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44th Annual ISNA Convention WebcastPlease click on the session title to view the main session webcast.
Friday Main session webcast:
3:00 – 4:30 PM Inaugural Session Hall A
Presidents:
Islamic Society of North America (ISNA) – Ingrid Mattson
Muslim Students Association (MSA) – Asma Mirza
Muslim Youth of North America (MYNA) – Zaki Barzinji
Association of Muslim Scientists and Engineers (AMSE) – Khurshid A. Qureshi
Association of Pakistani Physicians of North America (APPNA) – Nadeem Kazi
Islamic Medical Association of North America (IMANA) – Ashraf Sufi
Council of Islamic Schools in North America (CISNA) – Safaa Zarzour
Chairs:
Convention Program – Azhar Azeez
Convention – Abdul Wahab
Steering Committee – Abdul Malik Mujahid
Moderator: Azhar Azeez
5:00 – 6:30 PM Session 1A: In the Footsteps of the Beloved: From Emulation to Internalization Hall A
While undoubtedly loving the Prophet Muhammad (s) is a universal claim among Muslims, there is often a disproportionate correlation between this professed love and the actual implementation of his spiritual and moral example in our daily lives. Indeed he is the model of perfection to be followed in all aspects of life. However, this emulation should entail more than a rote mimicking his actions. True love means internalizing not only his Sunnah, but truly embodying his very character. It involves an emotional connection with him that should serve as the motivational factor in inculcating and nurturing faith in our daily life. This session will both explain the importance of loving the beloved Prophet (s) and illuminate ways in which we can truly exemplify this love in our daily life.
Speakers: Muhammad Nur Abdullah, Mokhtar Maghraoui, Zaid Shakir
Moderator: Mazen Asbahi
8:30 - 10:15 PM Session 2A: Righting the Wrongs: Faith and Social Justice Hall A
While one of the most basic teachings of Islam is the obligation of working for social justice in society, we are often too involved in our personal lives or too removed from the reality of injustices, to devote attention to this essential part of our faith. Professing faith alone and ignoring the broader social concerns through a notion of insulated protection, is not only impractical, but insincere to our Divine obligation. This session will elucidate Islamic principles relating to social justice, with the aim of awakening our social consciousness through a deepening of our faith. Speakers will identify commonalities with American concepts of justice and address some particular areas needing our focus, such as, racial and gender justice, civil liberties, and economic justice and equity.
Speakers: David Cole, Siraj Wahhaj, Ebrahim Moosa
Moderator: Syed Imtiaz Ahmad
Saturday Main session webcast:
9:00 – 10:30 a.m. Session 3A: The Family Fortune: From Theory to Practice Hall A
Strong and harmonious families form the foundation of a healthy society. However, reality is often far from this ideal as families struggle to balance the needs between husbands and wives, and youth and elders, while trying to cope with the challenges of the contemporary world. Although Islam places important emphasis on kindness to and the rights of all family members, and while it clearly advocates the principle “the best of you is best to their family”, there is sometimes a disconnect between upholding faith and people’s behavior in their private family life. This session will highlight Islamic principles as well as offer concrete suggestions for addressing some of the major challenges confronting families today, including generation gap, general family discord, and the often hidden topic of domestic violence.
Speakers: Aisha Al-Adawiyya, Altaf Husain, Safaa Zarzour
Moderator: Ghulam Bakali
10:45 a.m. – 12:00 p.m Session 4A: Serving the Community: From Theory to Practice Hall A
As annunciated by this year’s theme “Upholding Faith, Serving Community”, there is a clear connection between faith and service to others. While indeed one’s faith is a personal endeavor, an extension of that faith is one’s actions towards others, as elucidated by numerous verses and prophetic traditions. While many Muslims uphold this theory in principle, there is often a gap between theory and practice. This session will examine some of the Islamic precepts that emphasize the importance of community service, while also providing actual models and examples of such principles in action on the local, national, and global level. Emphasis will be placed on the methodology used to identify and effectively serve the needs of different communities.
Speakers: Sherman Abd al-Hakim Jackson, Muneer Fareed, Rami Nashishibi, Anwar Khan
Moderator: Parvez Ahmed
2:45- 4:00 p.m. Session 5A: Faith in Practice: Understanding Basic Principles of Fiqh Hall A
It is not the first time Muslims have existed as a minority in a non-Muslim polity. Our predecessors who found themselves a religious minority navigated the social, political, cultural, and legal constructs of their hosts to engender a communal reality that was at once coherent with their own reality and sincere to their faith. These communities engaged the basic principles of fiqh as they proceeded to organically create their indigenous identity. This session will examine some of these basic principles that should equip us to make some of the decisions we are faced with daily on our own, while addressing some of the unique aspects of the Fiqh of Minorities, with an emphasis on Muslims in America.
Speakers: Yusuf Kavakci, Zainab Alwani, Muzammil Siddiqi
Moderator: Iqbal Unus
4:30 – 6:00 p.m Session 6A: From the Margins to the Mainstream: Effective Outreach Hall A
Misrepresentations and bias about Islam and Muslims has never been more pervasive, today with Islamophobia on the rise across the world. Both detractors of Islam, and Muslims misappropriating the religion create false impressions daily. There has never been a greater need for understanding and dialogue than today, but there are major and serious challenges from both sides. The opportunities for creating this understanding are numerous, whether through interfaith, education, dialogue, personal relations, or the media, but the urgency of this obligation requires the participation of more than a few groups or individuals. This session emphasizes the need for this critical work, the importance of understanding and addressing one’s audience, and practical steps and that can be taken by each one of us.
Speakers: Ibrahim Hooper, Sayyid M. Syeed, Kareem Irfan, Salam Al-Marayati
Moderator: Wafa Unus
8:15 – 10:30 p.m. Session 7A: Upholding Faith, Serving Humanity Hall A
This session aims to address the main theme of the convention. Our duty as Muslims is to represent the true meaning of Islam while. By reaching out to the broader community we serve not only the underprivileged and underrepresented but also revitalize our souls through action. As tensions continue to increase throughout the world, we as North American Muslims have a unique opportunity rarely found elsewhere to serve our community with assurances of security and freedom. Using the Prophet Muhammad (may peace be upon him) as our shining example, this session aims –through diverse, informed, and unique speakers - to motivate, inspire, and move us beyond mere words and rhetoric, to truly living a way of life dedicated to serving God by serving humanity.
Speakers: Ingrid Mattson, Siraj Wahhaj, Zaid Shakir, Hamza Yusuf, Keith Ellison , Abdalla Idris Ali, Asma Mirza, Zaki Barzinji
Moderator: Altaf Husain
Sunday Main session webcast:
9:00 – 10:30 a.m. Session 8A: Connecting to God: Finding Our Spiritual Compass Hall A
One of the greatest challenges for people of faith today is finding the time and means to nourish their faith, while cultivating their relationship with God in the face of numerous diversions and distractions that preoccupy an increasing part of our lives. Additionally challenging is the trend towards limiting the influence of religion in the public square and navigating the often conflicting aspects of our lives. As Muslims who attempt to find balance between the terrestrial and the celestial, these realities can not be ignored. At the core of our collective concern is how to keep God front and center in both public and private, intra- and inter-communal, and personal and professional realities. This session will aim to understand what Muslims believe about God as well as how that belief relates to some of the mundane, philosophical, and epistemological concerns of our times.
Speakers: Umar F. Abd-Allah, Abdullah Adhami, Maha Hamoui
Moderator: Ghulam Nabi Mir
11:00 a.m. – 12:30 p.m. Session 9A: Finding Unity within Our Diversity Hall A
Diversity of opinion has been the cornerstone of our rich intellectual discourse in Islam. However, divergent opinions have sometimes resulted in major divisions within the community. Achieving unity beyond mere rhetoric requires open and honest conversations on the reasons behind the division. Moreover, this discussion must focus on similarities from which an understanding of the other can be achieved. Although this discussion is vital to have between specific groups such as the Shi’a and Sunni communities in America, this is an important conversation that can benefit various diverse groups in the Muslim American community.
Speakers: Ihsan Bagby, Hamid Mavani, Mohamed Hagmagid Ali, Abdul Malik Mujahid (CIOGC Presentation)
Moderator: Louay Safi
4:30-6:00 p.m.
Session 11A: Stewards Over the Earth: Faith and the Environment Hall A
Today the earth is faced with one of the most catastrophic threats in its history: global warming. This phenomenon has the potential to wreak havoc on every aspect of our lives if steps are not taken to curb greenhouse gases. Added to this are numerous other devastating affects of unchecked modernity, such as water and air pollution, deforestation, diminishing resources, extinction of species, and a plethora of other environmental problems. The Qur’an contains hundreds of references to nature and creation as signs of God and a bounty for humankind and humans’ role as stewards over this earth. This session will examine numerous environmental principals illustrated in Islam, explain the concepts of stewardship and ecology, and identify concrete steps we can take collectively to address this serious crisis.
Speakers: Ameena Jandali, Jamal Badawi, Hakim Archuletta
Moderator: Sami Catovic