Get an introduction to the history of the Qur'an, and its relationship with Judaism and Christianity. Explore the relationship between the Qur'an, Judaism and Christianity. This online course will illustrate how the Qur’an situates itself as part of, and as a correction to, the religious discourse of the Jewish and Christian communities of Late Antique Arabia.
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The course will use the Qur’an, as well as Jewish and Christian historical documents, to reconstruct the religious landscape to which the Muslim scripture reacts in a pointed, precise and nuanced way.
This will give you a historically more informed understanding of nascent Islam, and will allow you to reconsider many of theological and cultural tenets of Late Antique Judaism and Christianity.
What topics will you cover?
- Traditional and Western approaches to the Qur’an
- Arabia in Late Antiquity
- Judaism and Christianity from the first to the seventh century
- The Qur’an and the Hebrew Bible
- The Qur’an and the New Testament
- Law and ritual purity in the Bible, Judaism, Christianity, and in the Qur’an
- The Qur’an, Judaism and Christianity
What will you achieve?
By the end of the course, you'll be able to...
- Compare aspects of the Qur'an's message to Jewish and Christian teachings of Late Antiquity
- Reflect on some of the similarities and on some of the differences between the Qur'an, Judaism, and Christianity
- Assess some of the historical reasons for the contemporary misconceptions of nascent Islam
- Collaborate with others on broadening your historical knowledge
- Debate historical aspects of religion with people from various backgrounds
- Interpret select Qur'anic passages in dialogue with the Jewish and the Christian tradition
- Explore the opportunities and the limitations of "traditional" and "Western" approaches to the Qur'an
- Identify helpful methods of reading the Qur'an historically, comparatively, and respectfully
