Muhammad ibn Adam al-Kawthari – The Fatwa Process and Bioethics

			Hello Heyman hamdulillahi Rabbil alameen wa Salatu was Salam ala Sayyidina Muhammad wa ala alihi wa
sahbihi mehreen Allahu Allah. In fact, when I when I was in panic Allahumma
		

			Hakim that I just respected sisters brothers, Salaam Alaikum, warahmatullahi, wabarakatuh barakato.
		

			Everyone's still awake. I know it's been a long day. He said, 20 minutes, I might try to finish in
10 minutes. Everyone's getting overtime, I want to try to take less time maybe, I don't know,
depends.
		

			Technically 430 was our clothes off point. And I would like to thank all of you for staying for so
long.
		

			And also al bellava Academy for organizing this very important international conference and seminar
on the topics that we're talking about today. And also, it's like a celebration of the last two,
three years of the work that is being done by albula Academy, many students who took part in the
various courses level one, level two, level three on Islamic bioethics and medicine, some of the
students who received the certificates today. So it's like kind of a celebration. It's not really on
a Sunday afternoon, late afternoon. I know it's Sunday is not a working day. So we, we need to try
to make this a bit like a celebration. But I've seen the whole team has been very, very intense
		

			hamdulillah not a problem.
		

			Just a few points that I want to talk about. And I don't really have a presentation like you can
just see, you'll have to look on my face instead of the screen there.
		

			Just three, four points, very brief points. The first point is that this whole photo process and
this session can be considered to be like a ongoing session from the previous session. A lot of the
things that were discussed in the previous session are related to this session as well. This photo
photo photo is not a swear word. You know sometimes you know when we hear a fatwa it's like
Ayatollah Khomeini, like kill Salman Rushdie is like a fatwa. You know, some people really think but
why some really harsh you know, these fatawa fatwa. You know, people use this word, and people get
scared, you know, so it's just an Islamic verdict viewpoint that is collectively reached at all,
		

			it's an individual's opinion. And this is why it's not something that is enforceable. There's a
difference between fatwa and a da da, which means judiciary system in the classical times when you
had the court, it was enforceable for twice is not enforceable. And this is why we don't have an
hierarchy in Islam. And this is why somebody was asking this question. We have a difference of
opinion. We have to live with it. Everybody wants to practice the deen in order to reach above
subhana wa Taala. You want to please God, it's all about the next life. Everybody wants to be
ethical, moral, religious, whatever. You could have a difference of opinion. Many of these issues
		

			are very new. It relates to new modern issues. You will have different organizations Islamic Academy
of Jeddah you'll have Islamic Academy of India you have also you know, the Malaysian Council and
you'll have individual scholars and people will disagree. Now, people who they trust they will
follow those opinions based on the heart the messenger sallallahu Sallam said in a hadith stuff the
callback as your heart you will follow based on your conviction who you trust. And this is this is
why we have these fatawa that are based on the research of scholars of individuals who have taken
their time. So just the first quick point is that it's actually a very delicate position for a
		

			jurist or for scholars or for Mufti or whatever you want to call them, religious leaders or Imams,
or people who have deep knowledge of Islam, who actually take on this responsibility and task to
arrive at conclusions. It's actually a very, very delicate responsibility. It's a procedures macom
and a prestigious place in a position, but at the same time, it's very, very delicate, our classics,
classical scholars from the time of the companions of the Allahu anhu May Allah be pleased with them
till today. They've always realized the the delicacy, because remember, this is not just something
that we're talking about the world forum for a shape for an Aryan for a Mufti to give a fatwa he has
		

			to present himself or herself. You can have a move to animals here. You can have a female Mufti, you
can have a female male Mufti and a female Mufti, but whoever that is, they actually present
themselves before Hellfire and paradise before giving a ruling. It's not just a worldly activity.
It's a really delicate matter. When you say to someone that this is allowed, like your mother in law
said that Mufti Moonwalker on hon Allah mean that a religious scholar is actually a signature you
are signing on behalf of God, you will be questioned some of them early scholars when they were
asked these to say no, I don't have an answer go to somebody else. This was the practice even in the
		

			time the companions sometimes they will go to companions and ask questions and one of them is to say
no, ask that one hits an icon give you a ruling. Ask this one as that one in a time when everybody
is eligible
		

			according to the words
		

			The hoodie that everybody wants to be on which the head when we look at our classical scholarship,
everybody is so fearful. Oh, Bacardi Allahu anhu is so fearful. Amara hatami so fearful of giving a
ruling to someone in mama shelter if somebody came to him and asked him a lot of the times he would
ask questions and he would take time they would say, we need an answer you would say I actually
present myself before Hellfire and paradise. How can I respond? Some of them used to say that
		

			the one who was there's a Hadith of the messenger sallallahu alayhi wa sallam he said a joke from
alpha to a joke Kamala Nora sunanda Dara me, the most courageous from you in giving a fatwa is the
most courageous amongst you, presenting himself on the fire of *. If you're really courageous
about giving a fatwa, you're really daring to enter how viable you have to be careful. It's not
about just this life. It's not about any other academic, you know, worldly subject, it's all about
accountability before God. And this is why it takes time. Sometimes it takes effort you have to be
very, very careful about and I think
		

			a small was mentioning in the morning as well. Mr. Malik radi Allahu anhu.
		

			He said, Murph day two hatachi deli server owner, Eric, I never issued not even one fatwa until 70.
People who are more knowledgeable than me, testified that I'm actually worthy. And I was mentioned
to him after that, that actually, you know, what's more important and significant with the
statement, not the number 70. But the man are the more knowledgeable than me, you could have 2
billion people who are less knowledgeable, the new telling you you're really capable on Facebook,
you just put a post on you'll get 205,000 likes, and everybody will say yes, yes, yes, yes, yes.
It's not your Facebook fans, you need 70 people who are more knowledgeable people who are who have
		

			spent 2030 4050 years of their life in deep Islamic scholarship. And so this is how the setup setup
for non Muslim friends or those who don't know Arabic, the early predestined predecessors, that from
the time of the companions, they were so careful about issuing religious verdicts because it was not
just a matter of this life, it's about the hereafter before accountability before God. So that was
just the first point that of course, we need to issue Fatah that doesn't mean that okay, we just
like, okay, nobody's worthy, capable, capable. But be careful. And we all need to be careful. Point
number two, of course, scholars need to understand this field. And they need to work. And you have
		

			to also remember that a lot of the 50s or the scholars or people who are experts in Islamic
jurisprudence, they don't actually just deal with that they're not just medics, or sorry, dealing
with Islamic medical ethics or bioethics everyday, they have to literally talk about and discuss and
relate to and give solutions on all aspects of life. Like one week, you will be giving, you know, a
seminar or delivering a seminar on Islamic bioethics. And the following week, you're talking about
divorce, and the third week, you're talking about marriage, and the fifth week, you're talking about
dream interpretations and the six we're talking about something else. So you don't have absolute
		

			experts. But we do need that, like Nanos saying that they will, they are training students to be
actually specialized in certain areas of Islamic law, but it's dharmic law is vast. So
		

			they do you need to, of course, understand this field. And this is where we have scholars need to
work side by side alongside medical ethics professionals. And you know, that the sole role what we
call the sole role must allow us to to understand what's happening on the ground. And this was also
the practice of the predecessors. Mr. Malik, sorry, Mr. Mohammed, Hassan O'Shea Bernie who was one
of the great scholars of the Hanafi school, he used to go and sit in the bazaars of Iraq on Kufa and
Basra just to see how people trade people buy and sell. And he actually said Mullah meiotic is a man
if oj and whoever doesn't know the times, or what's happening in his times, he's actually ignorant.
		

			So they used to understand what's going on. And this is where we need scholars to have practical
training, I actually feel it's very important, because we have theoretical theoretical knowledge, we
have scholars who actually issue fatawa based on theory, let let let the physicians and we need to
open up Open up surgeries and you know, let us go into the theaters and let us see how operations
take place. And let us get involved. I know Dr. Papa is already a doctor as well as a scholar so
handler has advantage but there are many others who don't have that advantage we need to go And
likewise, medics who are professionals in the medical field come and see how these academies or
		

			these councils or jurists or scholars or directors and how they work how and help them you know, we
need to visit one another and see how things and you know, there should be a mutual respect
sometimes I feel that there's sometimes there's no mutual respect between the two. Mr. Musharraf
you're in or the Allahu anhu. He said, more. real science is real knowledge worth studying is a man
to two sciences. Anyone will have done or sorry anyone for killing a Dr.
		

			We're a multi billion have done animal and animal type medicine and Islamic law, these two are
really worth if you're in any other industry than sorry, but they are also important. But he said,
these two are really really important, you know, fields, and they both prestigious if you look at
our history, doctors and scholars, scholars of the Islamic disciplines for kaha, and at a bar, they
were really respected they should respect one another and they used one used to take care of your,
your physical health and the other would take care of your spiritual health. And they need to work
together and respect one another. Sometimes in the scholars fraternity, the well you know, we have
		

			these things like you know, el mundo El Bulli, Joe Halima, do, you know that we have knowledge and
the judges are like, they just whatever, that's showing disrespect. And likewise, within the medical
field, they need to realize that scholars who are involved in deep Islamic scholarship, they have
something to offer not just belittle them, or belittle the fatawa ability, or whatever, they just,
you know, sitting back in, you know, 1943, doing whatever they're doing in back in the ancient
times, or something like that. So, it's really important to sort of respect and appreciate each
other's work. Point number three, quickly, are you done 1340 minutes.
		

			In terms of the process, a lot of things were discussed, and in 20 minutes, you can really talk
about the process. But of course,
		

			this knowledge, Islamic knowledge is not restricted to any class, like somebody was saying earlier
in the morning that Islamic scholarship is not restricted to a certain or a particular class. Of
course, it's not Islam is not like any other phase where you have to be of an elite group, or some
kind of class or some kind of background or ethnicity. It's not like that you can be blue, white,
black, yellow, green, convert, revert born Muslim, non, you know, whatever. But there are
prerequisites, like in every field that are prerequisites, you know, law is not restricted to any
class, you can be a Pakistani and a lawyer, and you can be a Pakistani and a doctor and a lawyer as
		

			well. And you can also be an, you know, a Bengali and a doctor or lawyer or doctor or lawyer. It's
not a problem. But there are prerequisites, you can't just have everybody be the doctor and
everybody needs a lawyer. So these conditions, the root of each the heart of what we said, when we
say he had, you know, there is some sort of issue that can take place today as well, which is based
on classical music. So with new issues, but if there are, there are prerequisites that are
conditions. And we have to learn that there is qualification there is training, there's so many
things involved, and some of the examples were given in the previous session, like looking at the
		

			text of the Quran and Sunnah. And then the welfare can the fit under our aid and the principles and
scholars who actually who issue these fatawa they're not just like having a cup of tea and giving
fatawa some of them are staying awake. I know a lot of people colleagues who actually sometimes have
sleepless nights and Isabelle will tell you that, you know, he's been working on organ donation,
transplantation organ donation, I just spoke to him a few weeks ago, he is sitting there until
1am 2am 3am 4am, sometimes one night, he's not sleeping, just researching this. And he's not a
research fellow at Cambridge University that is getting 100,000 pounds for that. It's absolutely
		

			voluntary. You know, you literally spend nights and days looking through sifting through books,
classical texts of Hadees and fake and, you know, literally spending hours and hours of your life.
But people do that voluntarily. So it does require a lot of effort. And we really need to, you know,
appreciate that it requires a lot of effort looking at the context looking at whether the Aurora
whether it is harder, as he was talking about organ donation, whether there's neuro muscular Hydra,
some people, actually there are also opinions that they do not agree with. I'm not saying I
		

			have this opinion, but I'm just saying that in the world, there are certain opinions of people who
do not agree with organ donation altogether as well. Now we need to look at them What are they
saying? Do they have a background as well? Do they have some sort of religious academic
understanding and evidence and proof etc. We need to respect those people who have scholarship and
deep you know, qualification. And also Islamic scholarship requires remember, it's this it's
religious base. So it also requires a lot of piety so that hantuchova along with qualifications,
have deep knowledge and faith and Athena and all of that and all the different knowing the Quran and
		

			the Quran, the Fuhrer Salah, hantuchova, you know religiosity, God fearing, God fearing this and you
know, being close to Allah and this accountability is very, very important in Islam. Anyone who has
to be an expert like in any other fields, you could be a very good person, as a, you know, you know,
a lawyer, as a person in your law, you could be very good, but your private life doesn't matter in
Islam is not like that your private life plays a massive role in how you are as a scholar. If your
private life is not moral and ethical, then you can't really be an Islamic scholar because this is
how Islam works. It's all to do with the hereafter in America.
		

			laminate. So that's very important as well. And, and finally, so therefore, this is a specialized
field, those who are not specialized and they don't, they are not experts, and they need to pursue a
degree in quantum law, the moon as the people of knowledge, if you don't know and like I said it
based on your trust and your reliance on people. And finally, the fourth point is that these are
very new issues, medical issues by ethnic issues are very important. We definitely require
collective. So this is not a job of one person. This is something you know, the fatawa that are
coming out and they have been coming out like Islamic Academy has been working in j dub since 1980s.
		

			They're trying the best. Dr. Oz you mentioned a lot of critical points and I acknowledge a lot of
those, but they're trying the best a lot of people are trying their best in what they're trying to
do.
		

			They can of course, we can always improve this, you know, there's a saying of one of the companions
or that are very minister your money for what minister wha hoo, Yeoman, for whom a boon whoever is
today's equal that he is in deception. He's in lost so we have to improve and evolve every single
day. Of course, we can make improvements. But this has to be done collectively, especially new
issues, new medical issues, bioethical issues, they require collective research of expert Islamic
scholars and experts within the medical field. The Messenger of Allah sallallahu Sallam said in a
hadith once said, When are you going to be asked him that O Messenger of Allah, when we receive when
		

			we come across certain issues and situations where we don't find clear explicit text in the Quran
and Sunnah we don't find clear proof, what should we do? He says, shall we do alcohol RBD. In that
case, you should all collectively, you know, together, come to conclusive answers, make Matura and
he said, Make Matura consult collectively consult with the alcohol, the jurist who are actually
worshipers as well. And this is why we find so much Baraka and blessings in the olden times of those
great scholars that they used to during the day, they used to research all day, not all day long,
and all night long days to, you know, perform to emulate and worship before Allah subhanaw taala.
		

			They were an obedient at the same time. And this we have this example, the companions used to also
collectively look at issues. And then we have these four schools of thought we all know, and a lot
of the scholars here, Abu hanifa, the Allahu anhu. And his school of thought, for example, as an
example, all the schools 111 respect and honor, Abu hanifa school was based on this kind of a
collective committee where he would have 40 people and look at issues over days, sometimes taking
three days and seven days and 10 days and 12 days, and arriving at conclusions. So this is the
fourth point and that's it, I'm ending with this. But just this last, like kind of summary is that
		

			this was what I already pointed out towards earlier on that this these fatawa are not binding
because we in Islam, we don't have an hierarchy system. In Christianity, you have the Pope, he will
say abortion is not allowed, end of story holla finish whatever even in Hinduism, you have someone
who says something, Mr. final authority, a lot of non Muslims, they can understand this, that who
speaks for the Muslims. This is this is actually a specific aspect of Islam, that there is no single
authority because this what this does, is that it it leaves the door open for research for people to
debate and discuss. As long as they've got the qualifications not any time they can hurry, as long
		

			as they've got the qualifications and qualifications doesn't mean you have to be a graduate from
another site. It could be anybody but who has studied and who has, you know, got expertise and
understanding of the mastery of Arabic language and the Quran and the Sunnah and or siouxland,
Falcon, whatever, whatever. And then, so it leaves the door open for people to carry on
investigating and researching and of course, inevitably, without a doubt there will be a difference
of opinion and difference of opinion is a salient feature of this oma it's a blessing for this on an
XLR format is Rama. So there's nothing wrong in like people having different viewpoints. People can
		

			follow whoever they trust any committee they trust and inshallah, with that we can take things
further. I think I've stuck to my promise and I finished in 18 minutes. Joseph Kamala Harris,
Ramallah