As some of you may know, starting this fall, I on leave from my position as Harvard Islamic Society Chaplain for the 2010-2011 year. In sha'Allah, during my time off, I will be spending time with relatives who are facing some health challenges as they get older, in addition to working on several interesting writing and research projects. Al-hamdu li-llah, there will be a Visiting Islamic Society Chaplain who will be serving the community until I return in sha'Allah. The interim Chaplain will be announced soon, probably in another more formal announcement which I will send out soon in sha'Allah. While I am away, do feel free to contact me via e-mail, facebook, twitter, etc as I will be available by all the usual methods in sha'Allah.

A video capturing Imam Mohammed Magid explaining several aphorisms (hikam) and statments (aqwal, sign qawl) pertaining to the nature of gratitude (shukr) toward Allah (God).

In the wake of the alleged Times Square Bombing, Shaykh Zaid Shakir writes on the Impermissibility of Targeting Civilians in Combat.

Wise words from Shaykh Dr Abdullah Hakim Quick on the importance of unifying one's personality as a Muslim. See the "Two faced Person" here.

In a recent paper "Ihsanic Gatherings" by our friend Prof Aaron Spevack, he writes, commenting on the importance of not allowing orientational differences and matters of disagreement to become a source of division and disharmony in the our communities:

"It is a simple model. Create your spiritual and social comfort zones where you can do your thing without causing division and separation in the community, and bend over backwards to honor, respect, and connect with your fellow Muslims in the greater community. Make husnul khuluq (perfected and beautified character) the priority in your community interactions, and serve the greater community in any and every way you can. Respect the inherent differences in our communities, and learn the etiquette of disagreement as it relates to commanding the right and forbidding the wrong.

As mentioned in the previous installment of the Suhba Papers, I believe we should make the perfection of our character the central focus of our community interactions and activities, as perfection of character is a means to every good, be it spiritual upliftment, serving those in need, or political activism. When we make this our focus, and follow the simple model above, we are well on our way to creating win-win interactions within our diverse communities. And Allah alone gives success."