[Queuerriptota]

Every day or every Friday we hear nothing than the same old sermons.

Nothing about what really goes on in our societies. Does anyone know why our religious leaders and Imams to be specific are so out of touch with the realities of the real world?

There are so many social, environmental, economic and political issues that are constantly affecting us and we hoped to hear much from our learned leaders but nothing

anyone know why?

[mr.calisto]

Check out Imam Suhaib Webb from the Boston mosque.

He touches on many of the social issues the ummah faces today.

He has many videos on YouTube

[RorieSorNearop]

Every day or every Friday we hear nothing than the same old sermons.

Nothing about what really goes on in our societies. Does anyone know why our religious leaders and Imams to be specific are so out of touch with the realities of the real world?

There are so many social, environmental, economic and political issues that are constantly affecting us and we hoped to hear much from our learned leaders but nothing

anyone know why?

which country are you from?

[HakSpeame]

One thing I heard about west african ulama is that they dress like the common people, so when they join people they are not distinguished and people think they are just like them...so they are open...those who dress with the "sunnah" dress are too different from the commoners so they either avoid them or they act different in front of them.

[Grapappytek]

I happened to sit in a couple of jummah talks in Pakistan over my trip. The mufti Saheb is courageous and bold. Tackled lots of current affairs with a fiqhi flare. It was brilliant to listen to him.

[qp0yfHOf]

One thing I heard about west african ulama is that they dress like the common people, so when they join people they are not distinguished and people think they are just like them...so they are open...those who dress with the "sunnah" dress are too different from the commoners so they either avoid them or they act different in front of them.

Br. that is not some positive remark. A heir of a nabi has to live by the dictates of the nabi not with the flow of the flock. He is a leader not a muqtadi (follower). The idea is to dress as sunnah and appropriate of Ulama as possible, and yet be so accessible and open to masses that the masses take on your colour and not the other way around.

[Mugflefusysef]

Br. that is not some positive remark. A heir of a nabi has to live by the dictates of the nabi not with the flow of the flock. He is a leader not a muqtadi (follower). The idea is to dress as sunnah and appropriate of Ulama as possible, and yet be so accessible and open to masses that the masses take on your colour and not the other way around.

,

[BoboStin]

Check out Imam Suhaib Webb from the Boston mosque.

He touches on many of the social issues the ummah faces today.

He has many videos on YouTube

By the way Imam Webb follows the Maliki madhhab

[Mearticbaibre]

Every day or every Friday we hear nothing than the same old sermons.

Nothing about what really goes on in our societies. Does anyone know why our religious leaders and Imams to be specific are so out of touch with the realities of the real world?

There are so many social, environmental, economic and political issues that are constantly affecting us and we hoped to hear much from our learned leaders but nothing

anyone know why?

Maybe because they think that ibaadaat, and certain types of haqooq al-ibaad are more important - and are perhaps reason as to why we are getting a collective whoopin' in social, environmental, economic, and political issues in the first place? Do you think this is a possibility?

Just trying to answer your question, "anyone know why?".

[Freedjome]

Yes, most of them are out of touch. As someone who lives in the UK and knows what goes on in the schools here, I find it incredible that not only do the Imams not speak about the dangers of a secular education, but the enrol their own children in these same schools! Literally, the kids are spending 8 hours a day, five times a week, over 250 weeks a year, at these schools (not even talking about kids in colleges and uni)- you know, these same schools and teachers that put the Muslim kids in choir and Christmas plays and ask them to paint pictures of animate objects and sing hymns in assembly, give them music lessons and teach them to follow the ways of the kuffar wholeheartedly without question. And then these same Imams will complain that our youth are listening to Tupac and selling crack on the corner of the street and fail to see the link between the fact that our kids have spent the majority of the time with kuffar and the fact that they are now behaving like them?

And then these same Imams will tell us in every khutba that the child must respect the parents (which of course, is HAQ) but they can't teach these parents how to raise the kids according to sunnah? They won't tell us how to talk to them, behave in front of them, etc and when these same parents send our kids like lamb to the slaughter (in these schools), they expect our kids to come out fine when no one in their lives helps them understand what is right and wrong?

This is just ONE aspect of how MOST of our Imams are out of touch. Not all are out of touch and this is not the only problem we face that no one in our masaajid are prepared to speak about

[Gaiaakgyyyg]

That's because the Imams teach the fundamentals and whats concerns generality and understandable for the genreality. Complaining about secularism and making philosophical attacks and discussing daily politics as done in forums is not what they are meant to do when the masses have no fundamentals on Islam and the masses have much else to worry bout rather than discussing fine points on a subject the masses have no idea about anyway. And those who have more knowledge would strive to attend other lectures or organise events to conduct lecture on topic they think is needed or read books or join courses to obtain greater education, etc to satisfy the thirst. Cant mouth feed everyone. You need to be active your self and connect with ulema who you think have the ability to address the subject and bring them to discuss the subject.

[ApporpSothe]

That's because the Imams teach the fundamentals and whats concerns generality and understandable for the genreality. Complaining about secularism and making philosophical attacks and discussing daily politics as done in forums is not what they are meant to do when the masses have no fundamentals on Islam and the masses have much else to worry bout rather than discussing fine points on a subject the masses have no idea about anyway. And those who have more knowledge would strive to attend other lectures or organise events to conduct lecture on topic they think is needed or read books or join courses to obtain greater education, etc to satisfy the thirst. Cant mouth feed everyone. You need to be active your self and connect with ulema who you think have the ability to address the subject and bring them to discuss the subject.

But if the layman has no knowledge that these problems exist, they need to be TOLD that these problems exist instead of expecting them to organise lectures on the subject matter themselves. And keeping the child away from potential dangers to his faith IS from the fundamentals of the deen so should be spoken about in the khutbas not to mention other basic ideas that are never mentioned

[zoppereurvito]

My point is that certain subjects are simply not meant for everyone. Its not in their ability to grasp it nor something whose details concerns them. Many muslims would feel sleepy within 10minutes into the lecture.

Ofcourse there are other issues which muslims generally face but do not pay attention or notice. Those issues would be addressed or if you think the imam has not given attention to it then you should bring it to his attention. He too has only two outward eyes like everyone else. And he can't he have his hand extended into everything.

Lectures would be addressed based on the type of population. Some just a need a spiritual boost. Some need some fiqh points on simple matters they face around them. And some needs to satisfy their simple curiosity and some just want to sit for barakah and quite happy to have listened to just one simple point. The more literate ones on Islam would need more but since they are comparitively lesser they would have to find places elsewhere or organise special lecture events on their own to satisfy their thirst. Meet the scholars privately and getting advise would do much to remove really mind troubling doubts. Everyone has their own 10000 questions to be answered which will never dry up until he meets the grave.

Another issue is that, what is halal is clear and what is haram is clear. What takes a person away from Islam is revealed and what takes a person closer to Islam has been revealed. So the scholars who understand this would not bring to the laymen issues that don'tt belong to this category and are instead subjects of study and investigation and unclarity in details, etc. So they are plenty of tehnical stuff we wish scholars would reveal and enter into because we seem to have benefitted from it or find it fascinating. But those stuff in reality wont benefit except a group of people.

Finally, when we complain we should remember that it is us who is responsible to provide and facilitate so that such ulemas rise who are built to engage with population. If they are out of touch, then we should be doing more to raise ones who are in touch. The gap should be filled by both sides

[diegogo]

One thing I heard about west african ulama is that they dress like the common people, so when they join people they are not distinguished and people think they are just like them...so they are open...those who dress with the "sunnah" dress are too different from the commoners so they either avoid them or they act different in front of them.

That doesn't make sense.

"Sunnah" dress is normally either kurta/shalwar (i.e. mainly 'Pakistani' style) or along the lines of a thobe (i.e. mainly 'Arab' style), and the colors are more on the plain side (no exuberant designs etc). If you walk into any mosque, especially for Jummah (which is what this thread is about), Alhamdulillah you will see masses of people dressed in "Sunnah" clothes. Of course there will be people in "regular" (i.e. 'Western') clothing, but there will be just as many in "Sunnah" clothes (at least in the USA). Most of the time here if you happen to go to a mosque for the first time, you can't even tell who is the imam, because every other brother is wearing kurtas and thobes and sporting beards etc, Masha'Allah. Then when it's time for the Imam to get up, the person who you would've thought the least would be the Imam (i.e. the "young buck" with a beard dressed in a nice thobe sitting all the way in the back) gets up and goes up front. Subhan'Allah. That's just an example obviously but we see it all the time and it's the truth.

That being said, if there are places where that is not the case... i.e. the Imam is the only one (hard to believe) wearing "Sunnah" clothing, then these are the exact places where the Imams/Ulema need to wear "Sunnah" clothes even more so than other places such as the ones I described in the above paragraph. This will ensure that at least there are some following the proper Sunnahs of dressing and Insha'Allah it will 'rub off' on the masses and eventually one would start to see more and more people sporting Sunnah clothes. That's how I started wearing Sunnah clothes to the Masjid. I used to see other brothers wearing them and it made me want to do it more and more, and I'm sure I am not the only one that has happened to.

those who dress with the "sunnah" dress are too different from the commoners so they either avoid them or they act different in front of them. That is an issue of approachability. If an Imam/Scholar does not have a friendly, 'approachable' personality where people feel comfortable going up to them and asking questions etc, then it won't matter what he is wearing... he will still be the same unfriendly, unappraochable person. If he takes off his thobe and puts on pants & a t-shirt, he will still be the same person inside those clothes. If anything, if he takes off his Sunnah clothes and wears non-Sunnah clothes instead, he will be missing out on the barakah of the Sunnah clothing and so will others around him.

Just like a Muslim can't/won't walk into a bar, sit down, and start having a drink so he can "be like everyone else" and hence it will be "easier" for him to make dawah to these people; the Imams and Ulemas can't start compromising on Sunnahs (including the way they dress) just so it will (supposedly) be "easier" for the "commoners" to talk to them.

Forgive me if I said anything wrong and ask Allah to forgive me as well. Allah knows best.

[chppjdf]

This thread actually reminded me of (and made me look up) a thread which was started a while ago which also touched on this topic. This is thread:

Neglected Friday Khutbah topics in the West?

[sFs4aOok]

I did not word my post very well. I heard a shaykh saying that the ulama in the magrib and west Africa garb themselves as commoners so that they can mix with the people and diagnose their problems...their intention is to help the people and to guide them. Ordinarily when an alim joins with commoners, the commoners will be on their best behaviour hiding their true selves from the alim out of respect for him.

I have heard some sufis (not necessarily alims) deliberately publicly display themselves as not very religious (for example they may keep dogs, or dress slightly like the non religious), so that their self does not become attached to what others think of them and showing off....maybe this is extremism but humans are easily self-satisfied and love to gain recognition from other humans...from childhood we are raised to please people. But of course the common way which you speak about obviously has good in it as well.

Br. that is not some positive remark. A heir of a nabi has to live by the dictates of the nabi not with the flow of the flock. He is a leader not a muqtadi (follower). The idea is to dress as sunnah and appropriate of Ulama as possible, and yet be so accessible and open to masses that the masses take on your colour and not the other way around.

[greeferweq]

Bismillah
In my experience the indigenous scholars are generally more clued up then most. The problem lays with restriction imposed on them by mutuwallis and elders. Then you have overzealot activist who are impatient and simply ignores wise councils of scholars and make things even more difficult for grassroot scholars.
Allahualam