A Muslim Response to Evil

While Christian approaches to the problem of evil have been much discussed, the issue of theodicy in Islam is relatively neglected. A Muslim Response to Evil explores new insights and viewpoints and discusses possible solutions to theodicy and the problem of evil through the early philosophy and theology ofIslam as well as through a semantic analysis of evil (sharr) in the Qur'ān. Reflecting on Said Nursi's magnum opus, the Risale-i Nur Collection (Epistles of Light), Tubanur Yesilhark Ozkan puts Nursi's theodicy into discourse with so called 'secular' theodicy or 'anthropodicy', supported by scholars such as Newton, Descartes, Leibniz, Spinoza, Hume, and Kant. Her study offers a fascinating new perspective on the problem of evil for scholars of comparative religion, philosophy of religion, and Islamic thought.

Tubanur Yesilhark Ozkan holds the degree of Doctor of Philosophy from Durham University. She graduated in Islamic Studies and Christian-Muslim Relations (MA) from Hartford Seminary, USA.

Preface; Introduction. Part I Sharr in The Qur'an and in General Muslim Thought: The perspective of the Qur'an on Sharr; Mainstream Muslim thought; Avicenna, Averroes and Al-Ghazali on Sharr; As we approach the topic: oneness (tawhid), being (wujud) and non-being ('adam), life after death. Part II The Nature of Sharr: The nature and definition of Sharr according to the Risale-i Nur; Why God creates Sharr; Human being's function in regards to Sharr. Part III The Moral Aspect of Sharr: The notion of the divine trust (amanah); Free will (juz'- ikhtiyar) and divine determining (qadar); Existential theodicy in Nursi. Conclusion