This conference seeks to reinvigorate the study of the global philosophy of religion by utilizing the rich and unique resources of the Islamic intellectual tradition as well as contemporary Muslim philosophers’ creative engagements with these materials. The importance of this project, evil and suffering in the world, is all-the-more meaningful in today’s world, plagued as it is by the worst pandemic ever witnessed by humanity. Rather than taking up the question of evil and suffering by walking down well-trodden paths in philosophy of religion which often address the problematic by focusing on divine attributes and the God-world relationship, this project offers another path of inquiry, namely by focusing on human vulnerability and resilience. 

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To accomplish our goals, we will seek to convene a three-day, virtual conference with contributions from a diverse range of contemporary Muslim philosophers. In tandem with the conference, an edited volume will bring together the conference findings, thereby widening the project’s already very significant sphere of influence. The conference also seeks to represent the geographic expanse of the Islamic world by inviting scholars whose research foci take in traditionally neglected regions of the Islamic world, such as West Africa, South Asia, and Southeast Asia.