• Learn the relationship between logic and revelation
• Distinguish between true and false prophets
• Distinguish between true and false revelation
• Learn why people believe in God and His religion
• Rationally demonstrate the truth of Islam
• Learn the proof of the existence of God
• Learn the relationship between science and religion
• Learn some of the rational arguments employed by the Quran

The Sanusiyya is one of the most famous classical manuals in the discipline of rational theology. It was authored by Imam Abu `Abdullah Muhammad bin Yusuf al-Sanusi, one of the great scholars from the region of Tlemcen in present-day Algeria. He mastered the disciplines of hadith, tafsir, fiqh, Arabic, theology, legal theory, and logic with the scholars of his age, trod the spiritual path and was renowned for his righteousness and direct knowledge (ma`rifa) of God. His deep spirituality coupled with his knowledge of the outward religious sciences gave him deep religious insights that escaped other scholars of his age.

The discipline that Imam Abdullah al-Sanusi was most known for, however, is the discipline of theology, which is the topic of this course. About this discipline, he used to say: “There is no outward knowledge that bequeaths spiritual knowledge of God and vigilance of Him except for the discipline of theology, and through it the gates of all other disciplines are opened.” He wrote many books in this discipline which have been studied by students all over the world ever since. His most famous work is the work that is being studied in this course.  Imam al-Sanusi lived and died in the ninth Islamic century.

A feature of this course that sets it apart from other courses in theology is that it will greatly emphasize the Quran and use rational theology to bring out the meanings of many Quranic verses. Students will see how the Quran uses this rational theology through a spiritual and eloquent garb to move its listeners to acceptance of the truth.

Module 1: Introductory Investigations

• Islamic Epistemology
• The Obligation of Knowing Allah

Module 2: God and His Attributes

• God and His Attributes
• The Proof of the Existence of God
• The Proofs of God’s Attributes

Module 3: The Messengers of God and their Attributres

• The Messengers of God
• The Proofs of Messengerhood
• The Attributes of the Messengers of God
• The Proofs of the Attributes of the Messengers of God

Module 4: Concluding Investigations

• The Testimony of Faith (la ilaha illa Allah muhammad rasul Allah) as a Summary of the Course
• Belief in the Unseen
• The Sacred Law and Moral Responsibility

• Live sessions
• Interactive cases