Abū Mansūr al-Māturīdī (d. 944) is a major scholar who struck a balance between revelation and reason. He founded a theological school based on Islamic natural theology rooted in the Quran. His school was developed by a large body of scholars and was followed by the majority of Muslims around the world for more than a millennia.
In this Scholars’ Corner, Dr Mehmet Ozalp will discuss the main ideas and arguments of the book Transcendent God, Rational World: A Māturīdī Theology, with its author Dr Ramon Harvey.
Dr Ramon Harvey is Aziz Foundation Lecturer in Islamic Studies at Cambridge Muslim College where he teaches theology on the BA in Islamic Studies. He received his MA and PhD in Islamic studies from SOAS, University of London. His research focuses on Qur’anic studies, theology, and ethics. Dr Harvey is the author of The Qur’an and the Just Society (2018) and Transcendent God, Rational World: A Maturidi Theology (2021), both published by Edinburgh University Press. He is also the series editor of Edinburgh Studies in Islamic Scripture and Theology.
Associate Professor Mehmet Ozalp is a theologian, author and academic and the founding director of the Centre for Islamic Studies and Civilisation (CISAC) at CSU. He is an executive member of Public and Contextual Theology (PaCT), a research centre at CSU. Mehmet studied Islamic theology and religious disciplines between 1990 to 1998. He has completed Masters in Religion from the University of Sydney. He has also completed various professional courses in management and leadership. Mehmet has pioneered designing and conducting Islamic courses in English within the Muslim Community from 2000. He has developed and written material for numerous courses on Islamic theology, history and contemporary issues around Islam, including a four-year advanced course titled Theology of Qur’an. Mehmet has lectured in Islamic courses as part of Sydney University’s Continuing Education Program from 2003 to 2008. He has also lectured on Islamic theology, culture and history at the University of Newcastle from 2007 to 2010.