While some talk show hosts and commentators are hoping President Obama fails, others would like to give him a helping hand. Please Join us with your family and friends for a dinner with a special guest speaker. The Islamic Center of Minnesota has invited Dr. Ingrid Mattson to speak on religious co-existence and challenges of 21st century on Monday, Ferbruary 2, 2009.

Dr. Ingrid Mattson was born in Canada, where she studied Philosophy at the University of Waterloo, Ontario, earning her B.A. there in 1987. In 1987 Dr. Mattson obtained a grant from the Canadian International Development Agency to develop a training and support program for traditional midwives. Consequently, she traveled to Pakistan where she worked with Afghan refugee women for one year. Dr. Mattson earned her Ph.D. in Islamic Studies from the department of Near Eastern Languages and Civilizations at the University of Chicago in 1999. Her research is focused on Islamic law and society, with emphasis on the early Islamic period. Her scholarly articles include studies on slavery, poverty, and Islamic legal theory. During Dr. Mattson's graduate studies in Chicago, she was involved with the local Muslim community, serving on the Board of Directors of Universal School, a parochial suburban Muslim academy, and as a member of the Interfaith Committee of the Council of Islamic Organizations of Greater Chicago.

Presently, Dr. Mattson is Director of Islamic Chaplaincy and Professor at the Macdonald Center for Islamic Studies and Christian-Muslim Relations at Hartford Seminary in Hartford, Connecticut. Additionally, in 2006, Dr. Mattson was elected as the first ever woman President of the Islamic Society of North America (ISNA), the largest grass roots membership-based Muslim organization in North America. Dr. Mattson is a member of the Board of Directors of The Nawawi Foundation, and she resides with her family in Hartford, Connecticut.

For more information and to review her writings, please click here.
Please check this link for details on the event at the Islamic Center of Minnesota.
The road ahead requires all of us to participate and contribute toward healthy boundaries and co-existence. Such dialogues and conversations are necessary first steps paving the way for mutual respect and mutual interests.