Cambridge Muslim College is delighted to share news of a major new publication by Dr Claire Gallien, who has co-edited a special issue for Open Theology (De Gruyter).
The volume, titled Reading Literature as Theology in Islam, brings together leading international scholars to explore the role of literature as a vital mode of theological reflection in Islamic intellectual history. Traditionally, the study of theology has centred on ʿilm al-kalām, with its rationalist framework. This issue challenges that narrow view, highlighting how imagination, poetics, and storytelling have long served as theological expressions in their own right.
In her own contribution, Reading Literature as Theology in Islam. An Introduction and Two Case Studies: al-Thaʿālibī and Ḥāfiẓ (co-authored with Easa Saad), Dr Gallien argues that literature should be recognised not only as a companion to theology but as theology itself. Through close readings of al-Thaʿālibī and Ḥāfiẓ, the article demonstrates how the literary imagination enables profound theological engagement, revealing dimensions of the divine often missed when theology is confined to formal scholasticism.
The special issue features articles spanning Arabic, Persian, Kurdish, South Asian, and West African traditions, including contributions by Muhammad Sami, Oludamini Ogunnaike, Yusuf Çelik, Imran Visram, Nicholas Judt, Hina Khalid, and Sarali Gintsburg. Collectively, the volume invites readers to reconsider how Islamic theology has been understood, lived, and beautifully expressed through literature across regions and centuries.
The issue is open access and available online.