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Younus Y. Mirza, Ph.D. | Author
Younus Y. Mirza, Ph.D., is the founding director of the Barzinji Institute for Global Virtual Learning at Shenandoah University. He holds a doctorate in Arabic and Islamic Studies from Georgetown University, and his research examines the shared stories between the Bible and the Qur’an. He is the author of The Islamic Mary and co-author of The Bible and the Qur’an, and is recognized for his innovative teaching, interfaith engagement, and global virtual exchange programs. He served as the respondent for the 2025 ICJS Silber-Obrecht Lecture, “What Does it Mean to be Human? Islamic, Jewish, and Christian Perspectives,” delivered by Rabbi Dr. Rachel Mikva.
Matthew D. Taylor, Ph.D. | Moderator
Matthew D. Taylor, Ph.D., is the Christian scholar at the Institute for Islamic, Christian, and Jewish Studies in Baltimore, where he specializes in American Christianity, American Islam, Christian extremism, and religious politics. His book, The Violent Take It by Force: The Christian Movement that is Threatening Our Democracy (Broadleaf, 2024), tracks how a loose network of charismatic Christian leaders called the New Apostolic Reformation was a major instigating force for the January 6th Insurrection and is currently reshaping the culture of the religious right in the U.S. He is also the author of Scripture People: Salafi Muslims in Evangelical Christians’ America (Cambridge, 2023). His current projects include Defying Tyrants and a podcast on resisting religious nationalism. He holds a Ph.D. from Georgetown University and an M.A. from Fuller Seminary.