ST. MARK'S ANNUAL SUMMER LECTURE SERIES

LECTURE SERIES 2010 JUNE 18TH & 19TH - MARK YOUR CALENDAR WITH THESE DATES

Our 2010 Lecturer is: Imam Feisal Abdul Rauf.

Imam FEISAL ABDUL RAUF (Arabic: فيصل عبد الرؤوف‎, born 1948^[1]) is an Egyptian-American imam, author, and activist for improvement in relations between the Muslim World and the West. For 25 years, he has been Imam of Masjid al-Farah, a New York City mosque. He has written three books on Islam and its place in contemporary Western society, and has founded two non-profit organizations whose collective mission is to enhance the discourse on Islam in society.

Feisal Abdul Rauf was born in 1948 in Kuwait to Egyptian parents. His grandfather had been an imam in Egypt, and his father was also a renowned imam, author of several books on Qur'anic interpretation (tafsir) and Director of the Islamic Cultural Center of New York and the Islamic Center of Washington, DC. Abdul Rauf's father had an impressive academic career, obtaining degrees at Cambridge University and the University of London, getting his Doctorate at al-Azhar University in Cairo.^[1]Abdul Rauf's father is also one of the first rector International Islamic University Malaysia (IIUM/UIAM) one of the well known Universitys in Malaysia.

Abdul Rauf was born in Kuwait, then grew up in Malaysia, where he lived until the age of 16. After a stay in London, Abdul Rauf moved to the United States at the age of 18 and began his studies in Physics at Columbia University in New York.

He has completed a Masters and requirements for a Ph. D at Stevens Institute of Technology in New Jersey.

Abdul Rauf has written three books^[2]:

- "What's Right with Islam: a New Vision for Muslims and the West" (HarperCollins, 2004)

- "Islam: A Sacred Law" (Threshold books, 2000)- "Islam: A Search for Meaning" (Mazda, 1996)

- "Islam: A Search for Meaning" (Mazda, 1996