Faculty & Staff

Raja Bahlul

Addresses:

Department of Philosophy and Cultural Studies
Birzeit University, P.O. Box 14
Birzeit, Palestinian Territories, via Israel
e-mail: rbahlul@hotmail.com
Tel./Fax: 972-2-998-2101 (Office)
Tel.: 972-2-281-0983 (Home)

Personal Data:

Place of Birth: Abwein, Palestine.
Date of Birth: 23.08.1951.
Residence: Birzeit, Palestinian Territories

Education:

1969: High School Diploma, Jordan.
1973: BA (English), American University of Beirut.
1973: Teaching Diploma, American University of Beirut.
1977: MA (Philosophy), Indiana University, Bloomington.
1983: Ph.D. (Philosophy), Indiana University, Bloomington.

Languages:

Arabic (native): excellent speaking, reading and writing knowledge
English: excellent speaking, reading and writing knowledge
German: Good reading knowledge

Research Interests:

Social and Political Thought: Democracy, Feminism, Islamic Thought
Islamic Philosophy: Ghazali, Avicenna, Averroes.
Metaphysics: Identity, Individuation, Predication

Academic Positions Held:

01.09.1996 --Present: Associate Professor of Philosophy at Birzeit University (Palestine)
01.08.1994 – 01.07.1996: Associate Professor of Philosophy at Yarmouk University (Jordan).
15.08.1991 – 01.08.1994: Adjunct Faculty Member in the Philosophy Department at Indiana University (IUPUI).
01.01.1991-- 01.06.1991: Visiting Scholar, Indiana University, Bloominton.
01.08.1990 - 01.12.1990: Visiting Scholar, Catholic University of America.
01.08.1983 – 01.06. 1990: Assistant Professor of Philosophy, Yarmouk University.
01.08.1976 - 01.06. 1980: Associate Instructor, Indiana University, Bloomington.
01.08.1973 – 01.07.1974: English Teacher, Hussein College (Jordan).

Membership in Academic Associations:

The Arab Philosophical Society
The American Philosophical Association
The Middle East Studies Association of North America

Academic Assistantships and Grants:

US Agency for International Development, 1969-73.
Philosophy Department, American University of Beirut, 1974-5
Philosophy Department, Indiana University, 1976-80.
Deutscher Akademiker Austauschdienst, 1988.
The Palestinian Institute for the Study of Democracy, 1996-1999.
Deutscher Akademiker Austauschdienst, 2001.

Recent Conferences:

1. Center for the Study of Islam and Democracy. Conference on “Islam and Democracy.”
   Washington (Georgetown University), April 30, 2000.
   Title of paper: "Divine Sovereignty vs. Popular Sovereignty".
2. Association of Muslim Scientists. 29th Annual Conference.
   Washington (Georgetown University), October 13-15, 2000.
   Title of Paper: "On the Idea of Islamic Feminism".
3. Austrian Institute for International Affairs. Conference on "Islam, Judaism, and the Role of Religions in the Middle East"
   Vienna, November 27-29, 2000.
   Title of Paper: "Democracy without Secularism?"
4. Cultural Studies Department (Birzeit University) and The Center for Strategic Studies (Jordan University). Conference on “Arab Culture in the New Millennium”.
   Amman, January 18-22, 2001.
   Title of Paper: “On the Relation Between Democracy and Secularism”.
5. Wissenschaftkolleg zu Berlin. Summer Institute on “Public Spheres and Muslim Identities.” Berlin, July 15-28, 2001.
   Title of Paper: “Public Sphere, Public Reason: Must Politics be Secular?”
6. The Robert Schuman Center for Advanced Studies (European University Institute). Workshop on “Socio-Religious Movements and the Transformation of Political Community in the Mediterranean Area.” Florence, October 18-19, 2001.
   Title of Presentation: “Re-examining the Relation Between Theoretical Concepts and Socio-historical Processes.”

Publications

Books:

• Popular Sovereignty, Divine Sovereignty: On the Relation Between Democracy and Secularism. Amman: Dar al-Shuruq, 2000. (Arabic)
• Women and Democracy in Liberal Feminist Thought. Ramalla: The Palestinian Institute for the Study of Democracy, 1998. (Arabic)
• Education and Democracy. Ramalla: The Palestinian Institute for the Study of Democracy, 1997. (Arabic)

Chapters in Books

• (Forthcoming) “Democracy Without Secularism?” in Islam, Judaism, and the Political Role of Religions in the Middle East, ed. John Bunzl. Gainesville, Fl.: University Press of Florida, 2003.
• (Forthcoming) “Islamic Perspectives on Constitutionalism”, in The Rule of Law: History, Theory, and Criticism, ed. Pietro Costa and Danilo Zolo. Milan: Feltrinelli, and London: Routledge, 2002.
• "Leibniz, Aristotle, and the Problem of Individuation", in Leibniz, ed. Catherine Wilson. London: Ashgate Publications, 2001.

Articles

• (Forthcoming) “Soft Determinism and the Liberal Concept of Freedom,” Arab Journal of the Humanities, 2002 (Arabic).
• "Ghazali on Miracles and Necessary Connection" (with George Giacaman), Medieval Philosophy and Theology, 8(2), 39-50, 2000.
• "Curriculum and Methods of Teaching Democracy and Human Rights", Ruwaq Arabi (Egypt), vol. 18, 2000. (Arabic)
• "People vs. God: the Logic of 'Divine Sovereignty' in Islamic Democratic Discourse", Islam and Muslim-Christian Relations, 11(3), 287-298, 2000.
• "Ijtihad: the Search for Islamic Feminist Thought", in al-Mas'alah al-Nisa'iyyah wa-Dawr al-Ijtihad fil-Islam (The question of women in relation to the role of Ijtihad in Islam). Rabat: Jussour, 2000. (Arabic)
• (In press) "On the Idea of Islamic Feminism", Journal of Islamic Studies, 20, 34-63, 2000.
• "The Liberal Concept of Freedom in Modern Arab Political Thought", International Journal of Islamic and Arabic Studies, 10, 27- 66, 1993. (Arabic)
• "Leibniz, Aristotle, and the Problem of Individuation", The Pacific Philosophical Quarterly, 73, 185-199, 1992.
• "Al-Ash`ari's Theological Determinism and the Senses of 'Can'", Hamdard Islamicus, 15, 39-57, 1992.
• "Ghazali on the Creation vs. Eternity of the World", Philosophy and Theology, 6, 259-275, 1992.
• "Identity and Necessary Similarity", The Canadian Journal of Philosophy, 22, 529-44, 1992.
• "The Logical Structure of the Free Will Problem in Islamic Kalam", Munadhara (Morocco), 4, 6-25, 1991. (Arabic)
• "Miracles and Ghazali's Second Theory of Causation", Philosophy and Theology, 5, 137-150, 1990.
• "Ockham's Razor and the Identity of Indiscernibles", Philosophy Research Archives, 14, 405-414, 1988-9.

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