Rawan Anani, Larmes de Gaza 2023
For the past six months, Gaza has witnessed the most odious and horrific scenes of its history. How does one describe the indescribable? How does one uncover and bring to light injustice, even in its most hidden obscurities? How does one escape from the paralyzing voyeurism of horrendous images or from the meaningless statements?
The statistics about the number of victims killed and injured, repeated by the media to shock the audience, are indeed horrifying. But what is also intolerable is the injustice and inhumanity that causes people to starve day after day, to search desperately for unsanitary water, from a drop of water to quench their unquenchable thirst, for electricity to recharge a telephone which can still penetrate the outside world. We must go beyond the tragic statistics and examine the injustices suffered on a daily basis by those living in Gaza, ranging from the sleepless nights, the desperate prayers that struggle to be expressed amidst a deep hunger, their walks through ruined streets, the clothes stained with the blood of innocents reeking of the acrid sulfur smell of weapons. This year, the fasts of Ramadan and Lent are terribly trying and severe. The holidays of Eid al-Fiṭr and Easter will carry the bitter taste of the injustice that is taking place just steps away from Egypt.
Conferences
Jean Druel, OP gave a talk at the conference “On the Phenomena of Agreement in Arabic” held in Paris on February 29ᵗʰ and March 1ˢᵗ by Cermom, Sorbonne University, and Inalco. His talk was entitled: “Ḥawāshī and the Transmission of Sībawayh’s Kitāb: How Commentary Traditions Arise and Die in the Margins”.
Lectures and talks
On March 5ᵗʰ, Jean Druel, OP gave a lecture at the Grand Orient de France on the topic of “Ethics of Dialogue”.
On March 9ᵗʰ, Emmanuel Pisani, OP gave a training course at the Center for the Intelligence of Faith in Paris on the topic of “The Fatiha, Key to Islamic Doxa and Praxis”.
On March 13ᵗʰ, Emmanuel Pisani, OP was invited to the seminar at the Institute of Eastern Christians. He gave a talk on the topic of “The IDEO and Islamic-Christian Dialogue”.
On March 13ᵗʰ, Emmanuel Pisani, OP gave a lecture entitled “Horizons of Human Fraternity” at the Marist Cultural and Spiritual Center in Toulon.
On March 14ᵗʰ, as part of the continuous training day for Catholic education of the Diocese of Var, Emmanuel Pisani, OP gave the following talk in Ollioules: “Monks and Monasticism: Islamic Perspectives”.
On March 15ᵗʰ, Emmanuel Pisani, OP gave two talks on “Keys to the Middle East” at Saint Joseph High School in Ollioules, for the final year classes.
On March 21ˢᵗ, Emmanuel Pisani, OP gave a lecture entitled “Allahu Akbar: History and Meaning of a Theological Formula” at IDEO in in collaboration with French-speaking association Caire Accueil.
On March 21ˢᵗ and 22ⁿᵈ, Alberto Ambrosio, OP, participated in the conference “Women and Religions in the Mediterranean” held at the French Institute – Saint-Louis Center. During this conference, he moderated the session entitled “Women and Feminisms Facing Sacred Texts”. Please refer to the program for more details (in French) …
Anawati Chair
- Seminar “Salaf in the classical age. Building an authority figure”
On March 26ᵗʰ, Mr. Matthieu Terrier, a professor at the National Center for Scientific Research (CNRS), gave the following lecture at IDEO: “The Primitive Community in Early Shiite Sources”.
- Postdoctoral scholarship jury
On March 28ᵗʰ, Emmanuel Pisani, OP, director of IDEO, Professor Aziz Hilal, a member of IDEO, and Mr. Mourad al-Riffi, director of the Institute of Arabic Manuscripts, reviewed the 43 applications received for the selection of post-PhD scholarships on critical editions of Islamic heritage texts (each lasting 18 months). The results will be announced publicly during the month of April.
- Seminar at al-Azhar Center for French Language Teaching (CEF)
On March 20ᵗʰ, Emmanuel Pisani, OP led a seminar session at al-Azhar Center for French Language Teaching (CEF) on the topic “The Congress on Human Fraternity: Issues and Perspectives”.
Islamic Studies Scholarships
- Pre-doctoral or doctoral scholarship for 10 months (2024-2025)
The French Institute of Islamic Studies (IFI), the French Institute of Oriental Archaeology (IFAO), and the Dominican Institute for Oriental Studies (IDEO) are collaborating to fund a pre-doctoral or doctoral scholarship for 10 months, from September 1ˢᵗ, 2024, to June 30ᵗʰ, 2025. Deadline for application: April 30ᵗʰ, 2024. For more information…
- Summer School: Learning Arabic through Islamic Heritage Texts
The IFI, IDEO, and IFAO offer a Summer School from July 15ᵗʰ to 28ᵗʰ dedicated to the study of Islamic tradition texts in Arabic for students in Islamic studies or affiliated fields, currently enrolled in a master’s or PhD program at a European university or institute. Deadline for application: April 15ᵗʰ, 2024. For more information (in French)…
Visits
On March 29ᵗʰ, we welcomed two Franciscan brothers: brother Milad Shehata, director of the Franciscan Cultural Center downtown, and brother William Abdelmeseh, director of the Franciscan School in Assiut.
Scholars’ House
During the month of March, we had the pleasure of welcoming to the Scholars’ House Mrs. Rocio Daga, Professor of Religious Studies at Ludwig-Maximilians University in Munich, accompanied by a group of three students, as well as Ms. Ivana Kvetanova, an archaeologist and historian graduated from the Pontifical Gregorian University and the Pontifical Institute of Christian Archaeology.
Publications
Dominique Avon, « L’islamologie pour la période contemporaine. Héritages et enjeux en contexte français », dans Mohammad-Ali Amir-Moezzi, L’islam et l’examen scientifique. Une quête renouvelée, Paris, Cerf, « La Bibliothèque de l’IFI », 2024, p. 107-133.
Emmanuel Pisani (dir.), Théologie musulmane du pluralisme religieux, avec la collaboration de Cédric Baylocq, Paris, Cerf, 2024.
Emmanuel Pisani, « ‘Si Dieu l’avait voulu, il aurait fait de vous une seule communauté’ (S. 5, 48). Pluralisme contemporain et tafāsirs classiques », dans Emmanuel Pisani (dir.), Théologies musulmanes du pluralisme religieux, Paris, Cerf, 2024, p. 21-49.
Emmanuel Pisani, recension de l’ouvrage : « Lejla Demirli, Mujadad Zaman, Tim Winter, Christoph Schwöbel, Alexei Bodrov (eds.), Theological Anthropology in Interreligious Perspective, Sapientia Islamica 5, Mohr Siebeck, Tübingen 2022, 267 p. », Islamochristiana, 2023, p. 447-450.
Emmanuel Pisani, « Le document sur la fraternité humaine, une boussole pour aujourd’hui », Revue Foi, n° 80, 2024, p. 47-49.
عمّانوئيل پيزاني، إميليو بلاتي الدومنيكيّ (١٩٤٣-٢٠٢١) من مولينبيك إلى مولينبيك، مجلة الفكر المسيحيّ، عدّد ٥٨٣-٥٨٤، العراق، مارس ٢٠٢٣.