Working Class Muslim Families Series - An interesting series where Umar Lee comes to conclusions not too far from my own:

There can be no solution to these problems though unless we successfully raise our children as Muslims and we do our part to help build and sustain Islamic institutions. Dawah is important and should never be forsaken; but more important than dawah is sustaining the existing Muslims. So, if you are living in a city that is not conducive to the Islam of your children or does not nurture your Islam then you need to go.

The problems of raising Muslim children vary depending on the race or ethnicity of the family and children. The offspring of affluent immigrant suburban Muslims are at risk of just falling in love with the dunya and the modern secular world. With an elite education and the ability to materialistically achieve at the highest level while having a minimal Islamic identity it is highly probable that the bulk of these young Muslims will raise children less Muslim than they are and that many will not raise Muslim children at all. This will weaken with every generation with the remaining Muslims falling into the categories of the very conservative Muslims who have clustered themselves in areas with a high concentration of Muslims (which will be the biggest category), a few progressive Muslims who want to hold onto a non-white identity and have some kind of loose connection with their roots while not professing to follow the Sunnah, and fresh immigrants. More so than any of the categories though you will find people with names like Blake Siddiqhi and Lisa Faruq who are descendents of Muslim immigrants who did well financially ; but they have no connection to Islam due to intermarriage and a lack of Islamic education by their parent or grandparents.

I do not feel that these projections are particularly difficult to make. Those seeking a modern and reformed Islam, almost by definition, want to be a part of the modern world and lack an enthusiasm for traditional Islam. They were born and raised into more traditional Muslim families so they have a semblance of Islam; but without such a benefit given to their children they will have even less Islam, if any at all, and it is highly doubtful that the generation after that will identify as Muslim at all.

The clustered Muslims who practice selective engagement have the greatest chance of ensuring Islam is spread to the future generations in America.

What is a limitation of the series is that Umar Lee’s life experiences create the boundaries for the discussion, and while he is obviously well versed with some pockets of Muslims in America, he is not familiar with all of it (and shouldn’t expected to be). Specifically, he remains unfamiliar with traditional “sufi” Muslims reactions to modernity and their approaches to these same questions.

Also, while focusing on implementing the Sunnat, what Umar does not address is the application of the Sunnat in these times and situations and problems. The discussion has become about implementing Sunnat in womens dress, schools, meat, and finding marriage partners. “Islamic” has become a sociological expression, but shouldn’t the sunnah also guide us to the goals of all of the above and more?

But what does the Sunnat say about what will happen to Muslims, and what were our instructions? Didn’t the Prophet (S) speak very specifically about the further strangeness of Islam and Muslims in contrast with the rest of the world? What is the consequence of this prophecy? Why are Jews a model, when we were told we would follow them down the lizards hole? Further, what kind of community can be built without a real leader?

The answers of all these questions have been though about in 1400 years of Islamic tradition. How were Islamic communities established across all of Balkans, Central Asia, India, some in the very heart of kufr? The Islamic lifestyle which is being implemented by the Osmanli Naksibendi Dergah in upstate New York, which follows this protocol, goes far beyond the corner of a city neighborhood filled with Muslims.

Another quote I enjoyed:

The second thing people are thinking is, and I think perhaps maybe this opinion may be the majority in many circles, is why am I making a fuss? Hey, we are in America, the land of the free and the home of the brave. Muslims are dying to come here and raise their children and you are complaining about having to raise your children here? America is the land of opportunity. If you work hard and get a good education here you can succeed materialistically no matter your race, religion or ethnicity. And, finally, they will not see what I see. Maybe they are cloistered in immigrant Muslim communities, or maybe they see the American-Muslim community and approve of the direction it is heading too. Their goal is the “mainstreaming” of Islam in America and they see this as achievable. More mosques are open and more Muslims are visible, so what is the fuss? A mainstream Islam for a mainstream America is being created!

Well, I am sorry, but if I waned to be in the mainstream of America I would have never became Muslim. When I took shahadah, I was embracing a faith that offered me a radical alternative to the American way of life. A faith not at one with liberals or conservatives or any other religion or political ideology on this planet. If I believed in religious pluralism, in the sense that all religions are the same and no one should profess the exclusivity of the correctness of their faith, I would have never became Muslim.

It is the belief that Islam is the Haqq, The Truth, which sustains me and guides my plans for my family. I am an extremely flawed Muslim and human being, and I am not setting myself up as a role model by any means, but the brothers I have met and loved in this deen have struggled because we are trying to get closer to Islam and live the Sunnah in our lives”

This is missing some subtle understandings, especially when it comes to other religious expression, but I myself am the same way.

If I have time I’ll do a piece by piece commentary of this article series. Regardless, it seems a valuable thing for everyone to read.