The Scholars from Ostroh Academy Represented Ukraine at the International Symposium in Turkey

October 17, 2017

The lecturers at the National University of Ostroh Academy presented the results of their research at the 11th International Bediuzzaman Symposium in Istanbul.

The scholars from 30 countries participated in the event. The subject of the discussions was the works by Said Nursî, a famous Turkish scholar and theologian, Quran exegete, who had a great impact on the development of Islamic studies in Turkey. Nursî devoted a great part of his life to study of Quran, the issue of Muslim society, interrelation of religious and secular mindsets and political questions.

His most famous work Risale-i Nur is very popular in Turkey and translated into many languages. Its distinctive feature is emphasis on the need for social unity, search for dialogue between representatives of different cultures and traditions, and critical approach to various forms of aggression.

It is the stress Nursî puts on the importance of cross-cultural dialogue that arouses interest of modern researchers in his works. The question of the significance of such a dialogue was often raised at the symposium.

The conference was attended by the dean of the Faculty of Humanities of Ostroh Academy, PhD in Philosophy Dmytro Shevchuk, the head of the Centre of Islamic Studies of Ostroh Academy, PhD in History Mykhailo Yakubovych, and PhD in Political Science, a lecturer at the Faculty of Political Studies and Information Management Nataliia Malynovska.

In their reports, the researchers from Ostroh covered several aspects of philosophical and political ideas of Nursî and drew parallels between them and current Ukrainian philosophical paradigm.