Ijtihad Network Being Wise and Faithful Muslim in the Contemporary World
This conference explores issues of leadership within British Muslim communities. Leadership takes many forms. It includes liturgical and ritual leadership from imams (who may be paid, unpaid, or low-paid) and educational leadership from academics or those serving in madrassahs, seminaries and other kinds of private establishments.
It encompasses both women and men and is exercised in increasingly diverse ways, such as virtual forums online or Islamic television channels. Religious leadership is also provided by an elite group of professionals with expertise in Islamic law, who may carry the title ‘mufti’ or ‘ayatollah’, or by Sufi shaykhs who provide guidance for their disciples.
Political leadership has emerged via a number of British Muslims taking up positions within local and national governance, some of whom have acquired senior government positions such as the current Mayor of London Rt Hon Sadiq Khan or Baroness Sayeeda Warsi. Alongside this, a range of regional and national organisations have developed to ‘represent’ the interests of Muslim communities in civil society, often headed by those with skills derived from a variety of public service and charitable roles. Bodies such as the Muslim Council of Britain and their affiliates exercise national influence while various councils of mosques claim to advocate on behalf of broad regional congregations. Muslim leadership roles have seen further diversification in recent decades through incorporation into professions such as chaplaincy and youth work, while those British Muslims in senior positions within the media, or the third sector, often function as influential spokespeople. Others who have succeeded in the public eye, such as Sir Mo Farah CBE or Nadiya Hussain for example, act as ‘role models’ garnering followings among a wide cross-section of British society.
Important Data
Conference Date: January 21, 2019 @ 9:30am to 5:30pm
Abstract Submission Deadline: December 7, 2018
Venue: Cardiff University Main Building, Council Chamber 1.77, Park Place, Cardiff CF10 3AT, UK
Email: MuslimLeadership@cardiff.ac.uk
Website: sites.cardiff.ac.uk/
This conference brings together academics and practitioners to explore the myriad ways in which British Muslims exercise leadership in a range of sectors. As such, we welcome papers that explore how leadership roles are changing in relation to the broader development of British Muslim communities and organisations, alongside changes in British society more generally. We interpret ‘leadership’ broadly, but are especially interested in the work of salaried ‘Muslim religious professionals’, by which we mean those who derive their livelihood from their employment as imams, chaplains, Muslim youth workers, and so on. The work of those employed to train these leaders is also of interest.
By focussing on British Muslim community leadership, this conference will provide systematic focus on a topic that has hitherto been given rather diffuse consideration. It will complement historical work on community leadership (Birt 2008, Birt 2008, Geaves 2009), as well as more contemporary discussion about the training and role of imams and Muslim chaplains in Britain (Lewis 2002, Birt 2005, Birt 2006, Gilliat-Ray 2006, Gilliat-Ray 2008, Gilliat-Ray, Ali et al. 2013, Hafiz 2015). There is merit in exploring issues of leadership from an interdisciplinary perspective, in order that scholars of religion, sociology, political science, history, and Islamic Studies can bring synergistic focus to a topic of current academic and political debate.
We welcome proposals for papers that explore questions of leadership, authority and representation in British Muslim communities. Please submit a title and abstract of no more than 200 words along with a brief biography (50 words) and contact details to MuslimLeadership@cardiff.ac.uk by 3pm, Friday 7th December 2018.
Keynote Lectures by:
- Ataullah Siddiqui (Markfield Institute of Higher Education)
• Shaukat Warraich (Faith Associates)
Panel Discussion on ‘The Future Role of Imams in the UK’ with:
- Saleem Kidwai (Chair)
• Shuruq Naguib
• Atif Imtiaz
• Mufti Abdur Rahman Mangera
• Myriam Francois-Cerrah
• Imam Qari Asim
This conference has been organized in conjunction with a special issue of the international journal Religions jointly edited by Professor Sophie Gilliat-Ray and Dr Riyaz Timol. Delegates may be invited to submit a paper for publication, subject to normal peer-review procedures, after the event. The deadline for final paper submissions is 25 April 2019.
