Senior British Imams, Scholars and Alimahs gathered in London to share an evening with Shaykh Abdallah Bin Bayyah (President, Forum for Peace), Shaykh Hamza Yusuf (President, Zaytuna College) and Dr Mohammad Matar Salem bin Abid al Kaabi (Minster of Islamic Affairs and Endowments, UAE).

Entitled “Islam in a Globalising World”, the evening facilitated by the Forum for Peace and Imams Online, bought together a diverse range of senior British Islamic leadership from across the country, representing different schools of thoughts and traditions.

The scholars in attendance listened to a special address from Shaykh Abdallah in which he emphasised the critical role positive religious guidance played in today’s complex and confusing world and how strong faith leadership and a strict adherence to the ways and teachings of the Prophet Muhammad (saw) were the perfect antidote to the ills and evils that have become predominant in today’s world.

The Islamic leadership in attendance took the opportunity to direct some pertinent questions to Shaykh Abdallah of both a scholastic and social nature. Some of the points raised and questions asked centered around the need to inspire and revive scholarship, how to instill confidence in Islamic thought leadership to speak on complex socio-political issues such as Western foreign policy, the need to integrate more women in faith institutional leadership and on discussions of intellectual disagreements and how to approach these.