[StampNews]

I have just read someone say Sheikh Hamza Yusuf Hanson helped George Bush after 911 when he met and appeared with him.

Now I always thought, and still do, that he was actually helping to defuse what had happened and was diplomatically working to try and lesson the anti-Muslim backlash. His standing by Bush sent the message to a hysterical America that not all Muslims are like al-Qaeda.

How can someone say that he had gone to help Bush, not to help the Muslims?

I would like to hear any thoughts on this.

[i32I7qyH]

I have just read someone say Sheikh Hamza Yusuf Hanson helped George Bush after 911 when he met and appeared with him.

Now I always thought, and still do, that he was actually helping to defuse what had happened and was diplomatically working to try and lesson the anti-Muslim backlash. His standing by Bush sent the message to a hysterical America that not all Muslims are like al-Qaeda.

How can someone say that he had gone to help Bush, not to help the Muslims?

I would like to hear any thoughts on this.

sigh...

http://www.sunniforum.com/forum/show...966#post661966

Sheikh Hamza Yusuf is just a human, he's not ma'ssum. However, for us to be 'quick' on judging a scholar like him just shows how much free time we have in our hands..

Allahu A'lam.

[Japakefrope]

I think Islamic forums often consist of threads with youngsters saying rash things and grown up Muslims trying to explain why they are not the case, and getting through only about 50% of the time.

I like this on the other thread that is linked too though, it should get through the thickest skulls on this issue;

Nawawi619
Senior Member

Join Date Sep 2005
Gender Brother
Madhhab Shafi'i
Posts 782

Default Re: Who is Shaykh Hamza Yusuf and why is he so popular?

As Salamu Alaykum

I also would like to add he studied also studied with the Ba Alawi qutub the late al Habib Ahmad al Mashhur al Haddad, Shaykh Muhammad al Yaqoubi, Shaykh Abdullah bin Bayyah and many others.

A good audio set that explains a lot is his UK tour Religion, Violence and the Modern World.

I personally studied from Shaykh Hamza Yusuf way back in 1998 and been to Zaytuna institute as it was called back and forth (I am from CA).

I agree people need to have husn al dhann and refrain from speaking ill of Shaykh Hamza if they dont know the whole story, context, etc. You dont know what is in his heart. Plus he explained his whole beard situation YEARS AGO yet people so fixated on it to this day keeps bringing the issue up. Sometimes I feel some people on this forum have become too rigid and focus too much on outward appearance rather than the totality of the deen of islam, iman and ihsan.

Also, his influence has produced a new generation of people to study and learn the deen who are now ustadhs and up and coming scholars themselves like Shaykh Yahya Rhodus, Shaykh Abdul Karim Yahya who was the first westerner to graduate from Dar al Mustafa and is qualified to give fatwa according to the Shafii madhhab, Ustadh Usama Canon, and many others.

Why are people so fixated on his pre-9/11 speeches? because he fires people up? He said in his UK tour that he is trying to put fires out not stoke them. People mature when they get older. People change. I personally think he got better in his approach, more even tempered on his issues. By the way I have all his old talks as well as his new ones so i know how he transitioned. If he was in fact watering down or becoming more liberal (and other ridiculous comments ive seen on this thread) his teachers would have checked him. Anyone who knows Shaykh Muhammad al Yaqoubi personally knows he doesnt pull punches yet he fully supports what Shaykh Hamza has said and what he is doing.

People criticize him for going to the White House days after 9/11. If people were there (i was there when he came back and explained why he went at Zaytuna institute) they would know that he didnt want to go in the first place. He asked one of his teacher's Shaykh Abdullah bin Bayyah for naseeha. Shaykh bin Bayyah told him to go.

I see most people in here dont have full story or dont know Shaykh Hamza too well. I see why backbiting and slander is so dangerous and haram...because it starts silly stuff like this on threads.

Traditional Sunni Scholars support and have praised Shaykh Hamza presently. This includes the Ba Alawi scholars of Hadramawt like Habib Umar, Habib Ali.

It is really sad when people are still talking about Shaykh Hamza this way when he basically revitalized Traditional Sunni Islam in the West.

People really need to get a life and look at your own faults. It is easy to criticize behind a computer and say this and that but at the end of the day its going to be your deens and intentions before Allah.

NOTE: i am not some Shaykh Hamza groupie or whatever. He was one of my teachers in Maliki Fiqh (I am currently a Shafi'i). I know him, i know the people around him.

I've noticed that true people of 'ilm are not so rigid, condemning and petty as i see some on this forum. I would think people who have studied sacred knowledge would know better.

All the people who i look up to in 'ilm have good akhlaq, good adab, have hikmah in dealing with others even when correcting. This reminds me of the aya in Quran where Allah Subhana wa ta'Ala instructs Musa Alayhi salam to "speak gently" to Firawn depite the fact he was a clear Enemy of Allah, a person falsely claimed divinity and other terrible things. Yet for us Muslims we speak to each other worse.

Allah help us all...

Wa Llahu Alim wa musta'an
People need to respect the learned scholars they follow by emulating their Islamic adab and also by not associating themselves to them then saying embarrassing things about other learned scholars, even if they are associated to a different Sunni school of thought.

[66paptroump]

With all due respect to the author of that post, the sole proof he puts forth for the correctness of Hamza Yusuf's actions is that 'Bin Bayyah told him to go' and that 'Habib Ali and Habib Umar and other 'Ahlus Sunnah ulema'' support him. None of these are substantial protections against Hamza Yusuf's going to Bush and helping him change the name of his Afghanistan invasion operation, and standing up and applauding at his State of the Union speech.

Can you imagine Said bin Jubayr or Mujahid standing up and applauding at the speech of Hajjaj bin Yusuf right prior to his commencement of the bombardment of Makkah? Even then, it would be more excusable than this.

[Clunlippibe]

With all due respect to the author of that post, the sole proof he puts forth for the correctness of Hamza Yusuf's actions is that 'Bin Bayyah told him to go' and that 'Habib Ali and Habib Umar and other 'Ahlus Sunnah ulema'' support him. None of these are substantial protections against Hamza Yusuf's going to Bush and helping him change the name of his Afghanistan invasion operation, and standing up and applauding at his State of the Union speech.

Can you imagine Said bin Jubayr or Mujahid standing up and applauding at the speech of Hajjaj bin Yusuf right prior to his commencement of the bombardment of Makkah? Even then, it would be more excusable than this.

and somehow repeating any points against Sheikh Hamza Yusuf without asking for a clarification (ever) from him himself will ultimately guide us to the truth..?

How about voice your concern (of what you said above) directly to his blog or email him directly (from the blog's contact menu)?

http://sandala.org/blog/

Allahu A'lam.

[igs00r]

With all due respect to the author of that post, the sole proof he puts forth for the correctness of Hamza Yusuf's actions is that 'Bin Bayyah told him to go' and that 'Habib Ali and Habib Umar and other 'Ahlus Sunnah ulema'' support him. None of these are substantial protections against Hamza Yusuf's going to Bush and helping him change the name of his Afghanistan invasion operation, and standing up and applauding at his State of the Union speech.

Can you imagine Said bin Jubayr or Mujahid standing up and applauding at the speech of Hajjaj bin Yusuf right prior to his commencement of the bombardment of Makkah? Even then, it would be more excusable than this.

Salaams to you my brother

What I am wondering is, we all know that Allah judges acts by intentions.

I'm wondering what you think the intentions of Sheikh Hamza Yusuf were when he did these things?

[LfYaRf1S]

Salaams to you my brother

What I am wondering is, we all know that Allah judges acts by intentions.

I'm wondering what you think the intentions of Sheikh Hamza Yusuf were when he did these things?

brother,

I'm sorry but I'll have to ask you, do we now discuss about someone's intention...?

Last time a brother asked why Dante who praised the Prophet didn't embrace Islam while we all know that only Allah Has the Power to give syahadah and eeman to anyone He Wills to, and not even a prophet can decide on that. With a question like these, can anyone really answer the question without speculating..?

How hard it is to shoot an email and ask the person directly, if I may ask?

[SiM7W2zi]

Who said Dante praised the Prophet ? Dante's book is sickening and says that Rasoolullah is in one of the lowest portions of hell...نعوذ با الله .

[satthackacibe]

Who said Dante praised the Prophet ? Dante's book is sickening and says that Rasoolullah is in one of the lowest portions of hell...نعوذ با الله .

kindly please refer to this thread;
http://www.sunniforum.com/forum/show...145#post790145

which was again a response to http://www.sunniforum.com/forum/show...065#post790065

and from there, I was specifically referring to;

"Many Muslims cite western authors or thinkers who have praise the Prophet , however I always find this strange because these people never formally embraced Islam, so what use is their praise? Should these Muslims be condemned for citing kafirun who praise our Prophet ?"


Allahu A'lam.

[icyfreshy]

Thanks for the clarification... I think whatever needed to be said about Shaykh Hamza Yusuf (and some that didn't need to be said) was already said in that giant thread so I'm out of this thread.

[MeatteCen]

to all,

on another note, please exercise accountability. Say what you want to say about any scholar, or anyone for that matter, but if you can't prove your assertion, kindly retract it back. And if you still insist on the validity of your opinions, please have that opinions validated by preferably the central figure in the whole episode (email or something), or at very least backed up properly by other respected third party, again, with proof.

Just to say as a note, we are bound to make mistakes in our opinions because we are learning. However, when we venture into "accusation" territory, the burden of proof and the standard held are much more significantly higher. If we can't lived up to that standard, it's better to keep that opinion private. As an example, a judge in the case of Caliph Ali 's body armour, whereby when he submitted his two sons who as we all know are the leader of youths in the heaven as witnesses, even then the two witnesses were rejected on the ground of close blood relationship to the plaintiff. Also please note, the language asking for a verification is different from the language of accusation, and surely only Allah Knows what's inside everyone's heart



Allahu A'lam.