"...ignorance or faulty understandings should never be granted the authority of a religious verdict, especially when that verdict leads to accusations of sin launched against fellow believers."
Does the performance of dhikr in a group constitute a sinful deviation from Islam? What is the ruling in Islam on this subject? Dr. Abdullah bin Hamid Ali takes a detailed look at this issue.
There are many challenges facing the Muslim Ummah today both internally and externally.
The external challenges are many and plain for the eye to see, while the internal challenges are a bit more insidious and sinister, but also serve the aims and objectives of both the overt and covert enemies of Al-Islam.
In particular, what is most distressing for many Muslims is trying to establish certainty in that one’s practice and understanding of the religion is one that is rooted in the long-standing and unbroken tradition.
This leads in many cases to the avoidance of any suspect or unfamiliar practices, ideologies, and slogans that might actually bring one’s faith to the brink of perdition and destruction.
Some accuse others of practicing innovation (bid’a) in the religion upon hearing a statement or witnessing a practice that one has never seen before, in spite of the fact that the greater majority of Muslims are still ill-educated, mis-educated, or not fully acquainted with many of the broad Islamic teachings.
Read Full Article HERE
New from Lamppost! Murshid al-Qari by Dr. Khalid Yahya Blankinship. A unique examination of English translations of the Qur’an and Tafsir literature. Available NOW
Dr. Abdullah bin Hamid Ali
He holds a Ph.D. in Cultural and Historical Studies in Religion (2016) and an M.A. in Ethics and Social Theory (2012) from the Graduate Theological Union. He obtained his B.A. (ijaza ‘ulya) in Islamic Law 
(Shariah) from the prestigious Al-Qarawiyin University of Fes, Morocco in 2001. He served as full time Islamic chaplain at the State Correctional Institute of Chester, PA from 2002-2007, and is the founding director of the Lamppost Education Initiative. He currently serves as an Associate Professor of Islamic law and Prophetic Tradition at Zaytuna College in Berkeley, California. His research interests include the interconnection between law and identity formation, comparative Islamic law, and Islam’s role in the modern world.
Click HERE to see more articles, videos, and more from Dr. Abdullah Ali
