DAWAH-ing he he he

Allahu Akbar! "Children are born believers in God"!

Children are born believers in God, academic claims

Children are "born believers" in God and do not simply acquire religious beliefs through indoctrination, according to an academic.

The Daily Telegraph

By Martin Beckford, Religious Affairs Correspondent Last Updated: 11:36PM GMT 24 Nov 2008

Dr. Barrett: "If we threw a handful on an island and they raised themselves I think they would believe in God."

Dr Justin Barrett, a senior researcher at the University of Oxford's Centre for Anthropology and Mind, claims that young people have a predisposition to believe in a supreme being because they assume that everything in the world was created with a purpose.

He says that young children have faith even when they have not been taught about it by family or at school, and argues that even those raised alone on a desert island would come to believe in God.

"The preponderance of scientific evidence for the past 10 years or so has shown that a lot more seems to be built into the natural development of children's minds than we once thought, including a predisposition to see the natural world as designed and purposeful and that some kind of intelligent being is behind that purpose," he told BBC Radio 4's Today programme.

"If we threw a handful on an island and they raised themselves I think they would believe in God."

In a lecture to be given at the University of Cambridge's Faraday Institute on Tuesday, Dr Barrett will cite psychological experiments carried out on children that he says show they instinctively believe that almost everything has been designed with a specific purpose.
In one study, six and seven-year-olds who were asked why the first bird existed replied "to make nice music" and "because it makes the world look nice".

Another experiment on 12-month-old babies suggested that they were surprised by a film in which a rolling ball apparently created a neat stack of blocks from a disordered heap.
Dr Barrett said there is evidence that even by the age of four, children understand that although some objects are made by humans, the natural world is different.

He added that this means children are more likely to believe in creationism rather than evolution, despite what they may be told by parents or teachers.

Dr Barrett claimed anthropologists have found that in some cultures children believe in God even when religious teachings are withheld from them.
"Children's normally and naturally developing minds make them prone to believe in divine creation and intelligent design. In contrast, evolution is unnatural for human minds; relatively difficult to believe."

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/religion/3512686/Children-are-born-believers-in-God-academic-claims.html

Remembering the Metaphysical laws in the Qur'an

We can do something about what is happening to our Muslim brothers and sisters. Boycott Israeli products (look at every product you buy and boycott it if it comes from Israel). Encourage our men to go to the demonstrations. Make sincere du'a to Allah for our situation. How pathetic we feel, and how little we can really do in the here and now to impact the situation.

Let's look to the future, to changing the state of the Ummah completely. The Jihad for justice starts in our homes.

I believe that the greatest and most powerful contribution we can make as parents is this:

Bring up your children to be Mu'mineen, who take the laws of Allah seriously, who are attached to the life of the Prophet sallallahu alaihi wa sallam and his Sunnah
Teach your children history and the lessons of history.
Teach them not just about the physical laws that Newton elucidated so well, but the Metaphysical laws that the Qur'an elucidates so perfectly.

A few days ago we went through the story of the Battle of Badr and I taught my children about the Sunnah of Allah, that if He wills he can make a small group of people overpower a huge number of people...I taught them that no one knows the army of Allah but He. 300 men who were less well armed beat 1000 well armed men that day - I want them to remember that forever. It can mean so many things in their lives: that the little kid can overcome the big bully, that when the odds are stacked against you, if you have Iman, you can win...that quality is more important than quantity...that if Allah is on your side, you have nothing and no one to fear...

The metaphysical laws that are the Sunnah of Allah are mentioned throughout the Qur'an.

The law that:
after hardship will come ease.
that Allah obliterates Riba (as we have recently seen) and make Sadaqah profitable
that if you thank Allah, he will give you more...all of these and many more have been mentioned in the Qur'an.
That the Jews and Christians will never be pleased with you until you follow their religion and way of life.
That if you are conscious of Allah, He will give you a way out and provide for you from means that you never imagined.

These are all laws that we can observe and that are talked about in the Qur'an.
If they grow up with yaqeen (true belief and conviction) in these metaphysical laws, they will be the bravest of men, because the apparent will not deter them...what is visible to the eye will not scare them...they will not be risk averse, rather they will leap off the most dangerous mountain, knowing that they will only be hurt if Allah wills it, they will jump into that deepest ocean, believing that if they are doing so for the sake of Allah then Allah will grant them victory over the waves. They will not be fooled by what seems to be reality because they will be aware that anything is possible if you have Allah on your side.

That is what this Ummah needs. A generation of people who have so much Iman in the sunan of Allah that they will take risks, they will dare to do what no one's done before, they will be willing to go against the grain, unapologetic, firm in their resolve.

The problems of the Ummah did not appear overnight and they will not disappear overnight. But we, the mothers of the Ummah can set that change in motion...we must set that change in motion.

Da'wah Challenge Attendees

Assalamu Alaikum

Ma sha Allah the highlight of the day for me was a sister taking her Shahadah - after Umm Raiyaan convinced her to not allow Shaitan to make her stall when she already believed. It's amazing how it seems that there are women out there who are ready but when they meet Muslim women they are inspired to take the final step and embrace Islam. It is as if when they see Muslim women, they see how they could be and it convinces them to go for it! Alhamdulillah.

Here are some notes for Da'wah Challenge attendees that might add to the workshops or complement them:

10 ways to do Da'wah from the comfort of your home

Da'wah tips

Current Affairs and Misconceptions part 1 & part 2: being part of the solution

Radio Phone in Da'wah (below)

And below too are the Scenarios we discussed and that were argued out with me as the presenter.

As we said at the end of the event:

Live Islam, Love Islam, Share Islam - is is the most precious thing we have to give...

RADIO PHONE-IN SCENARIOS: What would you say?

Scenario 1: Marriage and staying chaste
The Presenter is saying: “Is there any point in staying a virgin until you’re married? Most of us lose our virginity before we get married and it’s usually a pretty dire experience. One we’d rather forget. Isn’t marriage only a way of controlling and tying down women? What’s the point in getting married?...so many end in divorce anyway!”

Scenario 2: Muslims, the enemy within
The Presenter is saying: What is it with some of the Muslims in this country that’s radicalising them? I mean some of these people attempting to bomb our airports are educated people! Doctors! How on earth do they get brainwashed like this to try and kill innocent people and take their own lives? What can the government do to root out this sort of brainwashing?


Scenario 3: Ban Muslim schools.
The Presenter is saying: Faith-based schools should be banned. They create division in society and stop us from seeing each other as fellow human-beings. The schools will create brainwashed young people who don’t feel part of our society and lead them to extremism and even terrorism because they teach the superiority of one people over another! Ban Muslim schools and other faith-based schools!

Scenario 4: Women who wear face-veils.
The Presenter is saying: “If you cover your face, you’re telling me that you want nothing to do with me. You don’t want anything to do with society. How will you ever integrate if you cover your face all the time? How do we know that the men aren’t forcing these women to live in this way? And what about the fact that anyone can hide dressed like that and be a security risk?

Scenario 5: Does God Exist?
The Presenter and callers are saying: “It’s the anniversary of the Asian Tsunami where hundreds of thousands of people lost their lives and millions were affected...their families and homes and livelihoods destroyed. What kind of a God would do that? If there is a God then why did He let the Tsunami happen? If you believe in God – how can you possibly know that there is a God? Prove to me that there is a God!

Scenario 6
The presenter is reporting that Muslims seem to be trying to impose Shari’ah Law on our country. Why are there Shari’ah courts running in this country? There should only be one set of courts for all. Do we really want to see the people who think it’s OK to chop limbs off people and stone women for adultery have their laws implemented in this country? Close down the Shari’ah courts!

Scenario 7: Capital punishment
The Presenter is reporting a terrible case of a man who raped and abused a woman and a child and then killed them. He is saying...”It’s times like this when you think...maybe we should have capital punishment...but Capital punishment doesn’t seem to work anyway. Just look at America they still have a high crime rate...it hasn’t helped them. Do you believe in a life for a life? What’s the proof that it is a deterrent?

Scenario 8: Youth Crime
The Presenter is saying: What is causing the youth of this country to go mad. Why are so many killing or willing to kill each other? Why are there so many ASBOS, hoodies and yobs? What is the answer...tougher sentencing? Why do youth not seem to be motivated to do anything with their lives?

__________________________

Guidelines for
Radio Phone-in Da’wah

By Fatima Barkatulla (http://www.muslimmotherhood.blogspot.com/)

Radio phone-ins if utilised correctly are an excellent tool for conveying the beauty of Islam and for dispelling fears and misconceptions that many non-Muslims have about Islam and Muslims. One can reach millions of people through radio phone-ins and can tell them something that could stay with them forever. Shows that cover the hot topics of the day are often at peak times like during rush hour in the morning and on the drive home from work in the afternoon. If you phone a national radio station the audience is larger still.

Phone-ins are particularly good for Muslim women as they can be accessed from wherever you are: you could be busy at home or driving your car somewhere but you can always stop off for a short Da’wah session and literally reach millions. Often topics arise that are about Muslim women specifically (like the hijab or niqab) and many people speak for us and about us and misrepresent us. So it is imperative that we enter the discussion and inform people about our position. Most presenters really appreciate Muslim women calling up; as it is a voice they don’t often get to hear.

Your potential audience
Your potential audience are:
· Parents on the school run
· People driving to and from work
· Taxi drivers, truck drivers, couriers (all sorts of people who drive for a living).
· People who are at home, like mothers, housewives, the elderly, people who work from home.
· Many people download radio shows onto their MP3 players and listen to the show later while on the train or elsewhere.
· People listening around the world via the internet. (Expatriates for example.)

What happens when you phone in?

When you phone in to a show, the producer or researcher for the show will pick up the phone and ask you for your name and where you are calling from. You can always use a kunya or a middle name, if you feel more comfortable doing that. You will also have to briefly tell them what you want to say.

They may take down your phone number and call you back. When they call you back, they will put you on hold and you will be able to hear the radio from your phone receiver. Turn your radio down or off so that the presenter has no problem hearing you and to prevent interference.

When it is your turn to speak, the presenter will simply say your name and say ‘hello’ to you and you’ll be heard by everyone listening. They will probably allow you a minute or two unless they really want to continue talking to you, so you have to get to the point. The presenter will know roughly what you are going to talk about because it will be up on their screen in front of them. They will expect you to talk about the subject you said you will talk about.

Sometimes if your point is not very relevant or if they are tight for time, they may not call you back, so try to be as relevant as possible and also try to phone in at least before the last half hour of the show. If you tell the presenter that you are a first time caller, they are usually more patient with you.

General tips for Radio phone-ins:

· Don’t phone-in to vent your anger about what has been said. Only phone in when you feel you will be calm and measured in your tone. Presenters do not appreciate people raising their voices too much and ranting or insulting people. You will very soon be cut off if you do that. Let people hear your calm and intelligent side. People will see you as a representative of Islam. That doesn’t mean you cannot be passionate about a topic, it just means you have to have good manners.
· Be clear in your own mind what you want to convey and stick to the most important message or you could get sidetracked and then they might cut you off before you get to your main point.
· Jot down some of the main points you want to make and stick to them. Try not to get too distracted by comments that are made by listeners while you are on hold.
· Start off in a positive manner, say something good about the show and mention the presenters name when you speak to them as it has been observed that when a person hears their own name, they relax more and are more attentive.
· Be conversational, not preachy. Speak to the presenter as an individual and be as amicable as you can.
· Acknowledge mistakes that Muslims make and show people that Muslims don’t always do what Islam tells them to.
· Break the argument down analysing the issue and addressing it step-by-step. Make sure everyone can follow your train of thought.
· You may not be able to cover everything you want to but at least make one good contribution. Insha Allah someone else will build on your contribution.
· If you can phone in regularly, people will get to know you and so be consistent in your good character and points. Don’t just phone in when Islam or Muslims are mentioned. Phone in to talk about any issue you can, because after all, Islam has the solutions to all problems. After becoming a regular caller you don’t even have to mention Islam because people will remember you as ‘the Muslim’ anyway.
· Listen to presenters a few times before you phone in, to see what kind of views they have and how they deal with different people. Some can be quite aggressive and anti-religion (like Nick Ferrari, James O’Brien & James Whale). Some can be easier to talk to (like the BBC presenters: Vanessa Feltz, Jumoke Fashola, Eddie Nestor & Kath Milandri)
· Listen and learn from other callers who call in & make a point well.
· Sometimes you have to accept that you may not be the best person to talk about a particular issue. Perhaps you could call someone you know would be able to contribute and ask them to do so.
· Expect the unexpected. Sometimes presenters may put another caller on the line to counter your argument. Keep your composure.

· Some popular stations you could call (see websites for latest schedule):
BBC Radio London 94.9fm (http://www.bbc.co.uk/london/tv_and_radio/radio/): Morning phone-in with Vanessa Feltz, Jumoke Fashola’s show after 10pm

Talksport 1089am (http://www.talksport.net/): If you don’t ask them to call you back, they usually put you on hold when you phone them, so you have to foot the bill. But if you tell them quickly when you initially phone in, they will call you back.

LBC 97.3fm (http://www.lbc.co.uk/): Presenters are more sensationalist, so have your answers prepared. They often don’t give you very long to make your point. Nick Ferrari’s show is in the morning, Drive-time in the afternoons with James Whale and there are other shows one could contribute to at any time in the day, depending on the topic of discussion. ◊

Societal Problems caused by the overemphasis on Women Working

Recently Jamie Oliver (he of Naked Chef & School Dinners fame), commented in a Sunday Times article about what he thought has caused the huge increase in childhood obesity in the UK:

“People have been let down. If you have 30 years, during which time both parents have to go out to work, you’ll end up with young mothers who have never been shown how to cook at home, never been shown how to cook at school, basically buying into the only solution they know – which is to spend £100 a week on s***. “I think TV can tick a lot of boxes but there’s nothing that can replace skin on skin, mums and their children, and cooking in schools.”

So what are the real effects of women in the workplace and an overemphasis on the role of women, particularly mothers, outside the home. This is one man's comment in the Financial Times:

Not all families have two incomes
Published: November 26 2008 02:00 Last updated: November 26 2008 02:00
From Mr Stephen Porter.
Sir, Why is there an apparent assumption that all families comprise two-income households? My wife and I have chosen to follow the “traditional” route, whereby she elected to leave work to be at home during the early, formative years of our children to instill in them our values.I realise this may not seem possible for all families at first blush, but if we crunch the numbers it is striking how much the stay-at-home spouse would need to earn just to break even in terms of paying child care. In our case, for example, we will soon have three children under the age of three. My wife would need to earn well in excess of £20,000, after tax, just to pay the fees to have three children in day-care at the same time (and that would be at one of the cheaper private establishments). Anything less than that and it is more economical for her not to work and continue to have the children at home during the day.Surely this highly value-adding work done by the stay-at-home spouse deserves recognition? At the moment, our governments value it at precisely zero . And the most recent pre-Budget report has done nothing to improve that value.
Stephen Porter,Edinburgh, UK

Here are some of the organisations working to promote the role of parents (particularly mothers) at home and the need that children have for their mothers (sounds so obvious, but the world has gone mad and we have to actually say it now!) :

What About The CHildren (WATCH)

Full Time Mothers

Some societal problems I think that are caused by the culture of making most women workers outside the home:

-The loss of manliness and manhood: men don't know what it is to be a man any more, they have lost their confidence because they are no longer the provider and by extention the head of the house.

-Increase in adultery: men and women have more access to each other and a man may spend most of the day with a woman or women who are not his wife. This can and does inevitably cause people to develop emotional attachments and commit zina....which leads to...

-Family break ups and instability.

-More career women equals later marriages or later settling down for those women which means that there are a lot of unsettled and predatory women out there willing to have casual relationships with men...again leading to zina and instability in families.

-Children coming home to an empty house...no one to talk to about the days events and their problems...leading to frustration or over dependence on their peers and an emotional detachment from parents.-Poor diets. Women don't know how to cook...or don't have time to cook decent meals from scratch, so the whole family grows up on TV dinners or microwaveable meals.

-Overstressed women. Women think they can work and look after their kids and husbands and household needs but in reality most are under a permanent state of stress and either the home or their work gets neglected in some way.One Sheikh mentioned to me that the reason why he feels most marriages that break down, do so - is that the woman works and just isn't emotionally available for her family, causing stress and anger problems and making the marriage suffer and leading to an....

-Increase in divorce rates

Talking to the Media about Maqaasid ash-Shari'ah

One of the things mentioned by Sheikh Tawfique in the Mark of a Jurist course (which is about the Qawaa'id of Fiqh (rules of Fiqh) and the Maqaasid of Shari'ah (the lofty Goals and Purposes of the Shari'ah)) was how learning about Maqaasid as well as the specific rulings, actually increases the student’s confidence and broadens ones understanding of what is intended by the Shari’ah- what goals are behind the rulings. It makes you realise too how vast the Shari'ah really is and how it really can be applied to any time, any place, any situation until the Day of Judgement.

In my experience it is also great for Da’wah. I had a chance to study Maqasid at a basic level, a few years ago and so in the past few months I actually spoke to both LBC Radio and BBC London (London’s talk radio stations) about Maqasid ash-Shari’ah! Yes! Believe it or not...let me tell you the context:

In both instances the presenters (Vanessa Feltz and Jenny Barnet) were talking about Jehovah’s witnesses not taking blood transfusions and a mother of two newborn twins, who had lost a lot of blood refusing to take a blood transfusion and subsequently dying! Countless callers were saying things like “Religion is so extreme”, “How can you justify this, you are denying the newborn twins a mother...all religions are the same....they are there to control people and stop them from using their common sense and instincts” etc . etc.

So I just had to stop the car and phone in and give Vanessa and Jenny a mini Maqaasid lesson! It went something like this (remember you only have about 2 or three minutes to get your point across):

V:“Hi Fatima”
F:“Hi Vanessa, interesting topic as usual!”
V:“So what do you think about this mother and father who refused this blood transfusion on religious grounds?”
F:“I think that it’s very sad that they denied those two innocent little babies their mother. It’s tragic, because you know how newborns just constantly root around for their mother...they’re not going to have get the comfort they need now”.
V:“So what would you say to the argument that people have the right to practice their religions as they choose and doctors and society shouldn’t interfere in that. I mean it’s part of their religion”
F:“Where is their proof that God asked them to do this? Vanessa, let me tell you something. I study Islamic Law and let me tell you that we believe that God revealed laws throughout times to different Prophets and whether it is the Mosaic Law or the law that was revealed by God to Muhammad – God’s laws are not there to harm you or to kill you! The laws have higher intents and purposes behind them...the Maqaasid, they are the higher purpose behind the law, for example to preserve life and to preserve lineage and let me give you an example.”
V:"Say that word again"
F:"What you mean Maqaasid - that's an Arabic term"
V:“Yeah, I was just trying to see if it was similar to a Jewish term. Go on...” (Vanessa is Jewish)
F:“You know we don’t eat Pork right. If I was dying of hunger. And there was nothing available to me except pork to save my life...then I have to eat that pork! I have to preserve my life as part of the Shari’ah...”
V:“Well I think Rabbi’s would agree with you...we had a Rabbi on a while ago who said that in life and death situations, the laws can go out of the window.”
F:“Let me give you another example. I cover, right as a Muslim woman. But if say a fascist regime came into power and they were killing all the Muslims. I could be allowed to remove signs of me being a Muslim, to save my life...you see the law is there to protect life.”
V:“Well thank you Fatima, what is the proof that blood transfusions are not allowed in the Bible?”.
________________________
When we talk to the media about Islam and the Divine law and Shari’ah, the following are two important messages that I feel we need to bear in mind and convey.

#1. Often, the time we have to speak to people, to be interviewed by a radio presenter, is limited and so I advocate that if the subject of Shari’ah comes up, we should try and convey to the masses of non-Muslims and Muslims how vast the Shari’ah and by extension Islam, is. That it is not just a list of do’s and don’ts and it is not just about the hadd punishments; lopping people’s limbs off and stoning women for adultery! (Whenever the word ‘Shari’ah’ is mentioned in the popular media, it is regarded as synonymous with stoning and maiming.) The Islam that we know is a complete way of life, able to cater for all people, in all situations in all times until the Day of Judgement and it is incumbent upon us to transmit at least a glimpse of its vastness to the masses. Not only will it humble people and make them realise that they don’t really know about Islam, but hopefully it will motivate people to look into Islam in more depth.

#2. We need to convey that we are not apologetic about the Shari’ah. We believe that there is a Creator who knows us better than we know ourselves and so, the laws He has given us are for our own benefit whether we can logically see that or not. I have often heard Muslims interviewed by the media who seem embarrassed by the Shari’ah. Unable to say “Yes, this is part of the Shari’ah, we believe that God is the Legislator and He knows what is best for us”. So we should be confident that the Shari’ah, however much it is demonised, is the best way for human beings to live and we stand by its rulings and applicability in our times and every time until the end of time!

Hendon Halaqah

You are welcome to come...at the moment we are looking at the Seerah in some depth and the 40 ahadeeth of an-Nawawi...it is a friendly circle Ma sha Allah...look forward to seeing you.

Right Now

I feel distressed. I close my eyes. I should be elated, shouldn't I? I should be being led towards bliss. But there I see in front of me, hands....thousands of people clambering towards me, ready to drag me...demanding from me...I owe them, they say. I did what? I said what? Images flash before me as vivid memories. Well yes...I recognise you. Yes I remember. I wish I didn't remember. Why are all my memories so vivid here? Why can't I forget? Why can't I deny?

They are right: I did. There is no escape. No no no. This shouldn't be happening to me. No way. I did so much. I said so much. Look at all I did, it's there in the book!

They are taking it...leaf by leaf. But there is plenty there, a whole lifetime I spent in doing good. No...that can't be the last one. No, you can't take it! I won't let you! How can you do this to me! You are making all I did amount to nothing! How dare you! Yet....

I know. Yes I did do it. Do I really deserve this? Yes. I begin to wail. I can't stop my own tears and yelps and cries of helplessness. Why did I do those things? Why didn't I just hold my tongue? Why did I busy myself with those futile, destructive things? Were they so dear to me? What did I get from them? Entertainment? For the blinking of an eye? And now...this. This is reality. This is forever. But I must plead. I must appeal.

What about all I did? Didn't I say those good things? Didn't I try? Didn't I toil for Your sake? All that has vanished because of my tongue?

I know that there is no point now. The sentence has been given. I fall. Free-fall. Deeper, deeper, deeper. Hotter, hotter.......no....nooooooooooooo!

There is no end to the depth. And as I fall, those memories haunt me, moments which I thought so insignificant...here, they are so significant...if only I'd known...if only I'd done something.

My eyes open suddenly.

I look around, stunned. Breathing heavily, I can hear my own heart beating fast. I'm still here. I'm not there. I'm alive! I'm not there!

I still have time! He's given me a chance. I can fix it. I can make amends. I will make amends. It isn't worth ignoring it. I'm going to make amends right now...maybe it'll be different when I really get there.

Right now.

F.Barkatulla

____________________

One of the things we should really fear....the Prophet (صلى الله عليه و سلم) asked the Companions, "Do you know who the bankrupt is?" His Companions replied, "The bankrupt among us is one who has neither money with him nor any property." The Prophet (صلى الله عليه و سلم) said, "The real bankrupt of my Ummah would be he who would come on the Day of Resurrection with much of prayer, of fasting, and sadaqah, but he will find himself bankrupt on that Day as he will have exhausted the funds of virtues because he reviled others, brought calumny against others, unlawfully devoured the wealth of others, shed the blood of others, and beat others; so his virtues would be credited to the account of those who suffered at his hand. If his good deeds fall short to clear the account, their sins would be entered in his account and he would be thrown in the Hellfire." [Saheeh Muslim]

This will apparently happen at a place called Qantarah:Abu Sa'eed al Khudree (رضى الله عنه) reports that the Prophet (صلى الله عليه و سلم) said, "when the believers cross the Hellfire, they will be stopped at a small arched bridge (Qantarah) before entering the paradise and will be given retribution for injustices between them until they become purified. (Then) they will be permitted to enter Jannah. So, by the One in Whose Hands is my soul, they will know their way to their homes in Jannah, better than they know their ways to their homes in dunya." [Saheeh Al-Bukhari]

So some people may cross the bridge (siraat) and then still at the end be thrown into the hellfire after the injustices between them and other people are settled....
GULP! May Allah protect us from that. Aameen

Come to Interactive Da'wah Workshops!

The Dawah Challenge
Interactive Workshops

Christmas Day
Streatham Mosque

8 Mitcham Lane,
Streatham,
London
SW16 6NN

Tel: 0845 310 5361
Email:admin@greenandchambers.com

13.00-20.00

ALTERNATIVE QUEEN'S SPEECH
THE QUR'AN: THE ETERNAL CHALLENGE
DA'WAH, WHERE TO NOW?
MUSLIMS ENGAGING THE LOCAL COMMUNITY
TACKLING THE CHALLENGE OF MODERNISM
MUSLIM WOMEN & DA'WAH. HOW, WHERE AND WHY?

Free Entrance - registration on the day required.
Creche facilities.
Free food for attendees.

Studying Bulooghul Maram

Ma sha Allah we are studying Bulooghul Maram min adillatil ahkaam with Sheikh Bilal Ismail of South Africa, as part of AlKauthar's Students Guild studies and I am really enjoying the ahadeeth on every aspect of life that we are covering.

As I study this material, there are so many things I realise and feel.

How complete is the deen of Allah! Subhan Allah...every detail, every area of life is covered...this in and of itself is a proof for the Prophethood and excellence of the Prophet Muhammad sallallahu alaihi wa sallam.
No other shari'ah has even come near to having the detail that the Shari'ah of this Ummah has! How honoured we should feel to be part of this Ummah...and how responsible we should feel that considering all this detail and all this knowledge is available to us, we should be striving to excel and to take seriously the detail. May Allah help us in that.
It also makes you realise how the Shari'ah has catered for every time and every place until the day of judgement....from the times when it was not known that germs and microbes exist, that cause illness and harm to people, until today when we know so much about impurity and disease...the guidelines for maintaining cleanliness and hygiene set out by the Prophet sallallahu alaihi wa sallam are timeless! Even if one of us was lost in a foreign land....away from the amenities of modern day living, we could live in a hygienic way if we had this knowledge with us and we could minimise the causes of uncleanliness and disease.....
Subhan Allah...the more you study this, the more your Iman increases with regards to your conviction that this indeed is the complete religion, the last message to mankind...

Getting married young.

I know that it isn't always in Brothers' and Sisters' hands - getting married or delaying marriage and may Allah give all of our Brothers and Sisters a means to getting married young and open their parent's hearts to the idea of getting them married young.

We were just reflecting that we've been married for 10 years now! Ma sha Allah...it doesn't feel that long at all. It was just the other day wasn't it that I folded and put away my bridal dress? Wow! Time passes so quickly.

What is really sad, is that sisters and brothers are not spending the best years of their lives with a companion, who loves them, admires them, enjoys the best things about them and shares life's experiences with them. I mean, those are the years when you are at your most physically attractive (generally speaking) and energetic and easy-going and fun-loving...you need to enjoy and be enjoyed. For the sake of a degree, you'd give that up? A certificate that you may or may not use?

I too was always very academically minded and got straight As and A*s for my GCSE's and did similarly well at A-levels...I wanted to be a cardio-vascular or other surgeon, but my Dad nudged me and said...you could be a doctor for physical diseases, but what about all those spiritual diseases out there? Where are the doctors for dealing with the spiritual heart? And he inspired me to go to Egypt.

I went to Al-Azhar and wanted to complete a Shari'ah degree there...I stayed for a couple of years, learned Arabic, passed my exams and then had to come back because my father insisted for various reasons...but coming back ended up being a blessing, because at the age of 18, I met my husband and I got married at 19. It was totally my choice, no pressure from parents. And it was the best thing I ever did. Ma sha Allah. And my husband has been pivitol in my own Islamic and intellectual development. I have been studying ever since...but going to Egypt opened my eyes to the fact that being institutionalised, kills ingenuity and resourcefulness. I intend to keep studying insha Allah...as far as I can go, whether through University or 'the University of life'...learning doesn't stop. The fruits of our learning- what we do with that learning - is most important.
"From their fruits ye shall know them".

I would say that it is so important that whenever you get a proposal, take it seriously....these things are from Allah, so don't brush them aside without a thought. What tends to happen is that there is a time when you do get proposals and then by a certain age....most of the religious brothers are married because they are staying chaste and they need to get married quickly to preserve their chastity...then the proposals begin to wane....and it becomes harder for people to find the person who fits their criteria.

I used to think it would be impossible for me to combine studying with being married. There I was in Cairo, feeling lonely, with Egyptian player-types all around me and all willing to engage in small talk and more. I would sometimes sit all by myself in the Nile Hilton's Ibis Cafe, the warm fragrance of shisha wafting around me, sipping Cappuccino thoughtfully, watching the happy sight-seeing couples, feeling sorry for myself.

There would be students who would approach me, through a teacher, for marriage and I just couldn't understand some of them: how could you study in Al-Azhar for 9 or ten years and then be clean-shaven? Not even follow the command and Sunnah of the Prophet (sallallahu alaihi wa sallam) and instead, follow the Sunnah of the people of Loot (they were the first men to shave their beards).

It was a dangerous time for me, because, in the UK, being a girl in hijab usually means that people respect you and don't ever think of chatting you up or anything. But in Egypt? Male attention is plentiful. My sister was continuously reminding me: "Don't make eye-contact!" If you ever made eye-contact with an Egyptian guy who was trying to serve you at a store and make chit-chat...that was it...you would give him the wrong message and he might ask for your father's details there and then! Was it the cute accent that attracted them and made them grin like that? The novelty of meeting a Muslim girl from the West? I never could tell.

There were always groups of young men waiting outside our girls hostel. Waiting for what? I hadn't noticed this until my friend Thoraya Philibeen (i.e. Thoraya from the Philippines) grabbed some items of underwear I had innocently hung up on a line in the balcony, waving them in my perplexed face she said, "Fatima, you are still young! Haven't you seen those guys outside the hostel, just look over the balcony! And you're hanging underwear there! You are still young Fatima!" Needless to say, I started drying my clothes inside the hostel room after that.

I made du'a to Allah. "Oh Allah, I can't see how I could study and be married...but nothing is difficult for you, so somehow, allow me to be married happily and seek knowledge."

Little did I know, that a couple of years later, I would be spending a week in a room in the same Nile Hilton Hotel, which housed the Ibis Cafe where I would sit alone. But this time, I wasn't there as a poor student, but with my husband?!

Rabbana Hab Lana min azwajina wa dhuriyyatina qurata a'yun waj 'al na lil muttaqeena imaama.

"Our Lord bestow upon us in our wives and offspring, the coolness of our eyes and make us leaders of the God-conscious."