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Jun 19

Sickness and Fasting Ramadan

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Sickness and Fasting Ramadan

Many of us at NMA (New Muslims) are eager to fast and to show our dedication to God. Some of us are feeling guilty for not being able to fast due to our health condition. It is important for us to realize that God does not desire for us to put ourselves in harm’s way. Showing dedication to God is to obey Him, even if it means taking the legal concessions He has given us instead of doing a ritual devotion that we may desire.

I want to remind you that God knows your condition and does not hold you accountable for what you cannot do physically.

The general principle with acts of devotion is that they are based on one’s ability to perform them. This is taken from the text of the Quran and the prophetic teachings.

God says, “…..He has chosen you and has not placed upon you in the religion any difficulty.” 22:78

“God does not charge a soul except with that within its capacity.” 2:286

“Keep your duty to God as best you can” 64:16

Islam is not meant to overburden you or cause you stress, neither are its regulations and commands. What is meant is peace of mind, heart and soul through devotion to Almighty God.

Sicknesses are of different types and degrees of severity. Some sicknesses affect the fast while others do not.

A sick person has one of these three scenarios

Does not get effected by fasting. Examples of this are having a minor cold, a light headache, toothache etc. This individual is obligated to fast.

Experiences difficulty by fasting but it does not risk definite personal bodily harm. Examples of this are flu (unless the person is very old); certain common infections like tonsillitis; migraine headaches or severe tension headaches, etc. This individual is recommended not to fast.

Experiences difficulty by fasting and it causes personal bodily harm. Examples of this are kidney failure, diabetes, cancer etc. This individual is forbidden to fast and will be sinful for doing so. Hence, a person with a chronic disease is obligated not to fast.

As for making up the missed days of fasting: If the sickness is temporary with the hope of recovery, the person should make up those days sometime in the near future after recovery. However, if you have a chronic condition where the sickness is permanent and there is no hope of recovery, the person atones for the missed days by feeding a poor person twice daily for the amount of days he/she has missed.

A sick person who has a chronic condition does not fast. Instead, you get the same reward of fasting by feeding a poor person for everyday you miss.

This is an example of how to do so utilizing one of the many Muslim charity organizations.

If you live in the USA, by paying $10/per day ($300 total) to a charity organization. They will handle the rest of giving the money to those eligible.

One such organization is Islamic Relief

Jun 18

Good News for You, the Sincere Convert to Islam

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Good news for You, the Sincere Convert to Islam

Fasting takes practice. And a lot of energy. And self-control. Sometimes you can actually hear the argument that your stomach gives you when you fast!

God knows how hard it is for you to do what you do for His sake.  He knows your intention, and He will reward you greatly.

Converts to Islam don’t have nostalgia or family culture to comfort them during Ramadan.  They perform the prescribed ritual devotions, fast, read the Quran and offer prayers that are foreign to their own cultural customs and traditions.  They believe wholeheartedly in a Messenger that they have never even seen.

Did you know that the Messenger of God mentioned such people over 1400 years ago?

The Messenger of God once was with his disciples and said, “I wish I could meet my brethren.”

The Messenger’s disciples said, “Are we not your brethren?”

The Messenger said, “You are my companions and disciples, but my brethren are those who believe in me although they have never seen me.”

May God bless us to be among those people that the Messenger of God mentioned so long ago!

In the Quran there is also good news for the sincere new Muslim:

“Those who believe in God and His Messengers are the truthful ones who will bear witness before their Lord: they will have their reward and their light…”(57:19)

So take heart, and welcome this great news from the Messenger of God and the Quran that you are on the right path, and your reward is certain if you are sincere.

May God bestow on us sincerity and purity of intention, and the capacity to do all the good we intend to do in this month, and always!

Jun 17

What New Muslims can do when Not Fasting

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What New Muslims can do in Ramadan when Not fasting

Fasting and Ramadan are synonymous, aren’t they?  Those who are not fasting during Ramadan don’t exactly broadcast the fact.  Sometimes it can seem like if you can’t fast, there’s no point to celebrating Ramadan. It can either be due to illness, or the monthly break Muslim ladies will have from the prescribed ritual devotion due to the menstrual cycle.

Good news!  There is much more to Ramadan than just fasting!  Don’t think about all that you can’t do, and take a look at the list of the things that you can do this Ramadan:

  1. Realize that this condition is something that God decreed.  His plan is perfect and His timing is perfect.  Don’t feel sad, but try to be content that God has allowed you this time for you to explore other areas where you can draw near to Him.  Here’s an amazing thought: you are worshiping God by NOT offering the prescribed ritual.  You are obeying God’s command to refrain from offering the prescribed ritual devotion and fasting while on your menstrual period.

  2. Pray anyway.  No I don’t mean offer the prescribed ritual devotion, I just mean pray to God. Prayer has no prerequisites or conditions of ritual purity. You simply talk to God when you feel like it.

  3. Keep your connection with the Quran.  Continue to listen and read the translation of the Quran during your period while you refrain from the ritual devotion and the fast. If you set aside the time of each prescribed ritual for Quran, you might even read more than usual!

  4. Learn and say the daily supplications for different occasions: going to sleep, waking up, eating, leaving the house etc.

  5. Prepare some food to share with others.  Perhaps your family or neighbors would appreciate something you’ve made for yourself. Ramadan is a month of charity!

  6. The self-control and patience that fasting helps develop should be kept up during the time when you refrain from fasting.  Continue to guard your tongue from saying bad things, and protect your ears from hearing bad things or being silent when someone is saying something evil.

  7. Donate clothes, food, toys, money etc

God decreed this time as a mercy for Muslim women.  You are relieved of the burden of offering the prescribed ritual devotion and fasting, so that you can concentrate on other ways to worship God.  May God help you be consistent in your worship through the whole month.

Jun 16

Battling Loneliness During Ramadan

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Battling Loneliness during Ramadan

Although Ramadan is known for those who are born Muslim as a time of community and family gatherings just like any typical holiday season, for the new Muslim it’s just not.

When you’re going through a test alongside someone else, it’s a bit easier. So, what can the convert to Islam do, on their own, to make Ramadan special?

Virtual Family

The New Muslim Academy forums are busy with activity all year. Why not join the discussion?  Great pains are taken to ensure that all students are converts to Islam, so you will be discussing Ramadan, breaking fast alone, predawn meals in secret and other topics with people that are going through the same struggles that you are experiencing.

Break Fast with a Lecture

Plan ahead, and look for a great lecture to watch or listen to while you eat your break-fast meal.  You will really benefit from listening to someone’s voice so it may as well be someone who is teaching you something new! Here are some recommended lectures:

“The Prophet’s Ramadan” series

https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLd1iIFdWNC2lK2MYvsV6T4P_R2tDCpdJX

“The Prophetic Day” series

https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLd1iIFdWNC2muKw5Tl-9h6wLq8DrG9ko-

“Building the Foundation” series

https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLd1iIFdWNC2l7t0UE3gMIquvR-EyexKQ7

Be the Host with the Most

You could get rewards multiplied by hosting a dinner at your home, at which you break your fast with your family, co-workers or fellow students.  Everyone loves to eat! If you invite people to come and eat when you are having dinner, it will be a great way to introduce your new faith.

The charity that you spend on your family and neighbors is also greatly rewarded. Consider inviting a few non-Muslims, who are close to you, love you and accept you for who you are, over while you break your fast.

Have mercy on yourself and make it a potluck, explaining your dietary restrictions, and the time of day that you will be breaking your fast. The fastest way to a person’s heart is through his/her belly!

May God bless your heart with gratefulness and satisfaction in your chosen faith and Way of God, and may He ease your emotional hurt of loneliness this Ramadan.

Jun 14

What Fasting Does For You

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What Fasting Does for You

God has prescribed fasting for us, so that means there’s good in it.  The word used in the Quran is  ‘prescribed’. What does that mean?
It’s like a doctor’s prescription: it helps. It heals, and by the permission of God, cures.
Here are some things that fasting can do for your body, and your soul:

Body:

Fasting improves brain function, and because the body doesn’t produce as much hormones to use for digestion, stress levels are lowered.
Losing weight in Ramadan helps your body detoxify, as toxins in the fat stores will be eliminated through fasting and losing weight.
The fast of Ramadan helps the body achieve a greater metabolism which has many known health benefits.

Soul:

Gaining mindfulness of God, as is mentioned in the Quran, “You who believe, fasting is prescribed for you, as it was prescribed for those before you, so that you may be mindful of God.” 2:183
Renewed commitment to obedience to God, as mundane acts like eating and drinking are avoided for His sake
Confidence in the strength of your belief is supported for each successful fasting day
Unselfishness blossoms in the heart of the mindful fasting Muslim as we consider those less fortunate who are hungry all year
If not a communal feeling of brotherhood, a spiritual one can be felt in the heart during Ramadan as we fast along with the Muslims in the rest of the world
Jun 12

When the doc says no to fasting: some rulings for the New Muslim

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When the doc says no to fasting: some rulings for the New Muslim

Whether it’s a temporary or permanent illness, being too sick to fast is no fun.  You want to be able to fast, but it is harmful to your health, unlike other Muslims who have been blessed with good enough health.
Fasting is a big part of participating in Ramadan, but thankfully it’s not the only way you can worship God at this time.  We’ll explore what else you can do during Ramadan when you can’t fast, but first let’s discover when it’s allowed to break the fast.
 “Fast for a specific number of days, but if one of you is ill, or on a journey, then on other days later..” (2:184)
This is the part of the Quran that the scholars use to prove that someone who is sick does not have to fast.  It means that if a person is sick enough to be exempt from fasting, they can make up those days after Ramadan when they are feeling better.  But how sick do you have to be, to break your fast?
If fasting will make your sickness unbearable, then the scholars have said that it’s allowed to break your fast.  After all, the Quran says “God does not burden a soul with more than it can bear” (2:186). You know yourself, and your condition, to know how much discomfort you can bear in order to be able to fast.
You might have an illness that doesn’t make fasting hard to do, but will worsen or lengthen the time that you are sick.  If at least one doctor tells you that fasting will make you sicker, then it is better for you to break your fast.  You can fast if you like, but it is better not to do so.
Some of you might have to take medications that are prescribed to be taken throughout the day. Break your fast while you are on these meds.
Maybe your sickness doesn’t fall under any of the above categories.  Perhaps fasting doesn’t make it impossible, or you don’t have medicine to take. However, if your sickness is severe enough that breaking your fast will help you get better quicker, then you should break your fast.
Did you know you can also break your fast while you are travelling?  The hardship of travel is made worse by avoiding food and drink, so the phrase from the Quran mentioned above shows us that you are exempt from fasting while you travel.
It’s really hard to break your fast.  It’s a real accomplishment to make it for the whole day.  But if you’ve forced yourself to the point of extreme discomfort in order to fast, then perhaps you are missing the point.
There are many benefits to participating in worship during Ramadan.  The patience that is required to fast can be exercised outside of fasting, too.  Practice being patience and avoid arguing, just like those who are fasting.  Go out of your way to be kind to people. Recite and listen to Quran. Pray to God and use the nighttime for devotion.
If your illness is of a type that you don’t expect to ever be able to fast, then instead of fasting you can feed one person for each day that you have missed fasting.  You can cook the food yourself, and feed the poor, or donate money to Islamic charities who feed the poor on your behalf.
Jun 10

Covert Fasting for Converts to Islam

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Covert Fasting for Converts

Dear New Muslim

Even though you feel alone, and this Ramadan is a struggle, we are proud of you and praying for you.

Every pain you feel and every challenge you face we increase in your love. We support you and wish to provide you with some tools to help you at this trying time.

Keep in mind that each circumstance and situation calls for a different course of action. The following are only suggestions and you are best suited to implement what works for you.

Muslims around the world share the bond of fasting as a brotherhood around the world.  A big part of the difficulty of fasting is relieved when everyone around you is also fasting, openly.

But what if no one knows you’re Muslim?  Many of us, New Muslims, have not disclosed the decision of embracing Islam to our family and loved ones.

 How can you fast when everyone expects you to eat?  In some situations, your family may not have accepted your conversion to Islam and will pressure you to eat.

Here are some creative ways that you can use to avoid the awkwardness of being the only one in the room not eating:

 6 Tips for Fasting in Secret

1. Deflect and Avoid

If invited to a dinner or a party, excuse yourself out.  No one can force you to attend a gathering, like a birthday, where partaking in food will play a central role.  You can opt out of that cake and ice cream by simply telling your family, friends, or co-workers, that you “don’t feel like it”. You can soften the blow by asking for a rain check and promising to make it up to them at a different time.

2. Excuses, excuses

If getting out of the gathering is unavoidable, simply refrain from eating. You may opt out at the table, and join in the conversation.  There is no need to lie or make up a false excuse. It is doubtful that you will be pressured to eat if you refuse, and unlikely that someone present will force you to eat. If you are physically forced to eat, you would be excused and should not feel guilty.

3. Get busy

If you are at home and there is an event that will put pressure on you to eat or drink, you could make yourself busy in the kitchen or elsewhere in the house, preparing for the guests. You can stay busy while the meal is served, or start cleaning up.

4. Home away from home

If you predict that when you return home at a certain time, you will be caught fasting, then stay out. Go to the library or to a museum or another place that will occupy your time until you imagine the meal at home is over. Your alibi can be reinforced if you take up a class that brings you home after the sun has set.

5. Time for Eating

If invited out, or to plan an event where you will feel this pressure, plan it so that it extends past the time the sun sets.  You can duck out to offer your prescribed ritual devotion and come back to the event to break your fast.  If the choice is there to decide between a daytime or night-time gathering, choose the late one so that you can eat and drink along with the rest of the group.

Jun 07

Build Your Faith While Alone

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Build your Faith While Alone

Being in a group of Muslims remembering God can be a great boost for our faith. For those of us who are not blessed with the ability to mingle with observant Muslims and benefit from them, it can be a struggle to increase faith in our hearts. While some new Muslims have access to physical Muslim communities, many of us are on our own to seek knowledge without real life community. Many of us find other Muslims virtually but it causes so much confusion due to conflicting information and the vulnerability of not knowing who to ask and who to listen to.

You are reading this online, which means you are already aware of the programs that the New Muslim Academy offers for new Muslims.  We have a forum to which you can contribute your conversion story, introduce yourself, and take part in discussions.

The most important step to building your faith in Islam is finding a trustworthy, empathetic and qualified teacher.  The teachers at NMA specialize in your service and are wisely aware of the struggles you go through. Continue to come back to the site to voice your concerns. Chances are, other converts to Islam are wondering the same things that are of concern to you.

With NMA, your knowledge base is covered. You can also find an avenue for social interactions with others going through your struggles.

What we find when we look into building faith in Islam is that it is a solitary activity.  Our relationship with God is an intimate one which takes dedication and consistency to build and strengthen. Consider the following acts which can help you strengthen your faith in Islam on a  daily basis:

1.Speak to God regularly and ask Him for help
2. Try to be consistent in offering your prescribed ritual devotion
3.Open the pages of the Quran randomly and read the translation of the phrases therein
4.Spend time alone each day without distractions or noise, whether at home or outdoors, and contemplate your surroundings, considering that God put all of it in motion through His wisdom and mercy.
May 31

The biggest mistake made with prayer

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The biggest mistake made with prayer

Interesting history tidbit: prior to Islam, the Arabs used the word ‘Salah’ which merely meant prayer. It meant the casual, any-time talking to God that has no rules or prerequisites. After God sent down the Quran, however, this word took on an entirely different meaning. The new meaning of ‘Salah’ is prescribed ritual devotion.

 

Translating ‘Salah’ as prayer is a mistake and causes confusion for many reasons, especially for new Muslims.

  1. While a person maybe used to just talking to God and asking Him for things, some people tell the new Muslim that prayer cannot be offered without ritual washing first, and facing a certain direction. This results in many new Muslims not praying to God outside of the prescribed ritual devotion.

  2. The supplications that the Messenger of God said and taught were all in Arabic since that was his language. The new Muslim gets the impression that as a Muslim one must talk to God in Arabic alone. This creates an invisible language barrier in our relationship with God.

  3. Offering the prescribed ritual devotion is a struggle for new Muslims. Having the wrong impression that Salah and prayer are one and the same, many feel very depressed as they feel that their worship has no meaning or is completely useless due to lack of punctually.

 

Most new Muslims (and born Muslims for that matter) are not Arabic-speaking.  The offering of the prescribed ritual devotion begins as something mechanical, involving body movements and foreign words.  Making sure to make this devotion on time each day is hard enough.  If the new Muslim has been told that prayer is “Salah”, they become frustrated as they are not communicating with God intimately and can not find spiritual fruits in their devotion.

 

Here is the good news for everyone, especially new Muslims:

“You don’t need to know Arabic to talk to God, nor to communicate with Him!

You don’t need to know Arabic to learn about Islam, or to pray to God.

Speak to God in your own language with your own words.

Prayer is something very important in Islam and is something we should do at all times. “

Shaykh Ahmad Al Kurdy

May 17

Your Fast Doesn’t Have to be Perfect

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You Don’t Have to Be Perfect.
Once I met a nice woman who was interested in Islam, learning a lot about its regulations. She even learned how to perform the ritual devotion before she became Muslim.
She had it in her head that once she becomes Muslim, she wanted to start off getting everything right.  But what she was trying to do, is not even possible. She thought she could get it perfect on the first try.
The point of the story is that when she accepted Islam, she realized that there was still a lot  more to learn, and a lot more to do. Unfortunately, this story is all too common. Many people get overwhelmed because they do not follow the prophetic guidance of gradual growth with proper guidance. They also start learning about regulations before the fundamental beliefs and basic foundations.
When you try fasting, and worshiping during Ramadan, just try your best.  God accepts all good deeds done for His sake, not just the perfected ones.  Check out what God says regarding trying:
“I am as My servant thinks (expects) I am. I am with my servant when he mentions Me.
If he mentions Me to himself, I mention him to Myself;
and if he mentions Me in an assembly, I mention him in an assembly greater than it.
If he draws near to Me a hand’s length, I draw near to him an arm’s length.
And if he comes to Me walking, I go to him fast.’”
So, trying is rewarded by God.  Ramadan is a month when each Muslim has the chance to look inside themselves and work on their shortcomings.  It’s a time of mercy, that we can have mercy on ourselves, and take our time in our own development.
Last year, I attended a webinar of super-wealthy Muslims who told us about their Ramadan goals. One amazing man mentioned he had a goal to feed 200,000 Muslims during the month Ramadan.  I have no doubt that he accomplished that.
At first, I thought, ‘What is that, compared to me just feeding my family?’
Then I remembered the spirit of Ramadan is NOT comparing yourself to others, but comparing yourself at the beginning, and the end of the month, and coming out a better Muslim.
So I’m writing this to say that you should take little steps towards whatever personal goals you have this Ramadan. If you beg God to help, and take those tiny steps, you will have a successful Ramadan.
Check out the tips in this Ramadan ebook. We have your back, and are here to help you achieve the greatness that you hope for in yourself.