The American Journal of Islamic Social SciencedVol. 4, No. 1,1987 151 Conference Report The 4th International Conference On Islamization Of Knowledge (Khartoum, Sudan) The Fourth International Conference on Islamization of Knowledge, sponsored by the International Institute of Islamic Thought, was held in col- laboration with the University of Khartoum January 15-20, 1987. The theme of the conference was “Methodology of Research, Behavioral Sciences and Education.” The call for papers was published in the American J o u m l of Islamic Social Sciences in July, 1984 and the invitations were circulated wide- ly among Muslim scholars. It was in response to these calls that abstracts were received and finally selected on the basis of their relevance and quality. The conference was inaugurated by the Prime Minister of the Sudan, Mr. a1 Sayyid a1 8iidiq al Mahdi. Thirty-seven research papers were presented by foreign, as well as local Sudanese scholars. The subjects included methodology, epistomology , education, psychology, sociology, and an- thropology. The conference proved to be an historic event, especially in terms of the participation of large numbers of local scholars, teachers, students and other interested Muslims. Each presentation was followed by lively discussions and critiques. The extraordinary interest shown by the Sudanese Muslims regarding the issues of the Islamization of Knowledge, was evidence of this nation’s commitment to the process of Islamization. The director of the Friendship Hall announced at the final session that the conference had attracted the largest crowd ever at the auditorium. In addition, the lobbies, the offices and the grounds around the auditorium were all crowded and the loud speakers had to be opened everywhere. The following are the titles of some of the research papers presented: 1 1. The Problems of Methodology in Islamic Thought 2. Reason and Its Role in the Islamic Methodology 3. Methodology of the Classification of Sciences in the Islamic Thought ‘Abdul Hamid ’AbiiSulaymZin T&a JZibir Al-‘Alwani ‘Abdul Majid Al NajBr 1 32 The American Journal of Islamic Social SciencedVol. 4, No. 1,1987 4. Towards a Methodological Framework for the Study of the Sources for an Islamic Socio-Political Theory Mona Abul Fadhl Sayyid Abdul Fattah Sawsan 'Awad al Karim 5 . Foundations of the Islamic Political Concepts 6. The Impact of Islam on the Methodology of Research in Social Sciences 7. Methodology in the Study of Cultures: Role of Environment, Society and Historical Background Ali Uthman Saleh 8. Islamic Methodology and the Ethical Values 9. The Roots of Psychological Concepts in the Islamic Heritage Salah Abdul Muta'al A1 Zubair Bashir Ahmad M. Al Hassan Nabil Musa Malik Badri Majid Arsan a1 Kailani Ahmed a1 Naifar Abdul Halim 'Uwais 10. Behavioral Theory from the Islamic Perspective 1 1. Contemporary Psychology from the Islamic Perspective 12. The Philosophy of Islamic Education 13. Educational Values in the Building of Human Personality 14. The Phenomenon of Civilization in the Quran and the Sunnah 15. Economics as a Behavioral Science Mahmoud Abu Saud The conference also held public lectures in the evening which featured scholars like Shaikh Mubammad Al Ghaali, 'Abdul Hamid 'AbuSulaymiin and TCha &bir al-'Alwihi. At the conclusion of the conference, three specialized committees were established to develop recommendations based on the deliberations, discus- sions, and dialogues during the conference. These were the Committee for Methodology and Epistomology of Knowledge, the Committee for Educa- tional and Behavioral Sciences, and the Committee for Universities in the Islamic World. Their recommendations were as follows: 1. Muslims and Muslim universities must establish Islamic centres Conference Report/The 4th International Conference 153 for research in universities and in existing scientific institutions. We must attempt to direct dissertations and theses in universities toward Islamization of knowledge in all the branches of anthropology, educa- tion, sociology, psychology, and communication. 2. We must survey the university textbooks in the Arab and the Islamic countries as a preliminary requirement for a program of Islamization of the textbooks. We must periodically publish directories of these surveys. 3. We must survey the theoretical and empirical studies conducted in the fields of educational and behavioral sciences conducted from an Islamic perspective. 4. There must be scholarships for advanced studies in the areas of given specialization, serving the cause of Islamization of knowledge. 5 . We must provide opportunities for co-operation and growth to our specialists in different fields and encourage Muslim intellectuals by pro- viding the necessary resources, initiating rewards and prizes, and full time involvement. 6. We must organize periodical meetings and seminars for teachers in order to explain and illustrate the program of Islamization of knowledge and their role in it. 7. We need to reform Usiil al-Fiqh and 'Ilm al-Kalam and make them accessible to the researchers, since both these sciences are basic re- quirements for Islamization of knowledge. 8. We must adopt the term jiqh al-'ilm as a basic concept for Islamization of knowledge in order to crystallize the Islamic methodology and we must also develop new terminology and special concepts derived from Islamic principles. 9. We must develop policies for science in the Islamic world and ap- ply them in conformity with the Islamic beliefs and with respect to the demands for scientific and technological advancement. 10. The Arabic language must be a requirement in all areas of academic specialization in the Arab countries, and must be taught as an elective in all non-Arabic speaking Islamic countries. 1 1 .We must publish journals specializing in various branches of educa- tional and behavioral sciences and in the methodology of science. We must provide a critique of the anti-Islamic thought and bring out its negative effects on the Islamic methodology. The final Communique of the conference emphasized that the case for Islamization of knowledge is an important issue that the Islamic ummah must 154 The American Journal of Islamic Social ScienceslVol. 4, No. 1,1987 initiate in all the educational and scientific institutions. It must be given the importance and the priority that it deserves. The Communique also called upon the academic and scientific institutions as well as teachers and thinkers to join in caonrlinated efforts with the Interna- tional Institute of Islamic Thought in the realization of Islamization of thought and knowledge. Sayyid M. Syeed International Institute of Islamic nought