Abdulaziz Sachedina
Abdulaziz Abdulhussein Sachedina | |
|---|---|
| Born | 1942 Tanganyika Territory |
| Died | (aged 83) |
| Citizenship | American |
| Alma mater | Aligarh Muslim University (BA) Ferdowsi University (BA (Hons)) University of Toronto (MA, PhD) |
Abdulaziz Abdulhussein Sachedina (1942 – 3 December 2025) was a Tanzanian-born American Islamic scholar who was a professor and the International Institute of Islamic Thought (IIIT) Chair in Islamic Studies at George Mason University in Fairfax, Virginia.
Life and career
[edit]Sachedina was born in 1942 in Tanganyika Territory, though his heritage originally was from India. He had an MA/PhD from the University of Toronto and BA degrees from Aligarh Muslim University in India, and Ferdowsi University of Mashad in Iran.[1] Sachedina was a professor from 1975. He annually taught courses on Classical Islam, Islam in the Modern Age, Islam, Democracy and Human Rights, Islamic Bioethics and Muslim Theology. He was a member of the editorial board of the journal Islam and Christian-Muslim Relations.[2]
In 1997, Grand Ayatollah Lotfollah Safi Golpaygani thanked him for his translation of a book on Imam Mahdi into English, originally written by Ayatollah Ebrahim Amini. The acknowledgement letter was published by the Iranian Hawza magazine.[3]
In 1998, Grand Ayatollah Sistani issued a statement against Sachedina that advised Muslims not to listen to his talks or to ask him questions about religious matters.[4][5] (See original text in Persian[6]).
He spoke Hindi, Urdu, Persian, Arabic, Gujarati, Swahili, and English.[7]
Sachedina died on 3 December 2025, at the age of 83.[8]
Bibliography
[edit]- The Just Ruler in Shi'ite Islam: The Comprehensive Authority of the Jurist in Imamite Jurisprudence Oxford University Press Inc (USA), 1998, ISBN 0-19-511915-0
- The Islamic Roots of Democratic Pluralism Oxford University Press Inc (USA), 2000, ISBN 0-19-513991-7
- The Islamic World: Past and Present John L. Esposito (Editor), Abdulaziz Abdulhussein Sachedina (Editor): Oxford University Press Inc (USA), 2004, ISBN 0-19-516520-9
- Islamic Biomedical Ethics Oxford University Press (USA), 2009, ISBN 0-19-537850-4
- Islamic Messianism State Univ of New York Press (USA), 1981, ISBN 0-87395-458-0
- Human Rights and the Conflict of Cultures co-authored with David Little and John Kelsay: South Carolina Press (USA), 1988, ISBN 0-87249-533-7
- Prolegomena to the Qur'an" being trans of Abu al-Qasim al-Khui's Al-Bayan Oxford University Press (USA), 1988
- Recueil de textes du professeur Abdulaziz Sachedina, Editions Publibook (France), 2008, ISBN 978-2-7483-4253-6
- Islamic messianism: the idea of Mahdī in twelver Shīʻism, State University of New York, 1981, ISBN 0-87395-442-4
References
[edit]- ^ "An interview with Abdulaziz Sachedina on His Life and Scholarship". The Levant News. 28 September 2017. Archived from the original on 12 July 2021. Retrieved 5 April 2021.
- ^ "About Islam and Christian–Muslim Relations: Editorial Board". Taylor & Francis. Retrieved 25 December 2025.
- ^ Howzeh magazine, Spring and Summer 2006, Number 18
- ^ The Presentation Submitted to the Marja'.
- ^ Abdulaziz Sachedina. "What happened in Najaf?". University of Georgia. Archived from the original on 11 October 2011. Retrieved 14 February 2008.
- ^ "Original text" (in Persian). Abdulaziz Sachedina, University of Virginia. Archived from the original on 17 March 2004.
- ^ "Abdulaziz Sachedina, Faculty page". University of Virginia. Archived from the original on 15 October 2008.
- ^ "Abdulaziz Sachedina, prominent Islamic scholar, dies at 83". IQNA. Retrieved 4 December 2025.
External links
[edit]
- 1942 births
- 2025 deaths
- Aligarh Muslim University alumni
- Ferdowsi University of Mashad alumni
- University of Toronto alumni
- University of Virginia faculty
- American male writers of Indian descent
- Shia scholars of Islam
- George Mason University faculty
- Tanzanian emigrants to the United States
- American Shia Muslims
- American people of Gujarati descent
- Muslim reformers