The results of the Islamic Society’s April 2008 election are as follows:

President

- Talha Raja ( Year 12 )

Committee

- Shojol Johid ( Year 11 )
- Zuhayr Chowdury ( Year 10 )
- Hasan Chaudhary ( Year 10 )
- Ismaile Chaudhry ( Year 10 )
- Mohammed Abdelaziz ( Year 10 )

The Ex-President is also automatically re-enlisted onto the committee.

Things to take note of:

- This committee will not come into effect until September 2008
- The years shown correspond to next year
- The election was conducted by Dr. Munir from the AMA and the results were counted by him.

Now running in its 9th Year, Knowledgeseekers brings you 5 exceptional 10 day courses.

Course 1: Islamic Studies
Course 2: Da’wah Training
Course 3, 4 and 5: Qur’anic Arabic (3 levels).

Click on the link for more information or to apply now:

www.isb.org.uk/isc/

Insha-Allah (God-Willing), this year’s elections will take place next Friday, the 25th of April. It will be conducted by Dr. Munir. The positions are open for anyone to be elected, here is the list of suggested candidates:

President

Talha Raja (Yr 12)

Committee

Shojol Johid (Yr 11)
Karam Ahmad (Yr 11)
Ishamile Chaudary (Yr 10)
Hasan Chaudhary (Yr 10)
Zuhayr Chowdhury (Yr 10)
Mohammed Abdelaziz (Yr 10)
Jameel Imran (Yr 10)

+ Committee of 2007/8

All years shown correspond to next year. There is one place for president, and five for the committee.

“Living Islam” is a holistic event held every two years which aims to create an environment that assists positive change within people and their families.

We invite you to join us at the largest Muslim residential family event ever held in Britain.

The Living Islam Event 2008 is brought to you by The Islamic Society of Britain.

Join Us and Help Make a Difference!

As well as events like this one, we organise conferences, seminars, study circles, sports & fitness, magazines and media, radio stations and much much more.
The Islamic Society of Britain (ISB) is a national organisation established in 1990 which evolved out of a wealth of experience and consultation, to respond to the needs of Britain’s growing Muslim community.

Our vision is to strive towards a just and caring society by providing a vehicle to people committed to the faith to bring together their knowledge, skills and efforts for the benefit of one another and British society as a whole, through the promotion of Islam and Islamic values.

Along with our youth wing, the Young Muslims UK (YM), we bring together the youth, men and women from all social and ethnic backgrounds, and different schools of thought, for the benefit of all. Our membership reflects the diversity of the British Muslim landscape.

ISB is open to all, to understand Islam and to live by its teachings and principles. We strongly believe that working for Islam is not just about campaigning for our rights. It is also about sharing and promoting Islam’s views about man, society and our world with all.

We do so as an organised, disciplined and dedicated group through sincere, well-mannered and positive dialogue.

Living Islam will take place from the 17th-20th of July. Book your tickets at www.livingislam.co.uk

“This summer, join us and take part in one of the most spiritually extravagant events of the year. Come taste some of the most exotic and unique flavours the world has to offer from Africa to China, see some of the most spectacular calligraphy and architecture in human history, network with some of the most influential people in the world, see the remains of one of the most brilliant and influential civilizations the face of humaity has ever known or just sit back and lay in awe of some of the worlds greatest word-smiths as they inspire you with their spoken word poetry and rap. With seminars form the likes of Tariq Ramadan, Yusuf Islam (Cat Stevens) and others, this year be part of one of the worlds most diverse global communities, this year be part of IslamExpo .”

This years Islam Expo will take place at the London Olmypia from the 11th-14th of July. Book your tickets at www.islamexpo.com

The site was recently ‘hacked’ into if you will, no need to worry any problems have been resolved and measures have been put in place to prevent recurrence.

Apologies for any inconveniences caused.

The country’s powerful Department of Religious Affairs has commissioned a team of theologians at Ankara University to carry out a fundamental revision of the Hadith, the second most sacred text in Islam after the Koran.

The Hadith is a collection of thousands of sayings reputed to come from the Prophet Muhammad.

As such, it is the principal guide for Muslims in interpreting the Koran and the source of the vast majority of Islamic law, or Sharia.

But the Turkish state has come to see the Hadith as having an often negative influence on a society it is in a hurry to modernise, and believes it responsible for obscuring the original values of Islam.

It says that a significant number of the sayings were never uttered by Muhammad, and even some that were need now to be reinterpreted.

‘Reformation’

Commentators say the very theology of Islam is being reinterpreted in order to effect a radical renewal of the religion.

Its supporters say the spirit of logic and reason inherent in Islam at its foundation 1,400 years ago are being rediscovered. Some believe it could represent the beginning of a reformation in the religion.

Turkish officials have been reticent about the revision of the Hadith until now, aware of the controversy it is likely to cause among traditionalist Muslims, but they have spoken to the BBC about the project, and their ambitious aims for it.

The forensic examination of the Hadiths has taken place in Ankara University’s School of Theology.

An adviser to the project, Felix Koerner, says some of the sayings - also known individually as “hadiths” - can be shown to have been invented hundreds of years after the Prophet Muhammad died, to serve the purposes of contemporary society.

“Unfortunately you can even justify through alleged hadiths, the Muslim - or pseudo-Muslim - practice of female genital mutilation,” he says.

“You can find messages which say ‘that is what the Prophet ordered us to do’. But you can show historically how they came into being, as influences from other cultures, that were then projected onto Islamic tradition.”

The argument is that Islamic tradition has been gradually hijacked by various - often conservative - cultures, seeking to use the religion for various forms of social control.

Leaders of the Hadith project say successive generations have embellished the text, attributing their political aims to the Prophet Muhammad himself.

Revolutionary

Turkey is intent on sweeping away that “cultural baggage” and returning to a form of Islam it claims accords with its original values and those of the Prophet.

Women are re-examining their portrayal in the scriptures

But this is where the revolutionary nature of the work becomes apparent. Even some sayings accepted as being genuinely spoken by Muhammad have been altered and reinterpreted.

Prof Mehmet Gormez, a senior official in the Department of Religious Affairs and an expert on the Hadith, gives a telling example.

“There are some messages that ban women from travelling for three days or more without their husband’s permission and they are genuine.

“But this isn’t a religious ban. It came about because in the Prophet’s time it simply wasn’t safe for a woman to travel alone like that. But as time has passed, people have made permanent what was only supposed to be a temporary ban for safety reasons.”

The project justifies such bold interference in the 1,400-year-old content of the Hadith by rigorous academic research.

Prof Gormez points out that in another speech, the Prophet said “he longed for the day when a woman might travel long distances alone”.

So, he argues, it is clear what the Prophet’s goal was.

Original spirit

Yet, until now, the ban has remained in the text, and helps to restrict the free movement of some Muslim women to this day.

As part of its aggressive programme of renewal, Turkey has given theological training to 450 women, and appointed them as senior imams called “vaizes”.

They have been given the task of explaining the original spirit of Islam to remote communities in Turkey’s vast interior.

One of the women, Hulya Koc, looked out over a sea of headscarves at a town meeting in central Turkey and told the women of the equality, justice and human rights guaranteed by an accurate interpretation of the Koran - one guided and confirmed by the revised Hadith.

She says that, at the moment, Islam is being widely used to justify the violent suppression of women.

“There are honour killings,” she explains.

“We hear that some women are being killed when they marry the wrong person or run away with someone they love.

“There’s also violence against women within families, including sexual harassment by uncles and others. This does not exist in Islam… we have to explain that to them.”

‘New Islam’

According to Fadi Hakura, an expert on Turkey from Chatham House in London, Turkey is doing nothing less than recreating Islam - changing it from a religion whose rules must be obeyed, to one designed to serve the needs of people in a modern secular democracy.

He says that to achieve it, the state is fashioning a new Islam.

“This is kind of akin to the Christian Reformation,” he says.

“Not exactly the same, but if you think, it’s changing the theological foundations of [the] religion. ”

Fadi Hakura believes that until now secularist Turkey has been intent on creating a new politics for Islam.

Now, he says, “they are trying to fashion a new Islam.”

Significantly, the “Ankara School” of theologians working on the new Hadith have been using Western critical techniques and philosophy.

They have also taken an even bolder step - rejecting a long-established rule of Muslim scholars that later (and often more conservative) texts override earlier ones.

“You have to see them as a whole,” says Fadi Hakura.

“You can’t say, for example, that the verses of violence override the verses of peace. This is used a lot in the Middle East, this kind of ideology.

“I cannot impress enough how fundamental [this change] is.”

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Alhamdulilah, this year’s JJB Trip was a success! Nearly 30 people attended, and all were in a good spirit. These are the results:

Round 1

Team 1: Nafees, Yaasir, Hanaan, Zuhayr, Abdullah
3 points
Team 2: Rafi, Mak, Nabil, Zain
8 points
Team 3: Hasan, Mukarrum, Qaasim, Jamil, Mohammed A
5 points
Team 4: Mohammed Y, Wasim, Mohammed B, Samir, Dawood
3 points
Team 5: Hashim, Dauood, Moin, Anil, Avez
10 points
Team 6: Rahim, Yusuf, Khizar, Yousef B, Talha
13 points

Team 6 are the winners!

Round 2

Team 1: Khizar, Rahim, Yousef B, Mak, Qaasim
4 points
Team 2: Avez, Talha, Moin, Nabil, Dawood
7 points
Team 3: Mohammed Y, Zuhayr, Yusuf, Rafi, Samir
5 points
Team 4: Hashim, Nafees, Jamil, Wasim, Zain
11 points
Team 5: Mukarrum, Mohammed A, Mohammed B, Hanaan, Talha
11 points
Team 6: Abdullah, Zain, Hasan, Anil, Dauood
3 points

Team 4 + 5 draw!

“Man” of the Tournament: Khizar Ibrahim

Also, £4 raised for charity! Every little helps!

‘Changes’

But the prime minister’s official spokesman said Sharia law could never be used as a justification for committing a breach of English law, nor could the principle of Sharia be applied in a civil case.
He added that Mr Brown had a good relationship with the archbishop, who was perfectly entitled to express his views.
The PM’s official spokesman said: “There are instances where government has made changes for example on stamp duty but the general position is that Sharia cannot be used as justification for committing breaches of English law nor can its principles be used in civil courts.”
Liberal Democrat leader Nick Clegg said: “Whilst having an enormous amount of respect for Rowan Williams, I cannot agree with his conclusions on this issue.
“Equality before the law is part of the glue that binds our society together. We cannot have a situation where there is one law for one person and different laws for another.
“There is a huge difference between respecting peoples’ right to follow their own beliefs and allowing them to excuse themselves from the rule of law.”
Dr Williams said Muslims should not have to choose between “the stark alternatives of cultural loyalty or state loyalty”.

“An approach to law which simply said - there’s one law for everybody - I think that’s a bit of a danger ” Dr Rowan Williams, Archbishop of Canterbury

In an interview with BBC correspondent Christopher Landau, Dr Williams argues this relies on Sharia law being better understood. At the moment, he says “sensational reporting of opinion polls” clouds the issue.
He stresses that “nobody in their right mind would want to see in this country the kind of inhumanity that’s sometimes been associated with the practice of the law in some Islamic states; the extreme punishments, the attitudes to women as well”.
But Dr Williams said an approach to law which simply said “there’s one law for everybody and that’s all there is to be said, and anything else that commands your loyalty or allegiance is completely irrelevant in the processes of the courts - I think that’s a bit of a danger”.