Islamic Studies and Teaching Islam Studying and teaching Islam in the Islamic Republic of Iran. Methods and approaches (In Persian)

Abstract

The article reflects the results of the international meeting “Theology and Islamic Studies in Russia and Iran: history, methods, educational approach.” The meeting took place in the Institute of Oriental Studies of the Russian academy on the 8th of May 2018. The Meeting Committee received a substantial grant from the Culture Section of the Embassy of the Islamic Republic of Iran in Russia. At the meeting took part over 20 scholars from various research and educational bodies of the Russian Federation and the Islamic Republic of Iran. Among them were scholars from the University of Teheran, the al-Mustafa International University, Moscow State University, St Petersburg State University, Bashkortostan State University in Ufa, the Daghestan Institute of Hunmanities, The Moscow State University of Foreign Languages, the Pyatigorsk State University, and the Russian Presidential Academy of National Economy and Public Administration. In the article Prof. Yazdi outlines the recent trends in teaching Islamic theology and Islamic studies in the University of Teheran. The outstanding results gained by the scholars of this University in the field of Islamic education has attracted a vivid interest of their Russian colleagues. The teaching of Islam in the Islamic Republic of Iran runs in the four main directions:1. Teaching of Islam in the traditional framework combined with rational sciences and philosophy.2. Islamic studies and Islamic theology as a separate teaching module in the leading Universities of Iran.3. Islamic studies are combined with teaching of exact sciences as in the Imam Sadiq University (Tehran), the Motahhari University (Mashhad, Razavi Khorasan Province) and the Imam Reza University (Mashhad, Razavi Khorasan Province).4. Islamic studies constitute an integral part of University education in Iran.The teaching of Islam in the Islamic Republic of Iran is based on the Islamic tradition, philosophy and rational sciences. Therefore, the theology is considered as one of the aspects of the rational teaching. This is the basis of the Iranian moderate Islam. The author shares his practical experience of teaching Islam and Islamic sciences of many years.