Living Estranged Lives: the story of many Young Muslims Today

When I journeyed to Yemen in the summer of 2007, It was the first time I had seen such a complete manifestation of Islam. From the azan, which woke me up for fajr, to the women who were all sporting abayas and niqaabs, as well as the food, about which I did not have to constantly ask myself: Is it halal? Being in this environment, where the Quran is on the television and our religion is the dominant way of life, I could not help but feel envious of how easy it would be to practice Islam in such a place. When i got back home from my trip abroad, I began to think about just how hard we in the West have it. Although I do admit that not all people living in majority Muslim countries are righteous- because fitnah exists everywhere-, but I do believe that the environment is not as favoring for us western Muslims. We are bombarded with negative depictions of Muslims on television, have a hard time getting along with parents & their cultural baggage, and live in a society where sex and desire are the driving force. In this difficult climate, many Young Muslims are finding it difficult to stay true to their religion without making any compromises. Some of us might know some Muslims who go to jumah prayer on Friday and, that same night, are out partying it up with chicks and booze. Others may struggle with praying 5 times daily- missing a couple of prayers to do a major project or study for an exam.

Essentially, Muslims living in America are strangers, where frequently people misunderstand understand us. Rasul'Allah (the messenger of Allah) tells us that this condition is a privileged one, because "lahum al-jannah" (they have paradise). Muhammad (saws) also said "Islam began alienated and will return as it began, alienated. So, blessed are the alienated ones." The Muslims began as a small group, in a society which persecuted them. In many cases, their own families turned against them. And today, we are once again in a situation where the world cannot understand us. They cannot comprehend why a woman must wear hijab, or why we must pray five times a day. Nor can they understand why we abstain from pork, sex, or alcohol. The common belief in this society is that just being a good person and doing good things will open the gates of paradise to us. But we, as Muslims, must keep steadfast in the way of Allah (swt), while attempting to excel in school, careers, and other important aspects of western life. We know that it is not just our relationship with other humans that is important, but our relationship with Allah (swt) is even more important. Remember that nothing happens if it is not the will of Allah (swt). Therefore, while we try to relate to our society, we should not try to be LIKE them. Muhammed (saws) stated "Whoever imitates a group is amongst them." Always remember who YOU are. You are a Muslim first, and the rest is in the hands of Allah (swt).

-Mohamed Farah and Musa Talib

One Ummah- United Under Allah

Until entering the doors of Allah, I was as unfamiliar to the world as a newborn child is to the life that is yet to be introduced to him. An Arab to me was nothing more than a man who hovers on a magical carpet in Aladdin. I remember at a young age, stalking a woman wearing Niqaab through the mall with my cousin, just to see if she was like us or not. I remember walking out of a movie theatre in 2001 after two people walked in, both sat in separate rows (suspicious, huh?), with one speaking on his cell phone in a foreign language, which could have only led me to believe one thing: must have been a terror plot…turns out he was Mexican anyways.

But as I began meeting Muslims online, I realized that Islam is a diverse religion, with various political beliefs, racial differences, ethnical differences, and cultural differences. And as I began to learn about Islam, I fell in love with the religion of Allah (swt). At age 15, I read most of the Qur’an in just a few nights. That’s quite impressive, considering it takes me several months just to read a simple 200-page book! But the Qur’an grabbed me, as it has so many other non-Muslims whose destiny is to accept the religion of Allah (swt).

While in the womb, we meet with an angel of Allah (swt). That angel dictates four things, “deeds, time of death, means of livelihood, and whether we will be wretched or blessed (in religion). Then the soul is breathed into the body (Bukhari).” Therefore, when I opened the book of Allah (swt), it was not simply logic or emotion that led me to Allah (swt). Rather, it was memory. We all have witnessed the truth, whether we know it or not. We all have seen Allah’s angels. And I, like millions of other Muslims, was predestined to accept Islam.

But that first time stepping into a Masjid, I’ll admit, I was somewhat nervous. I had been to a Masjid before, so I knew what to expect. I knew overall, the people are friendly and hospitable. But I felt like a foreigner. How many other Caucasian Jewish-looking American-born 17-year-old boys are there in the Masjid? But immediately, the strong sense of brotherhood cooled my nerves, and I no longer had fear of the unknown. I stood in prayer with African-Americans, Pakistanis, Arabs, and various other ethnicities. In the sight of Allah (swt), our physical differences mean nothing. And in the prayer line, the only thing that shines is our similarities. We all are bowing to Allah (swt), and therefore, whether we are black or white, Arab or American, we are all Muslim- we are all brothers in the sight of Allah (swt).

-Musa Talib

The Purpose of this Blog

Salam alaykum and peace be upon you all.

The Muslim ummah finds itself in a very interesting situation today. With a huge diaspora in western countries, Muslims around the world are trying to balance their western culture and Islamic faith. They are composed of hundreds of ethnicities, several different races and speak a multitude of languages- yet the common denominator between all of them is the deen of Islam. This being the case, now more than ever there is a need for Muslims living in the West to be united- under this one collectivity called the "Ummah". This, in essence, is the purpose of our blog- to promote the unity of adherents to Islam in the West and to confront and discuss the various challenges we are facing trying to balance deen and dunya in these turbulent times.