Ingrid Mattson

Dr. Ingrid Mattson was born and raised in Canada, earning a BA (hons) in Philosophy and Fine Arts, then moved to the United States to study at the University of Chicago, earning a PhD in Near Eastern Language and Civilizations in 1999. From 1998 to 2012 she was Professor of Islamic Studies at Hartford Seminary in Connecticut where she developed and directed the first accredited graduate program for Muslim chaplains in North America and served as Director of the Macdonald Center for the Study of Islam and Christian-Muslim Relations. Since 2012 she has held the London and Windsor Community Chair in Islamic Studies at Huron University College at Western University in London, Canada.

From 2001-2010, Mattson served as vice-president, then as president of the Indiana-based Islamic Society of North America. In that position she established the Office of Interfaith and Community Engagement in Washington, DC, and facilitated new partnerships with other faith-based communities and civic organizations. Her writings, both academic and public, focus primarily Qur’an interpretation, Islamic theological ethics and interfaith relations. Her book, The Story of the Qur’an, is an academic best-seller and was distributed to libraries across the United States by the US National Endowment for the Humanities. Mattson is a Senior Fellow of the Royal Aal al-Bayt Institute for Islamic Thought in Amman, Jordan, was a member of the Interfaith Taskforce of the White House Office of Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships during the presidency of Barack Obama. She is the recipient of numerous awards as well as honorary doctorates from Trinity College (Hartford), the Chicago Theological Seminary and the University of Waterloo. Some of her work can be found on her website: https://ingridmattson.org/ and https://westernu.academia.edu/IngridMattson.

Mattson is currently working on a major project addressing spiritual and sexual abuse in Muslim spaces. The Hurma Project is committed to upholding the sacred inviolability of each person who is present in Muslim spaces by elucidating the special responsibilities of those holding power and authority and by educating those who are vulnerable about their God-given dignity and rights.