contemporary concerns
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Syria: Rulers, Righteous Outrage & Rethinking Revolutions
Initially, Aleppo never witnessed the large scale anti-government protests that kicked-off in other parts of Syria, in March 2011. A year later, though, and Aleppo too became a bloody battleground when rebel fighters tried to drive government forces from the city. The offensive was not decisive and Aleppo ended up divided: government forces controlling the west, rebel fighters the east. For… Continue reading
conditions for revolting against Muslim ruler, difference between pre-modern and modern states, Hasan al-Basri on rebellion, how to help Aleppo, how to help Syrian refugees, is khuruj allowed in Islam?, Islamic ruling on rebellion against unjust rulers, Muslim political theory, Muslim theory about the state, reason for Syrian civil war, ruling on Arab springs, three conditions for khuruj, what to do about Aleppo?, what to do about Syria -
Scholars, Speakers & the Culture of “Edu-Tainment”
In an age where craving for fame, recognition and celebrity-like status has found new outlets, “practicing” Muslims have found that they are not immune to such egotistical impulses. In fact, society and social media are currently awash with wannabe shaykhs, speakers and religious spokespersons – many (maybe even most) who are simply unfit for purpose. The Prophet… Continue reading
al-Ghazali on sincerity, can fees be taken to teach Islam?, can money be charged for da’wah?, da’wah organisations following business models, dignified humour in da’wah, du’a and callers to islam who corrupt more than they rectify, effects of celebrity culture around Muslim scholars and preachers, fitness of having fans and a large following, how sincere are today’s da’wah organisations?, how to convey sacredckniowledge and da’wah, how to determine who is a scholar, Ibn taymiyyah on taking monet for da’wah, Islamic ruling on scholars charging extortionate money for lectures, joking in Islamic talks, scholars of the hereafter vs worldly scholars, scholars promoting their egos, sincerity in calling to Allah, when is praising people not allowed?, when to praise a scholar or da’i -
Does Science Point towards God or Atheism?
‘Atheism,’ writes John Lennox, Professor of Mathematics at the University of Oxford, ‘is on the march in the Western world. Noisily. A concerted attempt is being made to marshal the atheist faithful, to encourage them not to be ashamed of their atheism but to stand up and fight as a united army. The enemy is… Continue reading
core atheist arguments, critiquing New Atheism, God of the gaps, good reasons to believe in God, has science dispensed with God? Carl Sagan, has science disproved God?, Hawking and the Theory of Everything, materialism, Muslim apologetics, naturalism, nature of religion, nature of science, purpose of life, refuting New Atheism, Richard Dawkins, scientism, what is the evidence for atheism? -
5 Cornerstones of Islam’s Bigger Picture
What follows are five cornerstones that lie at the heart of Islam’s bigger picture of life. They concern: (i) What is life’s higher purpose? (ii) Who has the right to our ultimate love and loyalty? (iii) The obligation of faithfully keeping covenants and contracts, (iv) Loving the sacred law and thanking the Lawgiver, (v) Fatwas: between… Continue reading
contracts and covenants in Islam, Ibn al-Qayyim on hiylah, Ibn Hamdan al-Hanbali, Ibn Hamdan on when fatwa cannot be given, Ibn Qudamah on the covenant of security, Islam and the covenant of security, principle of ease in Islam, purpose behind Islamic law, purpose of life in Islam, rukhsah and azimah, rules of fatwa, shariah reforms, taysir in shariah -
Pilgrimage of Reason: Proofs for God’s Existence [2/2]
In the first part of the blog (here), I discussed a ‘proof’ for the existence of God vis-a-via the kalam cosmological argument. We saw how, as a rational argument, it is well reasoned, cogent and logical; hence giving a lie to New Atheism’s allegation that belief in God is irrational. But since the proof is highly abstract and theoretical, I suggested… Continue reading
aQuranic argument for design, C.S. Lewis and the moral argument, God’s signs as proof for existence and His attributes, God’s signs lead to awe and love of Him, Ibn al-Qayyim’s watermill, knowing God’s existence via fitrah, moral proof, ontological proof, Paley’s watch anallogy, proofs for the existence of God, teleological proof, the signs of Allah -
Pilgrimage of Reason: Proofs for God’s Existence [1/2]
As anyone familiar with anti-religious polemics knows, the core criticism by today’s New Atheists is that, allegedly, belief in God is both infantile and irrational. It is, they say, a childish delusion that ought to have died out as humanity reached its maturity. In the New Atheism’s canon, belief in God is likened to believing in the Tooth Fairy or… Continue reading
‘ilm al-kalam, al-shafi’i against kalam, discursive theology, do hanbalis reject kalam, does the universe have a cause, Hanbali school and kalam, Hawking of the origins of the universe, Ibn Hamdan al-Hanbali, Imam Ahmad on kalam, Islamic dialectics, islamic theology, kalam, proofs for God, speculative theology, status of kalam in Islam, the first cause -
Khawarij Ideology, ISIS Savagery: Caliphate & Jihad
The first instalment of this blog (here) charted the rise of Islam’s first heterodox sect, the Khawarij, who were described by the Prophet ﷺ as being: ‘the worst of mankind and beasts’1 and ‘dogs of Hellfire.’2 We saw how their defining traits were: (i) rebellion (khuruj) against legitimate state rule; (ii) declaring Muslims to be apostates (takfir) for sins or opinions… Continue reading
Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, Ibn al-Qayyim on why jihad is fought, ibn Kathir on the Khawarij, Ibn Taymiyyah on multiple Muslim states, ISIL, ISIS, ISIS are Khawarij, Islamic ruling on ISIS, Islamic State, jihad is not perpetual war, khalifah, khawarij, proofs against ISIS, sneaking out to join ISIS, true nature of jihad, true reasons why Muslims wage jihad, who are the Khawarij of our times? -
Khawarij Ideology, ISIS Savagery: the Takfiri Origins
As ISIS continues its murder and violence across the provinces it controls and seeks to control, and as it continues to plague the conscience of the great majority of Muslims around the world, what’s worth recalling is that we’ve seen this before in history with the sect called the Khawarij (anglicised to Kharijites). So before tackling ISIS, let’s look at their forerunners;… Continue reading