Friday Khutbahs (Sermons) · 19. June 2020
Islam should be the most important thing in the life of a Muslim, the very framework through which a Muslim sees and understands the world. It is critical that Muslims have a clear vision of what Islam represents to them, and a clear understanding of the moral role of the Islamic faith in the context of human history. Human history is marked with constant movements towards human dignity and self-determination, which are always met with resistance. This resistance takes the form of various...
Friday Khutbahs (Sermons) · 15. November 2019
"WHAT GOD EXPECTS FROM US" 15 November 2019 Dr. Abou El Fadl reminds that Allah gave humans the blessing and charge of caring for this earth until the Final Day, when we will be held accountable for how we discharged this obligation. Allah directed us to create divinity on this earth. Allah tells us it is impossible for the Divine to be unjust because God will never allow Godself to be unjust. Injustice, oppression, and tyranny (zulm) is forbidden for God and by God, and thus, apriori, justice...
Friday Khutbahs (Sermons) · 18. October 2019
Dr. Abou El Fadl begins with a reminder that we remain committed to the truth that everything is from Allah, and everything will return to Allah. One of the central narratives of the Quran, that many Muslims learn and often repeat, is Ayat Al Kursi (Chapter 2, Verse 255). It is a monumental reminder of the truth of our existence and our relationship to our Maker. The wisest of Muslims are the ones who reflect even just on this verse, for the amazing amount of insight it yields into our Maker...
Friday Khutbahs (Sermons) · 11. October 2019
Dr. Abou El Fadl reminds that Allah has given us the Shari’ah, a path, a guidance, like a map. So, follow it and do not follow the whims of those who do not know. If you enter into a relationship with the Divine, you will feel the Divine and the Divine will guide you. The unjust are supported by the unjust. The nature of injustice is like an infection. It starts small but grows and extends, and when supported, results in further injustice. It is not just a theological principle; it is a...
Friday Khutbahs (Sermons) · 04. October 2019
Dr. Abou El Fadl reminds us that Allah in the Qur’an gave us Shariah, a path that we are instructed to follow. There are many people who think that Shariah is something as simple as a group of positivistic laws. However, laws that lead to practices are only half the process, because any practice decreed by law must have a purpose. If one is not following these laws with an understanding of why, how it fits in within the Shariah of Allah, then there is a fundamental breakdown. If it was simply...
Friday Khutbahs (Sermons) · 27. September 2019
Dr. Abou El Fadl reminds that the Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) in his persona sums up the entire legacy of the entire line of prophets. He has embodied all of them in his single being as the last and final prophet. All of the prophets came with a singular message to humanity, and it was perfected over a long, protracted educational process about the implications of creation and being God’s creatures. Muslims are told that the Prophet Muhammad perfected the message, and that after the death of the...
Friday Khutbahs (Sermons) · 07. June 2019
Dr. Khaled Abou El Fadl begins by elaborating on the true purpose of Eid, separate and apart from the typical Eid celebrations. He reminds us of the prophetic tradition that the Muslim umma is a body of people who share a belief and conviction and a path; one that is "linked in the fabric of divinity," and that when one part of the body suffers, it should be resonant in the rest of the body. He discusses the very real implications of this tradition, particularly in light of the massacre in...
Friday Khutbahs (Sermons) · 31. May 2019
Dr. Khaled Abou El Fadl marks the last Friday jumu'a of Ramadan 2019 as the demarcation of another Ramadan passed in the historical legacy of Muslims in the world. It is also the Day of Jerusalem. He recalls that the state of Jerusalem is a window into the health of Muslims. He reminds Muslims that Islam is intended to be a liberation theology for human beings, and that so much Muslim suffering taking place today around the world is because there are those who do not wish for this version to...
Circles of Learning (Halaqas) · 12. January 2019
In Part 1 of the Usuli Institute Halaqa, before jumping into the Quranic Commentaries (tafsir) on Surah 101: al Qaria, Khaled Abou El Fadl adds more insight and afterthoughts following the previous halaqa on the Meaning, Purpose and Effect of Prayer from 22 December 2018. In the introduction, Director Grace Song shares more insights on what type of people convert to Islam, what they experience in the early stages of conversion, and how to survive the early experiences of being a Muslim convert....
Circles of Learning (Halaqas) · 22. December 2018
Part 1: In this special session at The Usuli Institute, Dr. Khaled Abou El Fadl explains the form and substance of the ritual prayer of Islam, what is known as the "backbone" of the faith, and discusses the meaning and significance of each of the component parts: the ablution, the standing, the bowing, the prostration, what is recited and much more. He delves into the deeper meaning, power and purpose of prayer, the way that prayer affects the energy of the space in which it occurs (as well as...