Association of Muslim Social

Scientists of North America (AMSS)

 

“Diversity, Identity and Difference”

 

Cosponsored By

University of Nebraska at Omaha

Religious Studies Department

&

Center for Islamic Studies

 

8:00 - 9:00 a.m.                      Registration  

9:00 – 9:30 a.m.                      Welcoming and Introductory Remarks    

(Roskens Hall – Room 10A)

 

Bridget Blomfield, University of Nebraska at Omaha, NE

(Program Chair)

 

Paul Allen Williams, University of Nebraska at Omaha, NE

(Chairman, Department of Religious Studies; Director, Center for Islamic Studies)

 

9:30 – 10:15 a.m.                     Keynote Address      

(Roskens Hall: Room 10A)

 

Keynote Speaker:

Asma Afsaruddin (University of Notre Dame, IN)

 

“The Qur’an: Foundation of Islamic Unity

Through Diversity”

 

10:15 a.m. – 11: 45 a.m.          Panel Session 1          (Roskens Hall: Room 10A)

Constructing Identity & Breaking Stereotypes

Discussant: Moshe Gershovich, University of Nebraska at Omaha, NE

 

Michelle D. Byng (Temple University, Philadelphia, PA): “September 11, 2001 and Religious Pluralism: Shifting the Religious Minority Identity of Muslim Americans”

 

Aneesah Nadir (Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ): “Deconstructing Muslim Stereotypes”

 

Mahmoud Ayoub (Pacific School of Religion, Berkeley, CA): “How Religious, Cultural and Political Boundaries Define Muslim Identities”

 

11:45 a.m. – 1:15 p.m.                         Lunch

 

1:15 – 1:30 p.m.                                   Zuhr Salat

1:30 - 3:00 p.m.                       Panel Session 2         (Roskens Hall: Room 10A)

Identities and the Politics of Difference

Discussant: Elizabeth Dahl, University of Nebraska at Omaha, NE

 

Louay Safi (Islamic Society of North America [ISNA], Plainfield, IN): “Islamic Praxis: The Key to Personal Agency and Religious Authority”

 

Mohamed Nimer (American University, Washington, DC): “Integration, Assimilation and Resistance: Indigenous vs Immigrant Muslims in North America”

 

Margaret J. Rausch (University of Kansas, Lawrence, KS): “Feminism: An Islamic Perspective”

 

3:00 – 3:15 p.m.                      Break

 

3:15 – 4:45 p.m.                      Panel Session 3         (Roskens Hall: Room 10A)

Interpretations of Islam: Unity in Diversity

Discussant: Rory J. Conces, University of Nebraska at Omaha, NE

 

Yetkin Yildirim (University of Texas at Austin, TX): “Compassion and Understanding through Inter-faith and Intra-faith”

 

Simon Wood (University of Nebraska, Lincoln, NE): “Islam and Modernity”

 

Guy Matalon (University of Nebraska at Omaha, NE): “Sufism: The Mystical Element of Islam”

 

4:45 – 5:00 p.m.                     Concluding Remarks          

Paul Allen Williams, University of Nebraska at Omaha, NE

(Chairman, Department of Religious Studies; Director, Center for Islamic Studies

 

Bridget Blomfield, University of Nebraska at Omaha, NE

(Program Chair)

 

5:00 – 5:15 p.m.                      Break and Asr Salat