Nidhal is an astro physicist from Algeria, with a US PhD and a little NASA Lab post doc experience. Presently he is a prof at the American university of sharjah, is academically quite published, teaches and appears a lot of Gulf TV channels. It was chaired by Ehsan Masood, who knows and writes in the space quite well.
He observed that Islam and science comes up in a couple of variants.
- The Historical Civilisational Navel Gaze
- Philosophically natured debates on the Nature of Knowledge
- Practical applications of science to ritual issues.
- Modernist-Iman-bolstering Its-in-the-Quranism
I liked his walk though previous serious contributions in the area (Sardar- Ethical, Salam- Universal, Nasr -Sacred) and his problematisation of the Harun Yahya/scientific Miracles in the Quran brigade.
Perhaps he over-egged this last issue as a hat tip to Usamafest. Shades of Hoodhboy Syndrome, 'These ridiculous natives and their ridiculous beliefs' came through at the audience level. I think this is an unfair and naive characterisation of Our collective curiosity but he was talking from his experience and quite a positivist type mind set.
We need tools to move thinking forward on this issue otherwise the level of dialogue and epistemological negotiation will remain at a very post graduate common room/prayer room level. this book is one of those devices I hope.
So far the encounter has me wondering how arab/gulf centric, indicator fed and blind to politics, dignity and need the presentation was.
If Muslims have a 'childlike' approach to science, especially evolution, then the one I heard was adolescent. I say this because it wasn't a sense of inspiration and wonder that I got, but an 'I am imprisoned by the small mindedness of my people' frustration. Its just not an optimal position from which to speak.
When he reduced the envelope of possibilities of 'Islamic Science' to 'optional interpretive layer' I felt that he'd dropped the can at the point of the creative step. Just like when Jasser Auda disappointingly dovetails into UN human rights and millennium development goals after beautifully excavating the history of maqasid al sharia thinking.
In today's situation, Islamic social movements must approach the Islam and Science space with a better approach than any that are readily on offer. Our politics and programmes must have an epistemic quality. We also mustn't divorce art from science ( from religion ) when bringing up our children as well as when identifying and thinking through our problems .
this is long.
