Articles

If Allah divides humanity into three ranks and includes many from the earlier generations to be closest to Allah, how can we ever hope to have an equal reward? Here are a few things you can do to be counted, inshallah, amongst those who excel for Allah.

As someone who has helped collect and sort donated items in the past, and know many who do this on a regular basis, I’ve come across my fair share of surprises —the amazingly generous, the bad, and the ugly. The question becomes, given the importance of charity amongst Muslims and the status of sadaqa, why are these “questionable” items as common an issue as they are, and why has it become acceptable “collateral damage” that is expected when collecting for any cause?

Forty-five years a slave before regaining his freedom, Mahmoud Yaro’s life and character should inspire the roots of our collective community, reflecting the complexity of the struggles and triumphs of Muslims living in America, and bridging the immigrant and indigenous local identities.

Having cofounded Al-Madina Institute, I have come to know many amazing Muslims doing some really wonderful work. Below is a list of ten Muslims from across the globe that deserve to be recognized for their work.

All over the Americas, Muslim Africans wrote the Qur'an and other sacred texts from memory, distributed selections to the faithful, converted others, and established networks. What is pertinent to us as we contemplate our own legacy as American Muslims is what will remain of our contributions and faith when we have abandoned the curriculum of textual learning and continue to create socially fragmented institutions?

It is the time of year where the word "love" is paraded about, amidst a wave of cards, chocolates and flowers. But is there more? Love is so central to our sense of self that its presence (or absence) influences every aspect of our perception and interactions with the world around us. We are often quick to profess our love, in all its mundane and metaphysical forms, from loving the physical, to loving another person to loving the Divine. Ultimately however, the proof of our love lies not in our words but how that love affects who we are and what we do. Join Shaykh Yahya Rhodus as he explores the concept and signs of true love in this recording of Al-Madina Institute's teleconference event.

While Arabic has its unique qualities, its sacred status as the “language of the Qur’an” does not mean that it is necessarily the language of Islam. However, it seems that many of our fellow Muslims speak of the universality of Islam while at the same time emphasizing the particularity of Arabic in such a way that alienates Islam from non-Arabs, including non-Arab Muslims.

The Olympics are finally here! They give a chance for everyone to set aside politics, grudges, and the difficulties of life to celebrate human dignity and sportsmanship, and to cheer for the best achievers in a fair competition. Unfortunately, the anticipation of such emotional warmth is countered by a Winter Olympics atmosphere that is much "colder" than usual, with increasing waves of human rights violations, security concerns with extreme measures, and deep restrictions on the freedom of journalists and activists.

The conversations stirred by recent literature, like Salaam, Love, only mimic what has been whispered in our homes and houses of worship for decades: Muslim American culture is shifting. These tell-all intimate portraits, exorcizing communal guilt and shame, may serve to "humanize” Muslims and allow for a broader conversation on Muslim identity.

We are different in our makeup, different in our experiences. It is impossible to conceive of a world in which we are all alike. For a person of faith, this plurality is deliberate, not simply an accident. It is part of the Divine plan and its purpose is to get humanity together to collaborate and live together, not be apart and divisive.

Mohamed Ghilan on the new atheism in our current age, a Qur'anic viewpoint on this phenomenon, and how to resist the pressure to disbelieve.

After seeing our brothers and sisters praying Salat-ul-Istisqa (prayer for rain) in the Bay area this past weekend, and the subsequent rainfall, let us remember the story of the man who once interrupted the Prophet's khutbah, asking for rain: