So yesterday my hubby and I were discussing careers and he asked me what my reaction would be if my son/daughter wanted to study Islam and become an Alim rather than opting for any other qualification say Accounting, Medicine, Physics, Engineering etc. Reminded me of Niks thread about marrying our daughters to an Alim/Imam.
It left me pondering over it for quite a while. And I also wasn’t convinced myself.
So if your kid comes up to you and says this..what would you want and how would you react?
PS pleaasee this is just a discussion..So let’s refrain from any negative comments that could offend anyone ! ::halo:
Re: Son/daughter wanting to become an Islamic Scholar
I honestly wouldn't mind. He/she'd better know what they are doing though. Maybe in their desire to study Islam, they will become enlightened (become atheist)
Re: Son/daughter wanting to become an Islamic Scholar
**it's difficult to deal with...i've no kids but when i do have i'll guide him/her thru until the time comes to choose a career. if my kid makes a informed and educated decision, i'll support him all the way, even if it hurts me as a father.
we are going thru the problem right now. my bro and bhabhi want my nephew to become a doctor but he hates to be a doctor. instead, he wants to be an avian vet. he is fully capable of pursuing either profession...he has the grades...both GPA and MCAT scores.
i think he should be allowed to pursue what he wants because his decision is based on facts and his choosing is well informed. :)**
Re: Son/daughter wanting to become an Islamic Scholar
Stopping them or discouraging them would definitely be a gunah on our part. But at the same time, being an Alim requires a full time, comprehensive studies/courses that could last up to 8 years. I would have encouraged him to get a non-Islamic degree too as well as pursue an Islamic degree.
But then would that be fair to him/her? Wouldn’t that be demanding something much much more from them? When we lay emphasis on other sort of professional education do we have the social stigma or peer pressure at the back of our minds?
Re: Son/daughter wanting to become an Islamic Scholar
I would be more than okay for them to become an Alim, however, there would be a need to also have a full-time career in another qualification such as those mentioned above. There is so much you can do for Islam when you're rich. I would give the example, of our local Imam who is a heart surgeon while he is a full-time Imam at the mosque and at the age of 55 he became an Alim and Hafiz e Quran.
Re: Son/daughter wanting to become an Islamic Scholar
**it's difficult to deal with...i've no kids but when i do have i'll guide him/her thru until the time comes to choose a career. if my kid makes a informed and educated decision, i'll support him all the way, even if it hurts me as a father.
we are going thru the problem right now. my bro and bhabhi want my nephew to become a doctor but he hates to be a doctor. instead, he wants to be an avian vet. he is fully capable of pursuing either profession...he has the grades...both GPA and MCAT scores.
i think he should be allowed to pursue what he wants because his decision is based on facts and his choosing is well informed. :)**
KKF I agree with giving freedom to our kids in terms of professional careers they want. However when it comes to Islamic studies and a degree in Fiqh etc ..would we get a little biased and might not want to encourage them? For they might suffer social setbacks etc?
Re: Son/daughter wanting to become an Islamic Scholar
KKF I agree with giving freedom to our kids in terms of professional careers they want. However when it comes to Islamic studies and a degree in Fiqh etc ..would we get a little biased and might not want to encourage them? For they might suffer social setbacks etc?
**YES, we do because a religious degree does NOT fetch a good job or provide plump jobs.
i would think that the reason why one would want to become a religious scholar is usually based on religious convictions and it's a matter of heart rather than mind. i think you don't have to have degree in religious studies to be conversant in the matters of religion...you can acquire all the knowledge of Deen while you pursuing your professional education. just last Friday, i was listening to a Friday Khutba last week and the imam was a Neurosurgeon by profession. his entire family is very knowledgeable in Deeni matters while they are Engineer/Doctors in their professional life.
Re: Son/daughter wanting to become an Islamic Scholar
I will allow them but I will also make sure they don't become extreme in religious or liberal ways by always going back to the traditional roots, an approach that many great scholars took, like Imam Ghazali and Sh. Abdal Hakim Murad.
In fact, that would be amazing to see my kids be like these great people.
Re: Son/daughter wanting to become an Islamic Scholar
**YES, we do because a religious degree does NOT fetch a good job or provide plump jobs.
i would think that the reason why one would want to become a religious scholar is usually based on religious convictions and it's a matter of heart rather than mind. i think you don't have to have degree in religious studies to be conversant in the matters of religion...you can acquire all the knowledge of Deen while you pursuing your professional education. just last Friday, i was listening to a Friday Khutba last week and the imam was a Neurosurgeon by profession. his entire family is very knowledgeable in Deeni matters while they are Engineer/Doctors in their professional life.
you can be both!**
Completely agree. What I used to think was that I would always encourage my son or daughter to be well educated and get a good degree. And at the same time study Islam, Quran Sunnah etc in a greater depth. But my hubby's question about the son/daughter wanting to just be an alim and doing a PhD or other degree of that sort in Islamic studies but not wanting to pursue a non Islamic professional course made a small voice of concern rise in my head.
I had visions of my kid having difficulties on landing good rishtas, financial stablity, social setbacks and stereotyping popping in my head for a while. And I felt a little guilty.
Re: Son/daughter wanting to become an Islamic Scholar
Completely agree. What I used to think was that I would always encourage my son or daughter to be well educated and get a good degree. And at the same time study Islam, Quran Sunnah etc in a greater depth. But my hubby's question about the son/daughter wanting to just be an alim and doing a PhD or other degree of that sort in Islamic studies but not wanting to pursue a non Islamic professional course made a small voice of concern rise in my head.
I had visions of my kid having difficulties on landing good rishtas, financial stablity, social setbacks and stereotyping popping in my head for a while. And I felt a little guilty.
EXACTLY!...yeh du'aa to ham roz hii paRhte haiN..."Rabba aatinaa fid-DUNYAA HasanatauN wa fil aaKhirate HasanatauN waq'enaa 'azaab an-naar"...aameen...ya'nii, **DEEN aur DUNYAA donoN meN hii Hasanaat 'ataa farmaa...aameen****
yaa Allah, ham sab kii deen o dunyaa banaa de...aameen**
hehe