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Passages examined

The Qurʾân Seminar is dedicated to the study of 50 passages of the Qurʾân, passages chosen in order to represent:

1. themes of central importance to the text itself,

2. a diversity of literary genres,

3. material equally distributed throughout the Qurʾan’s 114 Suras,

4. topics which have received particular attention in classical and contemporary Qurʾanic exegesis

Through an online interface the 28 scholars affiliated with the Qurʾân Seminar will reflect on these passages – and comment on the reflections of others – during the academic year 2012-13.

THE FIFTY QURʾĀNIC PASSAGES 

 

Section 1 Q 1-8

Section 2 Q 8-19

Section 3, Q 20-34

Section 4, Q 35-55

Section 5, Q 56-114
  1. I, 1-7 (prayer)
  2. II, 30-39 (biblical narrative)
  3. II, 178-179 (legal -- retaliation)
  4. II, 255-56 (praise)
  5. III, 1-7 (praise, meta-textuality, polemic, eschatology)
  6. III, 33-63 (biblical narrative/polemic -- John, Mary, Jesus)
  7. IV, 1-28 (legal)
  8. V, 32 (moral -- moses)
  9. V, 109-20 (biblical narrative, Jesus, polemic - Christians)
  10. VI, 74-83 (Biblical  narrative -- Abraham)

 
  1. VIII, 1-19 (contemporary events)
  2. IX, 29-32 (Jews, Christians)
  3. IX, 111-18 (war, forgiveness, contemporary events)
  4. XI, 25-99 (divine intervention/human history – punishment stories)
  5. XII (Biblical narrative – Joseph)
  6. XIII, 1-17 (signs, prophet, prayer)
  7. XIII, 27-43, (polemic – mushrikun)
  8. XVII, 22-39 (legal)
  9. XVII, 85 (the spirit)
  10. XVIII, 9-26 (divine intervention/human history – sleepers of Ephesus)

 

 
  1. XX, 9-99 (Biblical narrative - Moses)
  2. XXIII all (barzakh, opponents’ belief in Allah)
  3. XXIV, 1-17 (legal -- fornication/witnesses)
  4. XXIV, 35 (theology – light verse)
  5. XXV, 1-10 (polemic)
  6. XXVI, 105-122 (Biblical narrative -- Noah)
  7. XXVII, 15-44 (Biblical narrative -- David Solomon)
  8. XXIX all (exhortation -- Noah, Abraham, Lot, the Qurʾan, the prophet, eschatology)
  9. XXX, 1-7 (contemporary events)
  10. XXXIII, 40 (the prophet)
  1. XXXVI, 13-27 (Biblical narrative - Acts, gospel)
  2. XXXVII, 6-11 (cosmology -- divine council)
  3. XXXVII, 149-182 (polemics -- daughters of God)
  4. XXXVIII, 17-26 (Biblical narrative --  David)
  5. XLIII, 81-3 (polemic/theology - if al-Raḥmān had a son…)
  6. XLIV, 43-57 (eschatology)
  7.  XLVI, 7-12 (polemic)
  8. XLVIII (contemporary events, war)
  9. LIII (the prophet’s vision, satanic verses)
  10. LV (signs, praise)
  1. LXXII (cosmology, eschatology)
  2.  LXXV (eschatology)
  3. LXXXV (polemic)
  4. XC (exhortation)
  5. XCVI (exhortation)
  6. XCVII (revelation)
  7. CV (divine intervention/human history)
  8. CVI (contemporary events)
  9. CVIII (exhortation)
  10. CXII (theology)