03. October 2023
Muhammad, the Child, Chapter 60, The Search for Beauty in Islam: A Conference of the Books
By Khaled Abou El Fadl I call upon the Conference and I hear agonized wailing answer my calls. Where are you my Conference—where is the sanguine voice of reason and the flirtatious melody of beauty? Where is the resonance of your words and the power of your belief in humanity? I implore you talk to me, my Conference. I am God’s slave—I am your faithful son and the lover of beauty. Don’t leave me gasping, frightened, and mummified by this merciless doubt. I want to devour words and...
29. June 2020
AOA, May Allah give you the reward for trying to wipe out hatred from the hearts of people. Recently, I've been facing some issues. I'm 15 years old and I always try to be a good muslim...I care for animals, try to donate to poor, speak against islamophobia. After seeing the suffering and pain of animals, I've decided to go vegan. Animals are conscious and worship Allah. According to my thinking (please correct me if i'm wrong), we do not have right to take the life of a creature made by Allah....
23. January 2019
Salaam Alaikum Sheikh. I wonder if you can help me with an issue I have inshAllah. Recently my husband spoke to me about possibly entering into a muttah marriage with another woman. I feel very strongly that polygamy wouldn't work for us no matter what way he does it. It has left me anxious and find myself constantly worrying about what his plans are. Is muttah marriage permissible? Can he do it without me knowing? It feels so wrong to me on so many levels. Any advice would be greatly...
23. January 2019
Dear Professor, Conference of the books is one of my favorite books about Islam. My father gave it to me, and for that I’m eternally grateful. I’m wondering if I could get your religious perspective on the issue of animal end of life. Your views on dogs in Islam is compassionate and knowledgeable. My very senior cat who has been with me 18.5 years is at the end of her life. The Vet discussed euthanasia, but is a Buddhist herself, and understands the Muslim perspective against euthanasia....
12. November 2018
The rulers of Saudi Arabia derive much of their legitimacy and prestige in the Muslim world from their control and upkeep of the Grand Mosque and the Kaaba in Mecca and the mosque of Prophet Muhammad in Medina. King Salman, like the rulers before him, wears the title of the “Khadim al-Ḥaramayn as-Sarifayn,” which is translated as the “Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques” or, more precisely, “The Servant of the Two Noble Sanctuaries.” Despite the humility of the royal title, the...
15. October 2018
Jamal Khashoggi was an educated, enlightened, mild-mannered man ― and at this point, there is little doubt that the Saudi regime has abducted and murdered him. But the sad reality is that Khashoggi is not the first, and probably will not be the last, to be forcibly disappeared by the Saudi regime. The Saudi regime has abducted critics and opponents from numerous countries, including Switzerland, Germany, Italy, Morocco, and Egypt. When the Saudi regime is unable to lay its hands on its...
31. July 2018
With permission, we republish here a kind letter received by Dr. Abou El Fadl in response to the Tariq Ramadan writings.
19. July 2018
In attempting to publish his opinion, "On the Tariq Ramadan Affair", Dr. Abou El Fadl submitted the piece to eight media organizations. The only outlet that agreed to publish it was OpenDemocracy.net on 17 July 2018, after which it was circulated widely. After only one day, on 18 July 2018, OpenDemocracy.net substantially censored the article without Dr. Abou El Fadl's knowledge or permission. As a result, Dr. Abou El Fadl asked for his piece to be removed from the OpenDemocracy.net site. The...
17. July 2018
Asalamu Alaykum Sh. Khaled, Ramadan Karim, and I pray you are in good health. I wanted to reach out about a question. We are considering buying a house of our own in the area. The issue of mortgage and interest came up. I wanted to know your position on the matter. Our sense is that a lot of the Islamic loan providers end up essentially mimicking the system, and end up being less advantageous/affordable than the mortgage system as it is. Is it alright, in your judgement, to take a mortgage out...
17. July 2018
Law And Ethics in the Islamic Normative Tradition The Encyclopedia of Islamic Bioethics, Oxford University Online by Khaled Abou El Fadl Introduction There is a wide range of jurisprudential and ethical prescriptions, under the broad rubric of Sharīʿah that apply to ever expanding issues raised by the field of bioethics. The Sharīʿah consists of ethical and legal normative duties and obligations binding to each Muslim individually and to Muslims collectively. The Islamic classical legal...

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