Dr. Younus Y. Mirza

Areas of Expertise

Qur’anic exegesis, interfaith

Biography

Dr. Younus Y. Mirza is a Visiting Researcher at Georgetown University and the Founding Director of Global Virtual Learning at Shenandoah University. He defended his dissertation in Arabic and Islamic Studies from Georgetown University and has taught at Millsaps and Allegheny Colleges. His current research focuses on the relationship between the Bible and the Qur’an and the shared stories between them. He is a 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 Interfaith America 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.

Selected Publications and Work

Mirza, Younus Y. The Islamic Mary: Maryam Through the Centuries. Augsburg Fortress Publishers, 2025. Kaltner, John, and Younus Mirza. The Bible and the Qur'an: Biblical Figures in the Islamic Tradition. Bloomsbury Publishing, 2018. Mirza, Younus Y. "Tafsīr Ibn Kathīr: A Window Onto Medieval Islam and a Guide to the Development of Modern Islamic Orthodoxy." In The Routledge Companion to the Qur'an, pp. 245-252. Routledge, 2021. Mirza, Younus Y. "Ibn Taymiyya as Exegete: Moses' Father-in-Law and the Messengers in Sūrat Yā Sīn." Journal of Qur'anic Studies 19, no. 1 (2017): 39-71. Mirza, Younus Y. "Was Ibn Kathīr the ‘spokesperson’for Ibn Taymiyya? Jonah as a prophet of obedience." Journal of Qur'anic Studies 16, no. 1 (2014): 1-19.

Selected BIS Teaching

• IRL-724 Interfaith and Intra-Faith Engagement

These are courses taught at BIS. For current academic information, explore the graduate program.

Professional and Community Service

Regular Khatib, tafsir instructor, and advisor to Youth Committee at ADAMS Center mosque.
Book Review Editor of American Journal of Islam and Society
International Advisory Editorial Board of Jurnal Ulumul Quran (Indonesia)
International Reviewer Board of Takwil: Journal of Quran and Hadith Studies (IndonesiaP)
Basketball coach, Girl Scout Service Unit Cookie Manager, and Girl Scout Gold Award Project Advisor.