Sanad Prep Boys to Men

Bros praying

I want to take a moment to share something small, but nonetheless, special that happened at Sanad Prep today: some of our middle and high school students are participating in the upcoming Muslim Interscholastic Tournament. Some students decided to stay after school in order to prepare for their project and I was there to supervise them. These students have been working on producing a short film and have been ecstatic about their project. I kept hearing them laugh at the bloopers, and just having a good time. After some time, it was time for Asr, and without me having to remind them to pray, they took charge; one of them decided to lead and they prayed Asr.

Everyday at Sanad Prep, all the the learning coaches try their level best to influence the lives of their students in a positive manner. Our message to the students has been consistent: every single day, we make the intention to learn and to teach for the sake of Allah. Every day, the students get to hear an inspirational morning assembly message by Ustadh Rehan, and every single day, the students pray duhr together.

Today when these students made the decision to pray, it was not because I had told them to do so. It was something that came from within themselves. When I found them lined up before Allah, it truly made my heart smile. The message we are giving our students each and every day is impacting them on a deeper level. They realize that their good actions are not for their parents, their learning coaches, or other people, but those actions are only for the sake of Allah. May Allah continue to guide the actions of all of our students. May their principles and values never stagger, even long after we are gone.

The mission of Sanad is very near and dear to my heart. If you also think that the mission of Sanad is of any value to our community, then please join us at our benefit dinner on March 5th, 2016. If you are not able to attend then consider sending in a donation ( every dollar helps), and most importantly, pray for the success of our banquet and our organization.

Thank you,
Maliha Sheikh

For more Information visit: 
https://www.facebook.com/events/1676571239279256/
To Purchase tickets visit: http://www.brownpapertickets.com/event/2505079
*Your family/friends can also choose to purchase a table for $300 (seats 10 people).

 

The Sanad Prep Morning Lights Assembly is a morning assembly done every day with students in our Sanad Prep Learning Center. We begin every assembly with the name and praise of Allah, as well as salawat. Then every day we make our intention for seeking knowledge. The assembly concludes with each student giving salams to one another.

We have begun sharing the videos with the hope that other Muslim Families and students (home schooled or not) would fine benefit in these short reminders. Please forgive us for any shortcoming.

Sanad Prep is an initiative of the Sanad Trust Foundation (a community based non-profit). It is a new way forward in Islamic education. We utilize the best of public, private, and Islamic education models to create essentially a professional quality, accredited homeschool co-op center which works closely with respective county public school systems. Our students are actually enrolled with their public school departments receiving report cards and eventually graduating with an accredited transcript provided by the county.

Consider supporting us with a generous donation and by attending our annual benefit dinner Saturday, March 5, 2016. To make a donation or purchase tickets visit: http://portinastorm.bpt.me/

I want to be like the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) because he was a person who had a lot of dignity. He was known for his dedication and determined in all of his missions, and getting his message across the globe. He was very eloquent and was known for being able to describe himself using the least amount words in a very concise and prepossessing manner. The Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) was very intelligent. Many commentators have described Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) to be the most intelligent man ever, regardless of the fact the he was unable to read or write, he was very articulate and intelligent. Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) has left a great legacy and is still quoted by Muslims and non Muslims today which sums up why I want to be like him.

Saim Shaikh, Grade 9
Sanad Prep

F-R-I = Forgiveness, Remembrance, Improvement…

Sanad Prep students learn about controlling what they can with Allah’s permission and appreciating that in the end, still, Allah is in control of all things. “You can’t even control your yawn, so like, chill out.”

Revelation Pt 2In light of all this, there is an important point that must be made clear in regards to understanding our holy texts, because, unfortunately, in our times, the Qur’an and hadith often go misunderstood or are misused by those among us who neither have the knowledge to understand such texts nor do they have the necessary scholastic training to draw proper and orthodox conclusions from them. There are two often-quoted texts that we must be cognizant of concerning the topic at hand. Firstly, there is the ayah in Surah al-Kahf, in which Allah states, “Say, ‘I am only a mortal like you, yet Allah has inspired me with revelation that your God is one God. So whoever awaits the meeting with his Lord, let him do righteous deeds and not associate anyone with his Lord in worship.” Secondly, the Prophet (may Allah bless him, and may He grant him peace) is reported to have said, “Do not transgress bounds in praising me as the Christians praised the son of Mary, for I am only a slave. So, call me the Slave of Allah and His Apostle.”

Concerning the verse quoted above, Allah confirms that indeed the Prophet is a human being, but He then characterizes the Prophet as someone endowed with a revelation that is meant to clarify the very purpose of all existence: and that is to recognize and pay homage to the grandeur of the Lord of the worlds. The medium by which such a critical and integral message is delivered to creation must not be undervalued or underestimated. As Allah Almighty says in a separate ayah of the Qur’an, “Indeed, We are going to descend upon you a weighty word.” It is among the magnificent aspects of the Qur’an that Allah determined that its immensity be revealed over a period of 23 years. We must then contemplate and revere the individual who Allah chose to reveal this book to and the distinction held by the Prophet because of this. After considering the process of revelation, its importance and its magnificence, would it then be fair to characterize the Prophet as simply a man with a message? Or must we recognize the greatness of our Prophet and conduct ourselves in a manner that befits his stature in the sight Allah Almighty?

Concerning the hadith: our scholars have created entire sciences dedicated to understanding the Prophet’s statements, how they shape our beliefs and how we can apply his example in our lives. The sciences of hadith [‘ulum al-hadith], Islamic creed [al-‘aqida] and purification of the ego [suluk] are essential starting points to approaching and properly grasping the life of our Prophet in general. Before we are able to begin understanding this specific hadith of the Prophet (may Allah bless him, and may He grant him peace) – or any other hadith for that matter, it is most suitable to do a few things: we must know to whom the Prophet was speaking, we must understand the context in which the Prophet gave his statements and we must be vigilant in not attempting to draw conclusions prematurely without proper recourse to classical explanations of such texts. As Sufyan ibn ‘Uyayna, an early scholar of the hadith sciences once said, “The realm of hadith is a place of misguidance without the aid of scholars.”  (more…)

Nasm Aunty amanaWhen Br. Rehan asked me to teach Quran and Islamic Studies to the elementary level more than a year ago, I was a little nervous and honored at the same time. Thank you for putting your trust in me. May Allah forgive our shortcomings and accept our services.

I love and enjoy teaching them. I learn from them and they learn from me. I actually feel like I am teaching my own grand-kids. Children are an amana in our hands, care for this precious amana is our duty as parents and as teachers. As it says in Quran, “O you who believe, save yourself and your families from a fire whose fuel is men and stones.” (66:6)

It is the responsibility of parents to ensure that the home environment is conducive to Islamic learning through examples and encouragement. As Muslims, it is our duty to serve our Creator and His creation. May Allah guide us, protect us and keep us on the straight path, insha’Allah.

Sr. Nasim is a Quran teacher at Sanad Prep for students memorizing Juz Amma. She also teaches Islamic Studies to grades 1 & 2.

Revelation pt 1

Allah (Almighty and Glorious is He) says in the Qur’an, “Indeed, Allah and His angels bless the Prophet! Oh you who believe, invoke blessings upon the Prophet, and give him salutations most becoming!”

Since converting to Islam over 12 years ago, my life has gone through various periods: times of shock, times of sadness, and other times of growth in knowledge, understanding and faith. For me, this 12-year journey has been one, long process of change and transformation. As one Islamic scholar once told a gathering I was in, “Islam is not an event! It is a process!”

I remember entering Salah Tawfik Mosque in Sunrise, Florida as a timid 16 year-old kid, whose world before that point revolved around basketball and listening to hip hop. My thinking, my perspectives on life and my interactions with the world around me have been revamped in ways that I could have never even have begun to imagine 12 years ago. However, as it is the case with life in general: some things change and others remain constant. So despite this 12-year period being a general period of change, there is one matter that has remained constant in my mind throughout it.

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How often do you get to just walk in to a program with useful entertainment, great company and great food, as well as no hard work involved? Not often.  When its one of the quarterly programs at Sanad for the “Guardians”, this is all true!

For over a year now, Sanad Trust Foundation as organized a quarterly Guardians for elders in the community.  A recent event was “The Marshmallow Challenge and Game Night”, which was very well done.  I must say the addition of Shahzad and Neelam to the team has been a very good thing for the guardians program.

The most recent event was a workshop on Islamic Architecture and Design.  The guests were all there, deep in pleasantries and greetings when Rehan started the program with a dua and introduction of Asad Siddiqui.  Asad was to take us on a trip to see the glory and beauty of Islamic architecture and design.  This being too vast to cover in a few hours, so we only went to Turkey and Spain.  It is always interesting to find out how some of these structures have moved with different religions.  Mosques have become churches or vice versa and other times traded places as temples.  But this is history of another nature and perhaps we can talk about it at another event.

For now, from the buildings we then focused on the intricate designs and the labor and technique involved with these designs.  We were told by Asad we would be making one such design.  I doubt if any of us believed it. But he then proceeded to take us step by step until we really did it!  The pictures show that it was possible, with the right directions and supervision.

Guardians Art Collage

All this activity was then followed by a delicious lunch.  Again all arrangements and serving done by the organizers and board members of Sanad Trust.  Us seniors were just there to relax and enjoy. Just as things were winding up, some of the guests were leaving or others had left, Attiqa remembered some riddles that were on the entertainment agenda.  One riddle being what is something that is half fruit and half flower?  If you know, good for you! If not, come to the next Guardians program for the answer.

I am sure I speak on behalf of all the guests there to say thank you to Sanad Trust Foundation.  The seniors might have been of different ages but the organizers and presenter were our children.  They did all this even though they now have small children of their own and we all know how much work that in itself is.  With gratitude, we are looking forward to the next Sanad Guardians event. Aren’t you?

–Ms. Nigar Mirza

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