English Muslims sharing Islam with the people of Britain
Yesterday I set up a new organisation called English Muslim Outreach. At the moment there is a Facebook Group which you can join and a basic website (under construction). The About page explains:
Dear Enquirer
Not all Muslims in Britain are from Pakistan, Bangladesh, or are of Arab extraction. There are an increasing number of English men and women (born and bred) who embrace Islam as their religion of choice. We have a complex relationship with our country and our English culture (as do members of other traditional faith communities). Part of our mission is to explore this further in dialogue with others (Muslim and non-Muslim).
Above all our mission is to share our discovery of Islam with our fellow compatriots; to dispel myths and misinformation; to give an English face and identity to this most misunderstood world faith; to promote English Muslim outreach (via da’wah) through lectures, YouTube videos, internet activity, articles, Muslim-Christian dialogue and debate and more..
This is a work in progress. Watch this space.
best regards
Paul Williams
London.
Thank you Robert Wells/Radical Moderate. Unfortunately your request has been rejected. I am sure you understand why 🙂
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Paul,
This is a great idea!! There is a great need for this type of service as Islam continues to grow among western populations. It is good for converts have a place to organize for the purpose of dawah and dialogue, and for the curious to have a place to turn to for accurate information on Islam. May Allah bless and make your efforts successful in this endeavor.
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“English Muslims sharing Islam with the people of Britain”…Scottish and Welsh muslims are asked to share Islam with whom?
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lol good point!
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Joking aside, I must tell you “Well done!”, and wish you every success, InshaAllah.
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Thanks alhamdulillah
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Well done! btw…You are indeed a hard-working da’ee.
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Truth will set them free
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Did Muhammad say that?
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You lost your contenance?
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Paul you wound me sir, I’m so hurt and disappointed, I so wanted to learn bout British Muslims in England.
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lol a leopard does not change its spots
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What a wonderful idea Paul. I always wondered there should be English Mosques based on English history and heritage. Why we have Delhi Mosque, Madni or Makki Mosque and no mosque based on English heritage.
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This is clearly an excellent endeavor.
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Makes sense. All religions have adapted to the cultures they were embraced by. Christianity became greek in Greece, German in Germany, as islam became indian in india. English muslims likewise should practice their faith within their own heritage.
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Assalaamu Alaykum,
I’ve got mixed feelings on this one…
On the one hand we have the Prophetic model of Muhammad (Sallallahu alayhi wa salam) sending companions back to their own tribes as du’at, knowing their own people best so in principle it’s a great idea.
But on the other, we have the way Muslim would freely interact with each other in Medinah and elsewhere, mingling and sharing ideas, permissible culture & customs etc, not sectioning off their own people.
I’d hate to see reverts, never-mind English reverts walling themselves off in this way from the rest of the Muslim community as others have done in their own masaajid, cultural centres and even whole neighbourhoods.
I also see problems occurring down the line with this project if you’re not careful due to so much of the new Muslim after-care work done in the UK being extremely white, middle class and English already, leaving many reverts feeling socially excluded when they don’t fit into these categories.
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Wa alaikum assalaam
thank you for your thoughtful comments. You raise important issues and concerns.
However I am not – and have absolutely no intention of – “walling myself off” from any Muslims. In fact I have very few English Muslims friends and I personally have no problem with that.
My intention is not to make converts of English people but to present an English understanding of Islam which may not be particularly visible or noticeable in this country.
Hopefully this will become clearer over the coming weeks. I am filming a series of short videos from various historic sites in London, explaining their connection to Muslims and Islam.
There will be a few surprises..
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Very interesting I’m very much interested in learning about English Islam for instance do English Muslims love death as much as their Arab\Asian brothers and sisters?
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love death? Muslims do not love death. We love Allah.
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So English Muslims don’t love death more than the kuffar love life, like their Arab Muslim brothers and sisters. Interesting, I wonder why.
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Do English Muslims wish the Kuffar to “DIE IN THEIR RAGE”? like some of the Muslim commenters on this blog?
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troll alert.
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Why am I a troll Paul for asking serious questions. You do know that Muslims of the Arab and Asian persuasion say “We love death more than you love life”? Seems kind of a strange thing to me to love death and brag about it, but hey such is Islam.
Also you do know the phrase “Die in your rage” has been used by a few Muslim commentators on this blog. Another odd statement,
I have an idea, why don’t you do one of those WordPress polls and ask your Muslim brothers and sisters if they “love death more than the kuffar love life”?
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Lol silly. And boring.
Serious question: were you dropped on your head as a baby?
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Paul do you wish non muslims to “Die in their Rage”?
You do know that’s an ISIS slogan right? So why do you allow Muslims on your blog to promote ISIS?
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Where do Muslims say that on this blog?
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Paul search through your blog for comments made by Abdullah you will find it. Also Ijaz before he was dying said it on one of your old blogs.
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I’m not doing any search. You made the claim you back it up. Don’t be lazy.
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You really need to get a good search plug in. Might I suggest Relevanssi it indexes everything even comments. You will have to edit some PHP code, I can help you with that if you install it.
But I will see if I can find it in my emails since I did send it off to the relevant authorities, MI5, Home Land, and FBI etc… and get back to you.
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Ok thanks. Lol
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But in the mean time nothing stopping you from asking Abdullah and Ijaz directly.
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No thanks. I need evidence first. You have failed to provide any. Time waister.
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Oh you must be aware that Muslims lie.
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Just like Christians and others do. Have you ever lied?
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Paul Wrote…
“Have you ever lied? ”
My response: One thing is for sure and that is I am not lying now. Go and ask Abdullah if he wants the kuffar to “Die in their rage” lol Who thinks of this stuff really its to funny. Anyway
Did you install that search plugin that I suggested? It really is good I recommend it to all my clients, just have to make a few simple code modifications. really just comment a few lines out.
If you didn’t or wont then before I go searching away I need to know when I do find the quote what are you going to do if anything?
If your not going to do anything then I would rather not waist my time, and besides the authorities have already been notified about this blog allowing ISIS propaganda by its Muslim visitors. So there wouldn’t be much point to it.
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bye bye then..
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Hey Paul sounds like a great cause to take on and i know this project has quite the pedigree already going back to the likes of Charles Gai Eaton. I think one of the most interesting things he said about this issue that it is like being in the middle of two worlds and the trick being to navigate between them.
It seems that in your post the time for such a view has come and gone replacing it with something like a fusion where Islam is understood within the cultural and intellectual heritage of Britain and creating something of a new identity seperate from the need to be guided by the east but while also respecting the history of Islam in those places and the contributions of Muslims throughout history in the teaching and preservation of the faith.
I think one of the best ways of achieving this is by having more support particularly for converts to Islam from a British background as well as a greater celebration of Muslims in Britain who have contributed to the Islamic intellectual tradition such as Tim Winter and Martin Lings.
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Yes indeed, I stand on the shoulders of giants! Gai Eaton is in some ways the grandfather of English Islam. Tim Winter is our older (and wiser) brother.
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Paul Williams
May Allay reward you in your good works for Islam. I wish you well and pray for Allah’s guidance and good health for you and all of us.
I also pray for “Love Life” to see the truth of Islam and stop his hate on us. I also pray for him to stop his lies by him trying hard to link this site with isis when there is tonnes of articles and commenters rejecting isis and other extremists including kkk and some of Donald Trump supporters who want to kill all Muslims. I think he is the one who is warning all Muslims to get out of USA before Trump kills them. If he knows how to install his search plugging and edit PHP code, he could have done that to search himself asking all Muslims to get out of the USA of be killed by Trump and his supporters.
Where is “Love Life” when Muslims were being shot and killed in Quebec, New York, etc. and their Mosques being burnt by people like him? Is that not terrorism by Christians like him on Muslims? Like how his ancestor Crusaders terrorize Jews, Muslims, Catholics etc.? and Calvin as Christian burning Michael. Does Love Life forgets all these atrocities by his Christian people?
Thanks.
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