Dr. Juan Cole
Professor of History at the University of Michigan
Monday April 24, 2017
12:00-1:00
206 Ingraham Hall
Later Muslim accounts posit an essential enmity between Muslims and pagans in the Hejaz, leading to the wars of the 620s. These Umayyad and Abbasid accounts have influenced the interpretations of contemporary scholars. A close examination of Qur’anic texts from the Meccan period, however, reveals a consistent and strongly held option for peace. It will be argued that the sanctuary status of Mecca as a holy city made this experiment in peace theology possible.
This is part of the Middle East Studies Spring Lecture Series
Sponsored by the Department of History and Society & Politics Committee