The First Dialogue: A Dialogue on Dialogues Among Civilizations
What is a civilization? Are dialogues among civilizations even possibible? How does a religion's apocalyptic views contribute to, or undermine, the necessity for dialogue? These were some of the questions at the heart of the first Catholic-Shi'a Dialogue featuring several panelists from around the globe.
The First Dialogue: a "Dialogue on Dialogue" was held on Tuesday, February 18th with participation by invitation only. However, anyone is welcome to view the conversation at the following video.
Dr. Mahan Mirza, University of Notre Dame, is a teaching Professor of Islam & Science in the Keough School of Global Affairs and Executive Director of the Ansari Institute for Global Engagement with Religion at the University of Notre Dame. Mirza holds a BS in Mechanical Engineering from University of Texas Austin, MA from Hartford Seminary in Islamic Studies and Christian-Muslim Relations, and PhD in Religious Studies from Yale University. Dr. Mirza has edited two special issues of The Muslim World and served as assistant editor of the Princeton Encyclopaedia of Islamic Political Thought.
Dr. Banafsheh Keynoush, University of Notre Dame, is a Scholar in Residence at the Kroc Institute for International Peace Studies at the University of Notre Dame. She is the author, co-author and editor of four recently published books including Saudi Arabia and Iran: Friends or Foes? (2016) and The Abraham Accords: National Security, Regional Order and Popular Representation (2024). Her latest project is a forthcoming book chapter that focuses on critical discourse analysis of the Iranian Shia influence in the Middle East. Previously, she was an interpreter at a Catholic-Shia dialogue series event that convened in Europe from 2008 to 2019.
Dr. Gabriel Said Reynolds, University of Notre Dame, completed his PhD at Yale University in Islamic Studies. He is the author of The Qur'ān and Its Biblical Subtext (Routledge 2010) and The Emergence of Islam (Fortress, 2012), the translator of ʿAbd al-Jabbar’s Critique of Christian Origins (BYU 2008), and editor of The Qur'ān in Its Historical Context (Routledge 2008) and New Perspectives on the Qur'ān: The Qur'ān in Its Historical Context 2 (Routledge 2011). In 2018 he published The Qurʾan and the Bible with Yale University Press and in 2020 Allah: God in the Qur'an, also with YUP. He runs a youtube channel, “Exploring the Qur’an and the Bible” that features conversations on scripture with leading scholars.
Dr. Eric DeVilliers, University of Notre Dame, received his BA in Religious Studies from Yale University, his MTS in the History of Christianity and his PhD in world religions from the University of Notre Dame. His research focuses on the origins, development, method of Kalām. He is currently researching analogical conceptions of the relationship between God and the world in Kalām traditions. His research interests include late antique religious thought, Qur’anic Studies, Christian and Muslim scholastic theology, and theories of inculturation.
Dr. Rocío Cortés-Rodríguez, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile, is an assistant professor in the Department of Theology. She specializes in interreligious dialogue, focusing on the interactions between Christianity, Judaism, Islam, and Indigenous religious traditions. Throughout her academic career, Rocío has explored the complex dynamics of coexistence in religiously diverse contexts. In 2019, she introduced the Scriptural Reasoning methodology in Chile, an innovative method of interfaith dialogue that has fostered new opportunities for mutual understanding and collaboration among faith communities. Since 2022, Rocío has served on the board of the Association for Interreligious Dialogue (ADIR) in Chile. Her research and public engagement reflect a deep commitment to amplifying women’s voices in theological discourse and exploring their contributions to religious traditions.
Dr. Mohammad Hossein Mozaffari, University of Religions and Denominations, (Qom, Iran) is the founding Director of the Center for Peace and Dialogue. His academic background connects international law with Islamic studies with special expertise on Muslim states' politics on human rights. Given his educational background (PhD), he has established research experience that concentrates on interdisciplinary subjects of international law, human rights, and Islamic studies. His research works are chiefly concerned with promoting human rights notions in Muslim societies through indigenizing various topics ranging from philosophical concepts such as human dignity to civil and political rights, peace studies, and sustainable development. His career also focuses on friendship among nations, intercultural studies, and inter-religious dialogue for peace and reconciliation. He was able to utilize his academic and research background in his career to narrow the cultural divide between Muslim and Western civilizations through intercultural and interreligious dialogue. He also succeeded in employing his research experience to enrich his career in the field of inter-religious relations, aiming at the promotion of peace and reconciliation among religions and nations.
Dr. Seyed Javad Miri Meynagh, Institute for Humanities and Cultural Studies, (Tehran, Iran) is a Swedish-Iranian sociologist and professor in Tehran, Iran. He is known for his expertise on social theory and Islamic thinkers and is the author of three books: Islamism and Post-Islamism: Reflections upon Allama Jafari’s Political Thought, University Press of America, 2014; Reimagining Malcolm X: Street Thinker versus Academic Thinker, University Press of America, 2015; and East and West: Allama Jafari on Bertrand Russell, University Press of America, 2013.