Articles

10 Things Every Imam Should Do

First of all: What is an Imam and who should be an Imam?

  • An Imām is someone who leads the 5 daily prayers (Salaah) at the mosque.
  • Ideally he should be a fully-qualified Islamic scholar and a role model for his congregation.
  • He should have a fixed contract with clear aims and objective which can be reviewed regularly.
  • He should be on a good salary in order to be dedicated to his job as community leader.
  • The Imam is accountable to the public.

The Idiot's Guide to the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict

By Irfan Jalil

When was Israel created? Why?

Israel was created in 1948. It gave Jews their own state and homeland for the first time since Biblical times.

When was Palestine created?

The land on which Israel was created was originally Palestine and a part of the Turkish Ottoman Empire. After World War One Palestine was handed over to Britain. Fighting between Jewish immigrants and the native Arabs erupted during the years of British control. The UN divided Palestine into a Jewish state called Israel and an Arab state called Palestine.

Agony Aunt - Making a go of Marriage

This issue we take a break from our usual Q & A with Shaykh Salim Ghisa and instead we bring to you 'The Revival Agony Aunt' section with sister Ruqayyah Waris Maqsood.

Asalamu Alaykum sister. I just got married, and me and my husband are not in good times but the problem is his mother is a controlling person and I am just falling away from him. As things were this bad... someone from my past comes in and I end up loving them.

Agony Aunt - Being faithful in marriage

Dear sister I’m at a very difficult point in my life & require your guidance. I have been married 5 years to a wonderful man (from Pakistan). I am having an affair ... I want to get out of this horrible cycle and be a good wife.

Can you please guide me, I want to be a good Muslim, read namaz (prayers) but I cant stand in front of Allah when I’m such a bad person.

Agony Aunt - Of Bullying and Racism

In my year there are 6 Asians, and nearly every single day, we get a racist comment. We get ganged up on by other years, when there are only 5 of us girls together.

We tell the teachers, write statements and do everything we can, but after a week or two, everything is the same again, and it sometimes feels like the teachers don’t believe us and ignore us.

Before the half term, some yr.9’s videoed us and one ran past and pulled one of our scarves. They only do it coz we’re Muslims and we wear scarves, and sometimes during lessons, the whole class goes against us.

Editorial - Lost

By Sajid Iqbal

My Ummah, those who follow me, the future of their faith makes me worry till I cry. My brothers and sisters in Islam, will they be strong and carry on after I die?

These are the moving lyrics from a nasheed (Islamic song) by Dawud Wharnsby Ali expressing how the Prophet (peace be upon him) was worried about the likes of ME and YOU - his Ummah.

The Ummah is the Muslim world, about 1.6 million of us in the UK from all colours, races, nations, tribe, backgrounds, languages and cultures.

Lower Your Gaze

By Alveena Salim

Easy! Check him out…he must be the fittest boy I've ever seen… lets sit closer to get a better view … Gwaan check him out, but don't be too obvious…

Sound familiar? Its one of the most common topic of conversations in most schools and colleges, "We're only looking, it's minor" is the defensive response of most. However the question arises "Is it really not that much of a big deal?"

The Gift of Youth

The Holy Prophet Sallallahu Alaihi Wa Sallam (Peace and Blessings be upon him) has told us to appreciate five things before they go, one of which is youth before old age. Youth possess phenomenal amount of energy, and if this energy is channelled in the correct way it can guarantee a place in Paradise.

A person is physically and mentally the most active when they are young. It is during this stage in life that they can greatly benefit society around them. The great Mohammad Bin Qasim-Al-Thaqafi, a 19 year-old Arab general from Basra (Iraq) marched into Pakistan by way of Persia and Balochistan with an army of 60,000 men.

What's Our Aim In Life?

What is it that we want out of life? Where are we going? What are we doing? What should we be doing? What is the purpose of Allah (swa) sending us to this world? What exactly is our aim in life?

These are the most fundamental questions that we all need to ask ourselves. People answer these questions in different ways. Some people's aim in life is to collect money, property, to have perfect careers and perfect families, whilst other people desire name, fame and power.

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