CURRICULUM VITAE

MUN’IM SIRRY Email: msirry@nd.edu

Office: Phone: (574)631-1796
1146 Flanner Hall
University of Notre Dame

CURRENT ACADEMIC POSITION

Assistant Professor of Theology, Department of Theology, University of Notre Dame, Indiana, USA

Chair, Contending Modernities Working Group on Indonesia, Kroc Institute for International Peace
Studies

Fellow, Liu Institute for Asia and Asian Studies; Center for Civil and Human Rights

EDUCATION
The University of Chicago Divinity School
Ph.D. in Islamic Studies (2012)
The University of California Los Angeles
MA in Islamic Studies (2005)
International Islamic University, Islamabad (Pakistan)
LLM in Law and Shari’a (1996)
LLB (Hons) in Law and Shari’a (1994)

HONORS AND AWARDS

PhD dissertation approved with distinction, June, 2012
Kroc Institute for International Peace Studies ($5,000) for the Inaugural WRWC conference on “Finding
Beauty in the Other,” September 10-12, 2015.
Institute for Scholarship in the Liberal Arts (Large Arts/Humanities Research grant, $15,000) on a book-
length research project on “Peaceful Co-existence in Contemporary Indonesia,” Spring 2015.
Liu Institute Research Grant ($4,000) for the research project on “Peaceful Co-existence in Contemporary
Indonesia,” a book-length research project with ISLA funding, Spring 2015.
Kroc Faculty Research Grant ($5,000), for the research project on “In Search of Peaceful Coexistence in a
Plural Society: An Indonesian Experience,” University of Notre Dame, Spring 2014.
Small Research and Creative Work Grant, ISLA ($2,500), University of Notre Dame, 2103-2014.
Interim Travel to International Conferences Grant, ISLA ($2,050), University of Notre Dame, 2013-2014.
Book Indexing Award, ISLA ($1,200), University of Notre Dame, Fall 2013.

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Research Associate Fellowship for the Qur’an Seminar Project, University of Notre Dame, 2012-2013.

PUBLICATIONS:

Books:
Scriptural Polemics: The Qur’an and Other Religions (Oxford University Press, July 2014).

Peer-reviewed Journals:
“The Qur’an and Its Polemical Context: Between Chronological and Literary Approaches,” al-Bayan:
Journal of Qur’an and Hadith Studies 12/2 (2015): 115-132.
“Muslim Prayer and Public Spheres: An Interpretation of the Qur’anic verse 9:45,” Interpretation 68
(2014): 39-53 (written with A. Rashied Omar from the Kroc Institute).
“Fatwas and Their Controversy: The case of the Council of Indonesian Ulama (MUI),” Journal of
Southeast Asian Studies 44/1 (2013): 100-117.
“Muqatil b. Sulayman and Anthropomorphism,” Studia Islamica 3 (2012): 51-82
“The Public Role of Dhimmis during ‘Abbasid Times,” Bulletin of the School of Oriental and African
Studies 74/2 (June, 2011): 187-204.
“The Early Development of the Qur’anic ‘Hanif’,” Journal of Semitic Studies 56/2 (July, 2011): 345-366.
“Jamal al-Din al-Qasimi and the Salafi Approach to Sufism,” Die Welt des Islams 51 (Spring, 2011): 75-
108.
“Pious Muslims in the Making: A Closer Look at Narratives of Ascetic Conversion,” Arabica (July,
2010): 437-454.
“The Public Expression of Traditional Islam: the Pesantren and Civil Society in Post-Suharto Indonesia,”
The Muslim World (January, 2010): 60-77.
“‘Compete with One Another in Good Works’: Exegesis of Qur’an verse 5.48 and Contemporary Muslim
Discourses on Religious Pluralism,” Islam and Christian-Muslim Relations (October, 2009): 423-438
“The Idea of Secularization in the Minds of Reformist Muslims: A Case Study of Nurcholish Madjid and
Fouad Zakaria,” Journal of Indonesian Islam 1/2 (December, 2007): 323-355.
“Early Muslim-Christian Dialogue: A Closer Look at Major Themes of the Theological Encounter,”
Islam and Christian-Muslim Relations (October, 2005): 361-376.

Non Peer-Reviewed Articles:

“Sunni-Shiite Tensions and Our Culture of Tolerance,” The Jakarta Post, December 4, 2015:
http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2015/12/04/sunni-shiite-tensions-and-our-culture-tolerance.html

“Restrictions on Religion Leads to More Violence, Not Less,” The Jakarta Post, November 13, 2015:
http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2015/11/13/restrictions-religion-lead-more-violence-not-less.html

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“Religious Freedom and Places of Worship in Indonesia,” Berkley Center Religious Freedom Project
Blog, October 22, 2015: http://berkleycenter.georgetown.edu/responses/religious-freedom-and-places-of-
worship-in-contemporary-indonesia

“The Secularization Debate in Indonesia and Egypt,” Contending Modernities Blog, May 23, 2013:
http://blogs.nd.edu/contendingmodernities/2013/05/23/the-secularization-debate-in-indonesia-and-egypt/

“The Muslim Luther and Reformation,” Sightings, February 23, 2012:

http://divinity.uchicago.edu/martycenter/publications/sightings/archive_2012/0223.shtml

Book Chapters:
“Political Islam in Post-Suharto Indonesia,” in Ibrahim Abu-Rabi (ed.), The Blackwell Companion to
Contemporary Islamic Thought (London: Blackwell Publishing, 2006): 466-481.

Books in Indonesian Language:

Tradisi Intelektual Islam (Islamic Intellectual Tradition) (Malang: Instrans Press, 2015)
Kontroversi Islam Awal (Controversies over Early Islam) (Bandung: Mizan, 2015).
Polemik Kitab Suci: Tafsir Reformis atas Kritik al-Qur’an terhadap Agama Lain (Scriptural Polemics:
Reformist tafsir on the Qur’anic criticism of other religions), (Jakarta: Gramedia, 2013).
Editor, Interfaith Theology: Responses of Indonesian Progressive Muslims (Jakarta: ICIP, 2006): In
English (originally in Bahasa).
Membendung Militansi Agama (Resisting Religious Militancy) (Jakarta: Airlangga, 2004/2007).
Dilema Islam, Dilema Demokrasi (Islamic Dilemma, Democratic Dilemma) (Jakarta: Gugus Press, 2003).

Manuscripts under review:

Monograph, “Traditionalist and Revisionist Approaches to Early Islam,” a manuscript under review by
University of California Berkeley Press (two chapters have been submitted and reviewed positively; I am
currently preparing the final manuscript for submission).
Edited volume, “New Trends in Qur’anic Studies: Text, Context and Interpretation,” a manuscript under
review by International Qur’anic Studies Association (IQSA).

Journal articles/book chapters accepted for publication:

“What Makes Modern Tafsir Modern: A Closer Look at Hamka’s Tafsir al-Azhar,” in Andrew Rippin
(ed.) The Qur’an in the Malay-Indonesian World: Context and Interpretation (Routledge, June 2016).
http://www.tandf.net/books/details/9781138182578/
“Re-interpreting the Qur’anic Criticism of Other Religions,” in Angelika Neuwirth and Michael Sells
(eds.) Qur’anic Studies Today (Routledge, February 2016).
http://www.tandf.net/books/details/9781138181953/
“Other Religions,” in Andrew Rippin (ed.) The Blackwell Companion to the Qurʾān, 3rd edition (2016).
“Modern Approaches to the Qur’anic Criticism of Other Religions,” Journal of Qur’anic Studies.

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Works in progress (contracts have been signed to contribute book chapters)
“Islam and Karl Barth,” in Martha Moore-Keish and Christian Collins Winn (eds.) Barth and
Comparative Theology (2016).
“Muqatil b. Sulayman,” in Jane Dammen McAuliffe (ed.), Encyclopaedia of the Qur’an, online
supplement (2016).

Work in Progress (book proposal under review)

With Peter J. Casarella, edited volume, “Finding Beauty in the Other,” a book proposal under review by
the University of Notre Dame Press.

TEACHING
“College Seminar: Religious Freedom,” College of Arts and Letters, University of Notre Dame, Fall
2015.
“Scripture, Violence and Peace,” Kroc Institute, University of Notre Dame, Fall 2015.
“Directed Study: History and Method in Qur’ānic Interpretation,” Department of Theology, Fall 2015.
“Introduction to Islam,” Department of Theology, University of Notre Dame, Spring 2015.
“Islam and Christian-Muslim Relations,” (team teaching with Prof. Reynolds), Department of Theology,
Spring 2015.
“Directed Study: Reading in Classical Arabic Texts,” Department of Classics, Spring 2015.
“Scripture, Violent, and Peace,” Kroc Institute for International Peace Studies, University of Notre Dame,
Fall 2014.
“Modern Islam,” Department of Theology, University of Notre Dame, Spring 2014.
“College Seminar: Religious Freedom,” College of Arts and Letters, University of Notre Dame, Spring
2014.
Co-Instructor: “Readings in Classical Arabic Texts,” Department of Theology, University of Notre Dame,
Spring Semester 2013.
Co-Instructor: a reading course in “Qur’an, Tafsir and Sira,” Department of Theology, University of
Notre Dame, Fall Semester 2012.

PROFESSIONAL SERVICES
To the University of Notre Dame:
Chair, Contending Modernities Working Group on Indonesia (consists of 6 research projects for the
duration of three years).

Member of MTS Committee, Department of Theology.

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Member of Undergraduate Advisory Committee, Kroc Institute for International Peace Studies.

Thesis Advisor, I served as a thesis advisor for a MA student at Kroc Institute (2015)

To the Field:

Chair, ISLAM section, American Academy of Religion (AAR), Midwest Region, 2015-2018.

Member of the Qur’an Group, American Academy of Religion (AAR), 2015-2018.

Member of International Committee, International Qur’anic Studies Association (IQSA).

Member of Editorial Board of the following journals:

 Studies in Interreligious Dialogue
 Al-Bayan: Journal of Qur’an and Hadith Studies
 Indo-Islamika: Journal of Indonesian Islam
 ‘Ulumuna: Jurnal Studi Keislaman
 Afkaruna: Indonesian Interdisciplinary Journal of Islamic Studies
 Journal of Indonesian Islam

Organizer of the following conferences/working group:

 “Inaugural World Religions World Church Theological Conference: Finding Beauty in the Other,”
(with Prof. Gabriel Said Reynolds), will be hosted by WRWC Area, the Department of Theology,
September 10-12, 2015.
 “New Trends in Qur’anic Studies,” will be co-hosted by the International Qur’anic Studies
Association (IQSA) and the Islamic Islamic University, in Yogyakarta, August 4-7, 2015. I am the
director of this international conference, which will involve 44 presenters from around the world.
 “Contending Modernities working group on Indonesia,” first meeting on April 31-May 1, 2015. I
have been working on developing this working group for a while. We have selected six research
proposals by well-known specialists in Indonesia studies from USA, UK, Germany and Indonesia.
 “Building a Plural Society: Interreligious Relations in Indonesia,” co-hosted by Kroc Institute and
Indonesian Consulate General in Chicago, May 2, 2014.
 Two Islam-panels at the AAR Midwest Conference, April 11-12, 2015 at Ada, Ohio. As the chair of
the ISLAM-section, I will be chairing one of these two panels along with my colleague (PhD student
from Theology) from Notre Dame.

SELECTED PRESENTATIONS

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“The Politics of Forbidding Wrong: Regulating Piety and Contesting Authority,” at the AAR Annual
Meeting, Atlanta, November 23, 2015.
“There will be no Fear for Them nor shall They Grieve: Is the Qur’an Extent Salvific Promise to Others,”
at the Inaugural WRWC conference at the University of Notre Dame, September 10-12, 2015.
“Reading the Qur’an Inter-Religiously,” at IQSA-UIN international conference on “New Trends in
Qur’anic Studies,” Yogyakarta, August 4-6, 2015.
“Scriptural Polemics,” at Young Interfaith Peacemaker National Conference, Yogyakarta, August 7, 2015
“Relevansi Fikih Siyar dan Jihad dalam Situasi Kemanusiaan Mutakhir,” at Indonesian Red Cross Society
(IFRC), Jakarta, July 3, 2015
“Book Launching: Kontroversi Islam Awal,” at ICRP, Jakarta, June 12, 2015
“Book Launching: Kontroversi Islam Awal,” at UNUSIDA Jombang, East Java, June 27, 2015
“Book Launching: Kontroversi Islam Awal,” at UNHASY, Tebuireng, East Java, June 28, 2015
“Book Launching: Kontroversi Islam Awal,” at PPIM, UIN Jakarta, July 1, 2015
“Book Launching: Polemik Kitab Suci,” at Freedom Institute, Jakarta, July 2, 2015
“Book Launching: Tradisi Intelektual Islam,” at UIN Malang, July 31, 2015
“Book Launching: Tradisi Intelektual Islam,” at PUSAM-UNMUH Malang, July 31, 2015
“Islam and Notre Dame: Advising Muslim students,” at The First Year of Studies Lenten Spirituality
Series & Cultural Competency Roundtable, March 2, 2015.
“Modern Approaches to Qur’anic Criticism of Other Religions,” presented at AAR Annual Meeting,
November 25, 2014.
“Re-Interpreting the Qur’an’s Violent Passages,” presented at PRES, Kroc Institute for International
Peace Studies, August 29, 2014.
“How to Read the Polemics of the Qur’an,” presented at the State Islamic University, Mataram,
Indonesia, June 20, 2014.
“Islamic Public Debate in Contemporary Indonesia,” paper read at The American Academy of Religion
Annual Meeting, in Baltimore, November 25, 2013.
“Modern Approaches to the Public Role of Non-Muslim Dhimmis: From Second Class Citizens to
Political Leaders,” University of Notre Dame, March 20, 2013.
“Non-Muslims in the Qur’an: Legal and Theological Discourses,” Hartford Seminary, March 18, 2013.
“Christianity in the Qur’an,” presented at Carleton College, Northfield, MN, February 21, 2013.
“Modern Approaches to Qur’anic Criticism of Other Religions,” presented at University of Louisville,
Kentucky, January 24, 2013.
“Reinterpreting the Qur’anic Jizya,” presented at the University of Washington, Seattle, Washington,
December 8, 2012.
“The Qur’an and Its Polemical Context,” presented at Qur’anic Studies Today Conference, convened by
Professor Angelika Neuwirth, University of Chicago, November 9, 2012.
“Reinterpreting Qur’anic Criticism of Other Religions,” presented at Public Lecture at the University of
Notre Dame, October 24, 2012.

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“Intolerant Fatwas and Co-Existence in Indonesia,” presented at the Annual Meeting of the Association
for Asian Studies (AAS), Toronto Canada, March 15-18, 2012.
“Contesting the Theology of Exclusivist Salvation,” presented at the 8th Annual Duke-UNC Islamic
Studies Graduate Conference on “How Ideas Win: Formation of Orthodoxy and Heterodoxy,” The
University of North Carolina, February 19-20, 2011.
“Reformist Muslim Approaches to the Qur’anic Islam,” presented at the Islamic Studies Club, The
University of Chicago, February 8, 2011.
“The Pesantren and Civil Society in Post-Suharto Indonesia,” presented at ASIRPA (Asian Society for
International Relations and Public Affairs) Annual Conference, Chicago, IL, July 1, 2010.
Discussant at The University of Notre Dame’s Symposia on “Church in Asia,” April 9-10, 2010.
“The Early Development of the Qur’anic ‘Hanif’,” presented at the MEHAT Workshop, the University of
Chicago, January 11, 2010.
“The Qur’an and Contemporary Muslim Discourses on Religious Pluralism,” presented at the Islamic
Studies Club, The University of Chicago Divinity School, November 14, 2008.
“‘Compete with One Another in Good Works’: Exegesis of Qur’an verse 5.48 and Contemporary Muslim
Discourses on Religious Pluralism,” presented at AMSS (Association of Muslim Social Scientists)
Annual Conference, held at the Harvard Divinity School, October 24-26, 2008.
“Islam and Political Regimes in Indonesia,” presented at Islam and Political regimes Workshop Series,
Center for Near Eastern Studies, UCLA, May 25, 2005.
“The Secularization of Islamic Law,” presented at Harvard Islamic Legal Program Conference on
“Islamic Law in Contemporary Indonesia,” May 12-14, 2004.

PROFESSIONAL MEMBERSHIPS
American Academy of Religion (AAR)
Middle East Studies Association (MESA)
Association for Asian Studies (AAS)

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