With some exceptions, there is not a real interest in Islamic philosophy
and t- ology in Western institutions today. This largely ignored area
has the potential to present enlightening insights into the development
of the Western thought and to contribute to contemporary discussions in
philosophy and theology in general. Scholars working in Islamic thought
usually focus on its medieval background and consider it to be mainly of
a historical interest and far away from the intellectual world of today.
Showing its contemporary relevance is an important task by which the
status of Islamic philosophy can be elevated to its proper station. By
considering these points in mind, the University of Kentucky organized
an international graduate student conference on Islamic philosophy and
the- ogy with an emphasis on its contemporary relevance which was held
between the 28th and 30th September 2007. This book emerged out of the
conf- ence by adding more chapters relevant to the main theme of the
book. This book presents analyses and discussions of different topics in
Islamic philo- phy and theology by relating them to contemporary debates
and ideas in four main areas: epistemology, metaphysics, philosophy of
religion and value t- ory. There are ten chapters in sum. Some of the
chapters are written by graduate students and some of them by
experienced scholars. Each chapter presents c- siderable insight into
its relevant topic but does not represent the opinion of anybody except
the author.
