June 27 By Maryam Khan Ansari – ILLUME Reporter
Washington DC, USA
The Same-sex marriage ruling has cleared the way for many, including gay Muslims, to marry. But over the years, homosexuals who identify as Muslims found it difficult to have an Imam perform the ceremony. Now, they have a place to get married, complete with an Imam who will marry them. Imam Daayiee Abdullah of Washington, D.C., is available to perform gay Muslim marriages.
Abdullah might be the only gay Muslim imam in America, with the other openly gay Imam being Muhsin Hendricks of South Africa. Abdullah founded The Light of Reform Mosque in the D.C. area, a mosque which claims on its website to promote “theologically sound frameworks for Islamic liberalism.”
The Same Sex Marriage Rulings
Earlier this week, the United States Supreme Court ruled on the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA). Under this ruling, the Supreme Court struck down a key provision of DOMA that stated that marriage was between a man and a woman. Under this ruling, same sex couples can now be afforded the same state sponsored benefits as heterosexual couples.
In another case this week, the Supreme Court took on the case of California same sex marriage law, saying that the people who were contesting it had no standing to challenge California’s same sex marriage laws.
READ: Outcast Gay Arabs Struggle with Backlash in Dearborn (ILLUME Magazine)
Imam Daayiee Abdullah
Abdullah converted to Islam at the age of 29, while studying in China, reports the Religion News Service. He was born to a Baptist family with seven siblings, he told Metro Weekly in an in a 2006 interview. According to Salaam Canada, Abdullah studied Shari’ah Sciences and Quranic Interpretation, although where exactly he studied is unclear. Abdullah claims that there is no mention of homosexuality being “haraam,” or forbidden, in the Quran, according to his interview with Metro Weekly.
Of course, most prominent Muslim scholars would dispute Abdullah’s ideas, saying that homosexuality is a sin in Islam– but not necessarily making “gay” and “Muslim” mutually exclusive.
Although Abdullah performs Muslim same sex marriages, he himself indicated to Religion News Service that he has no plans to marry his long-term partner, although Abdullah clarified to ILLUME that he had already obtained a religious marriage, i.e. a nkkah, with his partner.
Editorial note 8:29 PM PST 6/27/2013: Final line “although Abdullah…partner” was added, upon further clarification from the subject.
Other Reading:
Being Out and Being Muslim (Muslim Voices)
Pakistani Muslim Lesbians Wed in UK Despite Threats (ILLUME Magazine)
Categories: gender
Amazing and shockingly so. This would take a lot of adjusting to for some people and the freedoms experienced in America.
everything on this planet is created by God Almighty, gays are also His creation? are’t they. or did they arrive from another planet? I agree it will take lot of adjusting and acceptance.
Mr. Zakaria!
If (being)Gays is God creation why did He punish Lot’s people for being gays?
Why God had to send His messenger for denouncing and disbanding this practice?
Why did God mention or reveal Lot’s people tale and His divine punishment for these people to His beloved and last law-bearing messenger?
Mr. Virk!
You are exceeding your limits set by yourself when you took oath as a member of Jama’at. Listen Huzoor’s recent sermon where he mentioned UK same-sex marriage decision and warned of its grave divine consequences.
It seems you are impressed by a growing number of these scums around you in Canada?
I wish this idiot would have not converted to beautiful religion of Islam!
Quoting his totally insane and nonsense remarks, “Abdullah claims that there is no mention of homosexuality being “haraam,” or forbidden, in the Quran”; OK, why God punished people of Lot clearly decreeing their profane abominations and sin of homosexuality?
Tell me one thing you fake Imam! Where God has prohibited killing provided that it is justified? So I am offended and provoked by extremely rhetoric words deeply and my anger becomes out of control because of instinct and my genes, Why should I be punished if I commit killing?
Ahmed, salaam. May I suggest you seek anger management counseling. My words about Quran stand and your lack of theological training in Islam is obvious to those who have studied beyond the Salafi/Wahabi pablum on which you suckle. If you don’t want a same sex marriage, please do not, but stay out of the way of those who do as their Allah given right to “…marry from the single among you….” (24:32).
Imam Daayiee Abdullah
W. salaam.
I just put my arguments in defiance of extremely disturbing, irrational and false remarks by you. Not me it’s you and alike who need consultation from both psychiatrists and religious scholars in order to abstain from and give up this abomination and sin.
There is no an iota of difference between you and those extremist Salafi/Wahabi pablum……why ?….. because you quoted one verse from Qur’an out of context in favour of your totally unislamic and sinful practice……….you forgot that those salafis do the same mischief. They quote those quranic verses that incite Jihad with sword out of context in favour of their ongoing onslaught and extremist heinous crimes in name of God. You and all those like you are doing the same thing……….
Rather than replying my undeniable and concrete point of people of Lot…..you put nothing but waste of words. Allah ST has clearly warned of fate of those who do or will do such sin and crime. So be warned before it’s too late.
You have advise me of having my own way and don’t be skeptical of these abhorrent acts….well I have no interest in wasting my time on these scrums……but when you use name of Allah and his religion, definitely I shall have to answer…….
Please do whatever you want to do… don’t use name of Allah and his words for providing shield for your sins.
Ahmed Qureshi is 100 % right in speaking against same sex marriage. Let us look at it in a different way.
This gay marriage permit is quite new for the Muslims. It is quite a new thing in western countries too. It is still being debated whether to allow it or not.
Where was such thing in previous years or old times in Islam. Why it was not allowed 10 years ago and why there is no such permission in any other Muslim country? To give some benefit of doubt, it cold only be called Bid’at i.e. some invention in Islam.
It is certainly a sin and must never be allowed in the society. The verdict of the Quran is very clear on this topic. The marriage between two men or two women is not understandable.
In my next post, Insha Allah, I will try to define the word marriage i.e. Nikah as used in the Quran. It is necessary to understand the meaning of the Arabic word Nikah as used in the Quran. If any one can help, guide and explain the meaning of Nikah, please do. Thank you.
Imam Daayiee Abdullah, you sited (24:32), however you know well what Allah stated in (2:187), (4:34), and (4:3). In the Holy Qur’an Prophet Lot (PBUH) tells his people of their practice of sodomy, Also, here are a couple other verses from the Holy Quran:“Indeed! You commit such abomination as none has ever committed before you. You approach the males, and you obstruct passers by, and you commit evil in your assemblies.” (29.28.29)In the Surah Hud, verses 82 and 83 sates,“When Our command came to pass, We turned the habitation upside down and rained on them brimstones, hard as baked clay, continuously piling, each one assigned from you Lord and never far from the evildoers.” The evildoers in this verse were identified by Quatadah as the offenders of the nation of Lut.
Imam Daayiee Abdullah, We are further informed of the evilness of this sin in the following hadith, “ The curse of Allah be upon he who has sexual activity with an animal, and he who imitates the people of Lut.” (Ahmad and Tirmithi).From the Hadith (Ibn Abbaas quoting the Prophet Muhammad SAW)”‘Whoever you find doing the deed of the people of Lot, kill the one who does it and the one to whom it is done.” Narrated by al-Tirmidhi, 1456; Abu Dawood, 4462; Ibn Maajah, 2561:; Classed as saheeh by Shaykh al-Albaani in Saheeh al-Jaami’, no. 6589.
Imam Daayiee Abdullah, The Qur’an describes that everything has been created in pairs which complement one another. Pairing of male and female is thus part of human nature and the natural order. Marriage and family is the accepted way in Islam for a person’s emotional, psychological, and physical needs to be met. The Qur’an describes the husband/wife relationship as one of love, tenderness, and support. Procreation is another way of fulfilling human needs, for those whom God blesses with children. The institution of marriage is considered the foundation of Islamic society, the natural state in which all people have been created to live. Brother please stop your dirty teaching and teach the truth. Islam will not change for you or anyone else, this is from Allah.
Those who follows their illicit desires and wishes are the followers of shaitan, who does not fear from Allah (TAQWA) are companions of Shaiateen. We are always asked us to seek His will and His pleasure. Allah is the Almighty the Creator. Sure he is the forgiver. Islam means surrender yourself to Allah.
Gays are a BI PRODUCT of human race they should be used in a positive manners in the society just like a Farmer/Industrialist uses his bi products in a profitable way. This current human race bi product is a production of Godless and spiritually fearless generations and are being carved in schools in colleges and are couraged to do this hate full business openly and media also encourages them. This Gay Marriage system has no place in Islam and must be discouraged. To avoid these bad habits, from the early lives of the Muslim children must be raised up in a decent holy disciplined manners of Islamic teachings.
Listen, folks. Medically / scientifically speaking, 5% (statistics vary) of children / humans are born with purely homosexual orientation. It is NOT their fault to be born that way and they could be classified as “handicapped” (or “special needs”) just as someone is born with deafness or an absent limb and is considered handicapped.
Just as a person with absent limbs cannot walk or a person without hearing ability cannot hear, a child born with pure homosexual orientation cannot be expected to practice normal sexual behaviour when he/she grows up.
This minority group (within a larger community of homosexual claimants) is the most unfortunate one when it comes to being a good Muslim. I will explain this point further:
Being a good Muslim, I have never practiced and I will never practice homosexuality or enter into any such relationships. Allah has CREATED me with a HANDICAP and I accept it as a TRIAL of my life. It is NOT a CHOICE. It is not being IMMORAL. It is a GOD-GIVEN HANDICAP.
Being a good Muslim, however, I want to MARRY a woman and HAVE children and raise and support a family of my own since I am biologically / financially capable of doing that.
Being a Muslim, however, I have to be HONEST and not marry just any woman without letting my potential spouse know what I AM capable of doing (providing, caring, friendship, companionship, having children together, sincerity, loyalty) and in what sense I am a handicapped person (unable to provide sexual attraction-related stuff – because sexual attraction to women is zero and is something that can’t change).
So, will a woman understand my handicap and marry me to make my dream of morality a reality? A woman, who instead of cursing me, appreciates my very high level of morality and my every day greater Jihad as an Ahmadi Muslim.
People are born with many moral deficits such as liar, thief, cheats and different orientation.
Islam requires us to do Jihad against them. That is morality.
Look, we should not blame people for different orientation. It is NOT a choice. It cannot go away. Islam reprimands failure to control it, but does not say it doesn’t exist.
One who is successful in controlling such an inborn trial of God is doing the greater Jihad and needs applaud and commendation and not the opposite. We must bring about change so as to help such people create marriages – such as marriage between homosexual men and homosexual women. A website should be created which would assist such Muslims in need of this sort of help.
@Daniel Kahn!
Let me add here very important scientific facts. And when I say scientific exactly they are and can be reconciled by contacting nay renowned research institution.
1-Children born with such abnormality or deficiency or more precisely physical state, are not homosexuals but transgenders. Homosexuality is totally different thing. It is a behavior and practice and a vast majority of these perpetrators are not transgenders. Most of them started this or inclined to just because of society and atmosphere or company.
2-Every transgender is not 100% transgender either a male dominant or female dominant. Sex change surgery is possible when one sex is overwhelmingly dominant and surgeons see a viability of outcome.
In any case there is always a battle mentally and physically. due to this bipolar confrontation, inclination towards opposite sex is extremely reduced volume and needless to say it is always towards a sex which has lost the battle. In a very exceptional case dominant sex can be surmounted in a later stage.
3-Sexual inclination is triggered and controlled by a nervous system known amydala which is also responsible to control aggression and anger interestingly. It is now proved that all these inclinations and behaviors are mutable and transitional heavily depend upon environment, atmosphere, company, brought-up etc.
Ahmed Qureshi, “Transgender is the state of one’s gender identity (self-identification as woman, man, neither or both) not matching one’s assigned sex (identification by others as male, female or intersex based on physical/genetic sex). Transgender does not imply any specific form of sexual orientation; transgender people may identify as heterosexual, homosexual, bisexual, pansexual, polysexual, or asexual; some may consider conventional sexual orientation labels inadequate or inapplicable to them.” (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Transgender) In a nutshell, transgender may want to have sex-reassignment surgery. On the contrary, homosexuals never want to have gender-reassignment surgery since they are comfortable with their gender but are not attracted to the opposite gender. Homosexuality is only a defect of orientation. They are normal in the sense that they don’t want gender reassignment surgery – which transsexuals may want. Amygdala (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amygdala) has been shown to be much larger in homosexuals, not in transgenders. Anyway, you did not understand what morality means. To write comments is easy. To be moral, courageous, honest, and to practice and defend your faith with science, testimony, and facts is Jihad. (By deleting a previous comment of mine, I feel that some TMT commenters, though highly educated, may lack honesty and even taqwa.) We need to help gay and lesbian folks within our community, marry each other, so they do not think about same-sex marriage.