M
12:00pm-01:59pm
Grading Option
Letter, P/F, Audit
Credits
4
Professor Approval Req'd?
N
Online?
N
Prerequisites?
N
Notes
N/A
School
Harvard Divinity School
HDS 3339
Exploring the Quran
BTI Category
Semester
Islamic Studies
FA25
This course explores the contents of the Quran and probes its place in the history of human civilization. We will explore and critically reflect on the following subjects: 1) the Quran's core ideas, concerns, stories, laws, and arguments; 2) the historical context in which the Quran was first proclaimed and codified; 3) the relationship between the Quran and the preceding literary traditions of the ancient world, in particular the Bible and post-biblical Jewish and Christian writings; and 4) Muslims' engagement with the Quran across time and within various religious, intellectual, social, and cultural settings. To meet these goals, we will read a substantial portion of the Quran in translation and draw extensively on modern academic scholarship on the Quran. In addition, lectures will contextualize and complement our encounter with the Quranic text and secondary scholarship. By the end of the semester, students should have the ability to utilize various resources and concordances in order to independently conduct further investigations and critically evaluate claims made about the Quran. Course will have a required discussion section (and possibly an Arabic section for interested students who have at least two years of Arabic).
Professor
Class Day & Time
Goudarzi
T
03:00pm-05:59pm
Grading Option
Letter, P/F
Credits
4
Professor Approval Req'd?
N
Online?
N
Prerequisites?
N
Notes
Course will have a required discussion section (and possibly an Arabic section for interested students who have at least two years of Arabic).
School
Harvard Divinity School
HDS 3635
What is "Islamic" Philosophy?
BTI Category
Semester
Islamic Studies
FA25
Can philosophy free and critical inquiry into the foundations of reality be constrained by the tenets of a specific faith: Islam? If it is, does it remain philosophy, or does it become ideology dressed in philosophical language? Or perhaps "Islamic Philosophy" simply refers to the geographical or religious identity of certain thinkers, raising deeper questions about how such categorizations function and what they reveal or obscure. Does the label Islamic philosophy impose a restriction on how we encounter these works, or does it shed light on how they ought to be read?Through close readings of key works by major philosophers in the Islamic intellectual tradition we will ask: In what sense can these writings be called Islamic? Did the thinkers themselves view their work as Islamic? Did they consider their philosophy distinct from Greek, Western, or other Eastern traditions? And what significance did such distinctions hold for them in their own intellectual and historical contexts?
Professor
Class Day & Time
Moballegh
W
03:00pm-04:59pm
Grading Option
Letter, P/F, Audit
Credits
4
Professor Approval Req'd?
N
Online?
N
Prerequisites?
N
Notes
N/A
School
Hartford International
HI-624
Histories of Classical Islam: Peoples, Traditions, Institutions
BTI Category
Semester
Islamic Studies
FA25
This course explores historical formations of major Muslim beliefs, practices, and traditions in the context of socio-political institutions. It engages narratives on the development of Islam which have come forth from various perspectives. Topics range from the emergence of the community of faith around the Prophet to established orders under different polities. Chronologically, this course covers from the 7th to the 17th century CE, from Late Antiquity to the Early Modern Period. Geographically, coverage extends from what is presently called the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) to southern Spain (Al-Andalus), as well as Asia Minor, the Caucasus, Central Asia, India, and the Malay Peninsula.
This course fulfills the following curricular requirements:
MAIRS - Interreligious Studies: Elective
MAIRS - Islamic Studies: Beliefs and Practices
MAIRS - Islamic Studies: Foundational Fields
MAIRS - Islamic Studies: Elective
Professor
Class Day & Time
Kamaly, Hossein
W
5:00pm-6:50pm
Grading Option
Letter, P/F, Audit
Credits
3
Professor Approval Req'd?
N
Online?
N
Prerequisites?
N
Notes
Hybrid Synchronous - F2F
School
Hartford International
SC-630
The Foundations of Qur'anic Studies:The History, Form, and Content of Islam's Holy Book
BTI Category
Semester
Islamic Studies
FA25
This course explores tafsir literature from the classical period to modernity. Students will investigate the evolution of Qur�an commentary, the sub-genres of tafsir literature, the biographies of some great scholars of Qur�an commentary and their methodologies. Selected verses of the Qur�an will be read with commentaries about the following topics: God�s existence and attributes, determinism, sin and divine mercy, prophethood and Muhammad, Jesus and Mary, heaven and hell, war and peace, Shari�a and politics, pluralism, men and women, etc. Knowledge of Arabic is not required but several texts unavailable in English will be translated orally during this course and students knowing Arabic will be invited to read them in the original language. A basic knowledge about Islamic theology and the history of Muslim societies would be useful.
Course fulfills the following curricular requirements:
MAIRS - Interreligious Studies Elective
MAIRS - Islamic Studies: Beliefs and Practices
MAIRS - Islamic Studies: Foundational Fields
MAIRS - Islamic Studies Elective
MAC - Islamic Studies Pathway Elective
MAC - Chaplaincy elective
Professor
Class Day & Time
Laher, Suheil
M
5:00pm-6:50pm
Grading Option
Letter, P/F, Audit
Credits
3
Professor Approval Req'd?
N
Online?
N
Prerequisites?
N
Notes
Hybrid Synchronous - F2F
School
Hartford International
WS-639
Islamic Spirituality
BTI Category
Semester
Islamic Studies
FA25
This course explores the growth of the Islamic spiritual tradition from the earliest days of Islam to the modern period. It aims to help students know the diverse manifestations of this spiritual tradition; to examine the historical contexts in which Muslim spiritual paths, orientations, practices, and communities developed; to discover elements and resonances between Muslim and other spiritual traditions; and to deepen understanding of how spiritual practices relate to Islamic law and theology and help the practitioner develop a more holistic approach to the Islamic way of life.
This course provides essential knowledge and skills in spiritual assessment for those in spiritual/pastoral care and counseling professions.
Course fulfills the following curricular requirements:
MAIRS- Islamic Studies: Beliefs and Practices
MAC - Islamic Chaplaincy Elective
Professor
Class Day & Time
Keyes, Colleen
R
5:00pm-6:50pm
Grading Option
Letter, P/F, Audit
Credits
3
Professor Approval Req'd?
N
Online?
Y
Prerequisites?
N
Notes
Synchronous Online
School
Harvard Divinity School
HDS 3157
God, Gender, and Power: Toward a Narrative-Based Feminist Theology in Islam
BTI Category
Semester
Islamic Studies
FA25
In this course, we will explore dominant conceptions of God across various schools of thought within the Islamic tradition (philosophy, jurisprudence, and kal_m). We will examine how patriarchal elements embedded in many of these theological systems have shaped, and at times reinforced, the normative structures of legal reasoning and law-making institutions. Building on this critique, we will turn to the narratives of women in the Qur�an as a potential site for developing a non-patriarchal theology that does not rely on the image of God as a patriarch, but instead centers on the act of storytelling. Through close readings of these stories, we will ask whether they open a path toward a narrative-based feminist theology. Through careful analysis and discussion, we will work to uncover the presence of a hidden narrator and the underlying structures of power that shape these narratives.
Professor
Class Day & Time
Moballegh
T
12:00pm-02:00pm
Grading Option
Letter, P/F
Credits
4
Professor Approval Req'd?
Y
Online?
N
Prerequisites?
N
Notes
N/A
School
Harvard Divinity School
HDS 3351
The House of All_h: Origin and History of the Meccan Sanctuary
BTI Category
Semester
Islamic Studies
FA25
The Meccan Sanctuary, also known as the Ka_ba, is a focal point of worship for Muslims, who pray towards it daily and strive to make a pilgrimage to it at least once in their lifetime. This course is an advanced graduate seminar centered on a host of primary sources (in Arabic) which provide information about Mecca and its shrine in the pre-Islamic and early Islamic periods. We will read sources in the genres of historiography, geography, exegesis, law, hadith, and poetry. We will also engage with secondary academic literature on Mecca, the Ka_ba, and West Arabia's other sacred spaces and festivals. Requirement: advanced knowledge of classical Arabic (3 years).Offered jointly with the Faculty of Arts and Sciences as RELIGION XXXX.
Professor
Class Day & Time
Goudarzi
R
03:00pm-05:45pm
Grading Option
Letter, P/F
Credits
4
Professor Approval Req'd?
Y
Online?
N
Prerequisites?
Y
Notes
Requirement: advanced knowledge of classical Arabic (3 years)
School
Hartford International
AM-550
Quran Recitation/Tajweed
BTI Category
Semester
Islamic Studies
FA25
This course is designed for Muslim leaders and chaplains and anyone who is interested in learning and improving their Quranic recitation. Students will gain important knowledge on recitation of the Quran. In this course, the instructor will focus on correct pronunciation of Arabic letters and words with consistent application of tajweed rules.
Class time will be divided between teaching a tajweed lesson and group Tilawah, an exercise during which the teacher reads aloud and the students repeat after the teacher. There will be time for listening to the students� recitations, as well.
Once each student understands and is comfortable with the application of the tajweed rules, s/he can complete recitation of the entire mushaf at a better and faster pace and more independently, in sha Allah.
This course may be accompanied by the spring semester course AM-551: Quran Recitation/Tajweed II.
Course fulfills the following curricular requirements:
MAIRS - Interreligious Studies: Elective
MAIRS - Islamic Studies: Elective
MAC - Islamic Chaplaincy Elective
Professor
Class Day & Time
Dogan, Okan
M
7:00pm-8:50pm
Grading Option
Letter, P/F, Audit
Credits
3
Professor Approval Req'd?
N
Online?
Y
Prerequisites?
N
Notes
Synchronous Online
School
Hartford International
HI-624-2
Histories of Classical Islam: Peoples, Traditions, Institutions
BTI Category
Semester
Islamic Studies
FA25
This course explores historical formations of major Muslim beliefs, practices, and traditions in the context of socio-political institutions. It engages narratives on the development of Islam which have come forth from various perspectives. Topics range from the emergence of the community of faith around the Prophet to established orders under different polities. Chronologically, this course covers from the 7th to the 17th century CE, from Late Antiquity to the Early Modern Period. Geographically, coverage extends from what is presently called the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) to southern Spain (Al-Andalus), as well as Asia Minor, the Caucasus, Central Asia, India, and the Malay Peninsula.
This course fulfills the following curricular requirements:
MAIRS - Interreligious Studies: Elective
MAIRS - Islamic Studies: Beliefs and Practices
MAIRS - Islamic Studies: Foundational Fields
MAIRS - Islamic Studies: Elective
Professor
Class Day & Time
Kamaly, Hossein
W
5:00pm-6:50pm
Grading Option
Letter, P/F, Audit
Credits
3
Professor Approval Req'd?
N
Online?
Y
Prerequisites?
N
Notes
Hybrid Synchronous - Online
School
Hartford International
SC-630-2
The Foundations of Qur'anic Studies:The History, Form, and Content of Islam's Holy Book
BTI Category
Semester
Islamic Studies
FA25
This course explores tafsir literature from the classical period to modernity. Students will investigate the evolution of Qur�an commentary, the sub-genres of tafsir literature, the biographies of some great scholars of Qur�an commentary and their methodologies. Selected verses of the Qur�an will be read with commentaries about the following topics: God�s existence and attributes, determinism, sin and divine mercy, prophethood and Muhammad, Jesus and Mary, heaven and hell, war and peace, Shari�a and politics, pluralism, men and women, etc. Knowledge of Arabic is not required but several texts unavailable in English will be translated orally during this course and students knowing Arabic will be invited to read them in the original language. A basic knowledge about Islamic theology and the history of Muslim societies would be useful.
Course fulfills the following curricular requirements:
MAIRS - Interreligious Studies Elective
MAIRS - Islamic Studies: Beliefs and Practices
MAIRS - Islamic Studies: Foundational Fields
MAIRS - Islamic Studies Elective
MAC - Islamic Studies Pathway Elective
MAC - Chaplaincy elective
Professor
Class Day & Time
Laher, Suheil
M
5:00pm-6:50pm
Grading Option
Letter, P/F, Audit
Credits
3
Professor Approval Req'd?
N
Online?
Y
Prerequisites?
N
Notes
Hybrid Synchronous - Online
bottom of page