Department of Kalam seeks to equip students with an ability to compare the views of different schools of thought that have emerged throughout the history of Islamic though, by building on their knowledge from bachelor’s degree. It seeks to enable them to evaluate in a systematic and methodological manner the belief problematics, as well as existential and normative issues pertaining to individual and society. The program enables the candidates to specialize on specific topics and develop unique solutions to the problems, based on this formation. This program focuses on deriving the theological principles of the Islamic religion outlined in the Qur’an, defending these principles against other philosophical and theological world-views, analyzing the Islamic conception of belief (called tawhid in the Qur’an) and other central articles of faith in Islam, including Deity (uluhiyya), Prophethood (nubuwwa), and Afterlife (ma‘ad). In this context, courses are given related to History of Kalam and Systematic Kalam. In the former, there are courses on the formative period and conditions of the discipline, the main theological paradigms and principles that have emerged throughout its history, and the like. Islamic theological schools (Murji’a, Jabriyya, Mu‘tazila, Ash‘ariyya, Maturidiyya, Shi‘a, etc.) are investigated from a comparative perspective. In the latter, there are courses on classical theological issues such as deity, prophethood, afterlife, the human being, morality, and reason and revelation, as well as contemporary theological topics such as secularism, atheism, reincarnation, religion and science, religion and politics, democracy, human rights, and the environment. Yusuf Ziya Yörükan, Muhammed b. Tavit Tanci, Hüsnü Lostar, Nafiz Danışman, and Hüseyin Atay are among the prestigious scholarly figures who have taught courses in the Department.
