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| Introduction (pages 10-13) |
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Objective
I came from my native country of Lebanon to the United States in 1982 as the first Imam called to
serve full time at the growing Islamic Center of New England in Massachusetts, the oldest and the
largest mosque in the New England area. It was and still is a community of diverse heritage - over
twenty-four different countries are represented in the membership. Working with Muslims from all over
the world was a new experience for me that required me to learn many aspects of their cultures and
traditions. My goal, however, was to set aside all differences and focus on the principles and the
primary teachings of Islam, our common denominator. The community, like any other Muslim community,
needed someone to lead them in prayer, teach them and their children about Islam, and conduct their
marriages and funerals. But I found myself confronted with some additional roles - that of grief
councilor, marital councilor, child councilor, mediator of disputes, chaplain, inter-faith dialogue
worker, and media representative. It was these new roles, in addition to other factors, that compelled
me to pursue a higher education in religion in an American university. I wanted to gain an understanding
of religion within the American society and American laws, study the Christian and Jewish religions in
order to improve my inter-faith role, and have an opportunity to research and find solutions to the
unique problems relevant to my community.
Through-out my twenty three plus years of serving the Muslim community of New England, I have had to deal
with several problems and challenges that are not found in Muslim countries. The main problems I found
revolve around marriage, divorce, and child custody. Here are the main issues that need to be addressed:
- Pre-Marital issues: Problems with selection of spouse, the prenuptial agreement, and the marriage contract with the issue of Mahr (dowry).
- The interfaith marriage: Why a Muslim man may marry a Christian or Jewish woman while the Muslim woman can marry only a Muslim. Why some Muslim women are concerned about this seemingly 'unfair law'.
- Interfaith family life: How a non-Muslim wife married to a Muslim husband can adapt her life to the rules of Islamic marriage so that she can have harmony and peace of mind without giving up her religious values and principles and contribute positively to the American society. How can they celebrate their different holidays and which religion should the children be taught?
- Marital Discord: conflicts due to religion and Islamic mediation and arbitration principles. Also, why are Muslim men reluctant to go to counseling?
- Domestic Violence: Ignorant Muslim men abusing their wives and justifying it from Islamic sources and other false stereotypes about man's superiority over women and women's role in the family.
- Polygamy: Why it cannot be practiced in America under Islamic law.
- Divorce, legal and religious: A Muslim wife received her legal divorce in American court. The husband refused to grant her the Islamic divorce. No one can force him and the wife cannot re-marry unless she is divorced Islamically. How can the American court secure her an Islamic divorce?
- Interfaith Divorce and child visitation: The non-Muslim divorced wife's refusal to grant her Muslim husband's children visitation rights out of concern that the father might kidnap them and send them to a Muslim country.
- Child Custody - American laws vs. Islamic laws: A divorced Muslim woman, by claiming her civil rights in the American judicial system and avoiding the Islamic law, can force the husband to forfeit his Islamic right and keep the custody of the children after remarriage.
These are all important questions for the practical application of religion in the life of Islamic
communities. Here, we need to find ways of threading Islamic law through the eye of the secular needle.
Muslims have been established long enough in America to give rise to a generation of American Muslims
who are now of an age to retain lawyers and bring disputes involving Islamic law to secular courts. I
will be exploring the practical applicability of Islamic laws governing the institution of marriage,
including interfaith marriage, divorce, custody of children, and spousal abuse, in the American context.
This topic bears significant importance since Islamic family related legal issues are more likely to
appear in American courts than any other area of Islamic law. In addition, these issues will be addressed
within the US judicial system, taking into consideration the experience of the American Jews.
Therefore, the objective of this dissertation is to complete a contemporary exploration and interpretation
of the issues facing American Muslims with suggested solutions. This is a vital necessity to the life of
the Muslim community. It would serve to educate American Muslims and non-Muslims as well. Numerous times
I have had to appear before the court to clarify the Islamic principles to a judge. Thus this dissertation
would also be valuable to students of law, lawyers, and judges.
Before I start I want to point out that these kinds of issues are part of a larger current discussion and
I am aware that these are areas of general contentiousness and academic debate. However, I do not intend
to become too deeply involved in the broad debates but, rather, will take on individual issues as they
arise and become relevant to the specific discussions. The authors I chose to use in the discussions are
just a few particular voices in an ongoing and complex contemporary conversation. Finally, much of the
research in my thesis comes out of my role as a clergy person, and as such, the examples and interviews
given throughout were given to me in confidence. Since subjects wish to remain anonymous, I have chosen
to use aliases.
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