Sulayman Nyang

Sulayman S. Nyang

Scholar of African and Muslim affairs

"On Faith" panelist Sulayman S. Nyang teaches in the Department of African Studies at Howard University in Washington, D.C. A scholar of African and Muslim affairs, Nyang, who is a native of the Republic of the Gambia, also served as his homeland's deputy ambassador to seven Middle Eastern and North African countries from 1975-78. Except for those three years, Nyang has taught at Howard since 1972, serving as acting director of the African Studies Program from 1973-75 and from 1986-1993, as chairman of the Department of African Studies. In 1993, he became senior consultant on the African Voices Project of the Museum of Natural History of the Smithsonian Institution..In 1997, Nyang became the first scholar to be named the Henry Luce Professor for Abrahamic Religions at the University of Hartford and Hartford Seminary. From 1999 to 2002 Professor Nyang served as a principal investigator and co-director of the Muslims in the American Public Square (MAPS) project sponsored by the Pew Charitable Trust and housed at Georgetown University's Center for Muslim-Christian Understanding. Now a U.S. citizen, Nyang has written extensively on African, Islamic and Middle Eastern affairs .His most widely-known book is Islam, Christianity and African Identity. He has also authored or co-edited Religious Plurality in Africa, with Jacob Olupona; A Line in the Sand: Saudi Arabia's Role in the Gulf War, with Evans Heindricks; and Islam:Its Relevance Today, co-edited with Henry Thompson. Nyang also wrote Islam in the United States of America (1999). His latest work is Muslims' Place in the American Public Square. Hopes, Fears, and Aspirations (2004), jointly edited with Zahid Bukhari and John Esposito of Georgetown University, and Mumtaz Ahmad of Hampton University). Nyang, who holds a doctorate in government from the University of Virginia, also serves on the advisory boards of several national African and Muslim organizations and was the first American Muslim president of the Interfaith Conference of Metropolitan Washington, D.C. Close.

Sulayman S. Nyang

Scholar of African and Muslim affairs

"On Faith" panelist Sulayman S. Nyang teaches in the Department of African Studies at Howard University in Washington, D.C. A scholar of African and Muslim affairs, Nyang, who is a native of the Republic of the Gambia, also served as his homeland's deputy ambassador to seven Middle Eastern and North African countries from 1975-78. more »

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October 2007 Archives



October 16, 2007 9:42 AM

What Near Death Taught Me About Life

Life is a dot for a living human being who has not developed any sense about the meaning of life. For him and those who cannot think of a line connecting these isolated dots of life, this existence we live in as sentient beings is a project. This was the opinion of some existentialists after the Second World War. Although there were distinctions among them, those who were philosophically materialist, this life needs to be seen as a project. Our destiny in this physical universe was here and no where else. This has always been seen as Dunyaism from a Muslim point of view.

To the practicing Muslim life has meaning and a purpose. Its purpose and destiny were enveloped in the letter addressed to humanity in the form of scriptures. These texts were not works of fiction and imagination. They were revelations from a Creator to us in this life. Therefore, life is indeed a mystery and a challenge for a thinking human being who engages in the endless search for the meaning of life.

These two sentences capture for me why my particular faith leads me to my belief in a life beyond the grave. Although I believe in a Creator and a life beyond the grave, my own encounter with death reaffirmed this faith.

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Posted by Sulayman Nyang | | Comments (26)




October 19, 2007 10:10 AM

No Religion is an Island

The Dalai Lama is a man of peace and a maker of world history. His statement is true at three levels.

No religion has ever appeared on this planet that advocates suicide, homicide and genocide. All of them, to the best of my knowledge, preach the language of peace between the creatures of the planet. On this point of convergence which advocates the common bond of humanity that links all of us together, the Dalai Lama is on the right side of the road of life.

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Posted by Sulayman Nyang | | Comments (43)




October 29, 2007 6:33 AM

Faith in a Fruitful Conversation

I think bio-sociologist E.O. Wilson was correct and cautious in his assertion that: "An alliance between science and religion, forged in an atmosphere of mutual respect, may be the only way to protect life on earth." There are several reasons for supporting this statement.

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Posted by Sulayman Nyang | | Comments (4)


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What Islam Really Says About Violence, Rights and Other Religions

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