The revelation of the Qurʾān and the grand story of Islam all began with a single word: Read! Emanating from above the heavens, it echoed from a barren cave on to the rest of the world. The Book of Allah then steady followed. Through this Book was born an ummah in which informed knowledge was made the path to God and the written tradition held in high esteem. Since that momentous time, Muslim civilization has produced a vast body of literature to illuminate hearts and minds. Reading is central to the Muslim personality. Join us on this literary journey to expand our hearts and minds and to relive the first Qurʾānic command.
Goals of the Program:
Promoting general literacy on a broad variety of Islamic-related subjects
Living the Qurʾānic command to read and reviving the Muslim tradition of reading literature
Broadening one’s intellectual horizons and exposure to other views and ideas
Promoting active as opposed to passive learning
Program Guidelines:
- Select a casual setting (conference room, library, etc.) to discuss pre-assigned readings (decided in advance and communicated via email) on a regular basis (once or twice a month), with one discussion leader (preferably alternate through the participants)
- Alternate the readings through the following ten broad topics to cover each throughout one full year:
- Qurʾānic sciences
- Sunnah and ḥadīth sciences
- Prophetic Seerah
- General History and Biographies
- Poetry and Linguistic Studies
- Womens Studies
- Politics, Economics and Islamic Law (Islamic state, political theory, economics, Shariah, legal code)
- Psychology and Self-Help (Parenting, Public Speaking, Time Management)
- Spirituality (Tazkiya, Islamic Development)
- Health and Wellness (Islamic Medicine, Nutrition)
- Readings should be short books, or specific chapters of larger books, or published journal articles
- Due to the casual nature of the program , brother and sisters sessions should be separate
- Ideal participant size is less than 20; for larger crowds consider splitting into two separate programs
- Keep in mind that this program is not, and cannot be, an endorsement of every work, but should encourage critical reading skills. Therefore, do not shy away from controversial titles, but the bulk of the reading should be broadly accepted works.
LOCATION
Tuesdays at 8pm:
Islamic Learning Center
180 Ege Ave
Jersey City, NJ 07304
Quran Literacy Institute 