in association with Utrujj (www.utrujj.com)

Preparation for Marriage and Parenting - Part 1 of the Islam in Focus Series

Date
Sunday, 16th May, 2004

Objective
To discuss the main issues surrounding a successful Muslim marriage and good Islamic parenting.

By the end of the course students should be able to:

1. List the main characteristics to look for in a future partner;
2. Explain the rights, duties and limits in a marriage;
3. Understand the components of a successful marriage;
4. Understand the importance of good parenting in Islam;
5. Appreciate the weight of choosing a good name;
6. Explain the importance of Education, Care and Tarbiyah in Islam;
7. Understand the limits between parents and children;
8. Discuss common problems in Muslim families.

Speakers
Shaykh Haytham Tamim has studied Shariah for over 16 years and has accreditation (ijaaza's) in recitation, interpretation and Sciences of the Qur'an, Hadith and Fiqh from the scholars of Sham, Medina and Indo-Pak. As well as verifying (tahqiq) over 20 books, his specialities include comparative Fiqh, Usool and Hadith. This vast knowledge is harnessed with extensive teaching experience, he has taught students for over 12 years in numerous countries. He has served as a lecturer of Comparative Fiqh for many years at the Islamic University of Beirut and also as a lecturer of Hadith and Seerah at the Azhar Lubnan Academy, Lebanon. He is the founder of Utrujj.

Venue, Timings and Details
Venue: South Reading Leisure Centre, Reading. (Click here for a map).
Date: Sunday 16th March, 2004
Time: 1115 - 1700
Price: £7.50 per adult, kids go free

Event Review
The class was organized by Imaad at the South Reading Leisure Center. Shaykh Haytham Tamim from Utrujj came from London to teach the students, for a 6-hour session, with a break for lunch and tea. Most of the people who came were locals, though there were also people from Bracknell, London and Oxford. All of them were young Muslim professionals, and many were parents of young kids.

All the students were given handouts brought by Shaykh Haytham; he covered many aspects of marriage such as the significance of marriage in Islam; the preferred qualities of one’s life partner; the khitbah (engagement), its purpose and limits; the rights and responsibilities of men; the role of each family member; the rights and responsibilities of women; the features of a Muslim family; and many more topics. Each topic was covered in depth.

Unfortunately Shaykh Haytham was never able to cover the parenting aspect of the topic as in reality this is a weekend course, and ideally requires at least two days to complete. Despite this setback, all those who attended were quite keen for Imaad to organize other such classes in Reading throughout the year. The students had many questions to ask, and the lecture throughout was interspersed with discussion and questions. Many people appreciated the importance of such classes on a regular basis, and welcomed the opportunity to learn in-depth about such an important topic as marriage from a highly learned scholar.

Because Imaad likes to encourage parents of young kids to attend our events, we had booked a playroom, but unfortunately there were a few technical problems with the wireless link to the playroom. However, Imaad is committed to encouraging and facilitating parents of young kids to attend our events, and will carry on testing and exploring the technology in order to find a solution to this problem. Please bear with us while we do so.

Because some parents left disappointed that they didn’t get to hear the parenting part of the workshop, we have posted a few links to websites which answer many questions on marriage and parenting. We will inshaAllah also be posting a list of reading material in the near future – watch this space. Our apologies to all those who were inconvenienced by the setbacks.

Finally, our thanks and appreciation to Shaykh Haytham and all those at Utrujj who worked with us to make this event possible, and we hope to work with you again inshaAllah.

Useful Links
- www.utrujj.com

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