Fiqh of Minorities : Modern Problems, Timeless Solutions
In the late 20th century, the issue of fiqh al-aqalliyat, or Islamic jurisprudence, for Muslim minorities became a mainstream topic with the advent of Dr. Yusuf Qaradawi’s work, may Allah have mercy upon him, although the topic had been addressed before him.
Many questions arose regarding Muslims and their seemingly slow inability to simply assimilate to America and American values. Why can’t we integrate as fast as mother minorities? Why do we eat certain foods? Why do we dress a certain way? And those questions became answered, there was pushback. Are watering down our religion? Are we compromising values for the sake of fitting in with society? Are we letting society dictate our belief system?

But this is not a new issue. Since the time of the Prophet (S) until our time, Muslims have always run into opposing ideologies and values wherever they went. It’s nothing new for Muslims to engage with modern thoughts and philosophies. It happened merely 150 years after the Prophet (S) when Muslims confronted Greek philosophy which gave rise to different schools of thought among Muslims. Some Muslims attempted to integrate those philosophies into Islam, some tried to explain those philosophies through the lens of Islam, and some stood firm with orthodox Islam such as Imam Ahmad bin Hanbal.
Therefore, it’s not new that Muslims are engaged with different thoughts and concepts in lands where Muslims are the minority. It’s the same story, in a different time and place.
Likewise, it’s the same Islam, in a different time and place. Hence the theme for this year’s Intensive Knowledge Retreat: Fiqh of Minorities – Modern Problems, Timeless Solutions.
Our speakers will address modern day issues and challenges unique to American Muslims. This year we are blessed to have our returning speakers including Usthadha Zaynab Ansari, Sheikh Suleiman Hani, Dr. Omar Suleiman, and Sheikh Yasir Fahmy. We are also delighted to have, for the first time, Dr. Yasir Qadhi.
With this powerhouse of preachers and teachers, we will address controversial and mainstream issues that Muslims in America face. Such issues include, but are not limited to student loans and mortgages, issues with salah in public or at work, work functions where alcohol or other problematic matters arise, issues with hijab, identity politics, issues of morality and sexuality, etc. We will also explore how such rulings are derived. Ultimately, we will learn how the Muslim identity challenges the status quo while remaining firm, unapologetic Muslims.
Register NOW
SPEAKERS
YASIR QADHI
Dr. Yasir Qadhi joined East Plano Islamic Center as a resident scholar in July 2019. He completed his primary and secondary education in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. He graduated with a B.Sc. in Chemical Engineering from the University of Houston, after which he was accepted as a student at the Islamic University of Madinah. There, he completed a second Bachelors degree, specializing in Hadith studies, and then went on to complete M.A. in in Islamic Theology from the College of Dawah. He then returned to the United States, and completed a PhD in Religious Studies from Yale University.
He is currently the Dean of Academic Affairs at the Islamic Seminary of America, and the Resident Scholar of the East Plano Islamic Center.
Dr. Yasir Qadhi has authored several books, published academic articles, and appeared on numerous satellite and TV stations around the globe. His online videos are some of the most popular and highly-watched Islamic videos in English.
Zaynab Ansari
Zaynab Ansari has served the Muslim Community of Knoxville since 2014 as a scholar-in- residence, public speaker, facilitator of interfaith dialogue, youth mentor, and a full-time instructor at Tayseer Seminary. She has over ten years of experience as a student and teacher of traditional Islam in various settings, having spent her formative years studying in Damascus, Syria with both male and female scholars of Qur'an, Islamic law, theology, and spirituality. Prior to settling in Knoxville, Ustadha Zaynab was based in Atlanta, where she earned degrees in World History and Middle Eastern Studies from Georgia State University, and dedicated her free time to volunteering with the Islamic Speakers Bureau of Atlanta, which honored her with the Georgia 40 Under 40 Muslims award in 2016.Ustadha Zaynab travels throughout the United States, speaking on issues of concern to the North American Muslim community at various forums, including ALIM, ICNA, and ISNA. She has also contributed to online Islamic portals and print publications including SunniPath, SeekersGuidance, Azizah Magazine, MuslimMatters, and the Muslim 500.
YASIR FAHMY
Shaykh Yasir began the study of Arabic and Islamic Sciences in his high school years under the guidance of local teachers. At the age of seventeen, he traveled to Amman, where he spent a year studying at the Islamic University of Jordan. He returned to the US and completed a Bachelor’s of Science from Rutgers University. After working in corporate America for three years in finance, he returned to the Middle East and enrolled in the prestigious Al-Azhar University in Cairo. After seven years of intensive study, Shaykh Yasir received a degree in Islamic Studies from Al-Azhar and attained numerous ‘ijazas (independent certifications) in the subjects of fiqh, hadith, aqida, usul al-fiqh, sirah, tazkiyyah, mantiq, Arabic grammar (nahu), morphology (sarf) and rhetoric (balagha). In 2013, Shaykh Yasir Fahmy became the first American Azhari to teach in the renowned Al-Azhar Mosque. Through his teaching, lecturing, mentorship, and religious leadership, Shaykh Yasir aims to foster love for the deen and appreciation of the vast richness of Islamic tradition in new generations of American Muslims. Alongside his religious studies, Mufti Kamani was blessed with having the opportunity to study the secular and academic sciences. He completed his graduate degree in Business Management from the University of Coventry in England as well.Mufti Kamani currently resides in Dallas, TX with his wife and four children. He serves as an Imam and is on the Board of Directors for the Islamic Association of Carrollton (Masjid Al-Rahman). He is also an instructor for the Qalam Institute.
SULEIMAN HANI
Imam Suleiman Hani is the Director of Academic Affairs at AlMaghrib Institute, a research scholar for Yaqeen Institute, a resident scholar at the Islamic Cultural Association, and an adjunct lecturer at the Islamic Center of Detroit. At the age of 14, Suleiman completed a 10-month Qur’an memorization program and began his intensive studies under numerous scholars, earning dozens of traditional religious certifications in the process. He later earned a master’s degree from the University of Jordan’s College of Shari’ah, ranking first in his class, and a master’s degree from Harvard University, where he studied religions, philosophy, political science, and psychology. Over the past decade, he has served as an Imam and community leader in Michigan, lectured in dozens of countries, published a number of books and articles, and was featured on the largest Islamic TV stations worldwide.
TESNEEM ALKIEK
Tesneem obtained her undergraduate degree in Early Christianity and Islamic Studies from the University of Michigan. She went on to complete her Ph.D. in Islamic Studies at Georgetown University with a focus on Islamic law. Tesneem currently serves as the Director of Expanded Learning where she works with her team to create curricula and other resources for communities to engage with Yaqeen’s research. She is also a Lecturer in the Department of Philosophy and Religion at Rutgers University-Camden.

Yasir Qadhi

OMAR SULEIMAN

ZAYNAB ANSARI

SULEIMAN HANI
ESSENTIAL AXIOMS:
We will enter the KR with the following important presumption which help how to address the issue:
-
Hadith is the main source of Islamic knowledge & Shariah second to none but to the Quran.
-
No Muslim should ever reject something they know the Prophet (S) authentically said, did or approved. If the Prophet (S) was in front of them, they’d accept it.
KR COURSE MAIN COMPONENTS:
-
The sciences of hadith are technical and can become very dry, and the goal of the KR is for the audience to have a general understanding of sciences of hadith, without getting bogged down by the minutia.
-
While discussing the sciences of hadith real-life scenarios will be covered as related case studies for lessons learnt.
-
We will discuss in two to three lectures the following basic hadith topics "Definition of hadith & its sciences, brief history of hadith compilation, classification of hadith".
-
Next lectures will focus on 3 sources of doubt related to hadith and how to dispel them:
-
SOCIETAL DOUBT
It’s coming from what they heard their family and friends say; for example, people might say things like “hadith are nonsense, shuyookh are trying to control things, all you need is the Quran, etc.” This rhetoric is often a tactic to escape certain fiqh issues that would problematize their own lifestyles. And they’ll attempt to bolster their argument by saying, “just follow the Quran,” when in reality they say this because they believe the Quran is more lenient than hadith, and they can ultimately do things they want to do either because Quran did not mention it or the Prophet (S) forbade it but they can question the authenticity of relating it to the Prophet.
-
INTELLECTUAL DOUBT
One of these doubts is to believe it’s simply not possible to accurately transmit hadith as it is transmitted by chain (e.g. I heard this person, who heard from this person, that the Prophet (S) said…). The teacher’s goal is to intellectually and factually reassure Muslims that the science of hadith is indeed a robust, credible science.
-
COGNITIVE DOUBT
They don’t doubt the sciences of hadith. Rather, there are some hadith that are controversial and this leads to doubting the hadith tradition as a whole. For example, they may assess a hadith that is difficult to reconcile. They will have trouble believing the Prophet (S), the most perfect human being, would ever say such a thing on various matters or do such a thing. The doubt in one hadith then causes doubt in several other hadith. And it leads to questioning the need for hadith. Therefore, it is important to have a session or two titled, “Did the Prophet (S) really say that?” It’s important for the speakers of the IKR to address the controversial hadith by quoting what classical scholars said centuries ago, because you will find differing opinions amongst scholars regarding such hadith. This will lead the audience members to realize that such hadith are in fact not controversial. And another lecture will address how to approach such controversial hadith. Ultimately, the goal is when Muslim says or feels, “I’m uncomfortable with this hadith,” the speaker can help the Muslim go from feelings of doubt to the affirmation of “we hear and we obey.”
Break
Lunch + Dhuhr
Asr
Maghrib
Open Q&A
Break
Lunch + Dhuhr
Asr
Maghrib
Open Q&A