In the Name of Allaah, the Most Gracious, the Ever Merciful…

Yasir Qadhi, self-proclaimed scholar and Dean of Academic Affairs at Almaghrib Institute, has recently become even more active in requesting the general Muslims to keep away from the scholars of Islaam, and to rely completely on Westernized and apologetic preachers like himself and those connected to his Almaghrib Institute, those currently being set up as replacements for the actual scholars of Islaam.

In a recent speech about “modernity” in December of 2013, Yasir Qadhi tells stories of the “stupidity” of the scholars of Islaam throughout history, and how their rigidity and lack of connection to the people has always kept Islaam and the Muslims from progress.

After laying down the foundations for the scholars to be viewed as a bunch of clowns to be laughed at, he introduces a shining brand of “scholars” who are forward-thinking and actively connected to the people. Who are they? They are the deviant political activists of the Muslim lands, those the scholars of Islaam have warned against time and time again, the likes of Hassan al-Bannaa, founder of the al-Ikhwaan al-Muslimoon Sect, and Saudi activist Salman al-‘Owdah, whom Yasir praises highly as a “forward-thinking realistic scholar”. Also fanatically promoted is Yusuf Al-Qaradawi, in the words of Yasir Qadhi:

One of our main reference points

A towering intellectual genius [!]

Somebody who understands the Sharee’ah and its applicability in modern times

An ‘aalim (scholar) with unrivaled scholarship [!]

The reader would do well to learn what one of the most outstanding critics of our time, Shaykh Muqbil al-Waadi’ee (may Allaah have Mercy on him), said about the reality of this inflated Ikhwani figurehead. [Click here]

The clearest goal of the lecture can be found in Yasir Qadhi’s explicit advice for the Muslims, already admittedly disconnected from the scholars, to not refer to scholars overseas, but rather to rely on “local scholars” who understand our lives and our societies! He says:

…You cannot get a fatwaa about living in a secular democracy from somebody who has never lived in a secular democracy. You cannot get a fatwaa about how to interact with your homosexual neighbor when a person has never met a homosexual in his life…

Source: His December 7, 2013 lecture in Detroit entitled “Looking Back as We Look Forward” (at about 52 minutes into the recording).

If you are paying attention to what Yasir Qadhi is saying here, and Allaah has blessed your intellect with balance and understanding, you should be able to see his goal becoming very clear – Replacing the DISTANT scholars of Islaam with his LOCAL team of brazen forward-thinking Almaghrib Institute instructors.

EXPOSED: Attempts to Disqualify the Most Qualified Scholars on Earth

Our senior-most scholars, those we return to for the most important matters of how to apply our Religion in our lives, do not live in secular democracies, and that is a reality. Yasir Qadhi seems to think he actually possesses the authority to disqualify and dismiss the senior, most needed scholars of Islaam, right out of the lives of the Western Muslims, based on his own personal baseless rhetoric.

This misguided claim that we “CANNOT” get a fatwaa from someone who does not live with us stands in stark opposition to the understanding of the Messenger of Allaah (may Allaah raise his rank and grant him peace) and his Companions. The Prophet sent Mu’aath ibn Jabal to Yemen and instructed him on how to deal with the people of Yemen, without ever having lived there. He sent important messages addressing the kings and authorities of different lands, without having lived in their lands. He even gave verdicts about homosexuals, and I wonder if Yasir would like to try to prove that the Prophet (may Allaah raise his rank and grant him peace) met and interacted with an open homosexual!

We could agree that if two equally qualified scholars spoke on an issue relevant to a certain land or culture, then we would give precedence to the one who knows more about that land or culture. But what is the relationship between this understandable distinction and replacing the scholars of Islam with a group of TV personalities, entertainers, storytellers, self-proclaimed scholars, and magicians?!

The “Fiqh al-Waaqi'” Scam Revived

In reality, this is just another modern rehashing of the Qutbi fanaticism (ghuluw) regarding “Fiqh al-Waaqi'” (the Fiqh of current affairs). Over the last few decades, it has been a tool by which aspiring political activists would gain popularity with the people, speaking about matters that are in today’s newspapers and TV news reports. While the real scholars of Islaam were taking careful steps to verify and investigate news reports before speaking, the opportunistic political activists (the likes of Salman al-‘Owdah, one of Yasir’s “forward-thinking” shaykhs) would use that period of time to blame the senior scholars for neglecting the needs of the people, and claim they were forced to speak since the scholars were silent, leaving the people in the dark, as they would twist it.

Honest everyday people were tricked into thinking their scholars were not concerned with the current state of the Ummah, and the only ones who really care are those who (recklessly) speak about today’s headlines!

Resource: Shaykh Saalih al-Fowzaan on Fiqh al-Waaqi’

The Reality of the “Don’t Outsource” Plea

After attempting to disqualify the scholars of Islaam from their rightful ranks, Yasir Qadhi then encourages the local Detroit audience to refer to the many scholars available in Detroit [?], instead of “outsourcing” their fatwaas to scholars outside of the country (who he believes are unqualified to speak about our issues)! This discouragement of “outsourcing fatwaas” is a clever new twist to the old “Fiqh al-Waaqi'” scam, a new face to the old scheme to replace the scholars of Islaam.

This is the culmination of the “action plan” in his concluding summary, that Muslims should not refer to the scholars outside of their country, but rather get their fatwaas from “local scholars”, basically cementing the modernist re-invention of the word “scholar” to include anyone who speaks on behalf of Islaam and can produce some kind of certificate from a collegiate program of study (i.e. Almaghrib Institute instructors).

Students of knowledge in the West have warned the Muslims for years that Yasir Qadhi and his associates seek to pinch the Muslims off from their scholars. The accuracy of those warnings has now become abundantly clear to all who wish to be balanced, and we hope that our brothers and sisters will take heed.

The Modernists’ Plot to Replace the Scholars of Islaam

It seems to be that preachers in the West gain an audience and become popular, and then instead of helping their followers get connected to the scholars of Islam and thus – true knowledge, they enjoy becoming the reference point themselves, and basically attempt to take the place of the scholars. And it happens on different levels, beginning among their followers, in their circles.

In the lecture, Yasir Qadhi emphasizes the fact that today’s common Muslims are not well-connected to their scholars. While this is true, and it is a serious problem, his expressions of this concept are cleverly worded to place blame on the scholars specifically, not the common people or the students who should be bridging that gap! He blames the scholars themselves for not being connected to the everyday Muslims, and then proceeds to foster this disconnection and cement it, instead of repairing it and advising the Muslims to return to their scholars, which would be quite easy for an articulate student of knowledge who truly wants to help the Muslims improve their condition.

With the real scholars out of the picture, it is just as the Prophet (may Allaah raise his rank and grant him peace) predicted, they give fatwaas based upon ignorance, whilst they are misguided themselves, leading others into misguidance.

اتَّخَذَ النَّاسُ رُؤوسًا جُهَّالًا، فَسُئِلُوا فَأَفْتَوْا بِغَيْرِ عِلْمٍ، فَضَلُّوا وَأَضَلُّوا

“…The people would take ignorant people as their (religious) leaders, and they would be asked and respond with fatwaas without knowledge, going astray themselves, leading others astray.” [Bukhari & Muslim]

How else did the magic of Pharaoh’s magicians become perfectly permissible, or even a recommended tool for giving da’wah!? [clarified here]

How else did Marijuana become permissible for medical purposes!? [clarified here]

How else did the majority of the Muslims (even when they are misguided) become the yardstick by which to judge others’ guidance!? [clarified here]

How else did the Ja’fari math-hab of the Iranian Raafidhah Cult become a perfectly legitimate math-hab? [clarified here]

We ask Allaah to cause our brothers and sisters to wake up to these plots, and to open their eyes to the games of these unworthy and incapable “replacements” for the scholars of Islaam.

NEW: Shaykh Saalih al-Fowzaan exposes the reality of this plot here.

Beware of Almaghrib Institute and its Instructors

As Yasir Qadhi is “the man behind the curriculum” at Almaghrib Institute, as they openly declare (see this), it is from our of love for the Muslims and their guidance that we beseech them to be on guard against the plots of this group and more specifically its card-carrying members.

The following is a list of official Almaghrib instructors taken directly from their institute’s website:

Muhammad Alshareef

Waleed Basyouni

Yaser Birjas

Yasir Qadhi

Abu Eesa Niamatullah

Abdullah Hakim Quick

Omar Suleiman

Kamal El Mekki

Reda Bedeir

Riad Ouarzazi

Saad Tasleem

Abdulbary Yahya

Ahsan Hanif

Navaid Aziz

Said Rageah

Mohammed Faqih

Yasmin Mogahed

Abdul Nasir Jangda

All of the above instructors willingly work under the Almaghrib Institute curriculum designed and/or supervised by Yasir Qadhi. The speech of Yasir Qadhi quoted above was given under the Almaghrib banner (literally), and it should be understood that one of their primary leaders, the man behind the curriculum in fact, is outlining the direction of the institute.

The above named instructors are invited to fear Allaah and openly free themselves from this modernist organization and its plot to turn the Muslims away from their scholars and replace them with funny, “forward-thinking” entertainers who will be so “connected” to the people.

Please advise your friends and loved ones to be warned of them, and to never turn away from the real scholars of Islaam under any pretense.

And Allaah knows best.

Written by: Moosaa Richardson

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