"It Was A Memorable Day"
How the Black Death (1348-50) United the Population of Damascus
In this course, you will learn how the inhabitants of Damascus reacted to the "Black Death" (1348-50) otherwise known as the "Bubonic Plague". We will survey primary sources and historical chronicles that show how the Plague had devastating affects on the population and how they were able to unite and respond to it. Special attention will be paid on what lessons we can learn from historic plagues so we can respond better to the modern Coronavirus.
This course is based on the blog "'It Was A Memorable Day' - How the Black Death United the Population of Damascus."
Your Instructor
Dr. Younus Y. Mirza is a Visiting Researcher at Georgetown University and Director of the Barzinji Project at Shenandoah University which seeks to enhance Americans’ relationships with Muslims in Muslim-majority countries. He defended his dissertation in Arabic and Islamic Studies from Georgetown University and has taught at Millsaps and Allegheny Colleges. He is the co-author of the book The Bible and the Qur’an: Biblical Figures in the Islamic Tradition and has published in various journals such as the Journal of the American Academy of Religion (JAAR), the Journal of Qur’anic Studies (JQS) and Islam Christian-Muslim Relations (ICMR). In his teaching, he has been profiled by the Interfaith Youth Core (IFYC) and has won a teaching award for his First Year Seminar course. He regularly teaches classes on the Qur’an, Biblical and Qur’anic Prophets, Marriage and Sexuality in Islam and Islam and Other Religions.