Theology faculties adapt Islam for Germany

While Germany’s politicians are loudly debating whether Islam is compatible with democracy, five of its state universities are quietly developing new Islamic theology faculties that are striving to ensure that it is.

The five universities—in Münster, Osnabrück, Frankfurt, Tübingen, and Erlangen-Nuremberg—recently passed their first official evaluations by Muslim and Christian experts and were granted 20 million euros ($22 million) to continue for another five years.

The programs now have more than 1,800 students and plan to grow. The largest program, in Münster, has 700 students in its three-year bachelor’s program and received more than double that number of applicants this year.