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Name
Hani
-
Profession
Question
I hope you can highlight some of the challenges facing the Muslim communities in America and the west in general, which need to be taken into consideration.
Answer
In the Name of Allah, Most Gracious, Most Merciful.
All praise and thanks are due to Allah, and peace and blessings be upon His messenger and all those who follow his guidance till the Day of Judgment.
Challenges faced by Muslim minorities living amongst non-Muslim majorities are actually numerous. This goes back to a number of reasons. The events of 9/11 have left grave consequences behind; the giant intelligence agencies in the West have tarnished the image of Islam on account of negative actions from few numbers of its followers; besides the history of hatred, suspicion and contempt towards Islam and Muslims which have been accumulated throughout the long struggle between Islam and the west.
In addition, we are faced with an extreme flow of anti-Islamic literature that preaches hatred against Islam: novels, movies, books and researches. Just among the best selling novels alone there are almost 1000 novels of this type, portraying Muslims as usurpers, deceitful, corrupt and a bunch of terrorists, and depicting the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) and Islam in the most loathsome ways.
All these events that followed 9/11 attacks, along with the Arab-Israeli conflict, have worsen the situation and brought challenges high up on level. We have started to hear questions that were never raised before: Why do Muslims come here? Why are they given the right to build mosques and preach their own religion while Christians are not allowed to build their own churches in Saudi Arabia, etc?. These events were the golden opportunity that was long awaited so that many laws would pass.
So Muslims were to face challenges such as the psychological barrier in the mentality of the western people towards Islam and Muslims. This, along with the weakness and the decadence in Arab and Muslim countries, has intensified these tribulations to a greater extent.
Therefore, the first challenge, in my opinion, is related to identity. The west has made Muslims feel that it has become difficult or even paradoxical to keep two identities at the same time, the Islamic identity with all what it means and the Western one. This is because Islam, as it is always claimed, has the Shari'ah which interferes with the freedom and affairs of people; Muslims look down upon people, wish to wage out Jihad against them, etc. all these misconceptions about Islam and Muslims have been deepened in order to step up more of psychological barriers towards Islam.
It is very sad that Muslims are forced to face up such tests at a time when their "immunization system" has been destroyed. Muslims, who lived for a long period of time or were born in the west, are in need of this immunization, but now with the culture of terrorism and classifying some Islamic sources under it, Muslims are subject to many attempts to dissolve their identity until they become unknown in their societies. The same attempt was done to Muslim immigrants in the nineteenth century who came from different backgrounds such as Turkey, Yugoslavia, Balkans, Lebanon and Palestine, that "Muhammad" became known as Mike, and "Dawood" as David.
The second challenge lies in sparking racism, nationalism and sectarianism among Muslim communities in order to keep them busy within themselves and make them unable to achieve their unity. These differences have split Muslim communities who follow the same faith and direct their faces to same qiblah.
The third challenge is the inferiority complex that some Muslims in the west have reached. Some Muslims thought that they could not fit in their societies except by turning compeletely westernized. This has paved the way to missionaries to target the Muslim communities and convert some of them to other faiths. We have some Muslims converted to Christianity in the United States and others. This does not seem to me to be a religious phenomena but a result of a psychological defeat that has made some Muslims lose the sense of belonging to Islam and Muslims.
There are also challenges facing the Muslim women in particular. The west understands very well that the Muslim woman is the cornerstone in the Muslim community and the source of hope, especially after Muslims have lost hope for change through their governments, resources, comprehensive education, etc. That is why there have been always claims of Muslim women being humiliated, wronged, deprived of her share in inheritance and other rights and even looked at as inferior to man under Islam. All these claims have caused a sense of inadequacy in the minds of some Muslim women, who are subject to these misconceptions at school; at work, in the streets, across the media and from neighbours. This has become a tool threatening the Muslim family of disintegration.
There are also challenges facing Muslim youth, namely the unhealthy environment they are exposed to where almost all forms of deviation and temptation are easily accessible. The concept of freedom is so deep that sometimes Muslim youth think the concept of haram and halal puts restrictions on their lifestyles.
That is why I call upon Muslim research centers to study all these challenges and investigate these phenomena spreading in the Muslim communities and in order to raise awareness amongst the Muslims and educate them about the possible dangers that can afflict them.
I also hope to see specialized Muslim research centers in the west to provide accurate statistics of how people view Islam, especially in the United States and Europe. This will help us understand how our neighbours see us and how much effort we need to put to interact in the society as a source of power, not weakness, and as contributing element and not as hurdles..
All these challenges and others need to be dealt with immediately and Muslims must work out plans in order to face them.
Name
Shukri
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Profession
Question
We heard about some cases of Muslim youth who converted into Christianity in California. This has caused a lot of commotion in the community. We need to investigate the real problem that caused and could cause similar cases. Can missionaries succeed in converting the Muslim youth who know nothing about their faith and they just hang out with girlfriends? Were any cases reported about Muslim converting to Judaism?
Answer
I don't have accurate statistics in this regard. The only statistics available to my knowledge, though they are 6 or 7 years old, is about those Muslims who were converted to Christianity in California. They were 250 people. I don't know if the number increased after that or not; I don't know about other states either. Besides, it is very hard to get accurate statistics about this because the churches often keep the matter as top secret in order to protect those who convert especially from outside the country. But all I could get hold of was a movie portraying some veiled Muslims from the gulf dressed in the traditional clothes of those countries, shown as being converted to Christianity. That is why I call upon Muslim research centers to observe these cases closely and provide us with accurate statistics.
As for Muslims converting to Judaism, no cases were reported in this regard. However, there are some Muslims who started to adopt what I call "political Judaization" which means that a person does not convert to Judaism but he dissociates himself from anything contradicting with Israeli policies, avoids any criticism of pro-Jewish organizations, visits Israel, etc. I mention this as a researcher observing a specific phenomenon and not as a personal view that I adopt.
However, I do not rule out the fact that it is a real danger for some Muslims to change their faith and convert to another religion. I don't agree with the long-established impression amongst Muslims that there is no such person who converts to another religion other than Islam. I agree that a person who has profound conviction in his or her faith cannot embrace a different creed, but where is that conviction in the face of so many repeated pressures and psychological defeat that make the Muslim unable to face up the challenge. We, therefore, need to develop our immunization system and work out strategies in order to protect our brothers and sisters from any possible danger, and not just to condemn or call someone an infidel or outside Islam.
Name
Muhammad
-
Profession
Question
How do you evaluate the Islamic schools in US and the West in general?
Answer
To my knowledge there are approximately 600 Islamic schools in the United States. Most of these schools suffer from a number of problems: the buildings are very old, some of them were churches in the beginning and then converted into school, and other problems which makes it difficult for the Islamic schools to compete or to even be on equal footing with public schools.
Another major problem that Islamic schools suffer from is the lack of qualified teachers who are also committed to their faith. This makes it hard for Islamic schools to raise students as committed educated Muslims. That is why we need to think about solving our internal problems that pose threat to our success.
I would like to advise my fellow Muslims who are in charge of Islamic schools to take the lesson from the Jewish schools and their innovative methods and techniques in teaching their students. I know of some Jewish schools that are only used for special programs to teach Hebrew while students keep going to public schools. I wonder why Muslims teach chemistry, math, and other subjects in Islamic schools while they can have these subject taught by qualified teachers in Public Schools, after taking some measures to protect Muslim students from the unhealthy environment. Islamic Schools should be, in my opinion, used for special programs. That will make them more specialized and more focused.
It is unfortunate that Islamic schools are still lagging behind in terms of graduating committed students they way it should be, but I also see some hope as I know of some schools that have started to improve their performance and provide quality education. I ask Allah to help them accomplish their cherished goals.
Name
Noureddine
- Belgium
Profession
Question
Muslims in the West are divided .Why don't they discuss their problems during their congregations (marriage, birth etc)? Our problem is that we don't act as a whole.
Answer
Unity is a religious obligation. It is the command of Allah in the Qur'an: " And hold fast to the Rope of Allah and do not be divided." So this is a command from Allah SWT that we must implement. So we need to work towards our unity and cooperate with one another in order to achieve our supreme goals.
However, some Muslims unfortunately misunderstand unity. They think that unity means to have only one view, one stand, and one ideology. This is, in my view, one of the main factors for our decadence. This is even against the sunnah of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) and his companions (may Allah be pleased with all of them). The companions used to differ and disagree with one another on a number of issues, but this difference of opinion did not cause sedition or conflict among them.
Unity means that we work together on issues of general benefit and interest for all of us. Unity means we stand side by side in face of attacks against Islam.
But unity does not mean to disregard others' opinions. It does not mean to impose your culture or traditions on others or to favor people of the same origin or nationality. It is unfortunate to see many board of masajid only formed from people of the same nationality or people who speak the same language while there are more qualified people in the same community who can guide this community to a better standard. We need to change this immediately because it ruins our unity.
Furthermore, unity means we do not promote sectarianism or disrespect of other schools of thought. One day I received a question from US prison seeking a fatwa if the Shi'a and Sunnis are two different religions, because one of the prisoners was following the Shi'a school and asked them for a Shi'a chaplain because it is not allowed for him to pray behind the Sunni Chaplain. I replied by saying both Shi'a and Sunnis are brothers and sisters of the same faith, they worship the same God and face the same direction in prayer, and I had my brother Shi'a imam in the United States, Imam Hussein Qazweeni, to sign the fatwa. To my total surprise, I found out that this prisoner had taken the case to the court and I had to stand before the court answering for many charges. This clearly explains the situation of our unity and how people perceive it.
Name
Amani
-
Profession
Question
How do the Muslim woman spend her time in the West?
Answer
I know of some statistics, though imprecise, showing that only 5% of Muslims are committed to their faith. In my community, for example, there are around 70 thousand Muslims; the percentage of those who frequently come to the mosque other than Fridays and Eids varies from 5-7% only.
As for those committed Muslim women in the United States, some of them work long hours (teaching, nursing, etc.) the same way men spend their time. So they try to focus on the weekend, due to their busy schedule in week days, in order to teach their children. Some spend time with their children by taking them to the masjid and instilling the principles of faith in their hearts. Some of them also do volunteer work, which alhamdullilah started to increase amongst the Muslim communities, such as taking care of the homeless and the divorced women. These are some of the examples of how Muslim women spend their time in the west.
I advise my sisters in Islam to better use their time wisely and seize every chance to benefit their family, their community and their society.
Name
Asma
-
Profession
Question
What is the best way of keeping our faith firm in moments of hardship ?
Answer
This is a very important question. As the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "The wolf will only attack the sheep that has gone off the flock." I would like to suggest the following tips:
1. The Muslim should frequently go to the mosque and send his kids to the Islamic schools. He should participate in the activities of Muslim institutions in his or her community.
2. The Muslim should take a good company of Muslims so that they may remind one another of Allah SWT and being conscious of Him.
3. Moreover, the Muslim should perform the salah regularly at their appointed times.
4. The Muslim should commit himself or herself to a daily recitation of the Qur'an.
5. Along with reading the Qur'an, the Muslim should constantly make mention of Allah and reflect upon His creations. Dhikr is very important in maintaining one's faith: Saying Subhana Allah wabihamdihi subhanaAllahi alatheem is an example of the glorifications that a Muslim should be doing regularly.
6. Furthermore, the Muslim should do extra good deeds: voluntary fasting, giving charity, etc.
Name
Jim Shaver
- United States
Profession
RN
Question
Assalamu alaykum,
I am a recent revert and would like your thoughts on the dilemma facing some reverts and its' impact on da'wah. Some Westerners fear that they will be shunned, attacked and ridiculed after reverting to Islam as well as hostile, suspicious or cold reception from non-Western Muslims. Some of these concerns are very real.
Answer
Jazakum Allahu Khairan dear sister. We are really in need of people like you, who recently embraced Islam and are aware of the western culture and mentality. That of course will clear the distorted picture of Islam and will help support da'wah insha'Allah.
I would like to advise you to get more involved with your family and community. Do not isolate yourself from your family and friends, whether they are Jews or Christians, so that you don't give them a bad impression about Islam let alone the negative response they may increase.
Name
Aamir
-
Profession
Medical Student
Question
What is the condition of Muslim communities in the west following the events of 9/11, especially the hate crimes committed against them?
Answer
I would like to refer my brother to CAIR ( Council of Muslim-American Relations) that is specialized in this field. Please visit their website and review their reports about hate crime and anti-Islamic attacks.
Name
M
-
Profession
Question
Today our children all end up going to non-Muslim colleges. Even though they maybe in Islamic schools until twelfth grade, once they graduate they have to go it un-Islamic colleges. What if they want to study Islam, they must go overseas. How can we establish Islamic Universities here in the US?
Answer
As Muslim communities living in the United States or elsewhere, we should never act if we are isolated from the society. Isolation is not an Islamic teaching, nor is it part of our culture or history. Instead of isolating ourselves from the society, we should rather interact and cooperate with people of conscience towards the well-being of the society. We have more in common with people of different faith than we think: morals, values, helping the poor and needy, etc. these are common grounds that we can work together to achieve.
Studying abroad may help foster these feelings of isolation, especially if the student went to study in a country that is not on good terms with the Untied States. He or she will of course come back with different impressions and feelings and may not find himself belonging anymore to this society, and this is not what we try to achieve in reality.
By the grace of Allah, we now have a number of universities and colleges that offer Islamic education in the United States and others. We have the Graduate School of Islamic and Social Sciences . There are other similar institutions and Muslim teachers and professors as well. If we benefit from all what is available, I think we can achieve self-sufficiency and we will be able to produce good elements who will take upon their shoulders the responsibility of helping these societies to move forward, leading the Islamic centers and guiding all those in need.
However, studying Arabic may be considered an exceptional case. We can send students to Arab countries for a specific period of time in order to learn Arabic. This is actually what I recommend some Muslim families to do, to send their children to Egypt, Mauritania, Jordan, and other countries in order to learn Arabic so that they can have the ability to deal with their original sources in Fiqh, Usul, Hadith, Tafsir, etc. which are originally written in Arabic.
Name
Manal
-
Profession
Question
Can you give us some tips on how to raise our kids feeling proud of being Muslims in this society?
Answer
This is also a very important question. We are in a bad need of teaching our children the Qur'an and build up such close relationship between them and the Book of Allah as well as raising them to love the teachings of the Qur'an and put them into effect. One way to do that is to help them understand and reflect upon the meanings of the Qur'an. If we succeed to build this relationship we will be able to shape their Islamic character.
Secondly, we need to teach our children the life history of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him). Studying the life history of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) will help them understand the Qur'an and interpret it. Again, if we succeed in doing that, we will be able to instill in the hearts of our children the spirit of belonging, confidence, and pride in their faith especially if they start to take the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) as their role modal in life.
Thirdly, we need to select a number of stories of the Companions (may Allah be pleased with them) to present as role modals to out children. This can be more effective if we get to know the character of our children and their interests, because we will be able to choose the companion whose story is best befitting them.
Theoretical teaching is not enough; it should not be more than 10%. We can then use educational tools (20%), and audio-visual materials (70%), and other methods that can be learned through experts in the field.
By making use of contemporary methods of teachings, we will be able to teach the Qur'an, the Sunnah, and the biography of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) and his companions (may Allah be pleased with them) in a way that can affect their character positively and fill them with hope in face of trials and tribulations.
Name
Muhammad
- United States
Profession
real estate
Question
As-salaamu-alaykum sheik,
What do you believe to be the gratest problem facing the muslims in USA?
Answer
We have a number of challenges. Please read my answer to the first question. Besides, we have a new challenge that started to emerge these days, calling for reconsidering the stable, unchangeable, and fixed principles in our faith. Some started to question the authenticity of the Sunnah of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him). Some started to limit the Islamic sources to the Qur'an only, and other misleading ideologies. This is to me a very crucial challenge that we need to face nowadays, along with the other challenge I mentioned before.
Name
Maya
- United States
Profession
homemaker
Question
As Salamu Alaykum Brother in Islam
Please give us some tips on instilling character and confidence in our children, especially during adolescence.
Jazak Allah Khair
Answer
Please read my answer to the question of sister Manal. It is very similar to your question.
Name
Tariq
-
Profession
Question
To what extent should Muslims integrate into the societiesthey live in (In the West)?
Answer
Muslims should never act as strangers. They should act as integral part of their societies. Isolation, as I stated before, is very dangerous. But again, interaction does not mean to lose the marked features of your Islamic identity in order to fit in the society. You should integrate with your fellow citizens on issues of common ground. We have more in common than we think. Muslims have to prove that they have a lot to contribute to the well-being of the society they live in. They should display a good image of their faith.
Name
Amatullah
-
Profession
Question
Asalaamu 'alaykum
In your opinion what is the biggest problem facing the Muslim community in the West and what can individuals do in their locality to try and make a change? JazakumAllahu khayrun
Answer
Please read the answer to the questions of brother Hani and Muhammad.
Name
Editor
-
Profession
Answer
Finally, we would like to thank both Dr. Taha Jabir Al-‘Alwani for taking the time to answer the questions of Islamonline viewers today, and we also thank all those who participated in this dialogue. We apologize for not being able to accommodate all the questions within the time allocated to this session. If you feel your question is very important, feel free to contact us at EngLivedialogue@islamonline.net and we will try our best to answer your question. We request our readers to join us in upcoming sessions.
