"I am very honored with this appointment. This institution brings together two dimensions of my scientific formation, an academic training in religious studies alongside a seminary training in Islamic theology," sais al-Azami.
"These two worlds are all too often separated in the academy, when in fact they should be conducting a rigorous scientific dialogue, as they reflect different approaches and different ontologies on issues of great importance to all of humanity. It gives me great pleasure to be part of an institution that takes this confluence of approaches seriously. The Center for Islamic Theology and the Faculty of Religion and Theology both reflect such an ideal, and I look forward to working closely with colleagues and students to contribute to the CIT's important scholarly expertise in Islamic studies in the future."
Strengthening FRT and CIT
Yaser Ellethy, Director-Rector of the Centre for Islamic Theology (CIT): "With this appointment, we can certainly look forward to further strengthening the CIT and the FRT. With his teaching, research and valorisation expertise, Dr. al-Azami makes an important contribution to our team at the intersection of Islamic theology and religious studies, where the CIT is represented both nationally and internationally. We congratulate Usaama and ourselves and wish him a wonderful and fruitful future career at VU Amsterdam."
About Usaama al-Azami
Usaama al-Azami began his journey in Islamic studies more than twenty years ago during a gap year before going to university, when he formally studied the Arabic language. He then pursued a bachelor's degree in Arabic and Islamic studies at Oxford University. After earning his BA from Oxford, he crossed the Atlantic to earn his master's and PhD in Near Eastern Studies at Princeton University. His doctoral dissertation focused on modern Islamic political thought, in particular on Arab 'Islamist' intellectuals and their involvement with key ideas in Western political theory.
Dr. al-Azami has taught in both the U.S. and the U.K., at Princeton University, the Markfield Institute, and the University of Oxford. He is the author of Islam and the Arab Revolutions: The Ulama Between Democracy and Autocracy (Oxford University Press, 2022). He is committed to a broader reach and often contributes to public discussions about Islam in written and audiovisual form.