Farid Esack
Encyclopedia
Farid Esack is a South African Muslim
scholar, writer, and political activist known for his opposition to apartheid, his appointment by Nelson Mandela
as a gender equity commissioner, and his work for inter-religious dialogue.
family in the Wynberg
suburb of Cape Town
. While still a child, he and his mother were forcibly relocated as "non-Whites" under the provisions of the Group Areas Act
. At age nine, Esack joined the revivalist Tablighi Jamaat
movement, and by age 10 he was teaching at a madrasah
(religious school). At the age of 15 he received a scholarship to pursue Islamic studies
in Pakistan
. By the time he left for Pakistan in 1974 he had also become the local chairman of an anti-apartheid group, National Youth Action, and had been detained several times by security police.
Although he found life in authoritarian Pakistan difficult, Esack spent eight years as a student in Karachi
, completing the traditional Dars-i-Nizami
program of Islamic studies and becoming a mawlana or Muslim cleric. As he noted in the introduction to his book On Being a Muslim, some of his fellow students later joined the Taliban in Afghanistan
. Having grown up with Christian
neighbors, Esack became critical of discrimination against Christians and other religious minorities in Pakistan.
. Esack addressed hundreds of protest meetings, formed ties with inter-faith opponents of apartheid, and became a leading figure within the World Conference on Religion and Peace.
In 1990 Esack left South Africa to continue his theological studies. He holds a PhD from the University of Birmingham
, England and pursued postdoctoral studies in Biblical hermeneutics at the Sankt Georgen Graduate School of Philosophy and Theology
, Frankfurt, Germany.
Esack has also been involved with the organisation Positive Muslims, which is dedicated to helping HIV
-positive Muslims in Africa.
In May 2005 Farid Esack delivered the second Mandela Lecture sponsored by the Netherlands Institute for Southern Africa, Amsterdam
.
Esack was the Prince Al-Waleed Bin Talal Visiting Professor of Islamic Studies at Harvard Divinity School
in Cambridge, Massachusetts
until 2008.
Islam in South Africa
Islam in South Africa pre-dates the colonial period, and consisted of isolated contact with Arab and East Africa traders. Many South African Muslims are described as Coloureds, notably in the Western Cape, including those whose ancestors came as slaves from the Indonesian archipelago...
scholar, writer, and political activist known for his opposition to apartheid, his appointment by Nelson Mandela
Nelson Mandela
Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela served as President of South Africa from 1994 to 1999, and was the first South African president to be elected in a fully representative democratic election. Before his presidency, Mandela was an anti-apartheid activist, and the leader of Umkhonto we Sizwe, the armed wing...
as a gender equity commissioner, and his work for inter-religious dialogue.
Early life
Esack was born into a poor MuslimMuslim
A Muslim, also spelled Moslem, is an adherent of Islam, a monotheistic, Abrahamic religion based on the Quran, which Muslims consider the verbatim word of God as revealed to prophet Muhammad. "Muslim" is the Arabic term for "submitter" .Muslims believe that God is one and incomparable...
family in the Wynberg
Wynberg, Cape Town
Wynberg is a southern suburb of the City of Cape Town in Western Cape, South Africa. It is situated between Plumstead and Kenilworth, and is a main transport hub for the Southern Suburbs of Cape Town.- Geography :...
suburb of Cape Town
Cape Town
Cape Town is the second-most populous city in South Africa, and the provincial capital and primate city of the Western Cape. As the seat of the National Parliament, it is also the legislative capital of the country. It forms part of the City of Cape Town metropolitan municipality...
. While still a child, he and his mother were forcibly relocated as "non-Whites" under the provisions of the Group Areas Act
Group Areas Act
The Group Areas Act of 1950 was an act of parliament created under the apartheid government of South Africa on 27th April 1950. The act assigned racial groups to different residential and business sections in urban areas in a system of urban apartheid...
. At age nine, Esack joined the revivalist Tablighi Jamaat
Tablighi Jamaat
Tablighi Jamaat is a religious movement which was founded in 1926 by Muhammad Ilyas al-Kandhlawi in India. The movement primarily aims at Tablighi spiritual reformation by working at the grass roots level, reaching out to Muslims across all social and economic spectra to bring them closer to...
movement, and by age 10 he was teaching at a madrasah
Madrasah
Madrasah is the Arabic word for any type of educational institution, whether secular or religious...
(religious school). At the age of 15 he received a scholarship to pursue Islamic studies
Islamic studies
In a Muslim context, Islamic studies can be an umbrella term for all virtually all of academia, both originally researched and as defined by the Islamization of knowledge...
in Pakistan
Pakistan
Pakistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan is a sovereign state in South Asia. It has a coastline along the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman in the south and is bordered by Afghanistan and Iran in the west, India in the east and China in the far northeast. In the north, Tajikistan...
. By the time he left for Pakistan in 1974 he had also become the local chairman of an anti-apartheid group, National Youth Action, and had been detained several times by security police.
Although he found life in authoritarian Pakistan difficult, Esack spent eight years as a student in Karachi
Karachi
Karachi is the largest city, main seaport and the main financial centre of Pakistan, as well as the capital of the province of Sindh. The city has an estimated population of 13 to 15 million, while the total metropolitan area has a population of over 18 million...
, completing the traditional Dars-i-Nizami
Dars-i-Nizami
Dars-i Nizami is a study curriculum used in a large portion of Islamic religious school in South Asia. It was standardized Mullah Nizamuddin Sehalvi at Firangi Mahal, a famous seminary belonging to a family of Islamic scholars in Lucknow, India.The Dars-i-Nizami system orginated from early 18th...
program of Islamic studies and becoming a mawlana or Muslim cleric. As he noted in the introduction to his book On Being a Muslim, some of his fellow students later joined the Taliban in Afghanistan
Afghanistan
Afghanistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located in the centre of Asia, forming South Asia, Central Asia and the Middle East. With a population of about 29 million, it has an area of , making it the 42nd most populous and 41st largest nation in the world...
. Having grown up with Christian
Christian
A Christian is a person who adheres to Christianity, an Abrahamic, monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth as recorded in the Canonical gospels and the letters of the New Testament...
neighbors, Esack became critical of discrimination against Christians and other religious minorities in Pakistan.
Middle years
Returning to South Africa in 1982, Esack became involved with activities of the Muslim Youth Movement of South Africa. He, along with three other members, left the organization in 1993 and helped form the Muslim anti-apartheid group Muslims Against Oppression, which later changed its name to Call of Islam, which became an important affiliate of the United Democratic FrontUnited Democratic Front (South Africa)
The United Democratic Front was one of the most important anti-apartheid organisations of the 1980s. The non-racial coalition of about 400 civic, church, students', workers' and other organisations was formed in 1983, initially to fight the just-introduced idea of the Tricameral Parliament The...
. Esack addressed hundreds of protest meetings, formed ties with inter-faith opponents of apartheid, and became a leading figure within the World Conference on Religion and Peace.
In 1990 Esack left South Africa to continue his theological studies. He holds a PhD from the University of Birmingham
University of Birmingham
The University of Birmingham is a British Redbrick university located in the city of Birmingham, England. It received its royal charter in 1900 as a successor to Birmingham Medical School and Mason Science College . Birmingham was the first Redbrick university to gain a charter and thus...
, England and pursued postdoctoral studies in Biblical hermeneutics at the Sankt Georgen Graduate School of Philosophy and Theology
Sankt Georgen Graduate School of Philosophy and Theology
The Sankt Georgen Graduate School of Philosophy and Theology is an academic seminary in Frankfurt am Main, Germany....
, Frankfurt, Germany.
Esack has also been involved with the organisation Positive Muslims, which is dedicated to helping HIV
HIV
Human immunodeficiency virus is a lentivirus that causes acquired immunodeficiency syndrome , a condition in humans in which progressive failure of the immune system allows life-threatening opportunistic infections and cancers to thrive...
-positive Muslims in Africa.
In May 2005 Farid Esack delivered the second Mandela Lecture sponsored by the Netherlands Institute for Southern Africa, Amsterdam
Amsterdam
Amsterdam is the largest city and the capital of the Netherlands. The current position of Amsterdam as capital city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands is governed by the constitution of August 24, 1815 and its successors. Amsterdam has a population of 783,364 within city limits, an urban population...
.
Esack was the Prince Al-Waleed Bin Talal Visiting Professor of Islamic Studies at Harvard Divinity School
Harvard Divinity School
Harvard Divinity School is one of the constituent schools of Harvard University, located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, in the United States. The School's mission is to train and educate its students either in the academic study of religion, or for the practice of a religious ministry or other public...
in Cambridge, Massachusetts
Cambridge, Massachusetts
Cambridge is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States, in the Greater Boston area. It was named in honor of the University of Cambridge in England, an important center of the Puritan theology embraced by the town's founders. Cambridge is home to two of the world's most prominent...
until 2008.
Books by Farid Esack
- The Struggle. (1988) ISBN 0-620-12519-5
- But Musa went to Fir'aun! A Compilation of Questions and Answers about the Role of Muslims in the South African Struggle for Liberation. (South Africa, 1989) ISBN 0-620-14105-0
- Qur'an, Liberation and Pluralism: An Islamic Perspective of Interreligious Solidarity Against Oppression. (Oxford, 1997) ISBN 1-85168-121-3
- Islam and Politics (London, 1998) OCLC 67856723
- On Being a Muslim: Finding a Religious Path in the World Today. (Oxford, 1999) ISBN 1-85168-146-9
- The Qur'an: A Short Introduction. (Oxford, 2002) ISBN 1-85168-231-7
- The Qur'an: A User's Guide. (Oxford, 2005) ISBN 1-85168-354-2
Further reading
- Singhai, Arvind, and W. Stephen Howard. The Children of Africa Contfront AIDS: From Vulnerability to Possibility. (Athens, Ohio, 2003) ISBN 0-89680-232-9