How to relate to the Quran is always an important matter for Muslims, particularly those living in the West. The Quran is supposed to be our constitution, our guidance, and our user manual in life. The last few centuries of mental stagnation, deterioration, and fatigue have taken us away from the original premise to some strange understanding of the way we should relate to "The Book."

Most Muslims today approach the Quran in ways that are contrary to common sense and the purpose of the revelation. For example, most Muslims only stress the proper way of recitation (the science called "Tajweed"), while neglecting the proper understanding of the Quran's meanings. Others read the text superficially by tongue, but without heart and mind. Others focus on memorization, while overlooking the Book's guidance. Some even hang Quranic verses on their walls, or under their pillows, and in their cars for "protection" to the point of superstition.

So what are the proper ways to relate to the Quran, to connect with it, be fully involved, and sense its total relevance and timeless guidance? The Companions of the Prophet (God be pleased with them) were the first group of people who followed the Quran. The Quran transformed them, and in return, they transformed the society around them, and in fact, the whole world.

"After them came their successors who deserted the Quran," says Sheikh Yousuf Qardawi in his book, "How Should We Interact with the Magnificent Quran?" (title translated). "They preserved its words but lost its injunctions. They understood it poorly. They did not put first what the Book puts first. They did not put last what the Book puts last ]stressing on priorities[. They did not give eminence to what the Book gives eminence to. They did not belittle what this Book belittles. There is no deliverance for this Ummah from its loss, backwardness, and ruin except by turning back to this Quran. We must make the Quran as the guide and the leader."

When relating to the Quran we need to understand that the message of the Quran is both simple and complex. Its simplicity is rooted in its ability to individually address the believing heart. Open any page of the Quran and read in your own language, and you can understand the general message and feel what is relevant to you in that message. At this level, the Quran is simple and universally accessible. Each person finds in its message, filtered through the prism of his or her personal experiences, through their own eyes, knowledge, joy, pain, triumphs, and setbacks. At this level, the message requires "no intermediary." It is like dialogue that exists between the Quran and its reader.

However, the Quran can be also quite complex at another level, especially when we need to properly understand the legal, social, and moral implications of the message.  Here, the challenge is "to derive the Islamic prescriptions that govern matters of faith, of religious practice, and of its fundamental precepts," as Dr. Tariq Ramadan says in one his essays.

What is needed is a deeper understanding of the whole message, the circumstances of revelation, a deep knowledge of Arabic language (including its early poetry), grammar, rhetoric, logic, and knowledge of the Meccan and Medinan verses. We need to know when the Quran speaks in general and when it is detailed and specific. It's vital to learn how the Prophet and the Companions understood its message and applied it, as well as the ways early scholars understood the text and reconciled it with reason and the Sunnah.

But all of this requires a final, critical tool: sincerity, deep belief, and profound spirituality that connects between the heart and the mind. This connection opens the door to a faithful and deep understanding of the Quran's guidance.

In our day, the need for a deeper reading of the Quran has perhaps never been greater, for there has never been a greater discrepancy between our society now and the society that witnessed the original revelation. There is a tremendous need to harmonize between the text and our context.

If we Muslims are able to reconnect to the Quran, relate to it, understand it properly with open hearts and open minds, understand our times and our societies, and are able to apply the right medicine to the right symptoms, then we will succeed in relating to our Divine message. Our lives, our communities, and society will be transformed.

Dr. M. Zaher Sahloul
 
 

Summer is in full swing, and so are the summer programs in the Mosque Foundation.  With something for every member of the family, summer vacation can be both fun and beneficial.

Everyone always enjoys the Mosque Foundation Annual Family Picnic, and this year, even a few Sunday afternoon summer rain showers couldn't dampen the fun!  Over one thousand men, women, and children (not to mention ponies and reptiles!) came out to enjoy the great barbeque, fun children's rides and games, a reptile show, pony rides, and even a basketball tournament.

The education of our children is always a priority, and finding proper outlets for free time during the summer vacation can be challenging.  The Mosque Foundation is proud to offer two summer school camps for boys and girls.  The Summer Quran School offers Quran memorization, character building lessons, fun outings and field trips, and many other beneficial activities, every Monday through Thursday from 9 AM-12 PM.  The Mosque Foundation Community Center Summer Camp also offers beneficial learning programs and outings for boys and girls, every Monday through Thursday afternoons and Saturdays.

Another traditional summer activity is the Deep River Water Park trip for women and girls.  This year's much anticipated trip took 26 busloads of sisters, anxious to enjoy a little fun and sun in a private setting without worrying about their modesty being compromised.  Each year Al-Siddiq Weekend School Mother's Club rents the park and organizes the event.
 

The Mosque Foundation has truly been blessed with so many dedicated individuals who volunteer their time in different capacities.  Many are well known and recognizable by everyone, while the majority of our volunteers are content to work unseen, behind the scenes.  Jamila Ziadah is no less than a one woman dynamo in the tireless work she does in the Mosque Foundation Community Food Pantry.  Jamila comes in every weekend for hours at a time to single handedly unpack and shelve dozens of boxes of food and prepare all the bags for distribution to the needy on Monday morning.  This is no easy task, and it's hard to imagine this petite woman climbing up and down the ladder to lift 50 pound boxes like a pro.  Jamila also sorts and categorizes the food products on the shelves for easy access, and keeps a close watch on product's expiration dates and ingredients which may not be halal for consumption.

"I volunteer strictly for the sake of Allah, and I believe that a volunteer should ease the way for everything to run smoothly," Jamila reflects, "I feel responsible for what I do, so even if I am tired or sick, I still have to come and try to do the best job I can do."  Jamila is a widow, proudly holding her family together, and also attending college.  "I don't worry much because whatever I need always comes to me.  Allah is the Provider."  This is the belief Jamila lives by, and she is truly an inspiration to all.  May Allah bless sister Jamila Ziadah and her family, and all the dedicated volunteers.
 

In a well-known hadith, we learn that one day, the Prophet (God's peace and blessings be upon him) was walking with his wife and passed by a group of his Companions. The Prophet stopped and told them the woman accompanying him was indeed his wife. He did this so that no one would suspect anything ill of him, like consorting with a strange woman.

The Companions told him that they would never suspect anything evil of him, but then the Prophet said that it is important to block the possibility of suspicion, for Satan endeavors to whisper evil thoughts in people by any means necessary and that Satan can flow in the veins of the Children of Adam with ease.

This hadith reveals something about one of Satan's goals and methods. Satan craves to create dissension between people, even those who know one another well, whether they are life-long friends, spouses, siblings, neighbors, colleagues, parents and children, or even casual acquaintances. His method is to construct suspicion by using facts and aiming them toward an evil conclusion. It was a fact that the Prophet was walking with a woman. It was a fact that it would not be customarily possible to be sure who the woman was, given her mode of dress. Applying these "facts" Satan can whisper into one's mind false assumptions. In other words, he creates the seeds of suspicion from the material of observable facts. Also, it reveals the reality that Satan can indeed whisper ideas and create false thoughts about people, and more paramount, false notions about religion, namely lies about Allah, the Prophet (peace be upon him), the Quran, and the need to cling to their teachings.

The hadith speaks of our obligation to prevent suspicion, and it shows how to do so when the possibility presents itself. In this case, the Prophet took the initiative and blocked the opportunity for suspicion to take footing.

But there is another side to this hadith that is often neglected. The Companions told the Prophet that they would never think anything ill of him and that they would not suspect him. We should believe them. The Companions were of high character and spiritual maturity, so they would naturally prevent suspicion from entering their hearts in the first place. We are not like that. For some reason, we are attracted to suspicion and rumor.

We live in a day in which suspicion is the meat of the media, an essential nutrient, the glue that attracts its audience. Even in our personal experiences, each one of us can recall episodes of our own suspicion and can relate to the fact that suspicion is a terrible product of the human mind that has damaged relations. Not a single person reading this has escaped being caught with false ideas of another person. We all know how it feels. We remember the shame of it and the potential or real damage suspicion can afflict on otherwise beautiful relationships with friends, relatives, and spouses. Scholars have said that suspicion is like "ghiba," that is, backbiting or slandering another person. They say that suspicion lodged in the heart may easily affect one's thoughts about others. This is forbidden. And a hadith states, "Beware of a bad opinion ]about others[ because it is the most false of speech."

Suspicion is something that does not go away by itself. It requires address, and better yet, proactive measures. Scholars in the science of the purification of the heart have said that "knowledge" and "purity of heart" deter suspicion and make its presence unwelcome. They lead people to good deeds and good thoughts. The chief elements of "purity of heart" are regular and frequent engagements in the remembrance of Allah and attachment to learning about His religion, for these things build one's psychological security which sweeps away the fuel of suspicion.   

While most graduation ceremonies have already passed, many students who recently graduated are preparing for the coming fall semester to seek higher education, or perhaps embark on a new career.  The Mosque Foundation recognizes the effort and hard work involved to attain this grand achievement: graduation, the end of one phase, the beginning of the next.  Each year, a special program is held in honor of the most recent graduates, to publicly congratulate them and present them with a small gift on behalf of the Mosque Foundation.

This year's event took place on Saturday, June 28, 2008, as graduates from various levels of education, from many different public and private schools and universities, gathered with family and friends to celebrate their 2008 graduation.  The audience listened to reflections from each graduate level about the importance of education and giving back to the community. Speakers were Raed Shaban-Middle School Graduate; Razan Dafalla-High School Graduate; Ahmad Salah-Bachelor's of Arts Graduate; Faten Assria-Master's of Arts Graduate; and Dr. Lamies Abuakar-Pharmacy Doctor Graduate.  Imam Jamal Said was present to offer some words of wisdom and inspiration to the graduates and their families.  A special thanks to all of our inspiring speakers and also to our equally inspiring MC for the evening's program, Amin Elsaeed.  Our prayers are with you, and may Allah bring you success in this life and the next.

The Mosque Foundation congratulates the graduates of 2008!

Upper Graduates:
Areej Abbasi, BS, Olivet Nazarene University
Ahmad Salah, BA, Northwestern University
Ahmad Abuakar, BS, DePaul University
Ameen Mohamed, BS, DePaul University
Hiba Mizyed, BA, St. Xavier University
Khalil Qato, BA, University of Chicago
Ahmed Ateyat, BS, Northern Illinois University
Joanna Beituni, BA, St. Xavier University
Ahlam Hassan, BS, DePaul University
Faten Assria, MA, Concordia University
Muhammed Alaraj, MS, St. Xavier University
Dr. Lamies Abuakar, Pharm.D, UIC College of Pharmacy
Haneen Abbasi, Ed.S, National Louis University
Ranya Elkhatib, MS, DePaul University
Halh Ismail, BS, UIC
 
High School:
Amean Amra, Universal School
Houcine Droueche, Steven Mother High
Abeer Alkolagi, Amos Alonzo Stagg High
Almaz Abusafa, Amos Alonzo Stagg High
Amal Yousef, Amos Alonzo Stagg High
Rula Alawaid, Amos Alonzo Stagg High
Niveen Hilal, Carl Sandburg High
Fatemeh Alsharbini, Amos Alonzo Stagg High
Wala Kisswani, Amos Alonzo Stagg High
Heba Khamis, Reavis High School
Leena Yousef, Amos Alonzo Stagg High
Wedad Yassin, Aqsa School
Amin Elsaeed, Universal School
Razan Dafalla, Amos Alonzo Stagg High
Narimane Sadoun, CPSA
Fidah Mizyed, Aqsa School
Tasniem Musa, Aqsa School
Aiea Mizyed, Aqsa School
Ata Alaraj, Carl Sandburg High
Saba Ottman, Carl Sandburg High
Abdulrahman Aduib, Amos Alonzo Stagg High
Abdulraoof Aduib, Amos Alonzo Stagg High
Khalil Hassan, Universal School
Reem Elayyan, Universal School
Dalia Al-Ramahi, Aqsa School
Azkar Hussein, Aqsa School
Haneen Yassin, Universal School
Houdaifa Amrouch, Argo High
Nadia Ahmed, Universal School
Ilham Abuzaghleh, Alan Shepard High
Hanan Ali, Amos Alonzo Stagg High
Mohamad Hadidi, Carl Sandburg High
Ibrahim Ghusein, Universal School
Zacharea Katerji, Universal School
Tasmiah Khan, Universal School
Lubna Al-Tawil, Harold L. Richards High
 
8th Grade/Middle School:
Islam Salhab, Conrady Junior High
Maram Jaafar, Kennedy Middle School
Raed Shaban, Grissom Middle School
Mohammad Abuakar, Jerling Junior High
Meriem Sadoun, CPSA
Suhaib Khalil, Wilkin's School
Sienna Ottman, Palos South Middle School
Sajida Rahman, Universal School
Iman Abdallah, CPSA
Rafif Abuzaghleh, Prairie Junior High
Ilyes Hammadi, Universal School
Noor Elayyan, Aqsa School
Akram Husein, Liberty Junior High
Samyah Beituni, Aqsa School
Sohib Boundaoui, Universal School
Tarmim Khan, Universal School
Shimaa Alrashadeh, Conrady Junior High
Ahmad AbuAlleil, Palos South Middle School
Ameen Hadidi, Jerling Junior High
Dana Alshamali, Conrady Junior High
 
 

 
 

His name is Sultan Ahmed, like the Blue Mosque in Istanbul.  I have never met him personally, though his name and address have become almost as familiar to me as my own.  I find myself praying for him often, as this total stranger from New Jersey has become such an inspiration to me.

In August 2007, the Mosque Foundation mailed brochures to Muslims all over the United States, detailing our ongoing expansion project and requesting donations.  By the grace of Allah, thousands of donations came pouring in from across the country from Muslims who recognize and appreciate the blessings Allah bestows on those who build a mosque.  Sultan Ahmed received one of those brochures, and he quickly responded with a $5 check and a handwritten note which said, "May Allah bless your noble mosque and accept from this old man this small amount as sadiqah jariya." 

Donations were coming in the mail every day after the first mailer went out, sometimes up to thirty or more per day, from various states, in various amounts, and many came with personal notes and prayers for the success of our beloved mosque.  Over time, the number of donations coming in from out of state decreased, but the consistent donations from a brother in New Jersey kept coming on a weekly basis, sometimes even twice a week, and continues until now.  Brother Sultan Ahmed always includes a handwritten note with his donations, offering his prayers for the Mosque Foundation, apologizing for the small amounts he can spare, and asking for more self-addressed envelopes so he can continue to send more. 

Aisha (may Allah be pleased with her) narrated that the Prophet (PBUH) said, "O people, do only those good deeds which you can do, for Allah does not tire (of giving reward) until you get tired, and the best deeds to Allah are the consistent ones even if they are small.

Since August 2007, Sultan Ahmed, a man who has never even seen the Mosque Foundation other than through an artist's rendering in a random brochure, has donated over $500 toward expanding our beloved mosque, from his consistent weekly donations of $5 or $10.  Little things do add up.  This humble, self described "old man" is an inspiration for us all, and I ask you to remember his name in your prayers and ask Allah to multiply his deeds on the Day of Judgment, as I do.  May Allah accept his deeds, and our deeds, and never let us falter in consistency.  Ameen.

Everyday we write something, whether a list of some kind, a small note, or a book. The process of writing is a wondrous ability that we humans enjoy. But let's look at what the instrument of writing is called in the Quran and look at its meaning.

"Qalam" is the Arabic word for "pen," the instrument through which we write. There are thousands of different styles and colors and shapes of pens, and they range in cost from a dime to several thousand dollars. Some are made of wood, some plastic, and some of pure gold, among these you'll find some studded with diamonds. Whatever form they may take, the pen remains an enduring symbol of communication, the means by which thoughts, ideas, and information are moved from one source to its recipients, a system that God created for us. It's also the way by which He lets His creation know His will.

So important is the "pen," God Himself makes an oath with it in defense of the Prophet's soundness of mind and tremendous character: "Nun. By the Pen, and what they inscribe, you are not ]O Muhammad[, by the grace of your Lord, a madman. And yours shall be an unfailing reward. And you indeed are of tremendous character" (Quran, 68:1-4). According to commentators of the Quran, God's choice of swearing "by the pen" here is actually quite profound. The pen, in the visible and unseen realm, serves several important functions: The pen records, at the hands of angelic scribes, the deeds of people, whether the deeds are big or small. Nothing of what we do (physically or mentally) escapes the inscription of the pen ("Then the Book ]of deeds[ will be set out, and you will see the sinners frightened of what it holds. And they will say, 'Woe to us! What kind of book is this! It omits nothing small nor great, but all is accounted for!' They will find all that they had ever done displayed before them, and your Lord will wrong no one" (Quran, 18:49)).

The "pen" is also applied to all the decrees of God, which are infinite, beyond enumeration: "And if all the trees on earth were pens, and the sea ]were ink[ with seven more seas to supply it, the words of God could not be exhausted. Indeed, God is Mighty, Wise" (Quran, 31:27). The "words" of God alludes to God's knowledge, power in determining the affairs of all things, known to us and unknown (whether in the earth, in our lives and bodies, or in the deepest caverns of the land or the distant planets and stars, or any of the unseen planes of existence known only to God).

"Say, 'If the sea were ink for the words of my Lord, the sea would surely run out before the words of My Lord would ever run out, even if we brought another one like it for replenishment'" (Quran, 18:109). A Quran commentator said about this verse, "However astonishing and far-reaching the narratives granted in Scripture may be, they are less than a drop in the ocean, for His attributes, wisdom, and knowledge are without limit." The very first revelation of the Quran mentions the pen as among the blessings of God: Read in the name of your Lord who created; He created man from a clinging clot. Read, for your Lord is the Most Generous, who taught by the pen, who taught man what he did not know (Quran, 96:1-5). The original meaning of "qalam" in Arabic is "pruning" or "cutting" something out from something bigger, as in trimming a tree or bush or cutting one's nails.