The students of the 2024 Certificate. Religions and Human Sciences.
The summer at IDEO was marked by diligent labor and the serious dedication that accompanies the pursuit of knowledge. For the first time, in collaboration with our partners from IFI and IFAO, we hosted a summer school, bringing together twelve young scholars in Islamic studies, most of them doctoral students from French universities. Driven by a desire to deepen their understanding of Arabic and to immerse themselves in a centuries-old culture through the study of its texts, they uncovered the depth of its words and meanings. Our friends from al-Azhar delivered insightful lectures with great pedagogy, our colleagues at the Institute of Arabic Manuscripts welcomed them with the hospitality of true friendship, and Nuria de Castilla, visiting from London, introduced them to the art of codicology. The visit to the Museum of Islamic Art was not merely an aesthetic stroll but a journey into the depths of a history resonant with culture and the unseen. Through this textual and cultural journey, bonds were woven, and encounters occurred, like deep roots that will surely bear fruit.
The linguistic session intended for Dominican friars also demanded our full attention, energy, and resources. This year, there were nine participants—nine souls in search of other rays of truth. Together, we accomplished beautiful work toward a holistic understanding of Islam.
Now, the new academic year begins, bringing with it a procession of promises and new faces. Tessa and Andreas, this year’s scholarship recipients, have arrived safely. We are also expecting young scholars from the Avicenna Institute in Budapest. The researchers’ villa now evokes a procession, where each step leads to an encounter that, like an offering within the academic world, builds fraternity a little more each day.
Introductory Course in Arabic language and Islamic studies
From July 15ᵗʰ to August 9ᵗʰ, we organized a summer course with 9 brothers:
- Arsène Adoumbey Tirmadjingar, Chadian;
- Vince Iñigo, Filipino;
- Aimeric Jardin, French;
- Aloysius Kung, Indonesian;
- Herbert Mimokogna, Central African;
- Stanislas Rose, French;
- Wilfried Sindeu Peumedji, Cameroonian;
- Steve Sinelide, Congolese;
- Ireneusz Zając, Polish;
The course was available at three levels: beginner (A1), advanced beginner (A1+), and intermediate (A2). The Islamic studies course was presented by Brothers Adrien Candiard, OP, Jean Druel, OP, and Emmanuel Pisani, OP while the Arabic liturgy classes was led by Brothers Jean Druel, OP and Mina-Athanase, OP. The brothers at the A1+ and A2 levels also attended classes with instructors from al-Azhar.
Summer School in Partnership with IFI and IFAO
From July 16ᵗʰ to 26ᵗʰ, 2024, the first summer school was held for PhD students enrolled in European universities or those who have recently completed their master’s degrees, to gain basic knowledge in Arabic language and Islamic studies.
Among the lecturers from al-Azhar University, participants attended the following courses:
- Prof. Ibrāhīm ʿĀmir Ǧadīd on Tafsīr
- Prof. Yusrī Ǧaʿfar on Falsafa
- Prof. ʿAbd al-Fattāḥ al-Mašadd on Sufism
- Prof. ʿAzza Ramaḍān on Kalām
- Prof. Hišam al-Azharī on Uṣūl al-Fiqh
Anawati Chair:
- Session “Introduction to codicology”
On July 23ʳᵈ, we welcomed Mrs. Nuria de Castilla Muñoz, Director of Studies at the École Pratique des Hautes Études, for a session on codicology. Forty students from the al-Azhar Center for French Language Teaching (CEF), accompanied by Mrs. Mona Sabry, the Center’s director, as well as students from the Summer School and the Introductory Course in Arabic language, participated.
- Volunteer Specialized in Teaching French as a foreign language
Since mid-July, we have welcomed Mr. Martin Séva-Laroche, who will serve as a French teacher for specific purposes as part of an International Cooperation Volunteer program for one year. Recruited by the Delegation of Catholic Cooperation, he will provide specific courses, espically on topics such as human rights, equality, and citizenship. The goal is to help students at the al-Azhar Center for French Language Teaching (CEF) better understand the current issues and debates in Europe.
- Distribution of “Religions and Human Sciences” Certificates
On July 27ᵗʰ, during a ceremony attended by Professor Aziz Hilal, head of the “Religions and Human Sciences” certificate program, and Mrs. Anne Kofoed, representative of the European Union Delegation in Cairo, we distributed the “Religions and Human Sciences” Certificates to 38 students.
- Call for Applications for the 2025 Summer School
The Dominican Institute for Oriental Studies is organizing, as part of the Anawati Chair and in partnership with the University of Insubria (Varese and Como), a Summer School on the topic of “Citizenship and Religious Pluralism” which will take place in July 2025. This school is intended for PhD students or those who have defended their thesis after January 1ˢᵗ, 2023. For more information…
Conference
On August 28ᵗʰ and 29ᵗʰ, Jean Druel, OP participated in Tokyo at the 7ᵗʰ meeting of the FAL group (“Foundations of Arab Linguistics”). His presentation focused on al-Mubarrad’s (d. 285/898) criticism of Sībawayh’s Kitāb (d. 180/796), based on the evidence from the manuscript versions and the marginal glosses.
Lectures and talks
On July 9ᵗʰ, Dennis Halft, OP participated in the international conference of the research group “Judæo-Persian and Persian Textual Landscapes: Towards an Intellectual History of Medieval Iranian Jewry”, held at the Israel Institute for Advanced Studies (IIAS) at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. He presented a lecture entitled “Persian Bible Translations Leaving the ‘Literary Ghetto’ (W. J. Fischel) of Judæo-Persian”.
On July 17ᵗʰ, Jean Jacques Pérennès, OP gave a lecture entitled “What Future for Christians in the Middle East in Crisis?” in Saint-Jacut-de-la-Mer.
On August 10ᵗʰ, Dennis Halft, OP gave a lecture on the topic of “Interreligious Dialogue in Times of Crisis: A Dominican Perspective” at the Saint Dominic’s Day celebration in Saint-Martin, Freiburg im Breisgau.
On August 20ᵗʰ, Jean Jacques Pérennès, OP gave a lecture entitled “Israel-Palestine: What Future?”, in Trévou-Tréguignec.
On August 21ˢᵗ, Jean Jacques Pérennès, OP gave a lecture entitled “The Spiritual Marks of the Tibhirine Monks”, in Kermouster (Pleubian).
Visits
On July 30ᵗʰ, we welcomed for lunch Mr. Asif Uddin, a PhD student in Islamic studies at Swansea University in the United Kingdom. He is working on the relationship between the names of the sūras in the Qurʾān and their content.
On August 2ⁿᵈ, we welcomed for lunch Mr. Isaac Watkins, a student at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in the United States. He is researching the foundation of the earliest Coptic convents.
Scholars’ House
During the months of July and August, we had the pleasure of welcoming the following researchers to the Scholars’ House:
- Sami Benkherfallah, professor in medieval history at the University of Poitiers and beneficiary of the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs scholarship;
- Nadir Boudjellal, PhD student in Medieval and Modern Arabic Studies;
- Gregory Vandamme, postdoctoral researcher at the University of Chester (United Kingdom) and beneficiary of the IFI-IDEO-IFAO scholarship;
- Matthew Crippen, researcher at the Pusan National University, Korea, and at the “Mind and Brain” school at the Humboldt University of Berlin and student of theology at the University of Toronto;
- Aurélie Petiot, lecturer and researcher in Contemporary Art History at the University of Paris Nanterre.
Publications
Dominique Avon, « La crise de l’Autorité normative dans le sunnisme contemporain », dans Vincent Legrand et Ayang Utriza Yakin (dir.), Histoire, société et études islamiques au 21e siècle. Directions, connexions, approches, Berlin/Boston, De Gruyter, 2024, p. 43-69.