Lab tests
One of our lecturers today said that DNA tests can be used to establish paternity, but they cannot be used to prove charges of fornication. Claims of lineage accept a …
Bloggish
Personality cults and sufism
Points from a conversation with a fellow student concerned about some trends we watching develop: The community should be guided by muftis, not Sufis: because fiqh is meant to be general for the community, …
Fighting the nafs…one buffalo wing at a time
A friend and I went to the local greasy spoon. My friend likes buffalo wings. My stomach doesn’t stomach spicy foods. But I just had to have one. And then another. I …
And by their methodology you shall know them
People used to ask me to give a list of contemporary Hanbali scholars and whether Shaykh so-and-so is really a Hanbali or just some guy dropping names. I usually refused …
Three blind men and Islam
I’m sure everyone here knows the fable of the three old blind men who stumbled across an elephant. Each man started describing their new-found friend based on whatever piece that …
Sex Education and Muslims
I came across an interesting fatwa in response to a question about Muslim teachers teaching and Muslim students studying sex education. Sex education is a mandatory component in many programs in the …
Corn mentioned in 14th century CE books of fiqh
Maize (corn) is one of the things Europeans brought back from their early voyages to the Americas in the 15thcentury.[1] A few of us wondered how fast it spread when …
Taxis & passengers carrying alcohol
A few thoughts on taxi drivers carrying passengers whose possessions include alcohol Someone asked about the legal status of Muslim taxi drivers carrying passengers whose possessions included alcohol. Some Here …
A few thoughts on conspiracy theories
A friend asked me a few months ago to write about the legal status of conspiracy theories. Here are a few thoughts. We have a methodology we are supposed to …