Vincent J. Cornell

Vincent J. Cornell is Asa Griggs Candler Professor of Middle East and Islamic Studies at Emory University in Atlanta, Georgia. From 2000-2006, he was Professor of History and Director of the King Fahd Center for Middle East and Islamic Studies at the University of Arkansas. From 1991-2000, he taught at Duke University. His published works include over thirty articles, three books, and one book set, including The Way of Abu Madyan (Cambridge: The Islamic Texts Society, 1996) and Realm of the Saint: Power and Authority in Moroccan Sufism (Austin, Texas: University of Texas Press, 1998). His most recent publication is the five-volume book set Voices of Islam, Vincent J. Cornell General Editor (Westport, Connecticut and London: Praeger, 2007). This comprehensive introduction to Islamic religion, thought, life, and civilization includes chapters by 50 Muslim authors, including many of the premier scholars of Islamic Studies. Dr. Cornell’s interests cover the entire spectrum of Islamic thought from Sufism to theology and Islamic law. He has lived and worked in Morocco for many years and has spent considerable time teaching and doing research in Egypt, Tunisia, Malaysia, and Indonesia. He is the project director of the Muslim Theology of World Religions project and is also working on a book on Islam and democracy. He has often appeared on television and radio, including extended interviews on the National Public Radio show, “Speaking of Faith.” Since 2002 he has been a key participant in the Building Bridges seminars of Christian and Muslim scholars conducted by the Archbishop of Canterbury.