MuslimMatters.org Discourses in the Intellectual Traditions, Political Situation, and Social Ethics of Muslim Life

The development of extreme personalities within the victims is a very crucial point to understand. Many victims of molestation do end up developing extreme personalities, like being extreme about discipline to the level of dictatorship, or extreme about cleanliness to the level of perfection, or extreme negligence, or extreme mood swings, or extreme dependence or complete lack of dependence. Read More »

Our intention was to ignore the story initially, because it really had nothing to do with Islam per say. Rather, this was a case of an alleged domestic violence of the most horrific form. However, the fact that he was a founder of a Muslim network makes this a story that may once again have great repercussions on the Muslim image. Read More »

Bismillah [Written by Amatullah, based on notes] In the Qur'an, Allāh ta'ala uses three words to describe our hearts: qalb, fu'aad and sadr. We know that every Arabic word is chosen for a reason, yet all three of these words for the most part are translated as “heart.” As usual, ... Read More »

The best strategy for prevention is to dismantle terrorist ideologies using the same Quran and the same narrations of the prophet that are misunderstood by them. This is a task that can only be accomplished by established independent credible Muslim scholars. The war on terror therefore is as much a war on ignorance and misguidance, as much as it is a war against the terrorists themselves. Read More »

Islamic schools all over the country are doing their best to address the issue of Arabic studies. Having visited nearly fifty of them, I've come to some conclusions about how things are and how they should be in this area of study for our full time and weekend/ after school institutions. This series will be an attempt to organize these thoughts in a coherent and hopefully beneficial fashion. In the spirit of pragmatism, expect no radical changes at your local Islamic school because of these articles. It is my hope that at the very least (a) this will serve as food for thought at the local level in your community and (b) bring like minds together for a robust collaborative effort in bringing together a powerful, new and innovative curriculum with realistic, scalable goals. Read More »

Bismillah [Posted by Amatullah. Written by Shirien Elamawy:  Marketing Director, Bayyinah] She sat in the waiting room on the edge of her chair waiting for the doctor to give her any news about her husband. Her husband was driving home from the masjid with their 5-year-old son, when they got ... Read More »

We are activists, community members, families, youth, elders, and volunteers. We wish we had the knowledge you are now pursuing, because we see on a daily basis where it is most desperately needed. It is because of this, that we have such high hopes and expectations for you when you return. So while you are there, please take these concerns and advices to heart - they come from us, your future community that we hope you will lead. Read More »

This khutbah was given on the Jumuah, Nov. 28 at the ISD's masjid Ibrahim. (download) Read More »

To yoga or not to yoga, that is the question… a fatwa issued in Malaysia, suggesting that yoga be banned in the country, has sparked discussion, debate, and exasperation with people making life more complicated than it is. But before we dive into the juicy halaal-haraam stuff, let's get an idea of what we're talking about anyway. Read More »

Innalhamdolillah. Bismillah. [written by abu abdAllah] Here's a neat trick for all of you who use Gmail and love reading Muslimmatters. Open Gmail in your web browser. Click on settings (located at the very top of the page, among the links at the top right). Click on web clips (if ... Read More »