Respect Graduate School

The Young Seekers

Course date: March 2, 2022 – April 6, 2022

Respect Graduate School presents The Young Seekers as a compass to the perplexed minds. In this third cohort of The Young Seekers program, we will go deeper into the issues related to faith. What are the beauties of a sincere belief in Allah and the Hereafter? How can we be sure, that our faith is the correct one? Is the Qur’an we have in hand an authentic message of Allah? Why does Allah need our prayers? Why did he set boundaries? And why did he create the Satan and inflict him upon humanity? These and many other questions will be answered by Dr Albert Frolov and Dr Ayse Ac.

Respect Graduate School

The Young Seekers

Course date: March 2, 2022 – April 6, 2022

Objectives of the Program

Discussing challenges of the post-modern era to the faith and identity of younger generations

Finding answers to existential problems from the treasures of the Quran

Responding to the alternative narratives of non-Islamic ideas and ideologies

Equipping the young participants with abilities to analyze and respond to future challenges

Nurturing a love and passion for truth in the hearts and minds of the new generation

In The Young Seekers six courses are delivered in three seasons. The courses take place on Wednesday evenings, between 7.00pm and 9.00pm EST, with each one taking an hour a week and six weeks only. The courses are supported with Kahoot games and a final Kahoot Challenge crowns the courses on the day of the graduation ceremony each term.

Faculty

Said Nursi’s Arguments
for the Existence of God in Risale-i Nur

Course Time: Saturday 11 AM – 1 PM (EST)

Contemporary Sufism: The Relation between Self and Ego
from Nursian Perspective

Course Time: Sunday 11 AM – 1 PM (EST)

Student Learning Outcomes

Encouraging students to write a summary of the discussion before and/or after each class

Interactive and motivating discussion sections for the students

A positive and constructive attitude to help students to be motivational and have creative engagement with the class

To improve writing skills

Program Content

Questions this modern age puts to Islam?

by Dr. Albert Frolov

Course Times

2 March – 6 April Wednesday evenings. 7.00 pm – 7.45 pm (EST)

Course Abstract

An unquestioned faith is blind faith, but what if the answers given to those questions are not satisfactory? Many young Muslims do not find the answers given by their parents or the imams in the mosques as convincing enough. Some of these questions are from time immemorial, and some are products of the modern era. Some of these questions asked to us, and some we ask to the more knowledgeable. Certainty is a desired quality in faith matters. How can I be sure that Allah is really existent and is not a product of human imagination? How can I be sure that Muhammed really lived and received revelation? How can I be sure of the existence of angels and the spiritual beings? Dr. Albert Frolov will answer all these and more questions young seekers need to be prepared to answer. The course will be supported by Kahoot Challenges.

Course Objectives

To be able to answer the most prominent questions relating to certainty of faith (yaqeen), be it the faith in Allah, in the prophets, in the angels and the resurrection.
To be able to answer challenging questions relating to the Muslim faith.
To appreciate the beauty of faith and understand how faith, not only promises eternal happiness in the world to come, but also makes this world a more beautiful place to live.

Weekly Schedule

2 March 2022 Week 1: Questioned and unshaken faith
What is tahqeeq (verification) and taqleed (blind conservatism) in religion? How can we be sure that Allah is really existent? What does the notion of “the inference to the best explanation” mean and how can it help us see that He exists?
9 March 2022 Week 2: Hereafter and Resurrection
Does Hereafter really exist? Can we prove it in a logical way? What does belief in it add to our everyday lives? Why are many people around us unwilling to think about its existence? How does the existence of Hereafter help solve the issue of the existence of evil in this world – a very difficult philosophical challenge?
16 March 2022 Week 3: Angels, Djinns and other Spiritual Realms
How can we prove the existence of the angels to those who deny them? Do the fairies really exist? What about Gremlins or Cherubs? Do we share our houses with djinns? Do we have any responsibility towards them? What difference does the faith for angels make in our everyday lives?
23 March 2022 Week 4: Messengers and the Last Messenger of Allah
How can we be sure that Muhammad (pbuh) is really the messenger of Allah? Why does humanity need the messengers of Allah at all? Why is it traditionally thought that the first generations of Muslims are role models for all the succeeding generations? Why can such scholars as Bediuzzaman Said Nursi or Fethullah Gulen be important today?
30 March 2022 Week 5: Justice and Equality
What does Islam say about justice? What does it mean that all Muslims are equal to each other? Are women and men are really equal in Islam as well? Should the main goal of all Muslims today be the building of an Islamic state? What is the place of politics in Islam?
6 April 2022 Week 6: Prayer and Islamic Duties
What is the importance of prayer in Islam? Does not it suffice to believe in God inside your heart and be nice to others? Why should we fast in the month of Ramazan? Why does Islam advise Muslims to sacrifice certain animals during the Eid al-Adha (Kurban Bayram)? Why should we share our wealth with others by giving alms? Why are not we allowed to drink alcohol?
4 May 2022 Wednesday Week 7: Ramadan Bayram and Graduation Ceremony
At this second day of the Ramadan Bayram we will have a program, together with the students of the previous two sessions of Young Seekers, and their families. A 50 question Kahoot challenge will be played on this evening and the first five will be awarded gifts. Kahoot has no relation to the certification. Certification is afforded to all who participated 5 out of 6 of the lectures live.

Towards Acquiring a True Faith

by Dr. Ayse Ac

Course Times

2 March – 6 April Wednesday evenings. 7.55 pm – 8.40 pm (EST)

Course Abstract

In Quran chapter Women, Allah says “O you believe! Believe…” (Qur’an 4:136)

In this course, our aim is to understand some of the many meaning of this verse and contemplate issues around principles of the Faith. We will also articulate on some of the contemporary discussions about faith related matters. Such as, do I believe in God or causality? What if science contradicts my beliefs? How should I approach to the struggles, injustices and hardships in life? How does the reality of death help my faith?

Course Objectives

Our objective is not to become a theologian. The objective of these lectures is to have a clear and sound conceptualization of that which cannot be conceptualized. As Allah describe believers in Qur’an by saying that they believe in the Unseen ‘ghayb’ (Quran 2:3).
Also, we will aim to understand how being a Muslim should guide us in real life situations such as our acts, decisions, even our thoughts.

Weekly Schedule

2 March 2022 Week 1: Know your Lord and your Religion!
How does one know God?
What is the benefit of studying matters related to one’s faith?
There are thousands of religions in the world, how do I know that mine is the true one?
9 March 2022 Week 2: Know Your Self!
Our origin and human nature
Our Gift, what does it mean to be a human?
Our respond to the Question of “Am I not your Lord?” (Qur’an 7:172) and ways of remembering it.
Our duty: What does it mean to be vicegerent of Allah on earth (Qur’an 2:30)
Our challenges such as (Hakiki Nefs-i Emmare and Mecazi Nefs-i Emmare)
16 March 2022 Week 3: Know your Enemy!
Why God created the Satan?
What are the ways of Satan’s influence on human beings?
How to deal with evil and its kinds on earth?
23 March 2022 Week 4: Know your Boundaries!
What is the reason for setting a boundary?
Is there an objective morality? Who decides what is good and what is evil?
What is Halal and Haram? How to navigate through them? What does boundaries tell us about the environment, our relations with the animals and the plants?
30 March 2022 Week 5: Know your Surroundings!
How to read the signs of Allah by looking at His creations? What does science tell us about our Creator? How did early Muslim scholars discover some mysteries of the Universe? What if science contradicts my belief?
6 April 2022 Week 6: Know your Destination!
Is death the end?
How does the remembrance of death strengthen our faith?
What comes after death?
4 May 2022 Wednesday Week 7: Ramadan Bayram and Graduation Ceremony
At this second day of the Ramadan Bayram we will have a program, together with the students of the previous two sessions of Young Seekers, and their families. A 50 question Kahoot challenge will be played on this evening and the first five will be awarded gifts. Kahoot has no relation to the certification. Certification is afforded to all who participated 5 out of 6 of the lectures live.

Do you have interest for other courses at Respect GS?

Risale-i Nur Academy, Respect Qur’an School, Qur’anic Arabic and more.

Enroll Now

Registrations will be closed by 5:00 pm (EST) on February 25, 2022.