Liyakatali Takim
University of Denver
Department of Religious Studies, Sturm Hall 166
2000 East Asbury Avenue
Denver, CO 80208 USA
e-mail:
ltakim@du.edu Telephone: (303) 690-8511 (H),
(303) 871-3503 (W)
Place of Birth: Zanzibar, Tanzania
EDUCATION
1990 Ph.D. History of Religions, Department of History, School of
Oriental and African Studies, London
Ph.D. Dissertation: “Dissension and the Struggle for Authority in
Islamic Biographical Literature”
1983-85 Qum Seminary, Qum, Iran
Extended research work in Islamic jurisprudence, biographical and
hadith literature, Qur’anic exegesis, Arabic, and principles of
extrapolating Islamic law.
1983 M.A. History of Religions, Department of Religious Studies,
University of Virginia, Charlottesville, VA
M.A. Thesis: “A Study of the Doctrine of Messianism in Islam”
1978 B.Sc., Economics, Dept. of Economics, City University, London
PROFESSIONAL EMPLOYMENT
2005 - Present Associate Professor, University of Denver
2001-2004 Assistant Professor, University of Denver
1999–2001 Visiting Assistant Professor, University of Miami
1999–2000 Adjunct Professor, University of Toronto
1998–2000 Adjunct Professor, Queen’s University and McMaster
University
1996–1997 Visiting Assistant Professor, Vanderbilt University
1990–1996 Director of Religious Studies, Toronto
COURSES TAUGHT
Introduction to Islamic Civilizations
Islam in Modern Times
Islam in the American Mosaic
Islamic Fundamentalism
Judaism, Christianity & Islam
Christian-Muslim Fundamentalisms
Classical Islam
Islamic Mysticism
Qur’an and Hadith Literature
Jewish-Muslim Encounters
Clash of Civilizations
The Sacred Quest
Islam in the Medieval Era
World Religions
Classical Arabic
The Varieties of Islamic Experience
PUBLICATIONS
Books:
The Heirs of the Prophet: Charisma and Religious Authority in Shi‘ite Islam. Albany: State University of New York, 2006.
Translation of Ziyarat Guide: Selected Supplications. Toronto: MEBS,
2000.
Translation of Pilgrims’ Guide: Selected Supplications. Toronto: Hydery Press, 1998.
Translation of Questions of Jurisprudence: A Comparative Study of
Muslim Ritual Practices, by Sharaf al-Din al-Musawi. Toronto: Hydery
Press, 1996.
Translation of Ask Those Who Know: An Exposition of the Shi'ite
Creed, by Muhammad al-Tijani al-Samawi. Toronto: Hydery Press, 1995.
Submitted for Publication:
The Shi‘i Experience in America. New York Press, forthcoming in Fall
2008.
Journal Articles:
“Preserving or Extending Boundaries? The Black Shi‘is of America,”
Journal of the American Academy of Religion (2009).
“A Minority with Diversity: The Shi‘i Community in America,”
The Journal of Islamic
Law and Culture (Fall 2008)
“Revivalism or Reformation: The Reinterpretation of Islamic Law in Modern
Times.” American Journal of Islamic Social Sciences, 25, no. 3
(2008): 61-81.
“Holy Peace or Holy War: Tolerance and Co-existence in the Islamic
Juridical Tradition.” Islam and Muslim Societies, 3, no. 2 (2007).
“The Origins of and Authentications in Shi‘i Biographical
Literature.” American Journal of Islamic Social Sciences, 24, no. 4
(2007): 26-49.
“Offering Complete or Shortened Prayers? The Traveler’s
Salat at the
Holy Places.” The Muslim World, 96, no. 3 (2006): 401-422.
“Charismatic Appeal or Communitas? Visitation to the Shrines of the
Imams.” Journal of Ritual Studies 18, no. 2 (2004): 106-120.
“From Conversion to Conversation: Interfaith Dialogue in Post-911
America.” The Muslim World 94, no. 3 (2004): 343-55.
“Combining the Two Prayers: Sectarian Polemics in the Juridical
Literature.” International Journal of Shi‘i Studies 1, no. 2 (2004):
95-129.
“Authority Construction in Biographical Texts: The Cases of Humran
b. A‘yan and Mu’min al-Taq.” International Journal of Shi‘i Studies
1, no. 1 (2003): 125-55.
“Adoration in Islamic Mystical Tradition.”
Prabuddha Bharata (“Awakened India”) (2002): 43-45.
“From Bid‘a to Sunna: The
Wilaya of ‘Ali in the Shi‘i Adhan.”
Journal of the American Oriental Society 120, no. 2 (2000): 66-77.
“Foreign Influences on American Shi‘ism.” The Muslim World 90
(2000): 459-77.
Book Articles:
“The Shi‘ite Tradition in Islam,” in
World Religions: Communities
and Cultures, ed. Jacob Neusner, Abingdon Press, forthcoming in 2010
“The Qur’anic and Prophetic Model of Peaceful Coexistence and
Ethical Conduct,” in The Prophetic Paradigm for Humankind, ed. Imtiyaz Yusuf, (Thailand) forthcoming in 2008.
War and Peace in the
Islamic Sacred Sources” in The Morality of War: Muslim and Christian
Viewpoints, ed. Terence Nichols. Univ. of Georgetown Press, forthcoming
in 2009.
“The Ten Commandments in Shi‘i and Sunni Tafsir Literature: A
Comparative
Perspective,” ed. Charles Cohen. Lubar Institute for the Study of
the Abrahamic
Religions, forthcoming in 2008.
“To Vote or not to Vote: The Politicization of American Islam,” In
Politics and Religion in France and the United States, eds. John Kelsay, Alec Hargreaves and Sumner B. Twiss. Lexington: Lexington
Books, 2007.
“From Bid‘a to Sunna: The Wilaya of ‘Ali in the Shi‘i
Adhan.” In Shi’ism: Critical Concepts in Islamic Studies, ed. Paul Luft and
Colin Turner. Routeledge, 2007.
“Peace and Conflict Resolution in the Islamic Tradition.” In
Religion, Terrorism and
Globalization, Nonviolence: A New Agenda, ed. K. Kuriakose. New
York: Nova Science Publishers, 2006.
“Charismatic Appeal or Communitas? Visitation to the Shrines of the
Imams.” In Contesting Rituals: Islam and Practices of
Identity-Making, ed. Pamela J. Stewart and Andrew Strathern. Durham,
NC: Carolina Academic Press, 2005.
“Multiple Identities in a Pluralistic World: Shi‘ism in America.” In
Muslims in the West: From Sojourners to Citizens, ed. Yvonne Yazbeck
Haddad, 218-32. New York: Oxford University Press, 2002.
“Evolution in the Biographical Profiles of Two Hadith Transmitters.”
In The Shi‘ite Heritage, ed. Lynda Clarke, 285-99. Binghamton, NY:
Global Press, 2001.
“Shi‘i Institutes in North America.” In
Ahlul Bayt Assembly of
America: Abstract of
Proceedings Convention of 1996, ed. Sayyed M. Hejazi & A. Hashim,
103-09.
Beltsville, MD: International Graphics, 1997.
Articles in Encyclopedias:
World Book Encyclopedia ed. Dawn Krajcik. 2009
S.v. “Ashura.”
“Agha Khan.”
“Jinns.”
Encyclopedia of Muslim-American History ed. I Curtis. Facts on File,
2010
S.v. “Shi‘a American Muslims”
Encyclopedia of Islam in America, ed. Jocelyne Cesari. Greenwood
Press, 2007.
S. v. “Shi‘a Communities.”
“Khomeini, Ayatollah.”
“Seestani, Ayatollah.”
Encyclopedia of Women and Islamic Cultures, ed. Suad Joseph.
Koninklijke: Brill, 2004.
S.v. “Women, Gender and Islamic Law,”
“Women, Gender and Islamic Law – Additional Schools.”
Encyclopedia of Holy People, ed. Phyllis Jestice. Santa Barbara, CA:
ABC-CLIO, 2004.
S.v. “‘Ali b. Husayn Zayn al-‘Abidin,”
“Hasan b. ‘Ali,”
“Husayn b. ‘Ali,”
“Ja‘far al-Sadiq.”
Encyclopedia of the Qur’an, ed. Jane D. McAuliffe. Leiden: Brill,
2004.
S.v. “Samson”
“Saul.”
Encyclopedia of Religion and War, ed. Gabriel Palmer-Fernandez. New
York: Routledge, 2004.
S.v. “Islam - Shi‘a.”
Religion and American Cultures: An Encyclopedia of Traditions,
Diversity, and Popular Expression, ed. Gary Laderman and Luis Léon.
Santa Barbara, CA: ABC-CLIO, 2003. S.v. “Shi‘ite Movements.”
The Oxford Dictionary of Islam, ed. John Esposito. New York: Oxford
University, 2003. S.v. “Banu al-Nadir,” “Banu Isra‘il,” “Banu
Qurayza,” “Quraysh,” “Qusayy,” “Sujud,” “Tashahhud,” “Thamud,” “Wajib.”
Encyclopedia of Islam and the Modern World, ed. Richard C. Martin.
New York: Macmillan Reference USA, 2003.
S.v. “An-Nafs al-Zakiyya”
“Ja‘far al-Sadiq.”
Book reviews:
Review of Muslims: Their Religious Beliefs and Practices, by Andrew
Rippin.
Journal for Cultural and Religious Theory 2, no. 3 (2001).
http://www.jcrt.org/archives/02.3/index.html?page=takim.shtml
Review of The Crisis of Muslim History, by Mahmoud Ayoub. Journal of
the American Academy of Religion 73, no. 3 (2005).
Review of
Islam: Its History, Teaching, and Practices, by S. A. Nigosian. Journal of the American Academy of Religion
74, no. 2
(2006).
Review of The Twelver Shi‘a as a Muslim Minority in India: Pulpit of
Tears, by Toby
Howarth. Bulletin of the School of Oriental and African Studies, 70.
no. 2 (2007).
Review of The Shi‘is of Iraq, by Yitzhak Nakash.
The Muslim World,
97, no.3, (2007)
Review of Reliving Kerbala: Martyrdom in South Asian Memory, by Syed
Akbar Hyder.
The American Journal of Islamic Social Sciences, forthcoming in
2008.
CURRENT RESEARCH
“The Shi‘i Experience in America” (working title)
Translation of Al-Mizan fi Tafsir al-Qur’an, Allama Tabataba’i’s
voluminous exegesis of the Qur’an (volume 4)
CONFERENCE PAPERS
2008: “Revival of Religious Thought: The Re-evaluation of Classical Texts by
Contemporary Shi‘i Jurists” Annual Meeting of the American Academy of
Religion,
Chicago
2008: “Teaching Islam in a post 9/11 world” Symposium on Religion on
the Secular
University Campus, University of Denver
2008: “Musa al-Sadr and the Impact of Modernity on Shi‘i
Jurisprudence” Conference on:
“The Shia, Modernity, and the Legacy of Musa al-Sadr.” University of
Michigan,
Ann Arbor
2008: “Reformation or Reinterpretation: Islamic Law in America” AAR
Great Plains
Region Conference
2008: “From Conflict to Co-existence: The Application of Islamic Law
in a Minority
Context” Symposium at Carthage College
2007: “Preserving or Extending Boundaries: The Black Shi‘is of
America” Annual Meeting
of the American Academy of Religion, San Diego
2007: “Islamic Fundamentalism in America” Institute of Oriental
Studies, Azerbaijan
2007: “Muslim Women in America” Islamic University, Baku, Azerbaijan
2007: “Muslim Life in America” American Studies Center of the
Foreign Languages
University, Baku, Azerbaijan
2007: “Institutionalization and the Politicization of American
Islam,” Baku State
University, Baku, Azerbaijan
2007: “Interpretation of Islamic Sacred Texts in the American
Diaspora,” Khazar
University, Baku, Azerbaijan
2007: “A Minority within a Minority: The Black Shi‘is of America”
Breaking
Apart the Monolith: The Many Ways of Being Muslim - A Conference
Exploring
the Dynamics of Muslim Identity in Today’s World held at Princeton
University
2007: “ Revival of Religious Thought: Ijtihad and the Re-evaluation
of Classical Texts in
Modern Times” American Council for the Study of Islamic Societies
2006: “Gender and Islamic Civilization: The Contribution of Muslim
Women to Islamic
Sciences and Civilization” University of Isfahan, Tehran
2006: “The Religious Other in America: The Deterritorialization and
Deculturation of
American Muslims,” Symposium held at Colorado College, Colorado
Springs
2006 “The Danish Cartoons in Islamic Hadith Literature.” Annual
Meeting of the American Academy of Religion, Washington
2006 “Closing the Interpretive Process: Toward a New Qur’anic
Hermeneutic.” University of Nevada, Las Vegas
2006 “Women in the three Monotheistic Traditions and in Islamic
Law,” Conference
held in Tehran, Iran
2006 “Conversion and Proselytizing: Balancing Religious Freedom and
Respect.”
Symposium, University of Denver
2006 “Islam, the West and the Cartoon Controversy: Religious
Sensitivities vs.
Secular Liberties.” Symposium, University of Denver
2006 “The Ten Commandments in Islamic Exegetical Literature: A
Comparative
Perspective.” Lubar Institute for the Study of the Abrahamic
Religions at UW-
Madison
2006 “The Indigenization of American Islam: Muslims in the American
Diaspora.” USNorthcom Academic Conference
2005 “The Politicization of American Islam.” Politics and Religion
in France and the United States, International Conference,
Winthrop-King Institute for Contemporary French and Francophone
Studies in association with the Department of Religion, Florida
State University
2005 “American Muslims or Muslims in America: Muslims as the
‘Other’.” Eighth Annual Honors Conference, Metro State College,
Denver
2005 “The Power of Islamic Sacred Texts Today.” Religious Leadership
Conference, Iliff School of Theology, Denver
2004 “Discovering the Hidden Treasure: Creation in the Islamic
Tradition.” Third Furlong Memorial Lecture, “Creation in Judaism,
Christianity and Islam” symposium, St. Michael’s College, University
of Toronto, Canada
2004 “Human Rights in the Qur’an and Shari‘a: A Comparative
Perspective.” University of Nevada, Las Vegas
2004 “Muslim Youth at the Crossroads: Advancing into the
Twenty-First Century.” Islamic Social Services Association
Conference, Toronto, Canada
2004 “Revival of Religious Thought: The Thoughts and Contribution of
Ayatullah Mutahhari.” International Conference, Tehran, Iran
2004 “The Mental Jihad: Reason and Revelation in the Islamic
Tradition.” Seminar held at the Iliff School of Theology, Denver, CO
2004 “Holy Peace in the Islamic Tradition.” Columbia University, NY
2003 “Muslim-Christian Dialogue: Past, Present and Future.”
Macdonald Center Lecturers in Christian-Muslim Understanding,
Hartford Seminary, Hartford, CT
2003 “Challenging the Authority of Tradition and Texts: Ijtihad and
Taqlid in Modern Times.” American Academy of Religion regional
meeting, Boulder, CO
2002 “Biography as Literary Genre: The Struggle for Authority in
Shi‘i Rijal Texts.” Annual Meeting of the American Academy of
Religion, Toronto, Canada
2002 “Re-evaluation of the Shari‘a Post-September 11: Islam and
Modernity.” Furlong Memorial Lecture, “Understanding Islam”
symposium, St. Michael’s College, University of Toronto, Canada
2002 “Violence and Healing: Facing the Ongoing Challenges of
September 11.” Colloquium held at the Iliff School of Theology,
Denver, CO
2002 “Aging in the Islamic Tradition.” The National Council on the
Aging, Denver, CO
2001 “Islam in America after September 11.” Kanuga Conference on
Christian-Muslim Understanding, Ashville, NC
2001 “Islam in the Context of American Religious Diversity.” Res
Publica Conference, Aspen, CO
2000 “Promise & Peril: Religion at the Millenium.” Conference on The
Many Faces of God, New Hampshire Humanities Council, Manchester, NH
2000 “Preserving or Extending Religious Boundaries? Muslim
Proselytization in America.” Islamic Education Council, Washington,
D.C.
1998 “Acculturation and Assimilation – Muslims in the Diaspora.”
Colloquium held at Queen’s University, Kingston, Canada.
1998 “Religious Pluralism and Human Rights: An Islamic Perspective.”
Grinnell College, Iowa
1997 “Acculturation and Assimilation – Muslims in the West,” Annual
Meeting of the American Academy of Religion, San Francisco
1997 “Contemporary Muslim Polemics.” MESA Conference, San Francisco
1997 “Exclusivism or Inclusivism? Salvation History in the Qur’an.”
Agnes Scott College, Atlanta, GA
1997 “External Influences on American Muslims.” Presented at a
conference on Jews and Muslims in the American context, The
Macdonald Center for the Study of Islam and Christian-Muslim
Relations, Hartford Seminary, Hartford, CT
1996 “From Bid‘a to Sunna: The Case of the Wilaya of ‘Ali in the
Shi‘i adhan.” Annual Meeting of the American Academy of Religion,
New Orleans, LA
1995 “The Origins of Islamic Biographical Literature” Annual Meeting
of the American Academy of Religion, Philadelphia, PA
1994 “Religious Pluralism in the Qur’an.” Eastern International
Region of the American Academy of Religion, University of Quebec at
Montreal, Canada
1994 “The Case of the Holy Disciples. Annual Meeting of the American
Academy of Religion, Chicago
1993 “Authority and the Struggle for Legitimacy.” University of
Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA
1993 “The Ethics of Self Realization: an Islamic Perspective.”
Institute of Global Cultural Studies, State University of New York,
Binghamton, NY
1990 “The Origins and Development of Imami Biographical Texts.”
School of Oriental & African Studies, London
PUBLIC LECTURES
2008 “Teaching Islam in a Post-9/11 World” Muslim Student Association,
University of Colorado
2008 “From Majority to Minority: The Jurisprudence of Muslim
Minority Communities” Islamic Center, Los Angeles
2007 “The Islamization of American Immigrant Islam” Muslim Student
Association, University of Denver
2007 “History and Narratives in Qur’anic Exegesis” Islamic Center,
Nairobi, Kenya
2006 “Reformation in Islamic Jurisprudence: The Question of
Punishment in Islamic Law,” Universal Muslim Association of America,
Virginia
2005 “From Muslims in America to American Muslims.” Universal Muslim
Association of America, Washington, D.C.
2005 “Is Islam Synonymous with Terrorism?” The City Club, Denver
2005 “Progressive Muslims in the American Milieu.” Bates College,
Maine
2004 “The Cool Dudes: Muslim Youth in Transition.” Universal Muslim
Association of America, Washington, D.C.
2004 “Reflecting Black: Islam in Africa and Antebellum America.”
University of Toronto, Canada
2004 “The Shi‘i Vision: Reason and Reformation in Shi‘ism.”
University of Toronto, Scarborough Campus, Canada
2004 “Faith and Belief: An Islamic Perspective.” Ja‘faria Islamic
Center, Burtonsville, MD
2003 “Re-evaluation of Islamic Law post September 11: Islam and
Modernity.” Faculty Luncheon, University of Denver, Denver, CO
2003 “From 911 to 711: The Islamic Experience in the West.”
Orientation Lecture, University of Denver, Denver, CO
2003 “Unity or Uniformity: Islam and the Question of Reformation.”
al-Iman Islamic Center, Seattle, WA
2002 “A Minority within a Minority: The Muslim Youth Culture in
Contemporary America.” Ja‘fariya Islamic Center, Burtonsville, MD
2000 “Integration, Isolation, or Insulation? The Muslims of
America.” University of Miami, Miami, FL
2000 “A Viable Qur’anic Hermeneutic for Muslims in the New
Millennium.” Auckland, New Zealand
1999 “Qur’anic Exegesis and Women’s Right to Divorce.” Islamic House
of Wisdom, Detroit, MI
1997 “The Muslims as the ‘Other’ in North America.” Conference on
Muslims in America, Ja‘fariya Islamic Center, Burtonsville, MD
1997 “Drawing Boundaries in America: The Muslim Identity.” Islamic
Society of North America, Indianapolis, IN
1996 “Ethno-cultural Identity: Muslim Institutes in America.”
Islamic Center, Washington, D.C.
1993 “Child Custody and Family Support: A Re-evaluation of
Traditional Islamic Sources.” Conference held by the Canadian
Council of Muslim Women, Toronto, Canada
AWARDS AND GRANTS
2007 CHOICE Outstanding Academic Title for “The Heirs of the
Prophet:
Charisma and Religious Authority in Shi‘ite Islam”
2006 Professional Research Opportunity for Faculty (PROF) grant
2006 Internationalization Small Grants, University of Denver
2005 Research Grant, Denver Foundation
2004 Internationalization Small Grants, University of Denver
2003 Faculty Research Fund, University of Denver
1990 Central Research Fund and Scholarships Committee, School of
Oriental & African Studies
PROFESSIONAL MEMBERSHIPS/HONORS
Theta Alpha Kappa (National Honor Society for Religious Studies and
Theology)
American Academy of Religion
LINGUISTIC COMPETENCE
Native Speaker: English, Swahili and Gujarati
Classical Languages: Arabic, Urdu and Persian
UNIVERSITY SERVICE
Professional Research Opportunity for Faculty (PROF) Grant Committee
Tenure and Promotion Committee, University of Denver 2006 - Present
Director of Master’s Program in the Department of Religious Studies,
2004 - 2006
Committee member for the DU/Iliff Joint PhD Program, Autumn 2004 -
2006
Member of five Ph.D. dissertation committees for the DU/Iliff Joint
Ph.D. Program, Spring 2004 - present
Committee member, “Bridges to the Future —The American Dream
Revisited” 2002-2005
Member of search committee for position in Judaic/Religious Studies
Program, Fall/Winter 2004-05
COMMUNITY SERVICE
Member of Human Services Committee of the Denver Foundation 2003 -
2007
Member of Denver’s Faith Community Initiative to End Homelessness
(Mayor Hickenlooper’s Faith Based Initiative) 2005 - present
Member of the Advisory Board of The Muslim Observer (weekly
newspaper published in Detroit) 1997 - present
Chairman of the Islamic Education Board of North America 1996 - 2004
Member of Council of ‘Ulama (Muslim Scholars) of North America 1997
- present
Advisor to the Imams’ Council of Toronto 1994 - 2004
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