John Louis Esposito (born May 19, 1940) is an

Italian-American Italian Americans ( it, italoamericani or ''italo-americani'', ) are Americans who have full or partial Italian ancestry. The largest concentrations of Italian Americans are in the urban Northeast and industrial Midwestern metropolitan areas, ...

academic An academy (Attic Greek: Ἀκαδήμεια; Koine Greek Ἀκαδημία) is an institution of secondary or tertiary higher learning (and generally also research or honorary membership). The name traces back to Plato's school of philosophy, ...

professor Professor (commonly abbreviated as Prof.) is an academic rank at universities and other post-secondary education and research institutions in most countries. Literally, ''professor'' derives from Latin as a "person who professes". Professors ...

of Middle Eastern and religious studies, and

scholar A scholar is a person who pursues academic and intellectual activities, particularly academics who apply their intellectualism into expertise in an area of study. A scholar can also be an academic, who works as a professor, teacher, or researc ...

Islamic studies Islamic studies refers to the academic study of Islam, and generally to academic multidisciplinary "studies" programs—programs similar to others that focus on the history, texts and theologies of other religious traditions, such as Easter ...

, who serves as Professor of Religion, International Affairs, and Islamic Studies at

Georgetown University Georgetown University is a private university, private research university in the Georgetown (Washington, D.C.), Georgetown neighborhood of Washington, D.C. Founded by Bishop John Carroll (archbishop of Baltimore), John Carroll in 1789 as Georg ...

Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...

He is also the founding director of the Prince Alwaleed Center for Muslim–Christian Understanding at Georgetown.

Biography

For nearly twenty years after completing his

Ph.D. A Doctor of Philosophy (PhD, Ph.D., or DPhil; Latin: or ') is the most common degree at the highest academic level awarded following a course of study. PhDs are awarded for programs across the whole breadth of academic fields. Because it is ...

, Esposito had taught Religious studies (including

Hinduism Hinduism () is an Indian religion or '' dharma'', a religious and universal order or way of life by which followers abide. As a religion, it is the world's third-largest, with over 1.2–1.35 billion followers, or 15–16% of the global p ...

Buddhism Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religions, Indian religion or Indian philosophy#Buddhist philosophy, philosophical tradition based on Pre-sectarian Buddhism, teachings attributed to the Buddha. ...

, and Islam) at the College of the Holy Cross, a

Jesuit college The Jesuits (Society of Jesus) in the Catholic Church have founded and managed a number of educational institutions, including the notable secondary schools, colleges and universities listed here. Some of these universities are in the United Stat ...

Massachusetts Massachusetts (Massachusett: ''Muhsachuweesut Massachusett_writing_systems.html" ;"title="nowiki/> məhswatʃəwiːsət.html" ;"title="Massachusett writing systems">məhswatʃəwiːsət">Massachusett writing systems">məhswatʃəwiːsət'' En ...

. At the College of the Holy Cross, Esposito held the Loyola Professor of Middle East Studies position, was the chair of the Department of Religious Studies, and director of the College of the Holy Cross' Center for International Studies.Bio of John Esposito
Center for the Study of Islam & Democracy. . Accessed February 23, 2007 At

, Esposito holds the position of University Professor and teaches as both Professor of Religion and International Affairs and Professor of Islamic Studies. He published ''Islam and Politics'' in 1984, and '' Islam: The Straight Path'' in 1988. Both books sold well, going through many editions. In addition to more than 35 books, he is editor-in-chief of a number of Oxford reference works including ''The Oxford Encyclopedia of the Modern Islamic World'', ''The Oxford History of Islam'', ''

The Oxford Dictionary of Islam ''The Oxford Dictionary of Islam'' is a dictionary of Islam, published by the Oxford University Press, with John Esposito as editor-in-chief. Overview The dictionary contains over 2,000 entries on a wide range of Islamic related topics. Refere ...

, ''The Oxford Encyclopedia of the Islamic World'' (six vols.), and ''Oxford Islamic Studies Online''. In 1988, he was elected president of the

Middle East Studies Association of North America Middle East Studies Association (often referred to as MESA) is a learned society, and according to its website, "a non-profit association that fosters the study of the Middle East, promotes high standards of scholarship and teaching, and encoura ...

(MESA). He has also served as president of the American Academy of Religion and president of the American Council for the Study of Islamic Societies. He served as Vice Chair of the Board of Directors of the Center for the Study of Islam & Democracy from 1999 to 2004 he was a member of the World Economic Forum’s Council of 100 Leaders, the High Level Group of the U.N.

Alliance of Civilizations The United Nations Alliance of Civilizations (UNAOC) is an initiative that attempts to "galvanize international action against extremism" through the forging of international, intercultural and interreligious dialogue and cooperation. The Allian ...

and the E. C. European Network of Experts on De-Radicalisation. He was an advisor to the award-winning, PBS-broadcast documentary '' Muhammad: Legacy of a Prophet'' (2002), produced b
Unity Productions Foundation
A recipient of the American Academy of Religion’s 2005 Martin E. Marty Award for the Public Understanding of Religion and of Pakistan’s Quaid-e-Azam Award for Outstanding Contributions in Islamic Studies, in 2003 he received the School of Foreign Service, Georgetown University Award for Outstanding Teaching. Esposito founded the Center for Muslim-Christian Understanding at Georgetown University in 1993 and is its founding director. The center received a $20 million endowment from Saudi Arabian Prince Alwaleed Bin Talal "to advance education in the fields of Islamic civilization and Muslim-Christian understanding and strengthen its presence as a world leader in facilitating cross-cultural and inter-religious dialogue." Esposito is a Catholic.

Works

Selected works as author, co-author, or editor, include titlers listed below.

Editor

* ''The Oxford Encyclopedia of the Islamic World'', as editor (2009, 5 volume set) * ''The Oxford History of Islam'', as editor (2004) * ''The Islamic World: Past and Present'', as editor (2004, 3 volume set) * ''The Oxford Encyclopedia of the Modern Islamic World'', as editor (1995, 4 volume set) * ''

'', as editor (1994)

Books

* ''Who Speaks for Islam? What a Billion Muslims Really Think'', coauthored with Dalia Mogahed (2008) * ''What Everyone Needs to Know About Islam'' (1st edition: 2002. 2nd edition: 2011) * ''The Future of Islam'' (2010) * '' Islam: The Straight Path'' (1st edition: 1988, 3rd edition: 2004) * ''Unholy War: Terror in the Name of Islam'' (2002) * ''Women in Muslim Family Law'', coauthored with Natana J. Delong-Bas (2nd edition: 2002) * ''Makers of Contemporary Islam'', coauthored John Voll (2001) * ''The Islamic Threat: Myth or Reality?'' (3rd edition: 1999) * ''Political Islam: Radicalism, Revolution or Reform'' (1997)

Collections

This section may include written or editorial contributions to collections of works by various scholars. * ''Islamophobia: The Challenge of Pluralism in the 21st Century'' as coeditor with

Ibrahim Kalin Ibrahim ( ar, إبراهيم, links=no ') is the Arabic name for Abraham, a Biblical patriarch and prophet in Islam. For the Islamic view of Ibrahim, see Abraham in Islam. Ibrahim may also refer to: * Ibrahim (name), a name (and list of people w ...

(2011) * ''Islam in Asia: Religion, Politics, & Society'', as editor (2006) * ''Turkish Islam and the Secular State: The Gulen Movement'', as coeditor with M. Hakan Yavuz (2003) * ''Modernizing Islam: Religion in the Public Sphere in the Middle East and Europe'', as coeditor with Francois Burgat (2003) * ''Iran at the Crossroads'', as coeditor with R.K. Ramazani (2000) * ''Muslims on the Americanization Path?'', as coeditor with

Yvonne Yazbeck Haddad Yvonne Yazbeck Haddad (born in Syria) is Professor of the History of Islam and Christian–Muslim Relations at the Prince Alwaleed Center for Muslim–Christian Understanding at Georgetown University. Her interests and focus include contemporary Isl ...

(2000) * ''Islam, Gender and Social Change'', as coeditor with

(1997) * ''Islam and Politics'', as editor (1st edition: 1984, 4th edition: 1998) * ''Islam and Democracy'', as coeditor with John Voll (1996) * ''Voices of Resurgent Islam'', as editor (1983)

References

External links

* * * *
John L. Esposito - The Future of Islam lecture at the University of Kentucky
{{DEFAULTSORT:Esposito, John 1940 births American people of Italian descent American religion academics American Roman Catholics American scholars of Islam Carnegie Council for Ethics in International Affairs Christian and Islamic interfaith dialogue Christian scholars of Islam College of the Holy Cross faculty Georgetown University faculty Harvard University people Living people Middle Eastern studies in the United States People in interfaith dialogue Religious studies scholars St. John's University (New York City) alumni Temple University alumni