Bülent Uçar

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Bülent Uçar (born January 24, 1977 in Oberhausen , Germany ) is a German-Turkish scholar of Islam and religion .

Bülent Uçar has been a full professor for Islamic religious education at the University of Osnabrück since June 2008 . He is one of the most sought-after Koran scholars in Germany.

Career

Bülent Uçar studied law at the University of Bochum from 1996 to 2002 ; from 1999 to 2002 Islamic Studies, Political Science and Private Law with Comparative Law at the University of Bonn . He received his master's degree after just five semesters. This was followed from 2002 to 2005 by a doctoral degree at the University of Bonn in the subject of Islamic Studies with the subject of law as a means of reforming religion and society: the Turkish debate about Sharia law and schools of law in the 20th century . At the same time he worked both as a teacher for Islamic instruction in German in Bonn and as a teacher for Islamic studies and social sciences in Duisburg. From 2005 to 2006 he was a pedagogical employee at the State Institute for Schools / Quality Agency in Soest for the field of religious studies - especially Islamic studies. He had a decisive influence on curriculum development and teacher training in North Rhine-Westphalia and was entrusted with supervising the Islamkunde school experiment.

After the state institute for schools / quality agency was dissolved, Ucar worked in the department for integration in the North Rhine-Westphalian Ministry for Schools and Further Education. At the same time he was responsible for the development of a curriculum for Alevi religious instruction in the Ministry of Education. Ucar completed his habilitation in 2008 in Islamic Studies at the University of Erlangen with a thesis on modern Koran exegesis and the changeability of Sharia law in the current discussion in Turkey . He is considered the first Muslim of Turkish descent to qualify as a professor in the field of Islamic studies in Germany.

Since 2007 he has been working at the Chair for Islamic Religious Education at the University of Osnabrück, where he was the administrator of the professorship until he was appointed full professor in June 2008. In September 2008 he was also elected director of the Center for Intercultural Islam Studies at the University of Osnabrück. Ucar attracted attention nationwide at a joint conference with the Federal Minister of the Interior, Wolfgang Schäuble in Stuttgart, when he and the Minister of the Interior postulated: “We need an Islamic-theological faculty.” With his numerous writings, Ucar has contributed to the development of Islamic religious education in Germany. In February 2010, Uçar, together with the Federal Ministry of the Interior and the Lower Saxony Ministry of the Interior, hosted Europe's largest international conference on the subject of imam training . He advocates contemporary, modern Islamic religious education. Ucar is therefore criticized by some conservative circles.

Bülent Uçar was appointed as a full member of the 2nd German Islam Conference by Federal Interior Minister Thomas de Maizière . Furthermore, he was appointed as an expert in the working group of Germany's self-image in the dialogue on the future of Germany initiated by Chancellor Angela Merkel . Even before he began his involvement, he summarized his demands on the working group as follows: "Appropriate handling of minorities and diversity in a generally binding code of values ​​will be vital for our society in Germany in the medium and long term."

Since 2012 Uçar has been director of the Institute for Islamic Theology (IIT) at the University of Osnabrück, Germany's largest Islamic theological center with seven professors and over 40 employees.

In July 2013, Uçar and Federal Education Minister Johanna Wanka presented the Avicenna Studienwerk to the public. After it was founded in March 2012, the Avicenna Studienwerk has now been recognized by the Federal Ministry of Education as a fourth, Islamic one, alongside the three previously existing denominational studies. The Berliner Zeitung commented: "You couldn't have made a better choice than Bülent Uçar".

He is a member of the Migration Council .

Scientific focus

His academic focus includes Islamic religious education in a modern context, contemporary Islamic research with a focus on Germany and Turkey, and Islamic theology in the past and present, particularly with a focus on the development of Sharia law in a historical and modern context. His numerous publications, scientific lectures and discussions are dedicated to these topics. He is also involved as an author and editor in the publication of textbooks and materials for Islamic religious education and Islamic studies.

Positions

Uçar emphasizes the changeability of the Sharia in relation to time and space . In principle, he regards the catalog of norms of Islamic law as compatible with the standards of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights . The taz describes the reaction of society to this position as follows: "Uçar hears criticism from both parties: from those who accuse him of Islamising society and from those who say that his teaching is watering down the religion".

Special assignments and honors

Even before taking up his professorship, Bülent Uçar was a renowned expert on issues relating to teaching Islam in schools, the Muslim practice of the faith in Turkey and Germany and interreligious dialogue . He is considered a convincing representative of the young generation of Muslims socialized in Germany. In addition, his contacts to local Muslim associations and communities are a valuable addition to his academic work for the work at the new chair for Islamic religious education. On August 4, 2009, Ucar issued an expert opinion on the club song for FC Gelsenkirchen-Schalke 04 eV , in which he came to the conclusion that Islam and especially Mohammed are not denigrated in the song. Again, he was criticized by strictly conservative circles. Martin Spiewak described him in the portrait of a new generation of Muslims: “Elaborate and self-confident, born and educated in Germany, rooted in the faith as well as in modern society.” The Süddeutsche Zeitung also hits the same note : “If you If you are looking for the perfect example of a Muslim who is pious and enlightened at the same time, who enriches this country, then you have to come across Ucar. "

In 2012, the Intercultural Dialogue Center in Munich awarded Uçar the IDIZEM Dialogue Prize in the Interreligious category . The jury particularly emphasized the scientific work of Ucar in terms of the dialogue between religions.

On the Day of German Unity in October 2015, Federal President Gauck Bülent personally paid tribute to Ucar with the award of the Cross of Merit on the ribbon . The reasoning emphasizes that he is “a sought-after contact person and mediator for politics and the general public both nationally and internationally” and that he has made great contributions in the field of Islamic theology in Germany.

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ^ A b Matthias Drobinski : Bülent Ucar, arbitrator at Schalke 04 and sought-after Koran scholar. (PDF; 288 kB) In: Süddeutsche Zeitung. October 14, 2010, p. 4 , accessed December 1, 2010 .
  2. ↑ Studienwerk supports talented Muslims In: Berliner Zeitung July 16, 2013. Retrieved on August 4, 2013.
  3. ↑ https://rat-fuer-migration.de/verbindungen/
  4. ^ Inaugural lecture by Bülent Uçar. ( Memento from June 28, 2013 in the Internet Archive ) Uni Osnabrück. (Press release No. 139/2009, Osnabrück April 22, 2009)
  5. ↑ The Diplomat In: taz. the daily newspaper. October 10, 2012. Retrieved October 21, 2012.
  6. ↑ Koran and Our Father. In: THE TIME. February 25, 2010, No. 09. Retrieved March 26, 2010.
  7. ↑ Awards from the University of Osnabrück
  8. ↑ Utz Lederbogen: Prof. Ucar receives Federal Cross of Merit - pioneering work in religious education is recognized. University of Osnabrück, press release from October 2, 2015 at the Informationsdienst Wissenschaft (idw-online.de), accessed on October 2, 2015.
  9. ↑ Federal Merit Crosses 2015 , accessed on November 20, 2015.
personal data
SURNAME Uçar, Bülent
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Ucar, Bülent
BRIEF DESCRIPTION German-Turkish Islamic scholar and religious educator
DATE OF BIRTH January 24, 1977
PLACE OF BIRTH Oberhausen