Channel Title: – Radical Middle Way -

Summary: A podcast dealing with the modern challenges facing British Muslims, and Muslims in the West.

Creator/Host: Radical Middle Way

Supplied Info: The Radical Middle Way project is a Muslim grassroots initiative aimed at articulating a mainstream understanding of Islam that is dynamic, pro-active and relevant, particularly to young British Muslims. The project is managed by young British Muslims themselves and will make every attempt to answer questions pertinent to what it means to be young British and Muslim, by connecting the youth with the greatest scholars of our time, including Shaykh Abdallah bin Bayyah, Habib Ali Al-Jifri, Shaykh Hamza Yusuf, Shaykh Abdal-Hakim Murad and others. The project has its roots in Islamic history, being an organic response by traditional Islam to challenges poised by extremist ideas. The project seeks to combat ignorance by spreading and empowering arguments for the middle way and by the consolidation of the mainstream Muslim community.

Last Podcast (title, date, info): Food for Thought on Female Imams, 27/05/2008, Shaykha Halima Krausen

Overall Review: Looking through the list of podcasts available for download in this stream, one cannot help but be impressed by the range of speakers, masha’Allah, some of whom have been mentioned in the above description. However I was unfamiliar with the host of the latest podcast, shaykha Halima Krausen, and so was not sure what to expect from her talk, especially as the issue of female imams – although a little dated now – has certainly been the cause for heated debate amongst Western Muslims.

Alhamdulillah, I was impressed by her calm, and methodical approach to the subject matter. She didn’t immediately launch into a pro- or anti-female imam fatwa, but rather began her treatise with an analysis of what is actually meant by the term ‘imam’, followed by examples of where (and when) women have fulfilled the various definitions of this term. Being the impatient person that I am (may Allah grant me sabr), I continuously tried to gauge her own opinion on the specific issue of women leading mixed congregation, but much to my annoyance was denied at every turn. Masha’Allah, it seems that her intention was simply to investigate all sides of the argument, and not just to pass judgement. How utterly refreshing!

From the style of her speech, and quality of the audio, I suspect that this lecture was specially recorded for podcast/internet publication, and was not a recording of a live lecture. This method has its benefits in terms of reducing background noise, and other distractions, but also results in a lack of “vitality”; the kind that you would normally witness when listening to someone speaking in front of an audience. However, a good proportion of the other podcasts in the stream seem to be from talks and gatherings, thus I suspect that these episodes will not suffer from the same problem, insha’Allah.

Recommended audience: Many of the topics discussed are of particular interest to the Western Muslim youth, but there are also some that are universal, such Love of Allah, and the Seerah of the Prophet, peace be upon him.

Score: 8/10