Restoring Trust: A Call to Address Abuse in Our Communities
Excerpt from blog by Dr. Mariam Sheibani (November 7, 2024) I have since lost count of the number of reports I’ve heard of sexual abuse of children in the Muslim community. Many of these occurred in religious families and networks, sometimes at the hands of religious teachers. The following are just a small sample of […]
What’s at stake in the secret marriage debate?
Excerpt from blog by Dr. Mariam Sheibani (July 16, 2024) Over the past ten days, Muslims have been engaged in a debate about the legitimacy of secret marriages, prompted by a young daʿi who propositioned a divorced single mother for a secret marriage. Secret marriage is a topic about which I have done a lot […]
Blog: Story of Yusuf
A Reflection on the Story of Yusuf (as) How did Yusuf (as) demonstrate a hurma practice with the women and men at the well? Yusuf was betrayed three times, in varying degrees of severity, by those who should have protected or helped him. First, Yusuf was seized and dumped in a well, to die, or […]
Blog: Spiritual Harm & Abuse
What is Spiritual Abuse and Spiritual Harm? By Dr. Ingrid Mattson Spiritual abuse is the misuse of religious knowledge, authority or status to mistreat another person or group of people. Spiritual abuse can be direct, or can be an aspect of, or accompaniment to, another form of abuse. The greatest form of spiritual abuse is […]
Hurma in the Story of Musa
The practice of hurma can be seen in the stories we have in the Qur’an. In verses 23 and 24 from surah Al-Qasas, the 28th chapter of the Qur’an, we learn about Prophet Musa’s (as) encounter at the well during his escape from Madyan. 23. And when he came to the well of Madyan, he […]
Blog: Children in the Masjid
Hurma Myth: Children are always safe in the masjid or with their Qur’an teacher. The facts are: Muslim teachers, including those who are hafidh, have memorised the Qur’an, are human and susceptible to wrongdoing. Someone can have good knowledge of Islam, but still have psychological or spiritual dysfunction which makes them unfit and unsafe to […]
