John Kelsay is an
author
An author is the writer of a book, article, play, mostly written work. A broader definition of the word "author" states:
"''An author is "the person who originated or gave existence to anything" and whose authorship determines responsibility f ...
and a Research Professor and Richard L. Rubenstein Professor of Religion at
Florida State University. He received his Ph.D. in 1985 in Ethics from
University of Virginia
The University of Virginia (UVA) is a public research university in Charlottesville, Virginia. Founded in 1819 by Thomas Jefferson, the university is ranked among the top academic institutions in the United States, with highly selective ad ...
. He mainly focuses on religious ethics, particularly in relation to the
Islamic and
Christian traditions. His research interests include comparative religious ethics,
political ethics, and religion and war.
Kelsay's 1993 book, ''Islam And War: A Study in Comparative Ethics'', discussed the Islamic concept of
jihad as compared with the Christian concept of
just war
The just war theory ( la, bellum iustum) is a doctrine, also referred to as a tradition, of military ethics which is studied by military leaders, theologians, ethicists and policy makers. The purpose of the doctrine is to ensure that a war i ...
. His 2007 book, ''Arguing the Just War in Islam'', was praised by ''
The New York Times
''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid d ...
'' for helping to bring greater understanding of Islamic views of war and peace to the non-Islamic world.
In 2007, Kelsay visited
Oman
Oman ( ; ar, عُمَان ' ), officially the Sultanate of Oman ( ar, سلْطنةُ عُمان ), is an Arabian country located in southwestern Asia. It is situated on the southeastern coast of the Arabian Peninsula, and spans the mouth of ...
and urged students there to challenge fellow Muslims who used the concept of jihad to justify acts of violence.
How Just Is Islam's Just-War Tradition?
Evan R. Goldstein, The Chronicle of Higher Education
''The Chronicle of Higher Education'' is a newspaper and website that presents news, information, and jobs for college and university faculty and student affairs professionals (staff members and administrators). A subscription is required to re ...
, April 18, 2008. "Last year, John Kelsay went to Oman to talk about war. The first night there, speaking at the Grand Mosque in Muscat, he faced a large audience of students studying religion. Discussing the attacks of September 11, 2001, Kelsay argued that the perpetrators had violated the noble tradition of jihad, which is based on legal judgments about the ethics of armed struggle that stretch back to Islam's formative years. Calling on his listeners to challenge the self-styled "jihadis" who claimed that flying airplanes into the World Trade Center's twin towers and other acts of private warfare, vengeance, and terrorism were justified by traditional texts, Kelsay urged the students to consider how the concept of jihad has evolved and why it has become such a hotly contested topic."
He has assumed the editorship of the interdisciplinary journa
Sounding
which has moved to Florida after 25 years at the University of Tennessee
The University of Tennessee (officially The University of Tennessee, Knoxville; or UT Knoxville; UTK; or UT) is a public land-grant research university in Knoxville, Tennessee. Founded in 1794, two years before Tennessee became the 16th state ...
.
Publications
Books
* ''Human Rights and the Conflict of Cultures'' (co-authored; University of South Carolina, 1988)
* ''Just War and Jihad'' (co-edited; Greenwood Press, 1991)
* ''Islam and War: A Study in Comparative Ethics'' (Westminster/John Knox, 1993)
* ''Arguing the Just War in Islam'' (Harvard University Press, 2007)
Articles
* "Islam and the Comparative Study of Religious Ethics: Review of Selected Materials, 1985-1995," in ''Religious Studies Review'' 23.1 (January 1997): 3-9.
* "Bin Ladin's Reasons," in ''Christian Century'' 119.5 (February 27-March 6, 2002): 26-29.
References
External links
Homepage
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kelsay, John
Year of birth missing (living people)
Living people
University of Virginia alumni
Florida State University faculty
Religious studies scholars