The First Annual Symposium on Islam, Dialogue, and Sectarian De-Escalation at the Harvard Kennedy School

Date: 

Saturday, April 14, 2018 (All day)

Location: 

1737 Cambridge St, Cambridge, MA 02138, USA
The First Annual Symposium on Islam, Dialogue, and Sectarian De-Escalation at the Harvard Kennedy School has gathered a diversity of voices from leading scholars, religious authorities, civic community leaders, and policymakers alike to push forward analytical understanding and dialogue on the pressing topic of sectarianism in the Muslim world. From the rise of ISIS and militant extremism in the context of an eroding Arab state system to the intensification of the Iran-Saudi cold war in the wake of the nuclear agreement between Iran and world powers, the dire consequences of Shi’a-Sunni sectarianism and conflict—which can tear apart the societies of the Islamic world—have never been greater in modern history.
  • 10:00AM: Introductory Address

  • 10:15AM - 11:45PM: Regional Geopolitics and the New Sectarianism in the Middle East

  • 12:00PM - 2:00PM: Lunch Panel: Clergy & Religious Authority in Sectarian De-escalation

  • 2:15PM - 3:45PM: Religious Pluralism and Muslim Identity in the West and Islamic World

  • 4:00PM - 5:30PM: Religion & Civic Activism in the North American Muslim Diaspora Community

  • 5:45PM - 7:15PM: Fireside Chat – US Policymakers and Sectarian Geopolitics in the Middle East

Pluralism Project Summary: From April 13-15, 2017, the First Annual Symposium on Islam, Dialogue, and Sectarian De-Escalation at the Harvard Kennedy School brought together a diverse array of fairly high ranking ulema (religious scholars) and academics for a weekend-long conference. On Saturday the panel “Religious Pluralism and Muslim Identity in the West and Islamic World” ran from 2:30 pm to 3:45 pm. The panelists included Mr. Wasif Rizvi, the founding president of Habib University in Pakistan; Imam Mohamad Bashar Arafat, Founder and President of Civilizations Exchange and Cooperation Foundation (CECF); and Syed Meesam Razvi, the Director of International Affairs at the Al-Khoei Foundation. Harvard professor and director of the Pluralism Project, Diana Eck, moderated the panel. Mr. Rizvi spoke of the Muslim world’s obsession with western thinkers such as John Stuart Mill. He also criticized the modern trend of placing the law above all else instead of embracing cultural variations within Islam. He noted that 50,000 Shia had been killed in Pakistan in the last twenty years, but he did not delve into why sectarian violence in Pakistan is on the rise or how to reverse this trend. Imam Arafat spoke about his religious schooling in Syria and explained that imams who are trained abroad do not learn how to engage in interfaith dialogue. Imam Arafat related his own journey of becoming an American imam, and emphasized the need for strong communication, both across Islamic sects as well as amongst Muslims and people of other traditions. Imam Arafat’s Civilizations Exchange and Cooperation Foundation helps to train imams in the United States and also facilitates trips and dialogue between imams in different countries. This summary was written by a Pluralism Project staff member who attended the event.