How deeply has modernity shaped the way Muslims understand Islam, law, morality, and even their own history?In Season 7, Episode 5 of *Talking With Teachers*, Dr. Abdullah bin Hamid Ali sits down with Dr. Yannis Mahil for a wide-ranging conversation on Islamic law, modernity, collective ijtihad, the modern nation-state, and African-American Muslim history.Dr. Mahil discusses how the rise of modern states transformed the way Islamic law is interpreted and implemented, including debates surrounding criminal law and the relationship between classical fiqh and contemporary legal systems. The conversation also examines collective ijtihad and whether modern scholarly councils can carry the same authority traditionally associated with individual mujtahids and scholarly consensus.Later, the discussion turns to slavery and its abolition, contemporary Muslim approaches to difficult questions within the Islamic legal tradition, and the challenges Muslims face when attempting to reconcile inherited Islamic frameworks with modern assumptions.Dr. Mahil also shares his extensive research into Malcolm X and African-American Muslim history—including interviews with individuals who personally knew Malcolm X—and explains why these experiences became an important part of his academic work.The conversation ultimately raises a deeper question: **Has modernity changed not only the world Muslims live in, but the very intellectual framework through which Muslims understand Islam itself?****Guest:** Dr. Yannis Mahil **Host:** Dr. Abdullah bin Hamid Ali **Series:** Talking With Teachers — Season 7, Episode 5Subscribe to Lamppost Education Initiative for more conversations exploring Islamic scholarship, history, theology, law, and contemporary Muslim life.

In Season 7, Episode 4 of Talking With Teachers, Dr. Abdullah bin Hamid Ali sits down with Dr. Aisha Subhani, Vice President of Zaytuna College, board-certified emergency medicine physician, educator, and longtime leader in Muslim education.

Drawing upon more than two decades in medicine and years of involvement in Islamic education, Dr. Subhani reflects on the relationship between faith, education, ethics, medicine, the liberal arts, and professional life.

The conversation explores the changing practice of medicine and the loss of the traditional doctor-patient relationship; why Muslims need qualified teachers and intellectual standards; the dangers of confusing online visibility with genuine scholarship; what Muslim parents should really mean when they say they want their children to be “successful”; and why the liberal arts remain essential for developing clear, critical thinkers.

Dr. Subhani also considers the impact of AI on education and the future of work, the growing importance of skilled trades and diverse professions, and why Muslims need institutions capable not merely of joining important conversations about AI, ethics, and education—but hosting those conversations.

The discussion concludes with reflections on Imam al-Ghazālī, the transformative purpose of education, the importance of reading history and the great books, and the kind of intellectual and spiritual formation Muslim institutions should seek to cultivate.

Topics include:
Medicine and holistic health • Islamic education • Liberal arts • Muslim parenting • AI and the future of work • Ethics and professional life • Qualified Islamic scholarship • Social media and Muslim discourse • Muslim institutions • Imam al-Ghazālī • Reading and history • Faith and intellectual formation

🎙️ Talking With Teachers — Season 7, Episode 4
Guest: Dr. Aisha Subhani
Host: Dr. Abdullah bin Hamid Ali
Presented by Lamppost Education Initiative

In Season 7, Episode 3 of Talking With Teachers, Dr. Abdullah bin Hamid Ali sits down with Ustadh Abdul-Wahab Waheed, Executive Director and co-founder of Miftaah Institute, for a wide-ranging conversation about Islamic knowledge, service, da‘wah, Muslim unity, education, and the responsibility of Muslims in America.

Abdul-Wahab Waheed reflects on the remarkable decision his parents made to place their sons on the path of sacred knowledge and how that upbringing helped shape a life centered on serving Islam and the Muslim community.

The conversation explores an important question facing Muslims today: Who will teach people about Islam if Muslims themselves are not prepared to do so? Waheed asks how a Muslim's neighbor can form their understanding of Islam through the media rather than through the Muslim living next door. He emphasizes the need for Muslims to move beyond merely “dabbling” in Islamic knowledge and develop the depth necessary to understand, embody, and communicate their faith.

Dr. Abdullah and Ustadh Abdul-Wahab also discuss the power of storytelling in Islamic teaching, the Qur'anic stories of the Prophets, the relationship between traditional scholarship and modern technology, and why Muslims must become living examples of the tradition they seek to communicate.

The discussion then turns to Muslim unity in America. Is the Muslim community really as divided as we sometimes believe? Waheed challenges overly romantic ideas about unity while emphasizing humility, legitimate scholarly differences, strong institutions, attachment to the masjid, and the danger of allowing personalities to become larger than the work itself.

They also discuss Miftaah Institute's approach to Islamic education—from full-time students of sacred knowledge to working professionals seeking the knowledge necessary to serve their families and communities.

Among the themes discussed:

• Why every Muslim needs access to sacred knowledge
• Islamic scholarship and serving the community
• Miftaah Institute and Islamic education in America
• Da‘wah and communicating Islam to our neighbors
• Why stories are so powerful in Islamic teaching
• The Qur'an and the stories of the Prophets
• Muslims, technology, and AI
• Muslim unity and legitimate differences
• Building institutions rather than personalities
• Service, sacrifice, and spiritual growth
• Raising the next generation of knowledgeable Muslims

Talking With Teachers is a Lamppost Education Initiative podcast hosted by Dr. Abdullah bin Hamid Ali, featuring conversations with Muslim teachers, scholars, educators, and thinkers about their journeys, scholarship, communities, and the challenges facing Muslims today.

Guest: Ustadh Abdul-Wahab Waheed
Host: Dr. Abdullah bin Hamid Ali
Series: Talking With Teachers
Season 7 | Episode 3

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