Training Imams in Europe : The Challenges of Developing a Unified Program, Leiden University as a Study Case
Year: 2011
Type: article
Abstract: This article deals with a number of perennial questions which have occupied the minds of both European politicians and Muslim communities living in Europe by examining Dutch attempts to develop a training program for prospective imams.Is it feasible to train imams working in mosques on European soil with the aim of promoting the integration of Muslims in European societies?What should this training look like?Which institutions should be entrusted with this training?What role do Islamic organizations play in such a process?This article focuses on the Dutch experience and starts by reviewing the main challenges that have until now hindered the development of an "imam-training program" in the Netherlands, despite the existence of a strong desire to do so.The article subsequently gives a detailed elaboration of the experiences which Leiden University has made developing a program of this nature.This university has managed to attract the interest of two Islamic organizations in the Netherlands interested in participating in the development of such a program.These two organizations, together with Leiden University, developed a draft proposal for an imam training program which was submitted to the Ministry of Education and Culture at the end of 2008. 1. Introductory Remarks 1.1 Historical Background In the years following the convocation of the Waardenburg Committee in 1982, which made initial suggestions as to training imams in the Netherlands, discussions on the issue gradually gained importance in public debates and have remained at the centre of contemporary discussions right up to the present day.Three programs have been established in Dutch institutions of higher education with the help of subsidies from the government.The first program started at the Vrije Universiteit (VU) in Amsterdam in the academic year 2005-2006.Leiden University and the Higher Vocational School, Inholland in Amsterdam started their programs in the academic year 2006-2007.Although these three programs were funded in the context of the discussions on training imams, none of them has yet managed to develop an "imam-training program" which is recognized as both an academic program by Dutch universities and a confessional program by the Islamic organizations.These three programs can only be seen as a first step in this direction.This holds also true for the Leiden University, whose case will provide the main focus of this text.1 1.2A Handful of Challenges Despite the long lasting political desire to establish an imam-training program in the Netherlands 2 which might put an end to the tendency to import imams from abroad, a number of challenges have up until now prevented the establishment of a program of this nature.One of the main challenges has consisted in winning the trust of Islamic organizations and thus convincing them to cooperate with the Dutch universities and the respective ministries with the aim of establishing an imam-training program.By the beginning of the 1990s, the Dutch government had adopted a series of very public initiatives aimed at taking out contact with the Muslim community in order to discuss proposals for establishing a program of this nature.However, years passed without the Dutch government receiving any concrete request from Islamic organizations. 3 This difference between the willingness of the Dutch government to create such a program and the seeming reticence of the Muslim community was at least partially a 1 For more details about the discussions in Dutch society and these three programs, see Ghaly, Mohammed, "The Academic Training of Imams: Recent Discussions and Initiatives in the Netherlands", in: Drees W.B. & P.S. van Koningsveld, The Study of Religion and the Training of Muslim Clergy in Europe, Leiden
Author: Mohammed Ghaly
Language: English
Subfield: Education
Field: Social Sciences
Domain: Social Sciences
Open Access status: green
OpenAlex ID: W1527911923