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Islamic
Spirituality
Caitlin Collins
 On
Feb. 18, Michael A. Sells, a professor of Religion at Haverford College
delivered a lecture titled “Infinite Longing in Islamic Spirituality.”
The lecture took place in the Connelly Cinema where members of the Villanova
community heard the insights of this expert in Islamic studies. Sells was
invited to Villanova by the Office of Mission Effectiveness as part of their
“Perspectives on Contemporary Spirituality” lecture series.
He began his presentation by dispelling the viewpoint that Islam is fundamentally
different from Judaism and Christianity. Sells believes that by focusing
on one of the most positive areas of all religions, love, a clash between
the faiths can be avoided. The author of seven books, Sells discussed the
Islamic poetic tradition and the Qur’an. He informed the audience
that although many scholars link the two, the Qur’an is not, poetry.
Sells continued his lecture by focusing on the work of Ibn Arabi, a 13th
century Islamic poet. He explained to his audience that by presenting Ibn
Arabi’s work he was ilustrating the ideas of other Islamic poets.
Explaining that the poet, whose work focused on love, recognized the belief
of many Muslims that God is infinite and manifests himself in all religious
traditions, Sells explored the many aspects of love that can be found in
his, and other Islamic poetry. Sells concluded with the idea that different
types of love, like religions, can peacefully and simultaneously co-exist.
The audience, then, was given the opportunity to ask Dr. Sells questions
and an open discussion period ensued.
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