Abstract Muslims trying to hold on to their faith in environments hostile to Islam—or to religion in general—often find themselves struggling to achieve a calming sense of certainty for the beliefs they hold...
Conviction
Shari’ah: From Diverse Legal Discourse to Colonial Misrepresentation
Introduction Just over a century after the Prophet’s passing, Ibn al-Muqaffaʿ, the well-known Persian secretary and vizier to the second Abbasid caliph al-Manṣūr, penned his famous Risāla fī al-Ṣaḥāba (Epistle...
“Why Do Bad Things Always Happen to Me?” Breaking the Cycles of Negativity
We cannot solve our problems with the same level of thinking that created them. -Albert Einstein Case Study Muadh is a 52-year-old man who is very well respected in his local Muslim community. On the outside looking in...
Blind Spots: The Origins of the Western Method of Critiquing Hadith
Author’s Introduction A few years ago I was involved in a debate on the radio with a prominent British historian who had recently written a sensationalist book on the origins of Islam. He claimed, in a distinctly...
Devil in the Details: An Analysis of the Dark Side of the Self
Abstract The ability to distinguish between right and wrong is an essential skill in the life of a Muslim. But what makes something good or evil may often come down to a very subtle distinction—the devil really is...
Tracing Transmissions: The Accuracy of Sahih Muslim
Introduction Imām Muslim ibn al-Ḥajjāj’s (d. 261 AH) al-Musnad al-Ṣaḥīḥ al-Mukhtaṣar, better known as Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim, has had an indelible impact on Islamic scholastic discourse and continues to shape the lives of...
Your Lord Has Not Forsaken You: Addressing the Impact of Trauma on Faith
Giving a Voice to Unbearable Pain When you hear the word “trauma,” images of a soldier in combat, holding on to dear life while people all around him are being violently killed, may come to your mind. Or maybe you...
Finding and Following Jesus: The Muslim Claim to the Messiah
I. Jesus عليه السلام and the House of Abraham Divided Christians do not care much when Muslims tell them that the prophets of the Old Testament (Hebrew Bible) are also prophets of Islam. They care a great...
Jesus: A Foundation for Dialogue Between Muslims and Christians
In the name of Allah, the Gracious, the Merciful Abstract Jesus Christ, the Messiah, is the central focus of Christianity, the largest religious group in the world. Jesus عليه السلام (upon him be...
How Islam Spread Throughout the World
Abstract Historians have widely discredited the narrative that the prevalence of Islam in the world today can be explained as a result of forced conversions. Without denying that there may have been some exceptional...
The Divine Wisdom in Allowing Evil to Exist: Perspectives from Ibn Al-Qayyim
Introduction In times of despair, we may start to question why God would allow the Coronavirus and other viruses to spread. While we can consider how the Sahaba responded to a plague for guidance, it may also help to...
Abrogated Rulings in the Qur’an: Discerning their Divine Wisdom
Abstract Abrogation in the Qur’an refers to the phenomenon of a later verse changing or altering a ruling established by a verse revealed earlier, either in whole or in part. Later scholars developed diverging...
