From Salafism to the Salaf

This event has already taken place. By registering you will receive a recording of the session.

One of the most contested and controversial terms in the last 150 years of Islamic history is Salafism. Multiple strands may differ on what it means exactly, but everyone seems to agree that it is a movement that asks Muslims to return back to the way of the Salaf (manhaj al-Salaf). However, there is no denying that in its attempts to do just that, and also the many false claimants that claimed the title for themselves, there was a lot of soul-searching and many tremors left in its wake. Its major claims that the Creed (aqeedah) of the majority of Muslims on the planet was corrupted, that innovations had overcome the ritual practices of the majority of Muslims, and also that it alone spoke on behalf of Islam and its scriptural texts all can be seen as the major pillars upon which it stands. 

Join us for a 2/3 hour program on these pillars, scrutinising them, seeing how they stand up in relation to traditional Islamic scholarship over the last 1400 years. Each of our guests has had their own journey with the Salafi movement, and is perfectly suited to discuss its contours, failures, and successes.

Note: This is not an attempt to be hyper-critical of Salafism for the sake of it. Instead, it is an effort to engage in academic discussion and also retrieve a true, unifying form of Salafism that will be conducive to Muslim unity and success.

Program:

Shaykh Dr Sulayman van Ael: Innovations in defining innovations - Bid'ah

Shaykh Abu Aaliyah - Let us agree to agree - Ijma

Shaykh Dr Yasir Qadhi - Tawheed or not Tawheed - Aqeedah

Tickets are £10 each, but bursaries can be requested.

Speaker Biographies:

Shaykh Abu Aaliya - Shaykh Abu Aaliyah (Surkheel Sharif) is an imam, author, translator, and Director of The Jawziyyah Institute. Abu Aaliyah has studied the Islamic sciences (theology, law, and spirituality) with a number of scholars, and has been involved in Islamic teaching both in the UK and abroad since the late 1980s. He has authored a number of books including The Golden Rule of Differing and The Exquisite Pearl, and has translated several books from Arabic to English. He has an MA in Islamic Studies, serves as an imam for Eman Foundation in London, and has appeared on radio and TV. Some of his lectures, articles, essays and videos can be found at thehumblei.com, www.facebook.com/Jawziyyah and www.twitter.com/Abu_Aaliyah. Abu Aaliyah lives in London with his wife and four grown children.

Shaykh Dr Sulayman van Ael - Dr. Wim Sulayman Van Ael embraced Islam in 1994 and traveled to the desert of Sudan to memorize the Quran. He since travelled around the world in pursuit of traditional and Academic knowledge. He has a bachelor in theology, pr Master in Mental care and PhD in Islamic studies and a degree in: Neuropsychology, CBT and CBT based mindfulness.He is a master in the ten recitations, and was previously lecturer Islamic sciences at: Rotterdam I. University and Erasumus. He is a practicing psychotherapist and founder of www.muslimmentalhealth.uk He was a student advisor and teacher at: LSE, Imperial College and Soas. He has been included in the 500 Most influential Muslims in the world since 2017 in the category of spiritual guides.

Shaykh Dr Yasir Qadhi - 

Dr. Yasir Qadhi joined East Plano Islamic Center as a resident scholar in July 2019. He completed his primary and secondary education in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. He graduated with a B.Sc. in Chemical Engineering from the University of Houston, after which he was accepted as a student at the Islamic University of Madinah. There, he completed a second Bachelors degree, specializing in Hadith studies, and then went on to complete M.A. in in Islamic Theology from the College of Dawah. He then returned to the United States, and completed a PhD in Religious Studies from Yale University.

Dr. Yasir Qadhi has authored several books, published academic articles, and appeared on numerous satellite and TV stations around the globe. His online videos are some of the most popular and highly-watched Islamic videos in English.