Daniel Haqiqatjou | Beef with Yaqeen Institute | Blood Brothers #39

[AMusee]

 

[Deleted L]

His beef with Yaqeen institute and Imam Omar Suleiman (who’s the head of Yaqeen) is because he got fired from the institute and his writings were taken down which is why he’s desperately trying to smear them (and most American Muslim Imams, preachers and activists) as modernists and liberals. It has nothing to do with Yaqeen allegedly spreading heresy.

 

[TekNiKo]

His beef with Yaqeen institute and Imam Omar Suleiman (who’s the head of Yaqeen) is because he got fired from the institute and his writings were taken down which is why he’s desperately trying to defame them (and most American Muslim Imams and preachers) as modernists and liberals. It has nothing to do with Yaqeen allegedly spreading heresy.

he’s a wahabbi brainwashed guy, nothing going on here, Omar Suleyman is a great sheijh

 

[Deleted L]

he’s a wahabbi brainwashed guy, nothing going on here, Omar Suleyman is a great sheijh

Indeed, no doubt he is a great Imam who has contributed a lot. Unfortunately if you go on social media, you’ll find many people who fell victim to his deception and actually bought into his nonsense.

 

[TekNiKo]

Indeed, no doubt he is a great Imam who has contributed a lot. Unfortunately if you go on social media, you’ll find many people who fell victim to his deception and actually bought into his nonsensee

most converts are ignorant and easily buy into wahabbi propganada like @Omar del Sur

 

[Keep it a boqol]

didnt jonathan brown who is part of Yaqeen instiute make a paper supporting LGBTQ ?


I think things like this need to get called out and deserve critism imho

 

[AdoonkaAlle]

His beef with Yaqeen institute and Imam Omar Suleiman (who’s the head of Yaqeen) is because he got fired from the institute and his writings were taken down which is why he’s desperately trying to smear them (and most American Muslim Imams, preachers and activists) as modernists and liberals. It has nothing to do with Yaqeen allegedly spreading heresy.

His criticisms are actually valid and put question marks regarding the questionable actions taken by yaqeen. I suggest that you read the article itself from yaqeen instead of the summary provided by that guy. Yaqeen as of now has archived the article, it can only be accessed via sign in, they list their reasoning as follows

Following a debate that took place at the Assembly of Muslim Jurists of America (AMJA) in 2016 regarding how American Muslims could maintain their commitment to Islam’s normative position on marriage and sexuality while also practically navigating the political challenges in the United States associated with defending Muslims’ safety and religious rights against rising Islamophobia, Yaqeen Institute published a scholarly debate on the subject between Dr. Jonathan Brown and Dr. Shadee Elmasry. Dr. Brown, who had already published his views elsewhere, stridently upheld the orthodox Islamic sexual norms while, following other leading American Muslim scholars, advocated the path of political accommodation to secure reciprocal rights for Muslims as a religious minority. Dr. Shadee Elmasry argued that no such accommodation is warranted. Given the subsequent cultural and political developments, Dr. Brown no longer holds this position. He agrees that his earlier treatment of the subject has been rendered obsolete by Supreme Court rulings that entrench and enforce understandings of sexual and gender identity in law. We have decided, therefore, to archive this article and hope to address this topic in the near future, inshaAllah.

Dr brown's position was one where he was advocating for the following

Muslims in the U.S. should affirm and advocate for many (but not necessarily all) LGBTQ rights, not because of a quid pro quo they-stood-by-us-so-we-have-to-stand-by-them logic, but rather because Muslims in the U.S. and LGBTQ groups seek protection for the same rights and, ironically, arguably have a common vision for the country’s future (I’ll explain below). But, crucially, Muslims should advocate for these rights while strenuously affirming that many aspects of LGBTQ lifestyles are indisputably religiously prohibited in Islam.

Just think of the implications of such a position ? imagine believing that lgbt is haram etc but you go on ahead to advocate for people to engage in it and support their right to do so all for a supposed benefit. Do the pros of lgbt advocacy outweigh it's harms ? lgbt people are fighting to end criminalization of their lifestyle why would they stop at christianity. Even more absurd why would they accept the islamic stance that not only forbids but considers their lifestyle as one of the worst immoral actions ?

How can you partner and support lgbt groups while maintaining to hold onto the islamic beliefs that their lifestyle is not just wrong but also are not allowed to support it. This is why Dr shadee critiques this in the same article by stating the following

This position will cause cognitive dissonance in those who adopt it. Beliefs and political stances must be aligned and should not contradict the Sacred Law or else one will internalize this contradiction and never be able to escape the agitation that dissonance causes. Separating what you believe religiously from what you support politically is the very eye of secularism

You can read the entire article from dr brown's website

LGBTQ and Islam Revisited

Daniel has basis for his criticisms on yaqeen's stances and manner in how they deal with issues like the above one. He highlights the negative consequences of siding with the liberal groups granted he overexaggerates in some instances but he's spot on regarding the dangers such affiliation to such groups and ideologies cause. Case in point in a border demonstration that took place for migrant right's, CAIR's executive director is seen receiving an "oil blessing" from priestess that supports lgbt. Omar suleiman and other muslim public figures took part in that same demonstration, this is why it's very risky to engage in social justice causes that aren't based on islamic ethos.

Bal ka waran ariintan sxb ?

 

[Deleted L]

His criticisms are actually valid and put question marks regarding the questionable actions taken by yaqeen. I suggest that you read the article itself from yaqeen instead of the summary provided by that guy. Yaqeen as of now has archived the article, it can only be accessed via sign in, they list their reasoning as follows



Dr brown's position was one where he was advocating for the following



Just think of the implications of such a position ? imagine believing that lgbt is haram etc but you go on ahead to advocate for people to engage in it and support their right to do so all for a supposed benefit. Do the pros of lgbt advocacy outweigh it's harms ? lgbt people are fighting to end criminalization of their lifestyle why would they stop at christianity. Even more absurd why would they accept the islamic stance that not only forbids but considers their lifestyle as one of the worst immoral actions ?

How can you partner and support lgbt groups while maintaining to hold onto the islamic beliefs that their lifestyle is not just wrong but also are not allowed to support it. This is why Dr shadee critiques this in the same article by stating the following



You can read the entire article from dr brown's website

LGBTQ and Islam Revisited

Daniel has basis for his criticisms on yaqeen's stances and manner in how they deal with issues like the above one. He highlights the negative consequences of siding with the liberal groups granted he overexaggerates in some instances but he's spot on regarding the dangers such affiliation to such groups and ideologies cause. Case in point in a border demonstration that took place for migrant right's, CAIR's executive director is seen receiving an "oil blessing" from priestess that supports lgbt. Omar suleiman and other muslim public figures took part in that same demonstration, this is why it's very risky to engage in social justice causes that aren't based on islamic ethos.


View attachment 217820



Bal ka waran ariintan sxb ?

There's a difference between constructive genuine criticism and clout chasing. Now I don't know what's in DH's heart but DH exhibits the behavior of a clout-chaser. DH's fear mongering against mainstream Muslim leaders, Imams, organizations etc who have contributed a lot, to the point of trying to destroy their reputation is not at all justified. I'm well aware of the controversies Imam Omar and some of the writers on Yaqeen institue were involved in, which they either clarified or they need to clarify, but whatever mistake they had done was not intended, these scholars genuinely care about the religion, they are not at all "Modernists" or "liberal semi-murtad/agents" looking to destroy this religion as DH tries to give such misleading impression.

As for the pagan rituals Omar Suleiman engaged in years before this controversy resurfaced on the internet (thanks to DH), the Imam didn't know what the ritual was about and didn't know what was happening, usually when you're in a crowded protest mixed with all sorts of people, confusion starts to kick in. He did clarify the situation in a Facebook post back in 2020:



Now keep in mind the protest took place years before 2020, if DH was sincere he would try to contact Imam OS for clarification and they could have got the video removed off the internet, but instead of keeping the unknown video out of the public eye, he used it to bash and demonize him.

Yaqeen is a platform that promotes dialogue and civil discussions between scholars from different lines of thought and explicitly states on each paper that. When you go on their website, you'll find articles with differing views that contradict each other. For example, there are about 4 articles on Yaqeen discussing the age of Aisha رضي الله عنها, at least 3 of those articles agree that Aisha رضي الله عنها married the Prophet ﷺ when she was 6 and the marriage consummated when she was 9, they were defending the standard traditional narrative as narrated in all books of Hadith, only one article on Yaqeen claimed she was 19 or a lot older than what the Authentic Hadiths says. This is just an example of one difference of opinion on their platform.

“Yaqeen does not endorse any of the personal views of the authors on any platform. Our team is diverse on all fronts, allowing for constant, enriching dialogue that helps us produce high-quality research.”

Daniel himself agreed with this disclaimer and even supported Yaqeen’s approach as a platform before he started attacking Yaqeen continuously since he is no longer part of the organization.

 

[AdoonkaAlle]

There's a difference between constructive genuine criticism and clout chasing. Now I don't know what's in DH's heart but DH exhibits the behavior of a clout-chaser. DH's fear mongering against mainstream Muslim leaders, Imams, organizations etc who have contributed a lot, to the point of trying to destroy their reputation is not at all justified. I'm well aware of the controversies Imam Omar and some of the writers on Yaqeen institue were involved in, which they either clarified or they need to clarify, but whatever mistake they had done was not intended, these scholars genuinely care about the religion, they are not at all "Modernists" or "liberal semi-murtad/agents" looking to destroy this religion as DH tries to give such misleading impression.

As for the pagan rituals Omar Suleiman engaged in years before this controversy resurfaced on the internet (thanks to DH), the Imam didn't know what the ritual was about and didn't know what was happening, usually when you're in a crowded protest mixed with all sorts of people, confusion starts to kick in. He did clarify the situation in a Facebook post back in 2020:



Now keep in mind the protest took place years before 2020, if DH was sincere he would try to contact Imam OS for clarification and they could have got the video removed off the internet, but instead of keeping the unknown video out of the public eye, he used it to bash and demonize him.

Yaqeen is a platform that promotes dialogue and civil discussions between scholars from different lines of thought and explicitly states on each paper that. When you go on their website, you'll find articles with differing views that contradict each other. For example, there are about 4 articles on Yaqeen discussing the age of Aisha رضي الله عنها, at least 3 of those articles agree that Aisha رضي الله عنها married the Prophet ﷺ when she was 6 and the marriage consummated when she was 9, they were defending the standard traditional narrative as narrated in all books of Hadith, only one article on Yaqeen claimed she was 19 or a lot older than what the Authentic Hadiths says. This is just an example of one difference of opinion on their platform.

“Yaqeen does not endorse any of the personal views of the authors on any platform. Our team is diverse on all fronts, allowing for constant, enriching dialogue that helps us produce high-quality research.”

Daniel himself agreed with this disclaimer and even supported Yaqeen’s approach as a platform before he started attacking Yaqeen continuously since he is no longer part of the organization.

View attachment 217964

This here is the actual problem the lack of response to the liberal onslaught that muslims face in the west from the people who we consider to be our imams. Look at the difference when it comes to going against right wing and compare it to how imams, muslim organizations etc act towards the left . There's hardly any push back from them why ? why are they so accommodating to the left when they know the damage they're causing to muslims.

Our support and endorsement of imams, muslim leaders etc is tied to their adherence to the quran and sunnah. The moment those who're meant to guide us start to engage in questionable actions and push forward views contrary to islam then it's our right to hold them account for it.

The border demonstration highlights the dangers of engaging in social activism based on secular notions of justice and equality. Even though it's a noble cause it led to muslims participating in rituals contrary to diinta, laakin the imams, muslims leaders despite being present failed to do anything about it why ?

Daniel is totally right in holding them accountable for their silence and timid approach to the left, liberal doctrines is causing havoc among muslims especially the youth but those who're supposed to guide them remain silent and even continue on to endorse very problematic figures.


No one forced omar suleiman or yaqeen to engage in such actions they did it out of their own volition under the assumption that there is a supposed benefit to it. Is that really the case and at what cost, this question hasn't been answered nor have they ever (from my knowledge ) presented evidence where they clearly show the pros and cons of advocating for liberal groups.

There's more at stake than their reputations, we're talking about the moral decency and preservation of faith of the muslim community at large. We already have an increasing number of muslims who leave diinta, give support and even identify as lgbt which is why it's very shocking to see imams etc being complacent and docile in the face of this onslaught on the muslim community. How many muslims do you know that left diinta because of the way migrants are treated, or that diinta didn't stand with BLM ?

Daniel was himself a liberal and knows exactly first hand the damage that such an ideology causes which is why he's focused on it. Him agreeing with that disclaimer while working for yaqeen doesn't negate the point that a disclaimer doesn't absolve anyone from being held accountable for endorsing unislamic content.

Furthermore those in charge of yaqeen select which articles to publish and which articles not to publish, so they're indeed accountable for each and every unislamic views that they choose to publish. In His article " Reviewing Yaqeen institute " daniel correctly points the problem with yaqeen advancing deviant opinions, he states

Besides outright denial, Yaqeen as an institute often “muddies the waters” on issues that are clear cut in Islam, issues where there is no actual legitimate scholarly disagreement. For example, on the issue of human evolution and the origins of mankind, this is a clear cut issue that all Muslim scholars have agreed on past and present. There is no scholar who has ever said it is permissible to believe that our father Adam had parents or that it is possible for humans not to have descended from Adam. So what does Yaqeen do? They publish one paper in line with the orthodox position on evolution and then publish a second paper that contradicts the orthodox position based on nothing but the personal opinion of some academic.[

The most egregious example is on the issue of LGBT rights. One paper from an Islamic scholar clearly explains why Muslims supporting LGBT rights and politically allying with their cause is categorically forbidden in Islam. But another paper, written by an academic, advocates the exact opposite, encouraging Muslims to affirm and support LGBT rights.

There would be nothing objectionable here if Yaqeen were presenting multiple scholarly views within a range of acceptable ikhtilaf. But in these examples and others, Yaqeen is taking an established, clear cut Islamic position and problematizing and undermining it by publishing its antithesis. What should be crystal clear and unquestioned becomes muddied and obfuscated. Is this conducive to yaqin or its opposite?

Daniel quotes a statement from another shaykh by the name of dr mateen khan that offers a short and concise rebuttal of using disclaimers to avoid being held responsible for publishing views that contradict islamic doctrines. The statements is as follows

“Deviant opinions preluded with disclaimers such as: “The views, opinions, findings, and conclusions expressed in these papers and articles are strictly those of the authors,” are simply not good enough when approaching the Muslim public. One wonders if such a disclaimer will absolve them before Allah on the Day of Judgment as they hope to be absolved in this world.

There's so much that daniel brings to the attention of muslims that highlight severe problems with imams, muslim institutes advancing unislamic views than just being a disgruntled employee who's out to get his vendetta.

 

[Omar del Sur]

His beef with Yaqeen institute and Imam Omar Suleiman (who’s the head of Yaqeen) is because he got fired from the institute and his writings were taken down which is why he’s desperately trying to smear them (and most American Muslim Imams, preachers and activists) as modernists and liberals. It has nothing to do with Yaqeen allegedly spreading heresy.

that sounds utterly fake. Yaqeen is basically Liberal Islam Incorporated. it doesn't really make sense that Haqiqatjou would want to join them. he tried to, got rejected and then changed his entire ideology? I think the story sounds fake.

 

[Omar del Sur]

most converts are ignorant and easily buy into wahabbi propganada like @Omar del Sur

it varies from case to case but people who convert to a religion often take it way more seriously than the people born into it. my family is Catholic and I've never really taken Catholicism seriously but I've heard of people who aren't from a Catholic background, who became Catholic and who became very serious Catholics, much more than people born into it- which kind of amazes me in a sense.

 

[Al-Ma'mun]

it varies from case to case but people who convert to a religion often take it way more seriously than the people born into it. my family is Catholic and I've never really taken Catholicism seriously but I've heard of people who aren't from a Catholic background, who became Catholic and who became very serious Catholics, much more than people born into it- which kind of amazes me in a sense.

Many converts disproportionally end up being terrorists as well

 

[Omar del Sur]

Many converts disproportionally end up being terrorists as well

Being Salafi does not equal being khawarij. Saying mawlid is bid'ah isn't khawarij. It's like trying to associate someone with that kind of thing because they have a beard. It isn't the case that you're either some liberal sellout or you're a kharijite. No one can point to anything where I've promoted any kind of khawarij stuff.

Anyways, I've pretty much said what I want to say as far as religion- before you come with this dishonest tactic of trying to associate me with khawarij because I don't hold your liberal sellout interpretation. Everyone knows- you have Sufi types here and you have people who believe more in the Salafi approach.

What I'm listening to right now is this



I'm kind of disappointed my conspiracy content hasn't got a good reception. I'm a guy who likes to research and talk about conspiracies, I don't remotely have anything to do with any khawarij stuff.

 

[AdoonkaAlle]

@Tamir

Just to give you an example that daniel's claims are indeed founded on actual facts rather than mere vendetta etc. Yaqeen's director of research is a guy by the name of Dr Julio Rivera, the following is what is written about him on yaqeen.

Dr. Julio Rivera​ Director of Research Operations Dr. Julio Rivera holds a Bachelor of Science in Foreign Service from Georgetown University and a Master's and Ph.D. in Near Eastern Languages and Civilizations from the University of Chicago. In addition to his dissertation on modern Syrian history, Julio has conducted research with institutes and government at the intersection of Middle East politics and security studies.

At first glance it seems unremarkable laakin if you look at Julio's own employment background on linkedIn you get a clear picture of guy and his interest.

Julio worked as a Political analyst for the US DoD "tracking military trends" & "briefed senior military officials... including four star generals". He also "participated in the development of US military contingency operations... during the Syrian conflict".

Imagine this guy's role was helping military generals to develop efficient military operations strategies to help subjugate muslims and anyone against US interests in syria etc. How does such an individual get a position in a muslim organization that claims it's working for the interests of muslims ? It just doesn't add up sxb

 

[AMusee]