I am going to reflect on the historic theological engagement of al-Ghazali (d. 505/1111) with the scientific tradition of the medieval Islamic world, and this relates to a set of works that were discovered in the beginning of the twenty-first century. These concern a number of manuscripts attributed to al-Ghazali, called the Madnun. This is an important development because it gives us the knowledge with regards to al-Ghazali’s views as a Muslim theologian with regards to the rational tradition in Islam. I would argue that this is the first systematically reasoned synthesis of Sunni orthodox Islam in the work of Islam’s own Doctor Angelicus, al-Ghazali, celebrated by Muslim throughout the ages as the Hujjat al-Islam (the Proof of Islam) and who died in the memorable and arguably providential year of 1111.
Click here to read more (pp. 175-186).