Kalam Research and Media (KRM) in partnership with the Islamic and Strategic Studies Institute (ISSI), and in association with various Malaysian and Indonesia academic institutions, held the First Kuala Lumpur International Kalam Symposium (KLIKS 2016) at the Islamic Arts Museum in Kuala Lumpur. The symposium was about the relevance and essence of Ilm al-Kalām (the science of discourse) in the Modern World.
Dr. Aref Ali Nayed, the Libyan Ambassador to the UAE and Founder and Chairman of Kalam Research and Media, and the distinguished theologian Allama Sheikh Saeed Fodeh of Jordan, delivered two keynote speeches.
Dr. Amran Muhammad, ISSI Managing Director and KRM Southeast Asia Director and KRM Executive Director Sohail Nakhooda opened with two welcoming statements. Mr. Nakhooda spoke of the main challenge that Islam faces today in the modern world. “How can we bring back our rich tradition and make it again relevant to modern discourse so that Islam can become part of the global dialogue? That is the challenge that we face today.” he said.
The first keynote speech on “The Crisis of Theology in the Modern World was delivered by Dr. Nayed, who said, “What we believe in Kalam is that we must have a community of communities and a network of networks. We need each other! No one institution, no one scholar or group of scholars can achieve it. We need to network with one another in order to be able to do what we need to do. Religion is passing through crisis after crisis in a world that has become industrialized, materialized & commercialized. The value of religiosity is diminishing more and more in many areas.”
Dr. Nayed stressed that, “we are witnessing the wrong approach to religion and its practice. We are facing the challenge of fascism and extremism that pretend to be religion, when the actual aim is to hijack religious discourse by using absolutely false pseudo-religious narratives to brutalize and mutilate humanity in the name of religion.” On the meaning of Kalam, he stated, “Kalam is not just talk; Kalam is an operative, effective and transformative talk. It’s a talk that is inspired by the revelation of God in the Quran and the Sunnah of His Messenger Muhammad (PBUH).”
The second keynote speech was delivered by Dr. Saeed Foudeh, which addressed the relevance of Kalam for Muslims today “Essentially Ilm al-Kalām is derived from the Prophetic approach explicated in the Quran. It is crucial for Ilm al-Kalām to keep establishing the truth and ward off untruths and inaccuracies for coming generations by holding to well established conventions and principles.”
The official opening of the ISSI-KRM Office in Putrajaya, Malaysia was celebrated in the afternoon by the Islamic and Strategic Studies Institute (ISSI) and Kalam Research & Media (KRM). The ribbon-cutting ceremony was officiated by Dr. Aref Ali Nayed, Dr. Amran Muhammad (ISSI Managing Director and KRM Southeast Asia Director), and Sheikh Saeed Foudeh. The ceremony was attended by Deans and Heads of Usul al-Din, Aqidah, Islamic Thought, Comparative Religion, and Philosophy from selected universities in Malaysia and Indonesia, along with scholars and researchers.
