The Hanafi-Maturidi Paradigm in The Construction of 21st-Century Turkish World Ideals
(21-22 November 2025 – Konya/TÜRKİYE)

Māturīdism—a theological school whose foundation is, by general consensus, traced back to Imām Abū Ḥanīfa and which, roughly two centuries later, was developed into a systematic doctrine by Imām Māturīdī—constitutes a creed that, over the course of history, has reached communities in diverse regions of the world and has successfully maintained its presence up to the present day. The primary objective of this Ḥanafī–Māturīdī intellectual tradition is to establish a universal understanding of religion that neither contradicts reason and common sense nor excludes any part of humanity.
It is an undeniable fact that the Ḥanafī–Māturīdī paradigm has also played a significant role in the changes and transformations experienced in the Turkish world in the twenty-first century. Today, humanity suffers from a variety of problems—not only diverse issues of faith but also ethnic and religious hatred, discrimination, extremism, xenophobia, Islamophobia, and other exclusionary attitudes. These existing problems will be resolved by the Ḥanafī–Māturīdī tradition, with its timeless features.
Since its inception, the Faculty of Theology at Selçuk University has organized a series of symposium devoted to Imâm Māturīdī and the Māturīdī school of thought. Under the titles “International Symposium on Imâm Māturīdī and Māturīdī Literature”, “Issues and Proposals in Māturīdī Studies”, “The Doctrine of Māturīdī and the Present Age”, “The Doctrine of Māturīdī and the Present Age II”, “Ḥanafism–Māturīdīsm in the Great Seljuk Empire Era” and “Ḥanafism–Māturīdīsm in the Ottoman Empire” this distinguished series has explored the Ḥanafī and Māturīdī intellectual tradition—renowned for its coherent political and social framework—by examining its general historical status and developmental trajectory from multiple perspectives. During these events, the works, doctrinal positions, and contributions to Islamic thought of the Ḥanafī–Māturīdī scholars who have advanced the discipline over time have been thoroughly analyzed. This year, the theme of this long-standing symposium series has been designated as “The Ḥanafī–Māturīdī Paradigm in the The Construction of 21st-Century Turkish World Ideals.”
The purpose of the symposium is to reiterate the importance and contemporary relevance of Ḥanafī–Māturīdī Thought and thereby contribute to the future of the Turkish World. In order to provide a general framework, the following headings are proposed by the symposium organizing committee as sample topics to assist in addressing this rich and comprehensive subject from its various dimensions:

• The Origins of Ḥanafī–Māturīdī Thought and Its Influences in the Turkish World
• Ḥanafī–Māturīdī Thought in the Turkish World in the 21st Century
• Proposed Solutions from Ḥanafī–Māturīdī Thought to Contemporary Issues
• Contemporary Interpretations of Ḥanafī–Māturīdī Principles
• Ḥanafī–Māturīdī Thought and Universal Values
• The Contribution of Ḥanafī–Māturīdī Thought to the Ethics of Coexistence
• Integration of Ḥanafī–Māturīdī Thought into Educational Systems
• Future Vision of the Ḥanafī–Māturīdī Paradigm
• Ḥanafī–Māturīdī Thought, Civil Society, and Cultural Activities
• Ḥanafī–Māturīdī Thought and Islamic Economics
• Interpretations of Ḥanafī–Māturīdī Thought across Different Regions
• The Ḥanafī–Māturīdī Paradigm in Comparison with Other Islamic Schools of Thought
• The Influence of Ḥanafī–Māturīdī Thought on Popular Culture
• Exegetical Methods from a Ḥanafī–Māturīdī Perspective: Understanding the Qur’an in the Turkish World
• Hadith Interpretation and Ḥanafī–Māturīdī Responses to Hadith Criticism
• Issues of Faith in the 21st-Century Turkish World and the Ḥanafī–Māturīdī Tradition
• Ḥanafī–Māturīdī Philosophy and the Relationship between Reason and Faith
• Islamic Ethics in the Turkish World
• Ḥanafī–Māturīdī Philosophy and Modern Turkish Thought: Contemporary Reflections of Islamic Philosophy
• The Impact of Ḥanafī–Māturīdī Thought on Turkish Theology
• The Ḥanafī Perspective in Islamic Philosophy: From Avicenna to Present-Day Turkish Thought
• The Future Potential of the Ḥanafī Method in the Turkish World
• The Political Conception of Ḥanafī–Māturīdī Thought
• Ḥanafī–Māturīdī in Today’s Islamic Lands
• Ḥanafī–Māturīdī and the Tradition of Irfan
• Ḥanafī–Māturīdī, Modernity, and the Construction of Civilization
• Faith Trends and Ḥanafī–Māturīdī in the Turkish World
• Faith Challenges and Ḥanafī–Māturīdī in the Turkish World