Academic C.V.
Vinay Khetia
Academic History
- PhD Candidate - Religious Studies -McMaster University ( 2012-ongoing)
- M.A. History and Philosophy of Religion - Concordia University ( 2009-2012 )
- Hawza (Traditional Seminary Studies) & Directed Research in Classical and contemporary Arabic-Islamic texts (2006- ongoing)
- B.A.- University of Toronto (2002-2008)
Double Major: Near and Middle Eastern Civilizations and Religion
Minor: History - The Islamic College for Advanced Study (ICAS) and Hawza Illmiyya of London, -(2005-2006)
Peer Reviewed Papers published and forthcoming ( selection):
- "The Night Journey and Ascension of Muhammad in Tafsir al-Tabari" al-Bayan Journal of Qur’an and Hadith Studies 10:1 (June, 2012), 39-63.
- Review: Gabriel Said Reynolds, The Qur’an and Its Biblical Subtext. In al-Bayan Journal of Qur’an and Hadith Studies 10:2 (June, 2013).
- "Guardians of the Islamic marriage contract and the search for Agency in Twelver Shī‘ī Jurisprudence" in Ifta and Fatwa in the Muslim World and the West ed. Zulfiqar Shah. Herndon: International Institute of Islamic Thought (in press, forthcoming, fall 2015).
- "Fatima as a Motif of Contention in Islamic Historiography" in Shiite Doctrines Abbas Ahmadvand. London: I.B. Tauris (forthcoming).
- "Fatima as a Motif of Contention and Suffering in Shiite Sources" in Shiite Doctrines Abbas Ahmadvand. London: I.B. Tauris (forthcoming).
Languages
- English ( mother tongue)
- Arabic (classical-read and write)
- Persian (intermediate reading)
- French
Research Interests:
- Qur’anic hermeneutics and exegesis
- Islamic historiography
- Devotional literature: Islamic liturgical texts; Christian-Muslim approaches to prayer
- Islamic Law: demonstrative jurisprudence; Comparative Sunnite-Shi’ite Jurisprudence
Conference Presentations and Guest Lecture(s):
- Paper presentations:
- "Twelver Shī‘ism and Guardians of the Marriage Contract" presented at The American Academy of Religion (AAR) Eastern Regional Meeting, Syracuse University (April, 2011).
- "Guardians of the Marriage Contract in Contemporary Imāmī Law at the Summer Scholars Institute symposium (with fellowship) entitled: Contemporary Approaches to the Qur’an and Sunna, at the International Institute of Islamic Thought (IIIT), Washington D.C. (Summer, 2011).
- "The Development and Evolutionary Authority (wilāya) of the Jurist in Twelver Shi‘ism" for Islamic Civilizations 105: Culture and Society in Contemporary Iran, Harvard University (Fall, 2012).
- "UnderstandingISIS in Iraq and Syria" presented at Wycliffe College, The University of Toronto. Colloquium, Sacred Swords: Religion and Conflict in the 21st Century. (Summer, 2014).
- "Interfaith Marriage in Twelver Shi’ī Law: The Search for Legal Intent" presented at al-Mahdi Institute, Colloquium on Contemporary Approaches to Islamic Jurisprudence (March 2015).
- "Du‘ā Kumayl: A Study of Shi’ī Devotional Literature" presented at The American Academy of Religion (AAR) Eastern Regional Meeting, McGill University (April 2015).
Awards
- International Institute of Islamic Thought ( IIIT) Summer Scholar’s Grant (June, 2011)
- McMaster Graduate Scholarship ( 2012-2016)
- Ontario Graduate Fellowship (2014-2015).
Current and Previous Employment
- Graduate Teaching Fellow/Instructor: Intro to Islam ( REL 2Q03, Winter term-2016)
Teaching Assistantships: - Modern Islam- RELI319 (Jan 2011-May 2011), Concordia University
- Introduction to Islam, McMaster University (Fall, 2012)
- Islamic Mysticism, McMaster University (Winter, 2012)
- Introduction to Islam, McMaster University ( Fall, 2013)
- Death and Dying: Western Perspectives, McMaster University ( Winter, 2014)
- Introduction to The Hebrew Bible, McMaster University ( Fall 2014)
Research Projects (Selection):
- Master's. dissertation: "Fāṭima as a Motif of Suffering and Contention in Islamic Thought"- Completed, Fall 2012
- Doctoral dissertation: Devotional Literature and Practice in Twelver Shī‘īsm: Towards the Study of Shī‘ī Liturgical Theology (in progress, etc- 2017)
- Critical and Annotated Arabic-English Translation of al-Fuṣūl al-‘ashra fī al-ghaybah (10 aspects regarding the occultation) by Muhammad b. Muhammad al-Nu‘mān (Shaykh al-Mufīd- d.1022 C.E.) ( in progress)