Fachrizal A. Halim
Term Faculty Religion and Culture

• Postdoctoral Fellowship, Harvard Law School
• Ph.D. McGill University
• M.A. Hartford Seminary
• M.A. Gadjah Mada University
• B.A. Gadjah Mada University

My research areas cover the intersection of Islamic intellectual history, the development and adaptation of Islamic rituals and practices, Islam and peace, Christian-Muslim relations, Muslims' interactions with non-Muslim polities and cultures.

I am currently working on a project that examines the encounters between Muslims and secular polities in Canada. My research examines the factors that led to communal conflict in our contemporary world, identifying how the Canadian case is unique and parallel with other Euro-Atlantic states. I expect this research to contribute to the debates on religion, race, and indigeneity and play an important role in shaping debates on diversity and inclusion for the coming years.

I am also writing a monograph on a premodern Muslim scholar Yahya b. Sharaf al-Nawawi entitled Nawawi: A Window into the Islamic Tradition. This project examines Nawawi's intellectual legacy within broader Muslim interpretive traditions, among the traditional Shafi'i Muslims and Sufis, modernists, and contemporary Salafi Muslims.

Outside of campus, I serve as a coordinating committee member for Friends in Conversation (FiC), a Christian-Muslim study group in Saskatoon.

Books

2015    Halim, Fachrizal A., Legal Authority in Premodern Islam: Yaḥyā b. Sharaf al-Nawawī in the Shāfiʿī School of Law, New York: Routledge. Available at: Routledge, Amazon, eBook. 

Edited Volumes

2016    Halim, Fachrizal A. and Veronika Makarova, Islam on the Prairies: Tolerance, Pluralism, and Diversity. Saskatoon: University of Saskatchewan.

Refereed Journal Articles

2021    Halim, Fachrizal. “Islam, Indigeneity, and Religious Difference in a Secular Context: Canadian Case Studies.” Simulacra 4, no. 2 (2021): 185-200. 

2015    Halim, Fachrizal A., “Reformulating the Madhhab in Cyberspace: Legal Authority, Doctrines, and Ijtihad among Contemporary Shāfiʿī.” Islamic Law and Society, 22, 413-435. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1163/15685195-00224p04

2014    Halim, Fachrizal A., “Ibn Rushd as Jurist and His Fatwā on Legal Capacity.” al-Qalam, 31:1, 74-96.

2013    Halim, Fachrizal A., “The Adaptation and Cooperation of Minority Muslims in Russian History.” al-Jāmiʿah, 5:2, 65-90. DOI: https://doi.org/10.14421/ajis.2013.512.311-335

2013    Halim, Fachrizal A., “Contestation of the Oath Procedure in Colonial Indonesia’s Islamic Court.” Indonesia and the Malay World, 14-28. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/13639811.2012.750098

Book Chapters

Forthcoming  Halim, Fachrizal A., “Ritual Practices among the ʿAlawis, the Druze, the Ahmadis, and Black Muslims.” In Routledge Handbook of Islamic Ritual and Practice, edited by Oliver Leaman. New York: Routledge, 2022. 

2016    Halim, Fachrizal A., “Teaching about Islam and Muslim Societies on the Prairies.” In Islam on the Prairies: Tolerance, Pluralism, and Diversity. Edited by Fachrizal A. Halim and Veronika Makarova. Saskatoon: University of Saskatchewan, 2016, pp. 33-40.

2016    Halim, Fachrizal A. and Veronika Makarova, “Introduction.” In Islam on the Prairies: Tolerance, Pluralism, and Diversity. Edited by Fachrizal A. Halim and Veronika Makarova. Saskatoon: University of Saskatchewan, 2016, pp. 7-8.

Encyclopedia Entries

Forthcoming    Halim, Fachrizal A., “al-Nawawī, Muḥyī al-Dīn.” In Kate Fleet, Gudrun Krämer, Denis Matringe, John Nawas and Everett Rowson (Eds.), Encyclopaedia of Islam, THREE, Brill, 2022.

Forthcoming    Halim, Fachrizal A., "Bioethics in Indonesia." In Ayman Shabana (ed.), Oxford Encyclopedia of Islamic Bioethics. New York: Oxford University Press.

2013    Halim, Fachrizal A., “Guardianship.” In Natana J. DeLong-Ba (ed.), Oxford Encyclopedia of Islam and Women. New York: Oxford University Press. DOI: 10.1093/acref:oiso/9780199764464.001.0001

Reviews

Fachrizal A. Halim Review of Journeying with Muslims: The Ignatian Way. Quezon City Philippines: Jesuits Among Muslims in Asia Network and Jesuit Conference of Asia Pacific, 223 pages, 2022. Jurnal Mediasas Vol 6, 1 June, 75-79, 2023.

At the Department of Religion and Culture, my role is to prepare students to embark on a life of critical thinking and understand different perspectives of reality and the human person. I invite you to explore the riches of tradition that define who we are, as well as to engage in the creative discovery of knowledge and the constitutive elements of our faith in all aspects of human life.

In the context of our fast, digital, and secularized world, we see a fracture between science (reason) and God, many conflicts and wars, and a widening gap between the rich and the poor. Our challenge is to understand contemporary issues and cultivate a solid commitment to working on common goods and alleviating the state of injustice.

Jesus’ parable in Matthew 13:33 is relevant to us. “The kingdom from heaven is like yeast that a woman took and mixed with three measures of flour until all of it was leavened.” I see my role as similar to yeast that grows on the dough. Yeast does not convert all the dough into it, nor is it able to do so or meant to do so. But yeast improves the dough and vice versa, allowing each to be more usable for the good of all human beings.

Jalāl ad-Dīn al-Rūmi once said: “Start a huge, foolish project, like Noah…it makes absolutely no difference what people think of you.”

Let me help you grow, be actively engaged in the subject of the course, and realize new potentialities in the contemporary world. I want you to succeed not only as a student but also as a human person.

Courses that I offer in Fall T1 2021
RLST 113 Islamic Civilization and Culture
RLST 285 Religion and Ethnicity

For Winter T2 2022, I will teach the following classes:
RLST 113 Islamic Civilization and Culture
RLST 243 Islam in Hollywood
RLST 423 Comparative Approaches to Study of Religions
RLST 805 Issues in Contemporary Western Religions