TWO-DAY NEW YORK RETREAT
In Light of Surah Al-Kahf
Faith Amidst Turbulence
Calibrating Our Compass in Contemporary Times
#DSnyretreat19
In Light of Surah Al-Kahf
Faith Amidst Turbulence
Calibrating Our Compass in Contemporary Times
"There shall come a time in which the person who remains steadfast upon his faith will be like the one holding on to a burning ember.” (Tirmidhi).
SATURDAY
APRIL
20
ASR
-
SUNDAY
APRIL
21
ISHA
Since the advent of modernity, the ummah has been in a state of collective and perpetual disarray: politically, socially, economically, and most crucially, religiously. Maps have been redrawn, and long standing institutions and traditions of our community have been excised and replaced, opening the way for ideologies and worldviews alien to those our faith upholds. Moreover, for the first time in our history, Muslims are immigrating in massive numbers and living as minorities among non-Muslim majorities. How do we explain the social and political upheaval in the Islamic World? How do we hold on to our traditions in a time when we are witnessing a radical global shift in ethics and values? How do we practice our faith in a secular environment where religiosity in general is viewed as a vestige of more primitive times and our faith in particular is viewed with contempt?
These critical issues will be addressed in this year's Two-Day Retreat, entitled "Faith Amidst Turbulence: Calibrating Our Compass in Contemporary Times."
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Dajjal Unchained: Surah Kahf as Protection Against Dajjal
Finding the Safe Zone: Protecting Our Faith
Devilish Deceptions & Defeating the Demons
You Are What You Eat: The Effects of Consumption
The Biggest Loser: Chasing the Temporary, Ignoring the Permanent
From the Life of Zulqarnain: Leveraging our Blessings
Success by Association: The Effects of Companionship
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GUEST SPEAKERS
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[accordion-item title="▽ Mufti Minhajuddin Ahmed"]
Minhajuddin Ahmed serves as the Principal of the Academy as well as one of the institute’s directors. Born and raised in Illinois, he memorized the entire Qurʾān at a young age. Later in life, when he reached college age, he opted to dedicate his life to Islāmic Studies and traveled to South Africa. There, he attended the prestigious Dār al-ʿUlūm Zakariyyā in Johannesburg. He studied the eight-year ʿālimiyyah and iftāʾ program graduating with teaching licenses and the permission to issue fatwā in the Ḥanafī School. He studied this program under one of the greatest scholars of our time, Mufti Rada al-Haqq. He also received authorizations in the Holy Qurʾān’s modes of recitation from al-Qārī Ayyūb b. Ibrāhīm Iṣḥāq.
Upon returning to the United States, he served as the director of the Islamic Foundation of Greater St. Louis for several years before becoming involved at Masjid DarusSalam. He oversees the administration of the institute. His passion for knowledge and dedication to providing a high-quality institute to serve the North-American Muslim community is phenomenal. Along with imparting knowledge to students in the classroom, he envisages creating a brilliant beacon of knowledge that will inspire future generations by offering an opportunity to study Islām in a way that is relevant in contemporary contexts while holding fast to tradition. Along with teaching and overseeing the institute’s administration, he serves as the imām at Masjid DarusSalam.
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[accordion-item title="▽ Mufti Azeemuddin Ahmed"]
Azeemuddin Ahmed serves as director of Masjid DarusSalam. He was born and raised in the Chicagoland area. At a tender age, he memorized the Holy Qurʾān. Thereafter, he traveled to South Africa where he studied a rigorous eight-year ʿālimiyyah and iftāʾ course at Dār al-ʿUlūm Zakariyyā. During his studies, he was blessed with the opportunity to spend extensive time in the company of one of the world’s elite jurists and scholars, Mufti Rada al-Haqq. After graduating with top honors from South Africa, he went on to earn a BA in Psychology from Elmhurst College. He served as the director of AIA Masjid in Frankfort, Illinois from 2006 to 2012.
Azeemuddin’s dedication and passion for Islāmic education is unparalleled. He is continuously in the service of both scholars and students. An individual with sincere love for scholarship, he strives to ensure that everyone at the institute is well and benefiting from the program. His love and enthusiasm bring the classes he teaches to life, every class conveys priceless points that enrich and benefit those in attendance. As well, he serves as an associate Imām at Masjid DarusSalam.
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GUEST SPEAKERS
Mawlana Kashif Aziz
Imam Kashif Aziz has been studying the traditional Islamic sciences from a young age. After graduating from middle school, he took admission at Al Fathiyyah Institute, an academy for Quran Memorization. He memorized the entire Quran by age sixteen.
After graduating from high school, he continued studying for the next eight years at Binnori Town University of Islamic Sciences, a distinguished Islamic seminary in Karachi, Pakistan. He completed an intensive curriculum that comprised of Arabic Language, Tafseer, Hadith and Fiqh (Islamic Jurisprudence).
After graduating from the ‘Aalim course (equivalent to M.A. in Islamic Theology), he served in Crescent School in Long Island, and then in Al Madinah School in Brooklyn, from 2002 to 2004. He served in the positions of Islamic Studies Teacher, Dean and Guidance Counselor.
Imam Kashif served for thirteen years as the Imam for Muhammadi Masjid in Elmont, NY. In addition to serving as a full time Imam, he was active in various social initiatives. He directed many programs and activities for the community including youth conferences, part-time weekend courses in the Islamic sciences, career development programs, youth mentoring workshops, Ramadhan I’tikhaf programs, programs for recent converts, Quran classes for adults, conducting marriage ceremonies and interfaith programs at local churches
Mawlana Mikaeel Olivieri
Mawlana Idris Abdus Salam
Shaykh Idris Abdus Salam was born and raised in Yonkers, NY. He began memorizing the Qurān at the age of eight under the guidance of his mother. He then went on to study under many teachers, eventually completing the entire Qurān at the age of 11 at Darul Uloom NY. Idris then moved to Teaneck, NJ and enrolled in Al-Ghazaly Junior-Senior High School. Alongside academic studies, Idris began studying Arabic and Fiqh under Mufti Abdul Muqtadir. Upon graduation of high school, he attended NYU-Poly and graduated with a bachelors degree in Civil Engineering. During college breaks, Idris went to Camperdown, South Africa, and studied under scholars such as Moulana Muhammad Abasoomer, Mufti Zakariyya Desai, Mufti Imran Vawda, Mufti Yunus Bhobat and many others. Then, after working as an engineer for a few months, he joined Institute of Islamic Education (IIE) and studied under Mawlana Abdullah Saleem, Mawlana Ubaidullah, Mawlana Sulaiman, Dr. Mufti Yasir Nadeem and other. He completed the Darse Nizami curriculum at IIE and received an ‘Alimiyyah degree. Idris currently works as an engineer, and is furthering his studies of Deen under scholars in the NY/NJ area. In addition, he is the Resident Scholar at Masjid Dar-ul-Islah in Teaneck, NJ. Idris began leading Tarāwīh from the age of 11, and has lead in various Masājid in the NY/NJ area. He is also into sports, and regularly plays basketball and table tennis.
Mawlana Usman Akhtar
Usman Akhtar completed the memorization of the Quran at Darul Uloom New York and then went on to study in South Africa. He completed the six-year curriculum under the guidance of world renowned scholars and earned authorizations in Hadith from many scholars. Upon graduation he traveled to Egypt to further his studies and received authorizations while studying privately under many Ulama.
Upon return from Egypt, he graduated summa cum laude from the University of Connecticut with a BA in Psychological Sciences and served as the Imam & Director of Religious Affairs of the Danbury Masjid|ISWC in Connecticut from 2013 to 2018. He was also a weekend academy instructor at Darul Uloom New York where he taught Arabic and other subjects. He is certified in mental health first aid and is a certified crisis counselor.
Shaykh Hasan Ali (UK)
Shaykh Hasan Ali graduated in 1997 as a scholar/Alim in Islamic education, in addition to gaining a Masters Degree in Educational Psychology at the Institute of Education (University of London) in 2006. He became the Imam of London Islamic Cultural Society (LICS) mosque on Wightman Road, North London (www.lics.info), where he founded Safar Academy, enrolling with only a handful of students. He moved on from his post of Imam and went on to work at the prestigious Yusuf Islam’s Brondesbury College for Boys as the Head of Islamic Studies and Imam. After a number of flourishing years there, he joined Ebrahim College where he taught a number of studies including usul-ul-fiqh, tafseer of the Qur’an and A-level Philosophy of Religion.
Mufti Minhajuddin Ahmed
Minhajuddin Ahmed serves as the Principal of the Academy as well as one of the institute’s directors. Born and raised in Illinois, he memorized the entire Qurʾān at a young age. Later in life, when he reached college age, he opted to dedicate his life to Islāmic Studies and traveled to South Africa. There, he attended the prestigious Dār al-ʿUlūm Zakariyyā in Johannesburg. He studied the eight-year ʿālimiyyah and iftāʾ program graduating with teaching licenses and the permission to issue fatwā in the Ḥanafī School. He studied this program under one of the greatest scholars of our time, Mufti Rada al-Haqq. He also received authorizations in the Holy Qurʾān’s modes of recitation from al-Qārī Ayyūb b. Ibrāhīm Iṣḥāq.
Upon returning to the United States, he served as the director of the Islamic Foundation of Greater St. Louis for several years before becoming involved at Masjid DarusSalam. He oversees the administration of the institute. His passion for knowledge and dedication to providing a high-quality institute to serve the North-American Muslim community is phenomenal. Along with imparting knowledge to students in the classroom, he envisages creating a brilliant beacon of knowledge that will inspire future generations by offering an opportunity to study Islām in a way that is relevant in contemporary contexts while holding fast to tradition. Along with teaching and overseeing the institute’s administration, he serves as the imām at Masjid DarusSalam.
Mufti Azeemuddin Ahmed
Azeemuddin Ahmed serves as director of Masjid DarusSalam. He was born and raised in the Chicagoland area. At a tender age, he memorized the Holy Qurʾān. Thereafter, he traveled to South Africa where he studied a rigorous eight-year ʿālimiyyah and iftāʾ course at Dār al-ʿUlūm Zakariyyā. During his studies, he was blessed with the opportunity to spend extensive time in the company of one of the world’s elite jurists and scholars, Mufti Rada al-Haqq. After graduating with top honors from South Africa, he went on to earn a BA in Psychology from Elmhurst College. He served as the director of AIA Masjid in Frankfort, Illinois from 2006 to 2012.
Azeemuddin’s dedication and passion for Islāmic education is unparalleled. He is continuously in the service of both scholars and students. An individual with sincere love for scholarship, he strives to ensure that everyone at the institute is well and benefiting from the program. His love and enthusiasm bring the classes he teaches to life, every class conveys priceless points that enrich and benefit those in attendance. As well, he serves as an associate Imām at Masjid DarusSalam.
The entire program is free of charge for all attendees!
Book a room at the Fairfield Inn at a special discounted rate!
The Mariott Fairfield Inn is located just a block away from DarusSalam at 645 E North Ave, Lombard, IL 60148