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Offers a coherent account of the foundations of Nursi's thought, situating it within Islam's intellectual and spiritual traditions and explaining its relevance to contemporary Muslim experiences.
Knowing God in the Secular Age explores the intellectual prowess and spiritual practice of the contemporary Sunni Islamic tradition through an analysis of the thought of Bediuzzaman Said Nursi (1878–1960). As an erudite scholar of Islam whose life traversed the Ottoman Empire and Republican Turkey, Nursi's thought represents one of the most innovative and practical responses to modernity from within the Sunni Islamic tradition. His prioritization of faith at the personal level offers a remarkable counterbalance to the emphasis of most modern Muslim thinkers on promoting orthopraxy at the levels of society and politics. This monograph develops a coherent account of Nursi's original thought and scholarly methodology, situates it within Islam’s intellectual and spiritual traditions, and explains the relevance of his interventions to contemporary Muslim experiences. The compelling intellectual history it offers raises thought-provoking questions for anyone interested in the problems and prospects of faith and modernity.
"Methodologically rigorous, with a sophisticated theological and philosophical scope that bridges Islamic intellectual history with modern concerns around reason, imagination, and secularism, this book situates Nursi's work at the intersection of faith and modernity, addressing a central concern for both Islamic thought and contemporary global religious discourse. By highlighting how Nursi developed a rational and empirical theology grounded in personal faith, the book shows how his thought directly engages with the challenges of secularism, positivist science, and modern philosophy. This framing helps reposition Nursi not merely as a traditional theologian but as a creative interlocutor with modernity, thus broadening his relevance beyond Muslim audiences." — Zeyneb Sayilgan, Institute for Islamic, Christian, and Jewish Studies
Mustafa Tuna is Associate Professor of Slavic and Eurasian Studies and History at Duke University. He is the author of Imperial Russia’s Muslims: Islam, Empire, and European Modernity, 1788–1917 and Glossary of Islamic Terms in the Light of the Risale-i Nur (with Erol Tahtakıran).
Acknowledgments
Notes on Transliteration, Dates, and Abbreviations
Introduction
Part One: As the Walls Collapse
1. The Heart and the Intellect in the Islamic Tradition
2. Meanwhile in Europe: The Evolution of European Secularity
3. Nursi: A Dedicated Life
Part Two: Reality
4. Existence
5. Reflective Observation
6. From Analogy to Syllogism
7. Analogical Reasoning
8. Implications of Analogical Reasoning
Part Three: Striving for Excellence
9. Sufism: Its Meaning and Rationale
10. Sufism in the Secular Age
11. Positive Transformation through Assisted Reflection
12. Service and Community
Notes
Bibliography
Glossary
Index