02/07/2014 | Writer: Ömer Akpınar
Muslim LGBTI people in Australia formed a group named MARHABA to state that an inclusive approach to Islam is possible.
Muslim LGBTI (lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans, intersex) people in Australia formed a group named MARHABA to state that an inclusive approach to Islam is possible. Founded in February this year, the group gives psycho-spiritual counseling to those who struggle to reconcile their sexuality with their faith.
The gay imam of MARHABA, who chooses to use the name Abdullah Mohamed as there are security risks against him and others, is a graduate of Al-Azhar University in Cairo, Egypt. Living in Western Australia, Abdullah Mohamed told how Islam can go hand in hand with LGBTI people to kaosGL.org
As a gay imam, what kinds of struggles you had as you delved into the Islamic knowledge and how did you get over them?
At the beginning of my Islamic studies I never thought the day would come where I can add gay and imam in the same sentence, let alone being one. As a gay imam I had faced and still do face many internal and external struggles but as my Islamic knowledge expanded I learnt to accept myself. I realized as I studied further that my relationship with God was getting stronger and it was always people who seemed to be speaking harsh in the name of God. Many Muslims struggle to reconcile their sexuality with Islam and I believe education to be the key. As I studied more and learnt to be analytical and studied critical thinking I came to be at peace with my Islam and my sexuality. I realized that I was struggling primarily because I was ignorant and could not see that my Islam doesn’t want me to struggle in such a way.
Many Muslims believe that homosexuality is a very big sin in Islam and therefore exclude LGBT community and their problems from their discussion. How do you interpret the place of LGBT people in Islam?
The ones that justify excluding anyone in the name of Islam are not educated about what Islam’s main core philosophy of inviting to God is. Prophet Mohamed (PBUH) said: “Make religion easy on others and do not make it difficult, spread the message of Islam and don’t be ones that will make others run away from you, and O Slaves of God be brothers and sisters”.
Mohamed (PBUH) spent only 23 years as a prophet, receiving the message at the age of 40 and dying at the age of 63years. After a period of only 23 years he has turned the entire Arabian Peninsula to Muslims. Some narrations say in his last sermon he had 100,000 followers. That was because he practiced an inclusive Islam that welcomed even the sinners to have hope in the kingdom of God. He practiced an Islam that made him weep at the funeral of a Jewish woman and when he was asked why he was weeping on the body of a Jew, his response was “this is a soul that I could not pass the message of Islam to”.
When Mohamed (PBUH) was kicked out of Makah (his hometown) and arrived in Madinah he did two things. I strongly believe that we have deviated from these two things and hence we are like what we are today, and I also believe that any group, organization, society or -ism that builds their foundations on these two things will never fail. First thing Mohamed (PBUH) did upon arrival to Madinah was building his mosque, which conceptualizes the relationship that one must have with their Creator. Secondly, he rectified and strengthened the relationship between different dwellers of Madinah (which included Christians, Jews, pagans and others). Those two things will take us to an inclusive Islam, which is where all Muslims belong, including the LGBT ones. Strengthen my relationship with God and be at peace with God’s creation.
Many Islamic scholars condemn an LGBTI-positive approach in Islam, claiming that it is not the “genuine Islam”. How do you think that Muslims will stop seeing this LGBTI-positive approach in Islam as a threat and embrace LGBTI Muslims?
Every scholar’s words should be weighed against that of Prophet Mohamed (PBUH). A story comes to mind regarding a companion who during one of the Islamic expeditions cornered a non-Muslim, the non-Muslim quickly uttered the testimony of faith “I bear witness there is none worthy of worship except Allah and Mohamed (PBUH) is His servant and prophet”, the companion pierced the non-Muslim with his sword. When the companion was summoned before Mohamed (PBUH) his defense was that the non-Muslim said the testimony of faith after being cornered and out of fear he said it, then Mohamed (PBUH) said his famous saying “how do you know? Have you split his chest open to see his sincerity”? Many so-called scholars easily and quickly take people out of the fold of Islam like it is a right given to them. Differences of opinion are a good thing, but extremism is also there and can be eradicated through education and reform. Reform is part of Islam and has always been part of the history of Islam; it should not be looked at as a threat.
As Islamophobia is widespread in many Western countries, can you say that LGBTI Muslims are facing double discrimination and they have a potential to form a bridge between sexuality and spirituality?
As a person who has firsthand experience in Muslims’ daily affairs, I strongly believe that LGBTI Muslims are facing double discrimination, especially in countries where freedoms are suppressed. I am an eternal optimist though and I believe there is a potential to form a bridge between sexuality and spirituality, and spaces are been carved out around the world. I never thought of the day where I would be able to include gay and imam in the same sentence but it’s happening. Stigma is rampant and many still want to be anonymous and for the right reasons. But gay imams in South Africa, the US and the UK; gay-friendly mosques in Paris, Canada as well as many other organizations are trying to be heard including MARHABA.
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