Faith Empowerment
Symposium
NASIMCO
Centre of Islamic Learning
ThebuzzattheAz-ZahraCenterinVancouverwasundeniably
clearasparticipantspostulatedonhowtoenhance
themimberexperience.MembersoftheVancouver
Communitywerejoinedbydistinguishedreligiousscholars,
academicsandCommunityleadersfromacrossNorthAmerica
forthethree-dayfaithempowermentsymposium,“Connects
andDisconnectsoftheMimber”.TheeventranfromMarch3rd
to5th,2017andwasorganizedbytheCentreofIslamic
Learning(CIL),thefaithempowermentstrandofNASIMCO.
“The Mimber is a Means not an End. What needs to
be Redefined is our Mindset”
ThisfaithEmpowerment
Symposiumembracedall
three,byenhancingthe
mimberexperience
throughengagement
Settingthestageforthe
symposiumThe
NASIMCOPresident,
MohamedDewji,
presentedtheNASIMCO
platformwhichisto
Empower,
Engage&
Enhance
individualsand
communities.
Therigorsofthetwodayswereeloquently
establishedbyCILChair,Dr.HasnainWalji,ashe
quizzedparticipantswithriddlesthatchallenged
themtothink“outsidethebox.”Dr.Waljiinvited
participantstonotbeafraidtochallenge
assumptions.
Thinkingoutsidetheboxdid
notmeanwethinkoutofour
minds.Itisaquestionofwhere
theboundaryiswithinour
minds–theboundarybetween
whatweknowandwhat
haven’tyetthoughtabout.
Usingametaphorofananthill,heurged
theaudiencetomoveawayfromtheirown
comfortableanthillsandoutsidetheir
comfortzonebyexpressingtheir
expectationsofthemimber.
SymposiumObjective&Process
Bringingherextensiveexpertiseinfacilitation,
Sr.SiddikaJessa,NASIMCOSecretaryGeneral,
devisedadynamicprocesstocollectthedata
anddistillthedifferencesandcommonalities
inmimberexpectationsbetweenthe
grassrootsandtheScholarsandAcademics
whodelivermajlisesandlectures.
AspecialthankstoSalmaJafferandSophiaDewjiforfacilitating
thediscussionforgrassrootscommunitymembergroupsthat
yieldedrichdataprovidedinthisreport.
Whatis
different
fromthe
Grassroots
session
Dis-Connects
Whatisthe
samefrom
the2
morning
sessions
Connects
Whatis
differentfrom
theScholars
Leaders
sessionsession
Dis-Connects
Theobjectivewastogarnergrassrootsinputandthenpresentthis
totheScholars,AcademicsandCommunityLeaderswhohad
travelledfromalloverNorthAmericatoanalyzethedataandoffer
solutionstoenhancethemimberexperience.
ResearchontheMimberthroughtheAwakeningProject
Thefounderofthe
AwakeningProject,Dr.
SibtainPanjwanicaptivated
theaudiencewitheye
openingresearchon
expectationsandattitudes
withregardstotheMadrasa,
Mimberandfamily.
87%
Considermimber,
Madrasaandfamilyto
becorefoundationsof
ourCommunity
Feltthesecore
foundationsarenotable
toovercomethe
challengeswefacetoday
62%
Feltthemimberis
notmeetingtheir
spiritualneeds
ofglobalrespondentssaidthemimberdidnotgivethem
solutionstosolvetodaysmoralandsocialproblems
87%
56%
78%
feltthatthemimberrequiresreforminitsapproachto
lectures,participantinteractivity,topicsandtypeofspeakers
1
http://awakeningproject.page.tl/
ShaykhKumail
Rajani,Headof
IslamicEducation,
WorldFederation,
highlightedthe
differencebetween
themimberasan
eventopposedto
themimberasa
concept.He
contrastedthe
originsofthe
mimberasasmall
platformmadefor
theProphet(SAW)
sopeoplecouldsee
himfromadistance
totheevolutionof
thecyber-mimber
throughYouTube
streaming.He
affirmedthat
ultimately,itwasnot
aboutthemedium
butthemessage.
IstheMimberanEventoraConcept?
Events
Concepts
Text-oriented
Read
Commemoration
Timebound/
Spacebound
Thought-oriented
Understand
Induction
Timeless/
Spaceless
Rationallychallengingtheaudience,heargued
thatweshouldnothavetheutopianconcept
thatthemimberwasasourceofguidanceand
notthesource,thatitisameanstoanendand
noanenditself.Hereflectedthataswe
deliberatedontheconnectsanddisconnects,it
wasmoreimportanttochangeourmindset
ratherthantheformofthemimberbyseeking
analignmentbetweenpreachers,leadersand
theiraudience.Thatwasthetaskathandfor
thenext2days.
WorkshopQuestions&
Feedback
Thedatadepictedinthenextfewpagesispresented
initsrawformasitwascollectedatthesessionand
representsthethoughtsofthecommunitymembers
thatwerepresentatthesession.
WorkshopQuestions
1
Whatdoesspiritualitymeantoyou?
1.1
Howcanthe Mimber helpaddressyour
spiritualneeds?   
2
2.1
3
3.1
Howdoes/doesn’tthe Mimber addressyour
daytodaysocialissues,particularlyinhelping
youtobeagoodcitizeninyoursociety?
Howcanthe Mimber helpyousolveyourdayto
daysocialissuesinthecontextofthesocietyyou
livein?
Howdoes/doesn’tthe Mimber helpyouto
thinkcritically?
Whatelsecouldbedonetoencouragecritical
thinkingfromthe Mimber?
Workshopfeedback
1
Whatdoesspiritualitymeantoyou?
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
AttainingnearnesstoGod.
o RecognizingAllah’sattributes
o Gettingclosetohim
o PersonalconversationswithAllah
Havingfaithinsomethingbetter/havinghope
Ourconnectiontotheunseenworld
o Connectiontotheknowable+unknowable
o Beingconnectedtoeverythingintheuniverse
o Howwereconciletheunseenworldwiththeseen/materialworld
Beingatpeacewithone’sinnerself/beingcontent
o Livingeverymoment
o Stateofheartandmindalldaylong
Spiritualitycomesfromwithin
Nurturingoutfitrah
Personaljourney
o JourneytowardsAllah
o Journeytoperfection
Differentforeveryone
o Notrestrictedtopeoplewhoidentifywithareligion
Caringformycommunityandhelpinghumanity
RememberingImam-e-Zaman(AJF)inallouractions&words
LeavingtheworriesoftheworldbehindaskingAllahforguidance
Spiritualitycomeswithguidance,knowledge,worship.
1.1
Howcanthe Mimber helpaddressyour
spiritualneeds?   
Positivereinforcement(Quran,Hadith,Historicalcontext)HelpPromote
thought
• MoreGod-centrictopics
• Differentwaysofsharingexperiencesonhowtobuildspirituality
o Appealtodifferentlearnersbyusingmultipleintelligence
• Helpmetolearntoclearmymindandallowingmetore-focus
• Conductsurveytoknowwhatpeoplewanttodiscuss
• Abilitytoquestion/challenge(egtwitterwall)
• Feelthatwehavekeptthe“form”butarelosingtheessence
• Offerwaysofattainingspiritualityfromthemimber
o HelpwaystoSelf-reflection
o Haveanadvanceagendaonwhatwillbetalkedabout
o Moredialogue,lessmonologue
o Encouragequestions/QuestionsduringlectureShortenlectures
o 20-30minuteswithQ/Aforthelast10Mins
• LearningopportunitiestogaincloserproximitytoAllah
• BeliefthatGodisalwaysthereforyou,Hewillhelpyouinyourlife
• Realizeweareprayingforourbenefit.
• Helpmefindanswerstothesequestions
o WhyarewehereonEarth?
o Whydoweexist
o What’sourpurposeinlife?
• Inspiremetothinkofprayers
o differentwaysofconnectingwithAllahthroughactions
o Hownottojustpraysalaatbecauseyoufeel“guilty”
• Mustnotlosethetraditional“trunk”
o Haveregularprayers/majalis,butalsoofferwaysofgettingspirituality
• Keepcorevaluesbutadd
o empathy
o spiritualaspects
• Telldifferentstoriesforvarietyofpeopletorelatetospiritualconnection
• Arrangeseparatepresentationsonsametopicfordifferentneeds
o Agegroups
o Peelthelayersforpeopleatdifferentintellectualcapacitiestobenefit
• Encourageon-goingparticipationespeciallyfromthosecomingrarely.
• Delivercontinuityelectronicallyforcontinuousspiritualgrowth.
•
2
Needtohavemorediscussionsoncurrentissues.
o Socialissuesthatleadtodialogue.
o Morediscussionsonthewidersocietyissues
• Lackofinteractivityresultsinlimitedabilitytoaddresssocialissues.
• GreaterFocusedTopics
o Generalwidediscussionsandnoclearobjectivesminimizelearning
outcomes.
o Liketoleavewithsomethingconcreteoutofthe½hour/1hour.
•
UsVsthemapproach–excludeourselvesfromwidersociety
•
Needdifferentformats–cateringtowiderrangeofages,
background,educationlevels,etc.
•
Can’tlearnjustbylistening,musthaveactionsdoit–bydoing–
extensionexercisesaftermajlises.
o Addtechnology–enhanceinteractivity
• Historybiased/notcontextual–nocontinuumstopresent.
• HelpdevelopframeworksoutsideourJamaats?Thinkingoutofbox?
• Advertiseonlinestreamsofprograms.(ThoughsomefelttoMinimizelive
streamsformoreattendanceatmosque.)
• UseArabic/Quranicverseandpresenttranslationsimultaneouslyforfuture
reflection.
o UseofArabicwordsnotunderstandabletoeveryone.
• Trainspeakers–newpresentationstyles.
• Mimberisnottheplacetodiscusssocialissues.
o SticktoWafaat/Khushalithemes.
•
Howdoes/doesn’tthe Mimber addressyour
daytodaysocialissues,particularlyinhelping
youtobeagoodcitizeninyoursociety?
2.1
Howcanthe Mimber helpyousolveyourdayto
daysocialissuesinthecontextofthesocietyyou
livein?
Identifyandfocusoncurrentsocialissuesusingsurveys/audienceengagement
o islamophobia.
o Alcohol/Drugs/Homosexuality
o Recognizethatthisisarealityinourlifeencouragepeersupport/safe
spaces
•
Observe/engagetheaudienceandtheirneeds
o BetterCommunicationbetweenorganizersandspeakers.
o Audiencerolesandresponsibility–andIntegralpartofthediscussion
•
Morediscussionsofcurrentevents.
•
Learnfromlocalhistoryandsolutionssuccessfullyused(e.g.firstnationslocal
BCissues/solutions.)
•
Differentmodeofcommunication:Visual,practical(differentlearningstyles).
•
Familystructure/supportneedtobestrengthened.
o Trainingforfamilies.
•
Humanize/examples.
•
Moresupportiveenvironment–Helpeachotherthroughissues.
o SafeSpaces–nojudgement.
•
Choiceofspeakerswhounderstandtheissues
o Speakersthataregeographicalrelevant.
•
Morecommunityinvolvementinthechoiceoftopics.
o Give2/3topicstothemandgivethemachancetochoosethetopics.
o SubjectMatterExpertstoprovideextraprogramssuchasworkshops,
tohelp.
•
TEDtalkformat(tohavememberspresent)(topicsrelatingtopeople’slives).
•
Breakingdownbarriersbetweenpreacher/learner.
•
Onlineengagement–Shortvideopresentation,rest(Q/A)one-one.
•
Teamtosupport“Alim/clergycorner”(similarto“Pro-Dcorner”at
madrasahAz-Zahraa.)
•
Interfaithdialogueandcurrentevents.
o Content.
o Speakers–educatingaboutgreateroutersocietyatlarge.
•
Engageyouththroughmultimedia.
•
ShowcaseLivingagoodIslamiclifestyleinourpresentsociety.
o Howtoavoidpushbacks/reframenarratives-perceptionofwomenin
Islam.
•
3
Does
•
•
•
•
•
•
Howdoes/doesn’tthe Mimber helpyouto
thinkcritically?
Whenaudienceismorereceptivetothemessage.
Whenthepresentersharestheinformationinchallengingways.
Whennewtopics/conceptsdiscussed.
Positivetopics.
Canaskusaquestionandmotivateustoreadmore.
Spiritualaspectorpositivity/blessings.
Doesn’t
•
Differentexpectations/interestsintopicsorconversations
•
Monologuenotdialogue.
•
Whensubjecttreatmenttootraditional.
•
Noopportunitytochallengespeaker.
• “Mywayorthehighway”Attitude.Perceptionthatmimberissacred&cannotbe
questioned&reflectedupon
o Peoplelackcouragetoask/dialogues/seekclarification.
o Individualsnotencouragedtoexpressthemselves/theiropinions.
•
Speakerpresentsoneside,notboth,ofadiscussion.
o Challengingquestionsarenotraisedonthemimbertoencourage
criticalthinking
o Fewopportunitieschallengetheidea–mustlisten.
•
Lackofobjectiveapproachmoresubjective
o Oneviewofhistory.
o Presentedinoneway–butcouldbeinterpretedinmanyways
o References/sourcesnotalwaysprovided.
•
Negativetopics.
•
Lackofsafeenvironment.
•
Shortattentionspan.
o Ifcontentisnotkeepingyouengaged.
• Eachmajlis–contenttoomuchtoprocess.
o Shorterpresentationpreferred.20minstoallowpointsforreflection.
o Q/Asessionsfollowingshortermajlis.
• Fruitfulanswersnotreceivedforthequestions.
• Gendersegregationnotconducivetolearning.
• Sometimescontentissupernatural.Defieshumanlogic.
3.1
Whatelsecouldbedonetoencouragecritical
thinkingfromthe Mimber?
•
•
•
•
Audiencehasanequalresponsibility
o Beproactive
o Takeresponsibilityforyourlearning,
o Reflectonmajlisduringchai
o Extendthereflectiononthewayhome
o Groupinteractionallowinggettingtoknowoneanotherlearnabout
fromoneanother
o Researchtopiconyourownwemustknowthetopicaheadoftime.
o Byustakingtheresponsibilitytodoourownresearch,wecanchallenge
topushtheknowledge
o Applyknowledgegainedfrommimbertostartcriticalconversations
forums
o Carrides/Chai&snacks
MimberresponsibilitytoIncreaseengagement,
o Createatwo-waydialogue(dependinguponthecrowd)
o Holdmoreseminars&workshops
o Offersphysicalcourse(likemaqtal)
o Differentidentifiedgroupsi.e.“ladies”;youth,seniorsetc.
o OfferTakeawayquestions
o Q/Atochallengewhat’sbeingsaid
o Askrightquestionstoencouragethinking
Speakersmustbeequallyrepresented(Subjectexpertiseandpointofview)
o Utilizetheexpertizeofresourcesofothermembers(Scholars/Leaders)
tosupportthelecturertodelivertheprogram.
o Othergroupsarescheduledtobeina“supportingrole’sothatthereis
help/collaboration
Bringincontroversialtopics-religious&non-religiousbased.
Whatpracticalstepsand
specificobjectivescanwe
committoandincrease
effectivenessofMimber? 
I
WhatwilltheScholars&Speakerscommitto
do? 
 
1. PositiveReinforcement–Empoweringindividualstoact.
2. Engagingindialoguewithcommunityat-hand(includingmanagement).
3. Flexibility+adaptabletoaddresstheneedsoftheCommunity
a. e.g.havingshorterlectures&seminars,capitalizingonindividual
strengthsandtalents.
4. Groupdiscussionsandcaserelationships
•
Preparedocuments
•
Smallgrouphavemoresuccessintermsofengagementandconnections
•
Thought-provoking,rational-basedmessagesthatareclear.
5. Speakingoffaithwithreasonandaligningourbeliefswiththinkingcorrectly.
I
WhatwilltheScholars&Speakerscommitto
do? 
 
6. InteractionwiththeCommunity
a.
Beingnon-judgmentalandmoreencouraging/inspiring.
b.
Encouragingfeedbackandbeingreceptivetoit/tolistenasmuchaswe
speak.
c.
Morereflection/analysis/refiningtheinformation.
7. Takingtopicsuggestionssoaddressingthingspeoplearestrugglingwith.
•
Acquiringaudiencefeedback.
8. OrientstylethroughstudyingeducationalSunnahandtranslating/bringingitto
ourera.
•
Usingdifferentstrategiesdependentoncontext.
•
Eachcommunitywillbealong-termrelationship.
9. Designingcontentthatismoreinteractive/workshop/classroomorientedas
supplementarytomimber,highereducationframeworksinsmallermore-focused
groups.
10. Learningmore+sharingwithfemales.
11. Workingwitheachothertodevelopdiscussionsinsteadofreinventingthe
wheeleachtime.
•
Sharingresourcesandresearchwitheachothertoenhanceandbemore
fruitful,alsobeyondNASIMCOCommunities.
•
Platformstobounceoffeachother,
o Speaker’sBureau/Forum
o Notforpublicconsumption,internalsensitivediscussions.
•
Sharingtemplated/feedbacksurveystobestandardizationfrom
NASIMCO.
II
WhatwillLeaderscommittodeliver?
 
1. Goingbacktoourcommunitiestodiscusswhatwelearned.
2. ToolsfromNASIMCO(notesfromsymposium,summary,ofdiscussion).
3. Changingformatofprogramtobemoreinteractive.
4. Investintechnologythatwillaidtheaudience&speakerstoengage
effectively
a. (haveanopenmicforthosewhocan’taccesssmartphones).
5. Offerregularplatformformemberstovoicetheiropinions.
6. Encourageyouthtoengageinpublicspeaking.
7. COMMITMENTTOEQUALOPPRTUNITY.
a. Genderbarriersabolished.
8. Havingdiversespeakersinourcommunities.
a. Alimdatabase
b. Subjectexperts
9. Catertovisuallearners,notjustaudiolearners.
10. SharebestpracticesatNASIMCOconferencesANDmaterialsonceshared.
11. Havea“YESWECAN“attitudein-ordertobeprogressive.
12. Listentowhatthecommunitywants(regularsurveys)&annualsurveysonhow
theywant/liketheprograms,issues/obstacles,etc.
III
BasedontheoutputoftheFESymposiumCIL–
NASIMCOcommitstofacilitatethefollowing
 
1. CyberForumforScholarsandCommunityLeaders
a. TofacilitatecontinuousexchangesamongstScholarsbyproviding
platformtoshareideasandconceptstoenhancemimberexperience
b. Tohelpsharebestpracticesandexamplesofwhatworkswellinstead
ofreinventingthewheel.
c. CreateeasyaccesstoolsofsubjectmatterexpertsandforJamaatsto
invitebasedontheirCommunityneeds
TothatendNASIMCOwillcreateacyberplatformtoallowScholarstouploadand
shareresourcesandresearchwitheachotherandCommunityLeaderstoenhance
andbemoreimpactful.
III
BasedontheoutputoftheFESymposiumCIL–
NASIMCOcommitstofacilitatethefollowing
 
.
2. CreatestandardizedTemplatesforusebyJamaatsasafeedbackmechanismas
wellsasconductingneedsassessmentsurveys.
a. PeriodicsurveysofCommunityattitudestobesharedwithScholarsand
CommunityLeaders
3. OrganizePersonalDevelopmentProgramsspeciallyaimedat
ScholarslikethoseofferedfortheLeadershipdevelopmentaswellasopportunities
tonurtureyoungspeakersandscholars.
4. ExpertPanels
a. HoldSymposiawhereresearchers/advocacyorganizations/thinktanks
cansharetheirdatatohelptheCommunitybetterunderstandthewider
societyandourengagementasMuslimsinNorthAmericanSociety.
b. PromotePanelDiscussionsamongstScholarsonaddressing
contemporarychallengesandprovidingguidancetotheCommunityon
addressingthem
5. Create/leveragetechnologyforthegrassrootstoexpandtheknowledge
exchangebeyondthetraditionalmembersandallowScholarstoradiatetheir
teachingthroughtheuseofthePlatform.