Breaking the Wall of Religious Public Opinion

Your Playlist:

Description

In a world characterized by borders between religions, can academia transcend them to find common ground? This 2010 Falling Walls lecture video explores the question in a Middle Eastern context. Sabine Schmidtke argues that an open mind in research can significantly contribute to shaping a less biased and more refined public opinion. Schmidtke, a leading scholar in Islamic studies and sectional editor of theology and philosophy for the Encyclopedia of Islam, aims to trace a cultural and intellectual commonality between Muslims, Jews, and Christians in one of the most conflict-prone regions in the world. She is a recipient of the World Prize for the Book of the Year of the Islamic Republic of Iran in 2002 and the European Research Council Advanced Grant in 2008.