Fathi Osman
Encyclopedia
Mohamed Fathi Osman was an Egypt
ian author and scholar who advocated on behalf of cooperation between Islam and other religions and whose writings include an overview of the Koran for the general public.
Osman was born on March 17, 1928, in Minya, Egypt
. He joined the Muslim Brotherhood
in the 1940s and worked on its weekly journal. Osman was awarded an undergraduate degree in 1948 from Cairo University
where he majored in history in 1948. He broke with Sayyid Qutb
and the Muslim Brotherhood during the 1950s and wrote the 1960 book Islamic Thought and Change, which presented a more progressive view of the religion, earned a law degree in 1960 from Alexandria University
in 1960 and returned to Cairo University where he received a master's degree in Islamic-Byzantine relations in 1962. He was on the faculty of Al-Azhar University
during the 1960s, where he worked on restructuring the teaching of Islam at universities and colleges in Egypt. He was granted a doctorate in Near Eastern studies in 1976 from Princeton University
, where he wrote a dissertation on the subject of Islamic land ownership and taxation and later taught history at Imam Muhammad ibn Saud Islamic University in Saudia Arabia.
Osman's writings, including 40 books written in English and Arabic, were aimed at making Islamic civilization and culture more understandable to non-Muslims and at showing followers of Islam that the religion provided the flexibility to adapt to modern times. The New York Times
cited Osman's "monumental" 1997 book Concepts of the Quran: A Topical Reading as "his most important work in English", in which he explicated concepts in Islam for non-Muslims. The Los Angeles Times
called the book "a milestone in Islamic scholarship that has made the central text of the Muslim religion more accessible to English speakers". Other works written by Osman covered subjects such as Sharia
and civil law, the rights of women, religious pluralism
and the applicability of Western ideas by Muslims, topics he covered in Arabic in the 1963 text The Individual in Muslim Society: Mutual Rights and Obligations and Human Rights in Western Thought and Islamic Law in 1981. English language publications include the 1990 publication Muslim Women in the Family and the Society and the 1995 releases Islamic Law in the Contemporary Society: Shari'a Dynamics of Change and Children of Adam: An Islamic Perspective on Pluralism.
He moved to Los Angeles
in 1987, where he was chosen as a scholar in residence at the Islamic Center of Southern California. There he helped establish the Institute for the Study of Islam in the Contemporary World and served as a senior scholar at the University of Southern California
's Center for Muslim-Jewish Engagement
. Dafer M. Dakhil of the Center for Muslim-Jewish Engagement called Osman someone who believed that "Islam is a dynamic and flexible religion able to engage modernity and the issues of human rights and women's issues".
Osman died at age 82 on September 11, 2010, at his home in Montrose, California due to congestive heart failure
. He was survived by his wife, Aida Abdel-Rahman Osman, as well as by his daughter Ghada Osman, a professor of Arabic studies at San Diego State University
.
Egypt
Egypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, Arabic: , is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Southwest Asia. Egypt is thus a transcontinental country, and a major power in Africa, the Mediterranean Basin, the Middle East and the Muslim world...
ian author and scholar who advocated on behalf of cooperation between Islam and other religions and whose writings include an overview of the Koran for the general public.
Osman was born on March 17, 1928, in Minya, Egypt
Minya, Egypt
Minya is the capital of Minya Governorate in Upper Egypt. It is located approximately south of Cairo on the western bank of the Nile River, which flows north through the city...
. He joined the Muslim Brotherhood
Muslim Brotherhood
The Society of the Muslim Brothers is the world's oldest and one of the largest Islamist parties, and is the largest political opposition organization in many Arab states. It was founded in 1928 in Egypt by the Islamic scholar and schoolteacher Hassan al-Banna and by the late 1940s had an...
in the 1940s and worked on its weekly journal. Osman was awarded an undergraduate degree in 1948 from Cairo University
Cairo University
Cairo University is a public university located in Giza, Egypt.The university was founded on December 21, 1908, as the result of an effort to establish a national center for educational thought...
where he majored in history in 1948. He broke with Sayyid Qutb
Sayyid Qutb
Sayyid Qutb was an Egyptian author, educator, Islamist theorist, poet, and the leading member of the Egyptian Muslim Brotherhood in the 1950s and '60s....
and the Muslim Brotherhood during the 1950s and wrote the 1960 book Islamic Thought and Change, which presented a more progressive view of the religion, earned a law degree in 1960 from Alexandria University
Alexandria University
Alexandria University is a university in Alexandria, Egypt. It was established in 1938 as a satellite of Fuad University , becoming an independent entity in 1942. It was known as Farouk University until the Egyptian Revolution of 1952 when its name was changed to the University of Alexandria...
in 1960 and returned to Cairo University where he received a master's degree in Islamic-Byzantine relations in 1962. He was on the faculty of Al-Azhar University
Al-Azhar University
Al-Azhar University is an educational institute in Cairo, Egypt. Founded in 970~972 as a madrasa, it is the chief centre of Arabic literature and Islamic learning in the world. It is the oldest degree-granting university in Egypt. In 1961 non-religious subjects were added to its curriculum.It is...
during the 1960s, where he worked on restructuring the teaching of Islam at universities and colleges in Egypt. He was granted a doctorate in Near Eastern studies in 1976 from Princeton University
Princeton University
Princeton University is a private research university located in Princeton, New Jersey, United States. The school is one of the eight universities of the Ivy League, and is one of the nine Colonial Colleges founded before the American Revolution....
, where he wrote a dissertation on the subject of Islamic land ownership and taxation and later taught history at Imam Muhammad ibn Saud Islamic University in Saudia Arabia.
Osman's writings, including 40 books written in English and Arabic, were aimed at making Islamic civilization and culture more understandable to non-Muslims and at showing followers of Islam that the religion provided the flexibility to adapt to modern times. The New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
cited Osman's "monumental" 1997 book Concepts of the Quran: A Topical Reading as "his most important work in English", in which he explicated concepts in Islam for non-Muslims. The Los Angeles Times
Los Angeles Times
The Los Angeles Times is a daily newspaper published in Los Angeles, California, since 1881. It was the second-largest metropolitan newspaper in circulation in the United States in 2008 and the fourth most widely distributed newspaper in the country....
called the book "a milestone in Islamic scholarship that has made the central text of the Muslim religion more accessible to English speakers". Other works written by Osman covered subjects such as Sharia
Sharia
Sharia law, is the moral code and religious law of Islam. Sharia is derived from two primary sources of Islamic law: the precepts set forth in the Quran, and the example set by the Islamic prophet Muhammad in the Sunnah. Fiqh jurisprudence interprets and extends the application of sharia to...
and civil law, the rights of women, religious pluralism
Religious pluralism
Religious pluralism is a loosely defined expression concerning acceptance of various religions, and is used in a number of related ways:* As the name of the worldview according to which one's religion is not the sole and exclusive source of truth, and thus that at least some truths and true values...
and the applicability of Western ideas by Muslims, topics he covered in Arabic in the 1963 text The Individual in Muslim Society: Mutual Rights and Obligations and Human Rights in Western Thought and Islamic Law in 1981. English language publications include the 1990 publication Muslim Women in the Family and the Society and the 1995 releases Islamic Law in the Contemporary Society: Shari'a Dynamics of Change and Children of Adam: An Islamic Perspective on Pluralism.
He moved to Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
in 1987, where he was chosen as a scholar in residence at the Islamic Center of Southern California. There he helped establish the Institute for the Study of Islam in the Contemporary World and served as a senior scholar at the University of Southern California
University of Southern California
The University of Southern California is a private, not-for-profit, nonsectarian, research university located in Los Angeles, California, United States. USC was founded in 1880, making it California's oldest private research university...
's Center for Muslim-Jewish Engagement
Center for Muslim-Jewish Engagement
The Center for Muslim-Jewish Engagement is a faith-based coalition whose stated mission is to "promote dialogue, understanding and grassroots, congregational and academic partnerships among the oldest and the newest of the Abrahamic faiths while generating a contemporary understanding in this...
. Dafer M. Dakhil of the Center for Muslim-Jewish Engagement called Osman someone who believed that "Islam is a dynamic and flexible religion able to engage modernity and the issues of human rights and women's issues".
Osman died at age 82 on September 11, 2010, at his home in Montrose, California due to congestive heart failure
Congestive heart failure
Heart failure often called congestive heart failure is generally defined as the inability of the heart to supply sufficient blood flow to meet the needs of the body. Heart failure can cause a number of symptoms including shortness of breath, leg swelling, and exercise intolerance. The condition...
. He was survived by his wife, Aida Abdel-Rahman Osman, as well as by his daughter Ghada Osman, a professor of Arabic studies at San Diego State University
San Diego State University
San Diego State University , founded in 1897 as San Diego Normal School, is the largest and oldest higher education facility in the greater San Diego area , and is part of the California State University system...
.