Response to MuslimMatters Comments on New York Times Article: Shaykh Yasir Qadhi and Andrea Elliott

Salaam Alaikum

First off, allow me to quote an email that Andrea Elliot sent to us, explaining her stance on one of these issues:

A number of the students have reached out to me with questions and commentary, which I truly welcome. Many have raised the same question: why did the article rely so heavily on the Salafi label?

I would preface this by saying that in my years of writing about American Islam, I have been reminded again and again of the sensitivity that labels bring to this extremely diverse community. I can’t tell you how many times I have heard people say, “I’m just Muslim.” They don’t want to be pigeon-holed as a particular *kind* of Muslim, especially in a post-9/11 world prone to overly-simplistic notions of the faith and what its various practitioners represent.

At the same time, this is not a monolithic group. There is, of course, a whole range of ways in which Muslims observe their faith or identify with it. The spectrum includes self-described secular Muslims, progressives, conservatives, reformists. And each one of these categories encompasses different groups.

Part of the challenge for journalists covering Islam is that there is often disagreement, even among Muslims, over what or who these categories represent. Parsing such distinctions is often unnecessary (for example, a piece about the experience of Muslims at airports would most likely include a range of voices, not just one group).

But in this story, where theology was central, it was important to identify Yasir’s religious orientation and following. I made clear that Yasir calls his community “orthodox,” but that label is also claimed by other groups, including traditionalists. By the same token, “conservative” is a broad category under which distinct groups fall. My understanding – from extensive interviews with Yasir, other clerics, many of his students and academic experts – is that his teachings continue to be based in the theology of Salafiya. I do believe the piece made clear that this movement is diverse and still evolving. I also understand why some people feel there is a distinction to be drawn between the label itself – which carries a stigma – and the theology upon which it is based.

I hope that sheds some light on my process as a journalist. I welcome any more feedback.

Sincerely,

Andrea

Andrea Elliott
The New York Times
620 8th Ave.
New York, NY 10018

Secondly, MuslimMatters has received numerous complaints from our readers regarding the quality and tone of the comments posted on our site. Our readers are telling us that our moderation policy is too lax, and that we are allowing comments that reflect poorly on the Muslim community as a whole, and upon our readership and niche in particular. I must confess that this ‘lax’ policy was mine – most of the other MM staff had wanted to delete comments that were crude or sarcastic, and I overruled that because I believe that we need to allow people to express their opinions. However, based on the feedback that we have received (and I have even had non-Muslim readers tell me this personally), MuslimMatters has decided to change its moderation policy for all future articles. We will be releasing a more detailed statement soon, but in essence only comments related to the topic and reflecting Islamic adab will be allowed. Disagreements are more than welcome (and any fair observer will admit that we at MM allow harsh disagreements), but they must be relevant to the article and not be sarcastic or demeaning.

Thirdly, some of the questions raised by our readers regarding my stances are very relevant. I plan to write about these issues in upcoming articles insha Allah. There is no doubt that what we are doing will cause many eyebrows to be raised, especially in the classical Salafi circles. I understand why this confusion would arise; I understand the hostility that I will have to face from many sectors. In the end of the day, each individual will have to make up his or her own mind as to what and who to follow, and then all of us are accountable for our own actions in front of Allah. For those who would prefer to follow a higher authority without question, I understand the appeal of going to a world-revered scholar and taking his opinions. Alhamdulillah, I have absolutely no problem in any Muslim who chooses this course of action. My only point would be that this person should realize that he is a muqallid, and therefore be content in what he is doing. He should not, then, rise to the level of a debater and debate regarding matters of usool and fiqh and methodology when he has testified that he wishes to do taqlid. Let the scholars debate and argue finer points amongst themselves. And there is absolutely nothing wrong with taqlid – it is a fact of life.

However, for those who do wish to research, even at a minimal level, and do wish to see why I am saying what I am saying, it is only fair to ask them to listen to my lectures, read my articles and (if possible) attend my seminars to get an understanding of what I am preaching. One of the most frustrating things for me is to see critics from within my community criticizing me without even having read my articles or listened to my speeches. They pounce on one or two issues that they feel are certain, and then make a judgment based upon that issue.

I would also like to point out that I am not alone, alhamdulillah, in my efforts. I am surrounded by many other students of knowledge and scholars who, even if they might disagree with me in one or two issues, do not view me as somehow being deviant or opposing the truth. There are many scholars in America, Canada and England whom I interact with on a regular basis and whom I consult in many matters. But because I do not believe in supporting arguments with names of modern scholars (as Ali b. Abi Talib  said, ‘Learn the truth, and you will know its people, and don’t base the truth on people’) I never quote names as a primary proof for my ijtihadi opinions.

It is awkward for me to have to defend my credentials when my religion encourages modesty and humility. It is difficult to respond to charges of ‘Who do you think you are?’ I am a well-grounded student of knowledge, and a specialist in some fields of Islam, with many sins and faults to my name, and I ask Allah to forgive my faults and to guide me and guide others through me. I have studied in graduate schools in Madinah and in America, and the purpose of graduate school is to make you an independent researcher and a professor. At Madinah, in my Master’s level, alhamdulillah I scored the highest grades in the entrance exam in the entire University, and I also ranked highest amongst my graduate peers in all exams and in my thesis. Yet, I was not a Saudi, and at that time only Saudis were allowed to teach. So, in the second year of my graduate studies, the Saudis who scored much less than me became assistant professors at Madinah (where they still teach) whereas, because of my nationality, I could not teach. My only point in saying this is that people need to overcome the mystical status they give to professors and scholars whom they’ve never studied with. It is BECAUSE I have studied with so many scholars, and sat at Sh. Ibn Uthaymin’s feet for a summer, and met Sh. Ibn Baaz, that I can humanize them and respect them with academic respect – which means I see their strengths, and yes, I also see their human weaknesses. Many others give them what I call a mystical respect – whatever they say must be correct, no questions asked.

As I said, I understand the frustration and the anger that some of my stances have caused (and there will be more to come!). I am not asking anyone to blindly follow me, but I will continue speaking what I believe is the truth, and will continue my best to defend it using Islamic arguments. Those who are convinced by these arguments are free to follow them, and those who disagree are also free to disagree.

In the end, Allah will be our judge, and upon Him I put my trust.