Thoughts Archives - Page 2 of 36

Flash Back, Flash Forward, Flash Flood | Amer Haleem

I OFTEN WONDER how future Muslims will view us Muslims of America and our times. The thought always makes me flash back to my elementary school days, in seventh grade on Chicago’s Southwest side. I had a history teacher, Mr. McGrath, who…

Muhammad Is the Light of Our Lives | Amer Haleem

THOSE WHO DISBELIEVE and bar people from the path of God, He lays waste their works. But those who believe, and do righteous deeds, and believe in all that has been sent down upon Muhammad—for it is, indeed, the truth from their…

Welcome Back to the Quaking | Amer Haleem

THE GREATEST CRISIS facing man—in every age and place, personally and communally—is repentance, tawba. Our first father, Adam, comes into the world in the midst of this emergency, with our mother Eve, and none of us shall escape it after them, until…

Destructive Patterns in Muslim Leadership | Partisanship (Part 2) | Siraaj Muhammad

"Many sins, and precursors to sin, can be racked up by partisans, including: causing division, animosity, partisanship, mistrust, hatred, disunity, assumption of guilt, arrogance, anger, backbiting, pre-determined stereotyping, “my way or the highway” grudge-holding and feuding. The first step towards undoing partisanship…

Real Taqwa And The Precious Fruit It Bears | Abd Al-Ghani Awsat

THE MEANING OF the Arabic word ‘taqwa’ is so challenging to bring into English because of its tremendous spiritual depth and the nuance with which the Quran and ḥadîth—Revelation—have infused it: “Godfearingness” and “God-Consciousness”; “piety” and “piousness”; and also “devotion,” “religiosity,” and…

Fitra: Our “Mother-Nature” | Olivia Kompier

WE ARE IN constant battle, or jihad, against the shayâtîn. Let us pause to reflect on the fact that these are actual creatures, as alive and tangible as we are, though they are imperceptible in their original form to our five human…

Da‘wah: An American Thing? | Uwaymir Anjum

Is DAʿWAH AN American thing? The answer is, yes. Absolutely. We must insist on inviting others to Islam, because we cannot be fully Muslims without it. But can we still be fully American? Isn’t proselytizing frowned upon in a society that celebrates…

The Prophet’s Mosque And Ours

Rain fell that night. The mosque that was a thatched building dripped, and my eyes saw the Messenger of Allah ﷺ with traces of water and mud on his forehead on the morning following the twenty-first night [of Ramadan.] (Abû Dâwûd) I…

Supporting the Poor in Islam’s Social Perspective

FROM THE SOCIAL standpoint of Islam, supporting society’s poor is a constructive value. Three foundational sources eminently manifest Islam’s unremitting admonition to its adherents to uphold this core ideal. Islam puts forward a set of foundational concepts and moral values for supporting…

Da‘wah and Modern Communication

MODERN MEANS OF communication exhibit the truth implied in the prophetic message of Muhammad ﷺ. Despite posing a great challenge to Islamic missionaries to fully make use of its potential, such means provide them with a golden opportunity to spread the message…