Plagues Pandemics in Islam

3 Credits · Level: Graduate, Undergraduate

Over the course of human history, successive episodes of plagues and pandemics have raised a number of important questions at the intersection of religion, law, and ethics. These questions range from attempts to reconcile the occurrence of these events with the religious belief in a loving and caring God to their various legal and ethical consequences, both at the individual and collective levels. Within the Islamic tradition, plagues and pandemics have stirred extensive theological and juristic discussions on issues such as their causes, ramifications, and also the proper attitude of a believer in the face of such challenging circumstances. This course aims to investigate these issues and explore some of the important resources for these discussions within the Islamic normative tradition, mainly in light of actual historical precedents. The course is divided into three main parts: normative background, historical survey of important precedents, and responses to the COVID-19 pandemic. The course supports and complements other theology and Islamic studies courses as well as courses concerned with Islamic history, societies, cultures, and peoples.