Moons, sighting, witnesses, Observatories, science, naked eyes, Saudi, local, international etc etc.

Yes, Ramadhan must be getting close again.

In Manchester, we're just putting the final touches on the most unified policy possible between at least six of our main Masajid in order to prevent the kind of debacle we witnessed last year. Our decision (which will be for Didsbury, Makki, Cheadle, Altrincham, Rusholme and Cheetham Hill) will be soon announced over the coming weeks.

The science which is known as 'ilm al-tawqeet is something which is seening a bit of a revival due to the absurd controversies between the Ummah over the last few decades. Here is a nice article on it with an excellent reminder for us all to fast the blessed Ayyam al-Beedh - also a good idea from simply a practical point of view in order to prepare ourselves mentally and physically for Ramadhan in 5 weeks time.

5 weeks!? Yikes!

But it all starts over the next six odd days with the need to confirm Sha'ban (here is an excellent account of this blessed month which I urge all of us to read and act upon insha'Allah) first, and below is a useful reminder from Usama Hasan on the issues that need to be considered this year. And Allah knows best.

Dear all,

as-salamu ‘alaykum.

Please try to see the Sha’ban hilal this weekend. According to moonsighting.com, the hilal is expected not to be visible from the UK on Sunday evening (4th Sept), but to be visible on Monday evening. There will be an ITV film crew coming to Primrose Hill in Regent’s Park, London, on Monday evening to watch us attempting to sight the hilal insha’Allah, as preparation for the Ramadan sighting. Sunset is around 7.38 pm, so the plan is to pray Maghrib in the park - a short prayer, as per the Sunnah, followed by the attempt to see the hilal, which should be visible easily if the sky is clear. Please aim to arrive between 7pm and 7.30pm. Needless to say, if it is cloudy or raining on Monday evening, the attempt will be cancelled and there would be no need to turn up.

The situation is that therefore, Sha’ban in the UK would start on 6th Sept. Now, going by the Taqwim Umm al-Qura and the visibility calculations at moonsighting.com etc., we expect Saudi to begin Ramadan on Oct 4th (although the 5th is a possibility) whilst authentic moonsighters such as Malaysia, Brunei, Pakistan etc. will probably begin Ramadan on Oct 5th. However, since the moon is in the southern celestial hemisphere, the Ramadan hilal will not be visible in the UK until the evening of the 5th, it seems. Therefore, both a local UK sighting as well as completing 30 days of Sha’ban would give us a Ramadan start date of 6th October!

Thus, there could be three possibilities for Ramadan:

1- Go by the Taqwim Umm al-Qura and begin Ramadan on 4th Oct; this is likely to happen in Saudi.

2- Go by the crescent-visibility calculations that agree on 5th Sept (Sha’ban) and 5th Oct (Ramadan) for most of the world; this is likely to happen in many Muslim countries and may even coincide with Saudi.

3- If we go by purely local UK sightings, Sha’ban would start on 6th Sept and Ramadan on 6th Oct, since the moon is in the southern celestial hemisphere! (AE: hence meaning that we'd start a full one or two days after everyone else which although problematic in one sense, would still be valid if one follows the opinion that a local sighting is vital. Note that 30 days of Sha'ban would also lead to starting on the 6th of October, and Allah knows best)

ALL THE ABOVE ARE LEGITIMATE IJTIHAD, ALTHOUGH OPTION 2 IS PERHAPS CLOSEST TO TRUTH. PLEASE BE AWARE OF THIS AND STRIVE TO MAXIMISE UNITY & MINIMISE DISUNITY AMONGST UK MUSLIMS, AT LEAST ON A LOCAL LEVEL. WE ARE FACING PROBLEMS FAR MORE CRITICAL THAN THE RAMADAN DATE, WHERE THE MATTER IS MERELY A SYMPTOM OF UMMAH-WIDE, UNDERLYING DISEASES.

(The Umm al-Qura method is legitimate ijtihad, even though it is based on flawed calculations. The crescent-visibility calculations have only matured in the last decade, and sometimes it takes decades or even centuries for new scientific methods and discoveries to become widely-adopted.)

wallahu a’lam, was-salam.

Usama Hasan, UK.

Can the honourable game get any better??

I don't think I can handle any more of this Ashes series; it's just simply phenomenal stuff.



Freddie’s ton, the bowling of Jones, Strauss’s unbelievable diving catch, Hoggard’s swing bowling and fantastic drives through extra cover at the death, and the old git Ashley finally pulling through for us with a deft push through midwicket to secure the win. Fantastic!

But tell me, will we ever see a bowler as great as Shane Warne? What a privilege to witness his absolute mastery of the cricket ball.

And what about the other blondie Brett Lee? What a knockout piece of fast bowling at the end, and what a delivery to bowl Flintoff. Wow.

Reminds me of the classic in the Nineties when the Paks were chasing a handful of runs in the 4th innings against England but suffered a collapse of Pak proportions leaving it to Waqar and Wasim to pull Pakistan through with minutes to go.

Ahhh the days, the days…

Anyway, that’s the good news. Now lets deal with the bad points.

I still reckon Australia are the best team in the world. They are clearly not playing at their best and missing their main man Mcgrath and yet are still taking England (who may never play cricket this good ever again) to the absolute wire every single time.

So England need to sort it out. Get rid of that plum Bell. He can’t bat to save his life so either bring back Thorpe (which I know is a bit of a step backwards) or replace him with Collingwood and gain an extra bowler too. Push Flintoff up the order and rearrange the middle and that should do the trick.

Oh, and we just have to get rid of Geraint Jones. I don’t care who defends him, the guy can’t keep wicket to save his life and one innings doesn’t make up for his seven other failures so far. His standard is simply unacceptable.

But who’s going to replace him? I’m stuck on that one to be honest – any suggestions?

To finish this sports post, don’t think I missed the jammy Scousers in the European not-so-Super Cup win – what an incredible fluke. Cisse should be shot for crimes against finishing.

And keep an eye on the Shayateen al-Ahmar – we’re quietly keeping up with the Blues and this just could be our season…

:-)

I just cannot believe the amount of fuss that has been caused by the Panorama programme last week.

What exactly do Muslims believe that other non-Muslims understand about Islam? Is it really true that we thought it was all some rosy red scene of tranquillity, acceptance and happiness?

Does anyone actually even read the Qur’an anymore?

I think you understand my point – we shouldn’t really expect too much from the way of ever-lasting justice or intimate friendship from any people who totally oppose the very fundamentals of an Islamic belief and lifestyle. The fact that we get on so well with our fellow non-Muslim British citizens is a mercy and the product of much hard work over the years.

But please understand: much of what we Muslims do is considered odd and extreme to the rest of the people in the capitalist world – a fact which is emphasised again and again in the Qur’an and Sunnah; something which only the most naïve of Muslims will reject.

Naturally, the non-Muslims are entitled to that right. Why shouldn’t they be?!

Muslims hold the many beliefs of the non-Muslims to be absolutely reprehensible and extreme, to say the least. Their raising the status of mere mortals to an immortal position, their refusal to submit to the overwhelming and irresistible fact of the Lordship of God, their belief and promotion of promiscuity and lewd behaviour, their this, their that and on and on. These and many other beliefs are considered by Muslims to be unacceptable, extreme displays of behaviour, associated with the implementation of such ideals by force if necessary and in conclusion a crime against humanity and God Himself.

So if we believe all this and then teach our children to be careful from such a danger, is it fair to call other non-Muslims that hold similar opposing views that are critical of us as being bigoted? Muslims are in a glass house, and people in glass houses shouldn’t throw stones.

A prominent da’ee once asked me why I’ve never criticised George Bush’s ‘illegal’ invasion of Iraq. I told him that according to his ‘law’ it might be illegal, but under God’s system, those who deserve power will be given power.

America has worked very hard over the last few centuries to dominate the world – it can now go ahead and do as it wishes, performing Jihad against all its foreign enemies. It has earned that right and I will not criticise them for exercising it. Rather I criticise myself and my fellow Muslims for falling into such a pathetic state of affairs that we allowed this to happen, allowed the shedding of innocent blood and the usurping of holy lands at the hands of foreign aggressors.

But I will not be a hypocrite and blame the US, the Jews or the West. They worked for their power and they can now do as they wish. And let them enjoy themselves for a while for when the Islamic nation returns back to the obedience of its Creator, then and only then will we deserve divine help from God. Then we shall see the state of these thugs. Then we shall see.

I’m getting carried away as usual – back to that Panorama programme.

Naturally some of the rhetoric they come with is dishonest, some just silly mistakes, but equally much of it is correct and demands to be looked at and listened to. Just as we are eager to refute the lies and mistakes of people such as John Ware in his report, we should also be happy and proud to defend what has been reported correctly about Islam and its practice today.

To write off such reporters as liars, Zionists and other such conspiracy theory rhetoric is just another sad illustration of how insecure Muslims are becoming about their faith, wa Allahu Musta’an.

Yes, it is important to correct false notions of authentic Islam created by the zealous exaggerations of the media but more vital is to correct the thought processes of the many Muslims who actually believe that to try and explain our beliefs away as some form of appeasement to the Western secular democracy that governs us will achieve some kind of good result. Nay, the only result is abject humiliation.

But why is it that Muslims just can’t handle criticism?! I said Panorama said it how it was, and indeed much of what they said was correct. Here are a few statements of John Ware from the transcript which are undeniably true…

- Extremism feeds off a conviction that Islam is a superior faith and culture which Christians and Jews in the West are conspiring to undermine.

Correct. And the conviction is also correct.

- Several MCB affiliates do have links to anti-western ideologies from abroad

Correct again. Add this author to that list too. Anything wrong with that? I also have a major link to some pro-western ideologies too; isn’t that what ‘democracy’ is all about?

- I mean, let me say what else he's (Sheikh Sudais) reported to have said, he said: 'There should be no peace with the rats of the world.' Again he refers to Jews as the scum of the human race, offspring of apes and pigs, and he has also referred to Christians as worshippers of the cross.' You don't see Christians in those terms?

Sudais did say that. And many others still say it. Apart from Sudais’s obvious (maybe a bit uncontrolled and Allah knows best) exaggeration, do we not see Christians as worshippers of the Cross? Of course we do! Naturally, some are more extreme than others but in general, that’s what they are, not literally (although Sheikh Hamza Yusuf once gave an excellent lecture explaining their fascination for the macabre nature of the cross itself – intrinsically a form of worship as was suggested), but their religion is signified by the cross, it will be one of the first things broken by ‘Eesa (‘alayhis-salam) on his return, and it is beloved to many ‘extreme’ Christians as a name ie ‘Abd al-Saleeb.

- And idol worship؟ you don't see Hindus as idol worshippers, do you? I'm sure you don't, do you? Do you?

Of course we do. What a shame that Dr Abdul Bari was trying to hide the truth. And so what if we say something which Hindus themselves are proud of?

- I'm not trying to assassinate his (Sheikh Sudais’s) character I'm simply trying to deal with the facts. That's all I'm trying to do.

I believe that was the case. He stated what Sudais had said and wanted his questions answering which the MCB failed miserably to address. Don’t forget, Ware totally opposes what Sudais stands for, and he has that right, especially in his own Christian country for God’s sake! What we need to do, instead of moaning, is to show why we believe what we do about some Jews and Christians etc.

Now, if you really want to see some character assassination, then you might want to buy The Sun or The Express, or The Star maybe? And if you want to see some seriously hardcore character murder, assassination and then eating the dead carcass behaviour then just observe the Muslims trying to discuss something amongst themselves for a few hours on any forum. And if you want to see some real massacres, then try the Salafis versus the Sufis.

- Over the last 20 years, the Saudis have flooded the world with harsher interpretations of the Qur'an, cut price and often free.

What message has this missionary zeal reinforced to Muslims about other faiths?

Professor Neal Robinson: That a Muslim cannot be a genuine friend of a non-Muslim.

For anyone familiar with Saudi, their manhaj, and especially Arabic translation and its science, then it is difficult to disagree with the above statements of Ware and Neal Robinson. The ‘Noble Qur’an’ translation has some strengths and many weaknesses, which is a shame considering there are some very talented Salafi translators out there who have been labeled with much of the poor quality material emanating from ‘Saudi funded Salafiyyah’. And yes, the idea that Muslims cannot have more than cordial relations with non-Muslims under the very misunderstood principle of al-Walā wa l-Barā’ has been propagated in some Saudi and Salafi circles as well as other groups and ignorant people. Sad but true and definitely something we need to work on in correcting here in the West, at the same time preserving our pristine religion.

- One part of its website tells readers their fellow citizens are "Kuffaar". "Be different from the Jews and Christians" "Their ways are based on sick or deviant views concerning their societies؟"

Can any Muslim deny the truth in these issues, however ineloquent and general the form?

- That's a 'Them and Us' culture, isn't it, that's a slippery slope.

It is indeed. We are all British citizens in the UK with loyalty to each other in the basic sense but we are most definitely different in that we believe in Allah and the rest don’t. That is a ‘them and us’ culture whether you like it or not. Doesn’t mean we can’t get on, develop, and progress but it just means we’ll always be different, a difference that we wish wasn’t there but a difference of honour all the same.

I must admit that I’m getting bored with this. There are many more blatantly true statements in the programme – maybe Muslims just didn’t want to hear them? Refuse to acknowledge them? Got too involved in our lovely dunya life to accept them?

And likewise, there is a whole load of rubbish in the programme too. But the rubbish is also good to see, as it illustrates the pathetic nature of some ‘Muslims’ talking on behalf of Islam such as the Oxford ‘Scholar’ on Jilbab, and Neal Robinson on some new-fangled idea of modern day Christians to possibly receive a new reprieve in Heaven?

And I always used to admire Neal Robinson. Still do for much of his stuff. He’s a Muslim by the way.

Then there is the schoolboy error quoting, or maybe something more sinister (or sensationalist more correctly?) from Mawdudi’s book on the Islamic State. The MCB response showed that. Interesting though isn’t it that they couldn’t respond to much else. Because they were facts mate, facts.

And we can go on and on picking all kinds of points from the programme but I hope my point is clear – Panorama told it how it was and that is indeed how it is. We do believe much of what they reported on (and don’t like obviously), there are ‘Muslims’ out there who believe the rubbish and kufr they espouse (I’ve always said, news organizations have never needed to invent or be dishonest about Muslims as we’re already a media dream as we are), and all other lies and mistakes that Ware and his team produced – well, that is also in a general way indicative of the way our non-Muslim society perceives us.

And we need to know that. And the BBC gave it to us.

John Ware is entitled to criticize a belief he doesn’t share – Islam invites him to do so. I don’t feel offended by what he has said, just sad for his ignorance, regretful for his mistakes and misguidance but hopeful that he can benefit me further somewhere else. I can think of a million worse people than John Ware, someone who wasn’t accused of going on a ‘witch-hunt’ and being ‘pro-zionist’ when he exposed the lies of Tony Blair in March 2005 (Panorama: Tony and the Truth), exposed the lies and conspiracy of the government and ‘Zionists’ in January 2004 concerning the death of Dr David Kelly, the same in July 2004 with his expose of the ‘Butler Report’ and last but not least his shocking, award-winning report on the terrorism and assassination policies of the British government in June 2002.

I watched them all. You watched them all. We all benefited through his hard questions and journalistic exaggerations. Have justice when you judge him on our patch too.

As for the claims against the BBC and especially all the calls to complete letters of complaint, fill in petitions and other such bakwas – then this was the main reason which really narked me off the most.

The BBC is a news organization, charged with having to keep the viewer captivated for 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. It reports on those things which interest people – it has learnt over the years that its success is in sticking to these guidelines – that is why it is the most respected news source in the world. Sure, it isn’t perfect, makes mistakes here and there, has a central secular humanist (and therefore intrinsically ‘anti-Islamic’ as such) ideological base, but for a bunch of non-Muslims trying to be fair and just about its sources, it does a remarkably good job.

Why is it that we are suddenly biting the hand that feeds us after just one programme which some of you believe was ‘pro-Zionist’?! Show me a single Muslim outside of Palestine who knows anything about Zionism except that he/she learnt about it from the BBC!

How many Muslims know anything about the affairs of the Muslims in their own countries except that they hear it on the BBC? How do we hear about the emergencies, the famines, the floods, the campaigns, the calls for help except from sources such as the BBC?

And when the BBC’s Panorama exposed the conditions inside Guantanamo in October 2003, was it pro-Zionist then? Was it on a Bush ‘Witch Hunt’? When it told the world the truth of Kosovo, informing many Muslims about what was happening to their brothers and sisters by their lack of action, why was it not ‘pro-Zionist’ then? Informing us of the ‘Halal’ chicken scam in May 2003? And what of exposing Sharon the Criminal in November 2001 in the midst of the anti-Muslim frenzy post 9/11 concerning the Sabra and Shatila Massacres of 1982? I suppose that was pro-Zionists taking down Zionists then?

At the risk of getting carried away again, the sum conclusion of the above is that Muslims need to stop getting ahead of themselves and remember who we are. Moreover, to learn from the mistakes of the Jews is absolutely paramount. The Jewish people, after being genuinely oppressed and shockingly massacred during the Holocaust eventually lost the sympathy of the public at large due to their continual lamenting of their state at that time.

The Muslims must likewise recognize that to keep complaining and whinging about the ideas and propaganda promoted by some enemies and other ignorant people will only backfire – what will all you political activists do when you lose the sympathy of the left as well?

Yes, the ridiculous charges of extremism against all our Islamic beliefs and actions such as the obligation of Jilbab, the reprehensible nature of idol-worship, the superiority of Islam, the crimes of the Jews, the right to defend etc needs to be refuted well and proper. That is for another time and place - ‘In Defence of the Sunnah’ has to be our next effort insha’Allah.

Let it be made clear in the interim: all pathetic and ultimately futile attempts to continue to wash down our Deen in order to appease our ‘Masters’ is a word worse than abject humiliation. I don’t think such a word exists in fact.

He who trims himself to suit everyone will soon himself whittle away.

Less moaning and groaning, only a real active push to promote a true, sincere and natural form of our pure, beautiful religion will better our situation – if not with our neighbours, then at least with our Master, the Lord of Mankind.

End of ridiculously long-winded rant. Webmasters, don’t even think of putting this on any websites out there…

:-)

I've been away from the PC this week but having just read the Panorama transcript, I'd like to request someone to produce a standard letter of non-complaint to the BBC.

I'm sick to the death of my inbox with 'sign this' and 'complain that' and ridiculous claims against the BBC of 'zionist agendas' and 'witch hunts' and the like. How utterly ridiculous.

They told it how it was.

And that's how it is.

Now go and enjoy your Jimas conference while I think of something proper to write.

*walks off angrily and hits knee on desk*

We've much discussed the finer details of the Ijarah contract that has been offered by HSBC Amanah for home purchases in the UK and the scholarly differences between its permissibility.

Here is another interesting comparison by a brother called Abdul Kader Thomas - I have edited it for further clarity and relevance to our situation in the UK - a quite beneficial and interesting piece for further reflection, and Allah knows best. Note that Dr El-Gamal is a brother who is arguing for the permissibility of the normal ribawi mortgage in the US and against the Ijarah scheme.

Yeah, I know...

Please find below a practical analysis of an American mortgage loan (which is very similar to the British system) and some points that demonstrate it to be ribawi (ie interest based).

The mortgage loan process in America works something like this:

1. The consumer goes to a bank or mortgage broker and applies for a loan.

a) The loan, at this point, is unspecific and unconnected to a property.
b) The consumer qualifies for a loan amount based on how much he or she earns and what is his or her credit score; some ratios may be taken into account.
c) The loan is “pre-approved” subject to certain conditions including an appraisal of a property that will secure the loan.

2. The consumer contracts to buy a property.

3. Any loan conditions are met and the property appraised.

4. At the closing the lender funds the money on the consumer’s behalf to an independent party (this is a legal requirement due to fraud in the 1960’s) and the independent party manages the closing; delivering the consumer’s down payment, the loan proceeds and any other requirements to the seller in exchange for title to the property.

5. At the closing, there may be 50 documents, depending upon the state in which the loan is made, three of them are contracts under American law:

a) Contract 1: The Purchase Contract: This is the contract conveying the property from a buyer to a seller subject to specific conditions and for financial consideration, i.e. give me money and I will give you the title.

b) Contract 2: The Promissory Note: This is the evidence of a loan or debt and the maker, Dr. Elgamal in this case, promises to pay a set rate of interest for a specific period. He also promises to pay penalty interest at a specific rate if he is late in making his monthly payments. If he does not pay for three months, the lender will take the note to court in order to seize the property under the terms of the next item.

c) Contract 3: The Mortgage: this is a specific lien on the house mandating specific behavior by the grantor of the security, again Dr. Elgamal. When the note is presented to a court, the mortgage allows for the note holder to seize the property and take the title.

6. Curiously, if Dr. Elgamal wishes and can find the lender, then he can sign more notes and grant second or third mortgages that represent loans far greater in value than his house. These are home equity loans or second (third) mortgage loans.

In summary, Dr. Elgamal contracted to borrow money. The terms of the loan were interest for a specific period; a grant of sufficient security (the house); and an agreement by Dr. Elgamal to pay more interest if he is ever late. The bank did not insert itself into the sales process or title and takes its primary risk on Dr. Elgamal being able to pay with a secondary risk that the value of the house as collateral will be less than the value of the house.

Let’s compare this process to an ijara wa iqtina (which is the HSBC Amanah scheme) transaction, currently not available in Texas where Dr. Elgamal has borrowed money, but with which I am very familiar. For brevity, and I know that this is not brief, I will not discuss the murabaha or declining balance partnership (which is known as 'diminuishing Musharakah' and soon to be adopted by the UK banks) methods.

Dr. Elgamal argues from what is truly the position of an economist that substance trumps form. And, this is certainly why some western regulators have permitted Islamic mortgage alternatives. But, let’s examine an ijara wa iqtina situation in the US. We will find that form alters substance, and in a legal reality changes the rights and obligations of the parties.

1. The consumer goes to a party which offers an Islamic alternative to a mortgage loan. Since we have found that there are greater risks by not working under the banking or mortgaging laws, all parties except the coops in the US are either banks (University Bank, Devon Bank, HSBC) or mortgage banks (Guidance, LaRiba). The advantages are that we comply with consumer protection laws and the consumers seem more likely to earn specific tax benefits if one goes down these routes.

a) As with the mortgage loan, at this point, the Islamic alternative is proposed for an unspecific property.

b) The consumer qualifies in part for a specific amount to be invested in property based on how much he or she earns and what is his or her credit score; some ratios may be taken into account.

- This allows the property investor to be certain that the tenant or occupant can afford to use the property.
- This is not used as a tool to qualify a consumer for loans which secured by property, could exceed the value of the property as often happens in the conventional US mortgage market.

c) The transaction is “pre-approved” subject to certain conditions including an appraisal of a property that will be purchased. The reservation to reject the deal based on a poor property is very strong. I am aware of several cases in which a conventional bank would have made the mortgage loan based on the consumer’s credit (“the property is the consumer’s problem”), but Islamic mortgage alternative providers have declined the deal due to the property risk.

2. If the consumer contracts to buy a property, then the consumer assigns the sales contract to the Islamic investor, which we discussed above is a licensed bank or mortgage lender; a “licensed lender”.

3. Any credit and property conditions are met and the property appraised.

4. At the closing, the licensed lender directly or via a trust or LLC buys the property.

5. The licensed lender in our case of ijara wa iqtina takes a deposit from the consumer and enters into a long term lease of property.

a) The licensed lender directly or indirectly holds title to the property.
b) The consumer pays rent for the use of the property.

6. At the closing, there may be 50 documents, depending upon the state in which the loan is made, two of them are a contracts under Sharia’a and another is interpreted as such under American law:

a) Contract 1: The Purchase Contract: This is the contract conveying the property from a buyer to a seller subject to specific conditions and for financial consideration, i.e. give me money and I will give you title. In the Islamic alternative, this is executed between the original seller and licensed lender. This will never happen with a conventional mortgage loan of money.

e) Contract 2: The Lease: This is a contract to use property in exchange for the payment of rent. There is no default interest if payments are late. All cost of property are part of the rent except maintenance which is waived. Rent covers use, taxes and insurance. The lessor may set aside funds from the rent to be applied to a future purchase of the property.

f) Interpreted as a Contract: Consumer’s Promise to Purchase.

The Sharia’a distinguishes between a promise and a contract. This item exists because the local law facilitates enforcement of promises more than leases (I can go to a judge and seek to sell the property with the lease voided). This creates a means to take back and dispose of the property in the event of a default under a lease, as well as amounting to a pre-negotiated sales contract when the lease terminates, thereby avoiding gharar al kathir.

7. Unlike, Dr. Elgamal’s mortgage, the rights and obligations are different. As a result, the consumer doesn’t own the property and cannot use it with any lender he or she pleases to borrow more money.

The Islamic methods have different rights and obligations compared to traditional mortgage loans. The Islamic methods have distinct risks in the case of a consumer bankruptcy because no US or UK consumer is known to have defaulted up until now in an Islamic transaction. The fact that the consumer does not own the property has meant that some transactions have resulted in cases whereby the consumer has been denied certain grants allowed borrowers in conventional mortgages.

The form is different. The rights and obligations have shifted. The Islamic methods may be less efficient from two perspectives: First, the volumes are low, so pricing is high. Second, because these are not loans of money, they offer access to a home which the consumer may acquire as opposed to access to money to acquire a home. The difference is the basis of payment: money for time or money for the use of property. The former is forbidden riba. The latter is permissible rent.

And, God knows best.

Abdulkader Thomas

Why is that everyone in the world gets married in these few weeks?

I normally don't do weddings so I can't understand why my standards have fallen - in fact most people I know can't stand going to weddings. The last three or four that I've been to in the last month have reminded me exactly why that is - wa Allahu Musta'an.

Maybe I should stick to my normal principle and boycott the lot...

Or maybe people need to just sort out their lives and give us something really to celebrate about instead of us cringing in the corner from embarrassment - either because you're not sure whether you've arrived at a funeral or whether you've entered a fashion-show-club-night bakwas.

In any case, we'll give tomorrow's wedding one more chance to put right the wrongs of the walimah world. Yes, the Reef and Co are putting on the society wedding of the year for 2005 in High Wycombe tomorrow (don't worry, I don't know where that is either) - one of those 'be there or be an Aloo Paratha' jobs.

As for Doc Atique and his new bride then Barakallahu lak, wa baraka 'alayk wa as'alu Allah an yajma'a baynakuma fi l'-khayr.

And Nabeel, Reef or anyone of you guys: no lectures or reminders please. This is a wedding remember?

If I wanted a lecture I'd go to JIMAS.

Or ring my Dad for that matter...

Following on from our lesson, "The Rights of the Scholars and Leaders", here is that picture of the infamous Juhayman - one hopes that many lessons were learnt from his mistakes.

Why is that everyone in the world gets married in these few weeks?

I normally don't do weddings so I can't understand why my standards have fallen - in fact most people I know can't stand going to weddings. The last three or four that I've been to in the last month have reminded me exactly why that is - wa Allahu Musta'an.

Maybe I should stick to my normal principle and boycott the lot...

Or maybe people need to just sort out their lives and give us something really to celebrate about instead of us cringing in the corner from embarrassment - either because you're not sure whether you've arrived at a funeral or whether you've entered a fashion-show-club-night bakwas.

In any case, we'll give tomorrow's wedding one more chance to put right the wrongs of the walimah world. Yes, the Reef and Co are putting on the society wedding of the year for 2005 in High Wycombe tomorrow (don't worry, I don't know where that is either) - one of those 'be there or be an Aloo Paratha' jobs.

As for Doc Atique and his new bride then Barakallahu lak, wa baraka 'alayk wa as'alu Allah an yajma'a baynakuma fi l'-khayr.

And Nabeel, Reef or anyone of you guys: no lectures or reminders please. This is a wedding remember?

If I wanted a lecture I'd go to JIMAS.

Or ring my Dad for that matter...

My body hurts so much at this moment (yes, falling off bikes again as usual), that I thought I'd have a lie-in and do some reading instead. Here are my two totally useless fa'idah bereft discoveries of the day: a fact from PE, and a joke from the Ship of Fools.

Fact

12 Years

The time Robert Kilroy-Silk managed to stay in Labour before falling out with the party and resigning.

9 months

The time Robert Kilroy-Silk managed to stay in UKIP before falling out with the party and resigning.

5 months

The time Robert Kilroy-Silk managed to stay as leader of his own party before falling out with himself - and resigning.

Joke

A priest, a rabbi and an Imam walk into a bar.

The bartender says, "What is this, a joke?"

:-)

Whilst listening on the radio last night to the head of Moray, the leading organisation at polling the population on various issues, I wondered to myself how on Earth is it that out of 1.6 million people they always choose the dodgy lot?

Take for example the question concerning sermons being in English – apparently 65% demanded that the preachers should lecture in English.

Oh really eh?

Let’s be generous and assume that 65% only represents half the Muslims instead of two thirds, so that’s 800,000 Muslims odd. Let’s say half a million for arguments sake.

I want to ask this wonderful lot exactly how much they know about their preachers and what they preach anyway? Are they aware of the stack-loads of circles that go on all week throughout thousands of mosques, community centres, universities, peoples’ living rooms, live online as well as by correspondence?

Of course they are.

So how many of these Muslims requesting all this bakwas actually attend these circles of learning, where they now have an incredible choice in all the Islamic and secular sciences.

Said a certain Sadia Hussein (quoting now from the Beeb) “…from the Muslim Public Affairs Committee, an organisation that has campaigned for reform of mosques - particularly over access for women - "The poll further reinforces the need for 'Mosque reform', acknowledged by many Muslims who are requesting Imams to deliver educational programmes and sermons in English with a wider knowledge of British society and politics."

It’s this kind of rubbish which really freaks me out. It’s as if the Imams, tullab, du’at and others haven’t already been doing this for years and years, with FULL access to women in many many of these circles.

Does our dear Sadia believe that just because a few Jamia-type mosques and some of the big Deobandi centres, because they don’t have such circles in their own mosques, that there aren’t thousands of alternatives all around that particular area?

We are in such a time where there is not a corner of this country that doesn’t have a study circle covering the basic fundamentals of Islam, with access to both males and females. Even the most rural and outlying areas of the British Isles have someone teaching the small local Muslim community, often an Arab doctor or businessman, a middle aged Pakistani or Bengali doctor or any other stereotype you may wish to choose. It will be a true one, you can trust me on that.

And out of these hundreds and thousands of Muslims demanding reforms, how many actually have we seen at the well known recognised circles and events? 'Living Islam' gets a thousand or two, JIMAS pulls in three maybe four thousand? A Hamza Yusuf event might get a maximum of five thousand?

So who exactly are these ‘65% of Muslims’ trying to fool here?

Subhanallah there are so many events and circles these days, that when I receive the Islamic Events and Notices email every week, it takes me half an hour to read through it!

If these chaps are only referring to the Jumu'a sermon then guess what folks? It's not meant to be some espousal of politics catering for our personal tastes and desires - rather it is an opportunity for the Imam to complete an act of 'ibadah on behalf of the community, to give them a reminder of what their Deen demands of them, give them glad tidings of Iman and to warn of the utter loss whch Kufr brings about in ones current temporal life and the Hereafter.

If the Imam decides that means a bit of politics once in a while then fine.

Also, we thought all those thousands of Imams were preaching in Arabic for the fun of it? We don't think they know that the majority of people can't understand Arabic?

So why don't we go out and LEARN it then?! Maybe we can understand a bit more of this book we've been sent to help us be guided!

Do people realise major Imams from the Madhabs don't allow the Khutbah to be in anything other than Arabic? We think the Hanafis are going to change what they hold to be haram (giving the Khutbah in English/Urdu etc) for the sake of some Paks in a Moray poll?

And anyway, loads of these mosques have a 'bayan' before hand - so why don't all these heros come early a little bit?

Shock! Horror! Perish the thought!

How about trying another mosque even? Or is that too far for ones tootsie wootsies? Or is that we'd rather take a Saturday off than a Friday restricting ourselves to the local mosque near work eh?

Grr!

I could go on ranting but I can’t be bothered. Glenn Mcgrath is playing as well so I need to concentrate. No, I'm not in a good mood at all.

What? Did I get out the wrong side of bed this morning?

Yes - too early as well.

And yes – sigh – I did only get a few brothers at the circle yesterday. And NO sisters. Hmph!

:-)

Here is a fascinating interview with Shaykh Muhammad al-Hasan al-Dadaw after the great news of his release.

Interview with Islamtoday

One hopes that it will not detract the wider community from supporting the massive aid effort that will be required in Mauritania to prevent the impending famine wa nas'alu Allaha al-'Afiyah lil jamee'.

Interesting isn't it how some khayr comes from these military coups, even though I was stuck in the middle of one many years ago when I was in the capital Nouakchott - it was simply terrifying. Total and utter chaos.

But it seems that it gets scholars released so that's good. Another way seems to be the death of old kings apparently - King Abdullah seems to have been put in a good mood and hence authorised the release of a few scholars, activists and lawyers in Saudi. Oh, and we get rinsed through ridiculous petrol prices.

That's what you get I suppose for rejecting the Hijrah call and continuing living amongst the Mushrikeen I suppose eh?

;-)

Sacrificing the White Bull


You’ve all heard the story before.

There was a white bull, a red bull and a black bull – oh and a (hungry) lion too.

As they set off on a long and arduous journey together, full of danger due to many obstacles and wild animals along the way, the lion pulled aside the red and black bulls and explained that the white bull, due to the way it stood out so blatantly, should be sacrificed for the long term safety of the group. They both agreed, and the lion proceeded to eat the white bull.

Not too long after, the lion pulled aside the black bull and convinced it that the bright red bull had now become the threat to their safety. And so the red bull was duly eaten.

After a little while, the lion turned to the black bull and said, “My friend, it’s now time for me to eat you.”

The black bull resignedly replied to the lion, “No doubt, for indeed I died the day the white bull died.”

Let no-one be under any illusions that the current governmental decision to ban free political speech from those such as Hizb-ut-Tahrir (HT) and possibly others has a huge ramification for the remaining British Muslim citizens in the UK.

Regardless of the ultimate weakness of the HT methodology, one must understand the premise on which the Lord Chancellor wishes to ban such a party and the free discussion in which they engage the wider public. Essentially, it is the insistence of HT to defend and promote Islamic ideals and principles (some correct and some incorrect), and the fact that they oppose some cherished ‘ideals’ of the Western secular States which has caused this blatant attack on our collective freedom to speak our mind.

The hypocrisy of this entire episode is that the UK claims to be a democracy – allowing the freedom of speech, discussion, debate between all of its members. It would be perfectly understandable if the UK was a theocracy or a dictatorship if it had imposed such restrictions; there would be no argument for indeed that is what we would have signed up to, to live under such rule.

But to then claim to be a democracy, a ‘leading light’ in the Western world for enlightened thought and discussion, a ‘shining example’ of how change is effected through democratic means and political debate and therefore non-violent means – for it to claim all this and then decide to ban those such as HT because their ideas and principles ultimately oppose those at No.10 Downing St, is nothing but a total scrapping of our human rights here in the UK and a rejection of the fundamental principles which the UK is built upon.

What we must also come to understand is that if such bans are allowed to go ahead, what will become of the rest of us British Muslims? Will we ever be allowed to discuss and debate fundamental Islamic principles ever again?

Allowing such legislation to be passed would put us all in great danger of expressing, discussing and calling others to what we British Muslims believe to be the Divine guidance of God. All Muslims who have a modicum of Islamic knowledge will appreciate that it is only through the absolute full implementation of Islamic Law will true peace and justice be spread throughout the world. It doesn’t take a genius to recognise this fact when we see what a horrific mess the secular capitalists have made of the job in the last 200 odd years. Despite all the horror stories of Shari‘ah law in the tabloids, surely the Muslims couldn’t make it any worse! Is it so repugnant to hold such a fundamental Islamic belief, to discuss whether there is any credence to such an understanding, whether Muslims are ready (or not as one can obviously see) to establish such a state somewhere in the world?

Is it not possible for Muslims to discuss the finer details of war stratagem? Is it not allowed for Muslims in the world to have the right to fight back against those who illegally invaded their lands? Is it illegal to discuss strategies of defence for such an oppressed people? Is it not a peoples’ fundamental human right to determine amongst their scholars what is permissible and what is impermissible to do under Islamic law, in times of peace and in times of war?

Or is it only possible for non-Muslims to do all of the above? So this is the protection of universal human rights in our UK democracy?

The UK government is making a terrible mistake. By closing down the freedom of speech, one creates an atmosphere akin to the underground terrorist movements of many dictatorships over the world. If Muslims are not allowed to openly debate such issues and come to objective conclusions free from either pressures to conform to Western ideals or that of having to conform with decadent Islamic intellectualism, then one can only see the end of a true sincere presentation of the Islamic religion and a continued erosion of the human rights of the rest of our British society.

The White bull is on the altar. The rest of us are not too far behind.

Allahu Akbar!

Alhamdulillah, and then alhamdulillah - some really fantastic news at last in such miserable times!

Shaykh Muhammad Hasan al-Dadaw has been released!!

Alhamdulillah, I don't know whom the du'a belonged to but boy, I hope that person can make a little one on the side for me too...

:-)

If you haven't seen this already then you just have to download this program.

Google Earth

Marvel at how you can zoom in to any place on the globe. After you've been so predictable and checked out your house, then Makkah and Madinah (as you do) and then your folks house back in the homelands - after you've done all that, stop marvelling and start freaking out how this system is in the hands of Joe Public so what on Earth can the military boys actually do!

And why is it I can't get a clear picture on Mingora in the NWFP? No wonder they can't find Bin Laden...

Also, I'd like your feedback on the 'Unity' conference in Manchester today if any of you went to it - was it any good or was it a waste of time? Be objective!

Sent in by Q...

Maybe Mr Badawi can tell Muslim women to try wearing this shirt instead of their Hijab, and pretend to be Brazilian volleyball players?

It's difficult not to criticise such irresponsible and plainly ignorant statements such as those issued by the self-entitled leader of the Council of Imams and Mosques Mr Zaki Badawi.

Not because of what he has said though - that can be Islamically backed up. Saying that, anything these days can be Islamically justified right?

In any case, the objectives of our divine legal system (Maqâsid al-Sharî‘ah) place the wearing of the Hijab for women (and the keeping of the beard for men for that matter) in the third category of al-Tahsîniyât or that which perfects life for the society. The first and most important category, al-Dharûriyât, are those things which are vital for mankinds' existence such as to have ones life preserved, his religion, his intellect, his wealth, his lineage and his honour as well according to some 'Ulema.

The second category, al-Hâjât are those next level necessities which keep the societies functional and effective such as shelter, trade and the like.

It is well known to the 'Ulema that the third category of 'beautification' involves those things which are not considered of the 'importance' of the first two categories. That said, it doesn't mean that we will not find obligatory actions in this sub-section of the Sharî‘ah - the Hijab and the beard are two classic examples of those such obligatory wajib actions that are required from Muslims.

But when faced with death for example, what is more important, staying alive or the Hijab? Life of course.

And when one is about to accept Islam but the person refuses the Hijab or the beard, what do we do? Leave the Hijab and beard of course, for the Deen takes precedence here.

All of these examples are taken from the science which is called Maqâsid al-Sharî‘ah; principles upon which the Fuqaha of this Ummah have agreed upon from day one.

So what then is the problem with Mr Badawi?

Well, one must ask the question: who on Earth told him to speak in such a reckless fashion, when it has been made abundantly clear over the last few weeks that:

- People are suspicious of anything Asian or foreign at the moment, whether 'Hijab-ed' or not.

- Many people have always had a problem with the Hijab and just wanted an excuse to justify their bigotry and violence in the recent rise of hate attacks. As for the rest of our country, then those who didn't attack people before are very unlikely to attack anyone now for no reason whatsoever.

- At the one time when we want to normalise relations between all communities, all Mr Badawi has done is to widen the gap and make people even more introvert and suspicious.

- When it is clear that the marked display of non-religiosity of the bombers has been 'proved' (male, clean shaven, western dressed men), why are the 'religious looking' ones putting themselves on the back foot for?

- If we go underground now, we'll never be able to get back into society again. Things aren't getting better in the world, they're getting worse; we can only expect the terror threat to rise exponentially and if we start sliding now, how on Earth will we recover back to displaying our Deen in any sort of fashion? Maybe then Hijrah will indeed become obligatory upon as all...

One can continue to criticise what he has said for any amount of reasons. I do believe there is a Shar'i basis for what he has said, but he has made a major mistake in his application and understanding of the score today - only God knows why he has made this silly statement but if it was to win favour with the establishment then I'm sure this will be great for his knighthood in a few years time...

And Allah knows best.

On a more brighter (and deliciously more cynical) note...

Courtesy of Abu Marwah...


Politics - Pak style...

In the view of recent deaths and the like, wouldn't it be nice if we remembered a few of the (many) major scholars that we've lost in the last few centuries?

Here are a few rare pictures to give you some faces to all the names you've heard so much of.

May Allah bestow His immense Mercy upon our scholars, the preservers of the Divine legacy of sacred knowledge. May Allah forgive their mistakes and enter them into His Garden, Ameen Ya Rabb al-'Alameen.


The Faqih and Mufassir, Shaykh Rashid Ridha


The Faqih, Shaykh Mustapha al-Zarqa


The Muhaddith, Shaykh Ahmad Shakir


The Muhaddith, Shaykh Nasir al-Din al-Albani


The Faqih and Muhaddith, Shaykh 'Abd al-Fattah Abu Ghuddah


Shaykh Sayyid al-Sabiq


The Mufti, Shaykh 'Abd al-Aziz bin Baz


The Faqih, Shaykh Muhammad al-Zarqa


The 'Alim, Shaykh Abu al-Hasan al-Nadwi


The Faqih and Mufassir, Shaykh Tahir ibn 'Ashoor

Real men. Real Heroes. Real people who deserve our thoughts and Du'a.