Date:
Location:
The Project on Shi'ism and Global Affairs at WCFIA presents
A Symposium on Diversity and Unity in Transnational Shi'ism
An International Symposium on Intra-Shi'a Dialogue & Confessional Diversity within Shi'ism at Harvard University's Weatherhad Center
Register in advance: bit.ly/symposium-signup.
For full information: bit.ly/intra-shia-symposium
This symposium brings together interdisciplinary voices from across various interpretations of Shi'a Islam in both contemporary and historical contexts with leading scholars in the field who study the diversity of Shi’a thought and communities across denominational lines including Zaydi, Ismaili, Alevi, Alawite, Bektashi, and Twelver Ja'fari Islam and more.
This symposium will begin a larger dialogue on the historical relationship between Shi’a groups, intellectual and scholarly conversations between them, and contemporary areas of convergence and diversity that intersect with transnational Shi'a groups ranging from Twelvers in Iran, Iraq and Pakistan, to Zaydis in the Arabian Peninsula, to Isma'ilis in Tajikistan and India, to Bektashi Shi'as in the Balkans, and to Shi'a diaspora communities in the West and beyond.
Keynote speaker: Dr. Seyyed Hossein Nasr, University Professor of Islamic Studies, The George Washington University
Speakers include: Juan Cole (UMichigan), Scott Lucas (UArizona), Eliton Pashaj (Bektashi Community of America)
All sessions will be held online via Zoom. The symposium is free and open to the public.
Co-sponsors: Henry Luce Foundation, Center for Middle Eastern Studies, Harvard University Asia Center, Lakshmi Mittal and Family South Asia Institute
Contact: Liz Flanagan