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A podcast on themes in classical Islamic theology (kalam), hosted by Hannah C. Erlwein, PhD This podcast introduces some of the themes and problems which classical Islamic theologians discussed. It covers how the science of kalam came about; what aims and concerns its practitioners had; how they defended their activity and methods against the detractors of kalam; and finally what sorts of arguments and methods of knowledge making the science of kalam rested on. Video version available at: ht ...
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Kalamopod | Episode 12 "Interview with David Thomas: Interreligious Polemics"
22:04
22:04
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David Thomas, an emeritus professor of Christianity and Islam at the University of Birmingham, is speaking to us about encounters between Islamic theologians and theologians of other faiths. He is giving us an insight into the attacks levelled by al-Baqillani, a 10th-century Islamic theologian, against Christian doctrines such as the Incarnation. D…
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Kalamopod | Episode 11 "Who Got It Right? Interreligious Polemics"
16:13
16:13
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In this episode, we will look at how, in the wake of the expansion of the Islamic empire, Islamic theologians came into contact with adherents of other faiths. This propelled them to engage in interreligious debates and polemics. Sometimes they debated vigorously, seeking to expose what they considered inconsistencies and sheer absurdities in other…
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Kalamopod | Episode 10 "I Believe in Miracles since You Came Along"
15:40
15:40
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15:40
In this episode, we will look at how Islamic theologians thought Muhammad's claims to prophethood could be vindicated. By a miracle, they asserted, like in the case of all prophets before Muhammad! But what exactly did Muhammad's miracle consist in? The theologians gave different answers... Music by: Mystery Bazaar Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) L…
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Kalamopod | Episode 9 "Should I Stay or Should I Go? Two Ethical Theories"
20:14
20:14
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In this episode, we will look at how Islamic theologians came to puzzle their heads over the many commandments and prohibtions which the Quran contains. Taking a step back from the activity of the jurists, who tried to figure out the legal status of this or that action, the theologians asked some more fundamental questions: Where do moral values ac…
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Kalamopod | Episode 8 "I Am That I Am: the Divine Attributes"
19:55
19:55
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In this episode, we will look at how the mutakallimun argued God's attributes could be known. They agreed that God is not knowable as the physical world around us is, we cannot just look at God to know His attributes - so they employed a different method... And once they started to investigate the divine attributes, they had plenty of opportunity t…
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Kalamopod | Episode 7 "Books, Buildings, and the World… Analogies Everywhere!"
18:15
18:15
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18:15
In this episode, we will look at how the disagreement among Ash'arite and Mu'tazilite mutakallimun about human agency caused them to wonder whether the whole enterprise of kalam was at risk and would crumble like a house of cards. What was at stake was the effectiveness of a certain form of argument which many early mutakallimun frequently used to …
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Kalamopod | Episode 6 "When God Creates... Natural Causality and Human Agency"
18:32
18:32
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In this episode, we will look at how the mutakallimun zoomed in on the central theological problem of God's role as creator of the world. They didn't simply affirm that God created the world at some point in the past and from nothing, but they wanted to affirm also that God was continously involved in creation. This led them to deny natural causali…
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Kalamopod | Episode 5 "Kalam in Action: Proving Creation and the Creator"
17:29
17:29
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17:29
In this episode, we are looking at one of the trickiest theological problems which the practitioners of the science of kalam investigated. This is the proof that the world is created by God. The kalam proofs were prompted by the many Quranic verses that declare God to be the world's creator - but the mutakallimun had to figure out what precisely th…
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Kalamopod | Episode 4 "To Do or Not To Do Kalam, That is the Question" II
23:00
23:00
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In this episode, we are looking at an epistle written by the 10th-century theologian, Abu'l-Hasan al-Ash'ari, and fittingly entitled "A Vindication of the Science of Kalam". Al-Ash'ari not only tells us about the arguments of the detractors of kalam, who despise it as "baleful innovation" - but he also tells us all the reasons why they are clearly …
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Kalamopod | Episode 3 "To Do or Not To Do Kalam, That Is the Question" I
27:20
27:20
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In this episode, we are looking at an inquisition (mihna) which the Abbasid caliph al-Ma'mun instigated in the year 833. One group of scholars, the muhaddithun, fell victim to the inquisition, while another group of scholars, the practitioners of kalam, benefited from it. At the heart of the inquisition was a single theological question: Was the Qu…
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Kalamopod | Episode 2 "A New Science Has Arisen"
24:42
24:42
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In this episode, we are looking at different academic theories of the emergence of the science of kalam and its characteristic debating style. We will also hear about the teachings of one early theological group, the Qadariyya, which brought them into conflict with political authorities. Music by: Mystery Bazaar Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Lice…
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Kalamopod | Episode 1 "Setting the Stage"
21:05
21:05
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In this episode, we are looking at the emergence of Islam in 7th-century Arabia and some of the theological themes that define the Quranic message. This will help us set the stage for when we dive deep into the ocean of classical Islamic theology in the many episodes to come. Music by: Mystery Bazaar Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under C…
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