April/May 1995, Page 121

Bulletin Board

Compiled by Janet McMahon

Lectures and Symposia

Dr. Israel Shahak, author of Jewish History, Jewish Religion, will conduct a U.S. lecture tour in April, speaking at a Five-College Symposium at the University of Massachusetts in Amherst, April 10 and 11; to the Conference of Black Clergy in Hartford, CT, April 12; at Henry Ford Community College in Detroit, April 13 at 11 a.m.; and at the University of Michigan in Flint on April 14. For East Coast details call Norton Mezvinsky at (203) 832-2805 or (212) 758-3817. Dr. Shahak then will travel to the West Coast and speak at UC-Berkeley, April 17, 4 p.m.; the Women's Bldg., San Francisco, April 18, 8 p.m.; San Francisco State Univ., April 19, noon; UC-Davis panel, April 20, 1-5 p.m.; Sacramento's Unitarian Universalist Society, April 20, 7:15 p.m.; and the University Baptist Church, Seattle, April 21, 8 p.m. For West Coast details, call Jeffrey Blankfort, (415) 255-9182.

The University of Maryland Earhart Lecture Series will feature UAE Ambassador to the U.S. Mohammed Bin Hussein al-Shaali speaking on "The Gulf: Security and Foreign Policy Issues," April 5; Professor Roy Mottahedeh of Harvard University's Center for Middle East Studies, on "The Evolution of Shi'i Political Thought Since 1979," April 13; Dr. Emad Shahin on "Political Islam in Tunisia and Algeria," April 26; and Jordan's Ambassador to the U.S. Fayez Tarawneh on "Jordan's Role in Forging a New Middle East," May 4. For additional information contact Dr. Charles Butterworth, University of Maryland, 3140 Tydings Hall, College Park, MD 20742-8221, phone (301) 405-4110, fax (301) 314-9690.

New York University's Kevorkian Center for Near Eastern Studies will present a free symposium on "Women, Culture, Nation: Egyptian Moments," featuring a screening of the film "Marriage Egyptian Style," and panels including the film's director, Reem Saad, Lila Abu-Lughod, Mervat Hatem, Marilyn Booth and Beth Baron, April 7, 11 a.m.-5:30 p.m., at NYU's Jurow Lecture Hall, 101A Main Bldg., 100 Washington Square East, New York City. For additional information call (212) 998-8872.

Georgetown University's Center for Contemporary Arab Studies will hold its 20th annual symposium on "The Information Revolution in the Arab World: Commercial, Cultural and Political Dimensions," April 20 and 21 at the Intercultural Center Auditorium on the Georgetown campus. For information and registration contact CCAS, Georgetown University, Washington, DC 20057, phone (202) 687-5793, fax (202) 687-7001.

The University of California at Berkeley is offering a weekly series of films from or on the Middle East, including Transcaucasia, Wednesday nights through May 10, 7:30 p.m. in Room 22 of Warren Hall on the Berkeley campus. Author and filmmaker Dr. Jalal Toufic of San Francisco State University will introduce the films and lead a discussion following each. For additional information contact the Center for Middle Eastern Studies, 372 Stephens Hall, #2314, University of California, Berkeley, CA 97720-2314, phone (510) 642-8208, fax (510) 643-5045.

Among the Hartford Seminary's week-long courses for the clergy and the general public are "The Qur'an and Its Place in Muslim Life and Muslim Societies," with Profs. Wadi Z. Haddad and Yvonne Y. Haddad, June 5-9; and "Islam and Muslim Communities in the West: Europe and North America," with Prof. David A. Kerr, June 12-23. Fees are $660 for 3 credits, $330 for non-credit audit; limited housing is available at $115 for a week. For complete information and registration, contact Karen Rollins, Registrar, Hartford Seminary, 77 Sherman St., Hartford, CT 06105, (203) 232-4451. Registration deadline is May 29.

Awards

The 1995 winners of the King Faisal International Prize, announced in Riyadh on Feb. 14, are, for Science (Chemistry), Prof. K. Barry Sharpless, of the Scripps Research Institute in California; for Medicine (Molecular Immunology), Prof. Gregory Paul Winter of the Laboratory of Molecular Biology in Cambridge, England, Prof. Mark M. Davis of Stanford University in California, and Prof. Tak Wah Mak, director of the Amgen Institute of Toronto and vice president of Amgen Inc., California; for Service to Islam, Sheikh Gad Al-Haq, grand imam of Al Azhar, president of the International Council for Daawa and Relief, and former Egyptian minister of endowments; and for Arabic Literature (Studies Dealing with Prominent Modern Arab Writers) Prof. Hamdi Sayyid Ahmad El-Sakkout of Egypt, for his study Abbas Mahmoud Al-Akkad, Mrs. Salma Lutfi Al-Haffar Al-Kowzbari of Syria, for Mai Ziadah or The Tragedy of a Genius, and Prof. Mohammad Abu Al-Anwar Mohammed Ali of Egypt, for his 3-volume Mustafa Lutfi Al-Manfalouti; no award was given this year for Islamic Studies. The monetary award for each prize has been increased from 350,000 to 750,000 rials (US$200,000).

Topics for the 1996 prizes are Science (Biology); Medicine (Management of the Premature Infant); Islamic Studies (The Life of Prophet Muhammad); and Arabic Literature (Literature Analyzing the Writings of Early Arab Travellers). For further information contact the King Faisal Foundation, P.O. Box 352, Riyadh 11411, Saudi Arabia, phone 011-966-1-4652255, fax 4656524.

Imam W. Deen Mohammed, spiritual leader of 1.5 million American Muslims, was awarded the Hartford Seminary Cup of Compassion for his commitment to the "cause of peace and understanding among all people of faith" and his "tireless efforts to bring dignity to African-Americans through the practice of Islam." The imam was the second recipient of the prestigious award, first presented last fall to Father Elias Chacour.

Deaths

Ahmad Khomeini, cleric and son of the late Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, died in Tehran March 17 of a heart attack at the age of 50. A member of the Supreme National Security Council, the ayatollah's son was never able to assume significant political power following his father's death. In 1980, Ayatollah Khomeini had vetoed the nomination of his son as prime minister. The younger of two sons, Ahmad Khomeini's brother Mostafa was killed in a 1977 car crash in Iraq; survivors include his wife and three sons.

Mattityahu (Matti) Peled, member of the Knesset and former Israeli army major general, died March 10 of cancer at his home near Jerusalem at the age of 72. Born in Palestine and a member of the Jewish militias prior to the establishment of Israel, he was the first governor of the Gaza Strip following its occupation by Israel in 1956. He left the Israel Defense Force in 1969 to pursue an academic career in Arab literature, serving as chair of Tel Aviv University's Arab Language and Literature Department from 1974-78. One of the earliest advocates of a land-for-peace agreement with the Palestinians, he met with PLO Chairman Yasser Arafat in Paris in 1976. A second meeting took place in 1983, the year before his election to the Knesset as a member of the Progressive Party for Peace, which advocated an independent Palestinian state.