A mystical encounter of a Dominican friar, Serge de Beaurecueil (d. 2005), and a Hanbalī Sūfī, ‘Abdullāh AnSārī of Herāt (d. 1089)

This study examines the life and scholarship of a French Dominican friar, Serge de Beaurecueil (1917 - 2005). His life time investigation of the mystical dimensions of Islam centered around the life and corpus attributed to the 11th century Hanbalī Sūfī shaykh‘Abdullāh Ansārī of Herāt (1006 - 1089). The thrust of our argument is that this erudite and mystical conversation with the work of the Pīr of Herāt is a methodology and a theology of dialogue with the religious other. This mystical and prophetic journey combines the Ashramic spirituality of Jules Monchanin and Henry Le Saux in India, a masterdisciple relations, the ethical demands of interfaith dialogue, and finally testifies to the hidden and abiding presence of God among the downtrodden of Kabul. Also, de Beaurecueil’s life ascertains the rich and varied heritage of Dominican spirituality and lays bare the conundrums of interfaith encounter. The introduction sets the stage for the friar’s mystical and prophetic life among Muslims. The first two chapters are biographical. They scrutinize the formation period and professional life of both de Beaurecueil and AnSārī. The following two chapters describe de Beaurecueil intellectual and spiritual growth. His erudition on the corpus of AnSārī and his praxis mystica fit perfectly the Dominican tradition of search for Truth (Veritas) and contemplata aliis tradere. The last chapter attempts to couch in a philosophical language a mystical encounter. Even though de Beaurecueil’s praxis mystica is both attractive and intimidating, his life is a bold testimony to the demanding complexities and rich opportunities of Christian-Muslim mystical encounter.EThOS - Electronic Theses Online ServiceGBUnited Kingdo

Chance and determinism in Ibn Sīnā and Ibn Rushd

This thesis analyses the concept of 'chance' as it is understood by two Muslim philosophers, Ibn Sīnā (Lat. Avicenna, CE 980-1037) and Ibn Rushd (Lat. Averroes, CE 1126-1198). On the philosophical plane, I seek to ascertain whether they are determinists, i.e., whether they hold that everything that happens is necessarily conditioned by its causes so that it could not have been otherwise. This analysis discusses chance from a physical and a metaphysical perspective. Physics is here understood in the Aristotelian sense as the study of nature and change, and metaphysics as the study of being qua being (ontology) and of the divine (theology). Hence a particular stress on natural causation and on divine providence and causation. On the historical-philosophical plane I endeavour to determine the historical/philosophical sources of their views, namely the Graeco-Arabic philosophical tradition - Aristotelian and Neoplatonic on the one Band, and the tradition of Islamic theology (kalām) on the other. Particular emphasis is laid upon the original way in which Ibn Sīnā and Ibn Rushd combine these two traditions.EThOS - Electronic Theses Online ServiceGBUnited Kingdo

Chance and determinism in Ibn Sīnā and Ibn Rushd

This thesis analyses the concept of 'chance' as it is understood by two Muslim philosophers, Ibn Sīnā (Lat. Avicenna, CE 980-1037) and Ibn Rushd (Lat. Averroes, CE 1126-1198). On the philosophical plane, I seek to ascertain whether they are determinists, i.e., whether they hold that everything that happens is necessarily conditioned by its causes so that it could not have been otherwise. This analysis discusses chance from a physical and a metaphysical perspective. Physics is here understood in the Aristotelian sense as the study of nature and change, and metaphysics as the study of being qua being (ontology) and of the divine (theology). Hence a particular stress on natural causation and on divine providence and causation. On the historical-philosophical plane I endeavour to determine the historical/philosophical sources of their views, namely the Graeco-Arabic philosophical tradition - Aristotelian and Neoplatonic on the one Band, and the tradition of Islamic theology (kalām) on the other. Particular emphasis is laid upon the original way in which Ibn Sīnā and Ibn Rushd combine these two traditions.</p

Eternal sunshine of the spotless mind: Light and luminous being in Islamic theology

For theologians, to conceive of God in terms of light has some undeniable advantages, allowing a middle-of-the road position between the two extremes of thinking about God in terms of a purely disembodied, unfathomable, unsensible being, and of crediting Him with a body, possibly even a human(oid) body. This paper first reviews the reasons why God, in early medieval Islam, was never fully theorized in terms of light. It then proceeds to discuss light-related narratives in two major, late-medieval compilations of hadiths about the afterlife, by al-Suyuti (Ash’ari, Egypt, d. 1505) and al-Majlisi (Persia, d. 1699), suggesting that eschatology was the area in which God’s light continued to shine in Islam, and the backdoor through which a theology of light, in the thought of al-Suhrawardi (Syria, d. 1191) and his followers, made a triumphant re-entry into Islamic thought

Theology, Politics and Society: the Missing Link. Studying Religion in the Mamluk Period

The chapter focuses on a few problematic topics which have so far received little attention in contemporary scholarship on religion in the Mamluk period. In particular it tries to shed light on what the author describes as a missing link between theological production and its social and political significance, between theologians and society at large, between ideas about God and their relevance to people\u2019s lives. The article argues that exploring the link between society and theology may be a rewarding research enterprise. An attention to this link is generally missing in scholarship both on the intellectual and the socio-religious history of the Mamluk period. The paper identifies the reasons for this state of affairs and provides a sample of materials that proves that we do not lack the resources for pursuing research in this direction. The paper advocates an interdisciplinary approach where the efforts of experts in Islamic theology and historians interested in religion and society ought to merge

Immunotherapy of triple-negative breast cancer with cathepsin D-targeting antibodies

International audienceBackground: Triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) treatment is currently restricted to chemotherapy. Hence, tumorspecific molecular targets and/or alternative therapeutic strategies for TNBC are urgently needed. Immunotherapy is emerging as an exciting treatment option for TNBC patients. The aspartic protease cathepsin D (cath-D), a marker of poor prognosis in breast cancer (BC), is overproduced and hypersecreted by human BC cells. This study explores whether cath-D is a tumor cell-associated extracellular biomarker and a potent target for antibody-based therapy in TNBC.Methods: Cath-D prognostic value and localization was evaluated by transcriptomics, proteomics andimmunohistochemistry in TNBC. First-in-class anti-cath-D human scFv fragments binding to both human and mousecath-D were generated using phage display and cloned in the human IgG1λformat (F1 and E2). Anti-cath-D antibodybiodistribution, antitumor efficacy and in vivo underlying mechanisms were investigated in TNBC MDA-MB-231 tumorxenografts in nude mice. Antitumor effect was further assessed in TNBC patient-derived xenografts (PDXs).Results: HighCTSDmRNA levels correlated with shorter recurrence-free survival in TNBC, and extracellular cath-D wasdetected in the tumor microenvironment, but not in matched normal breast stroma. Anti-cath-D F1 and E2 antibodiesaccumulated in TNBC MDA-MB-231 tumor xenografts, inhibited tumor growth and improved mice survival withoutapparent toxicity. The Fc function of F1, the best antibody candidate, was essential for maximal tumor inhibition in theMDA-MB-231 model. Mechanistically, F1 antitumor response was triggered through natural killer cell activation via IL-15upregulation, associated with granzyme B and perforin production, and the release of antitumor IFNγcytokine. The F1antibody also prevented the tumor recruitment of immunosuppressive tumor-associated macrophages M2 andmyeloid-derived suppressor cells, a specific effect associated with a less immunosuppressive tumor microenvironmenthighlighted by TGFβdecrease. Finally, the antibody F1 inhibited tumor growth of two TNBC PDXs, isolated frompatients resistant or not to neo-adjuvant chemotherapy.Conclusion: Cath-D is a tumor-specific extracellular target in TNBC suitable for antibody-based therapy.Immunomodulatory antibody-based strategy against cath-D is a promising immunotherapy to treat patients withTNB