Islam Course Online

Lesson 1 • The Five Pillars of Islam

Introduces the five obligatory practices: declaration of faith, prayer, fasting, almsgiving, and pilgrimage. Connects belief to daily religious practice.

Lesson 2 • Origins and Early History of Islam

Covers the Arabian Peninsula context, the life of Prophet Muhammad, and the first Muslim community. Provides the historical baseline for understanding Islamic development.

Lesson 3 • Core Articles of Islamic Belief

Examines the six articles of faith: God, angels, scriptures, prophets, the Day of Judgment, and divine decree. Anchors theological understanding central to the entire course.

Lesson 4 • Spread of Islam Across Civilizations

Traces Islamic expansion from Arabia to Africa, Asia, and Europe through trade, conquest, and scholarship. Shows how Islam shaped global civilizations.

Lesson 1 • Classical Quranic Interpretation (Tafsir)

Surveys major tafsir methodologies including linguistic, narrative, and jurisprudential approaches. Connects interpretive methods to their theological and legal implications.

Lesson 2 • Recitation, Memorization, and Tajweed

Covers the rules of Quranic recitation (tajweed), memorization traditions, and the role of oral transmission. Grounds students in the living practice of Quranic engagement.

Lesson 3 • Modern and Contemporary Quranic Scholarship

Examines twentieth- and twenty-first-century approaches including thematic, feminist, and scientific readings. Shows how interpretation evolves with historical context.

Lesson 4 • Major Themes in the Quran

Identifies recurring themes: monotheism, prophethood, ethics, law, and eschatology. Equips students to recognize thematic patterns across Quranic passages.

Lesson 1 • Major Hadith Collections and Scholars

Surveys the six canonical Sunni collections and key Shia hadith works, with their compilers and methodologies. Provides reference knowledge for advanced Islamic studies.

Lesson 2 • Hadith Authentication Methodology

Explains the science of hadith criticism (ilm al-rijal) and chain-of-transmission analysis. Enables students to assess hadith reliability using classical criteria.

Lesson 3 • Sunnah in Practice and Legal Derivation

Shows how Prophetic practice (sunnah) is extracted from hadith and applied in legal rulings. Bridges hadith scholarship and Islamic jurisprudence.

Lesson 1 • Islamic Finance and Commercial Ethics

Examines prohibitions on interest (riba), uncertainty (gharar), and permissible financial contracts. Connects legal principles to modern Islamic finance practice.

Lesson 2 • Categories of Legal Rulings

Defines the five-category system: obligatory, recommended, neutral, disliked, and forbidden. Enables students to interpret legal opinions and fatwas accurately.

Lesson 3 • Sources and Hierarchy of Islamic Law

Explains the four primary legal sources: Quran, sunnah, consensus (ijma), and analogy (qiyas). Establishes the methodological hierarchy used in all legal reasoning.

Lesson 4 • Personal Status and Family Law

Covers Islamic rules on marriage, divorce, inheritance, and child custody. Applies legal principles to the most commonly encountered areas of personal Islamic law.

Lesson 5 • The Four Sunni Schools of Law

Compares the Hanafi, Maliki, Shafii, and Hanbali schools by methodology and geographic influence. Prepares students to understand legal diversity within Sunni Islam.

Lesson 1 • Classical Schools of Islamic Theology

Surveys Mutazilite, Ashari, and Maturidi schools and their positions on divine attributes and free will. Establishes the theological landscape for deeper philosophical study.

Lesson 2 • Sufism and Islamic Mysticism

Covers Sufi theology, spiritual stations, major orders, and key figures such as Al-Ghazali and Rumi. Connects mystical tradition to mainstream Islamic thought.

Lesson 3 • Islamic Philosophy and Greek Influence

Examines how Muslim philosophers integrated Aristotelian and Neoplatonic thought into Islamic frameworks. Traces the transmission of philosophy from antiquity through Islamic scholarship.

Lesson 4 • Reason, Revelation, and Divine Attributes

Analyzes debates on the relationship between rational inquiry and scriptural authority. Connects theological positions to their practical implications for Islamic scholarship.

Lesson 1 • Spiritual Development and Self-Purification

Explores the Islamic concept of purifying the soul (tazkiyah), combating ego (nafs), and cultivating God-consciousness (taqwa). Bridges theology and personal spiritual practice.

Lesson 2 • Fasting, Zakat, and Hajj in Practice

Examines the detailed rules, spiritual dimensions, and social functions of fasting, almsgiving, and pilgrimage. Connects ritual practice to community and spiritual growth.

Lesson 3 • Islamic Calendar and Religious Observances

Covers the Islamic lunar calendar, major holidays, and commemorative events. Connects ritual time to communal identity and religious meaning.

Lesson 4 • Islamic Ethics and Moral Philosophy

Analyzes the foundations of Islamic ethics including virtue, intention (niyyah), and the concept of good character (akhlaq). Grounds moral reasoning in Quranic and prophetic sources.

Lesson 1 • Social Justice and Human Rights in Islam

Analyzes Islamic teachings on equality, poverty, gender, and minority rights. Evaluates classical and modern Islamic perspectives on universal human rights frameworks.

Lesson 2 • Islam and Interfaith Relations

Examines Islamic teachings on relations with Jews, Christians, and other faiths, and the history of interfaith coexistence. Prepares students for informed interfaith dialogue.

Lesson 3 • Islamic Political Theory and Governance

Surveys classical concepts of the caliphate, shura (consultation), and justice in governance. Connects historical political theory to contemporary Muslim-majority state debates.

Lesson 4 • Islamic Art, Architecture, and Literature

Explores the aesthetic principles, major art forms, and architectural traditions of Islamic civilization. Connects artistic expression to theological and cultural values.

Lesson 1 • Capstone: Integrative Case Studies

Applies theological, legal, ethical, and social knowledge to complex real-world scenarios through structured case analysis. Demonstrates comprehensive mastery of course content.

Lesson 2 • Research Methods in Islamic Studies

Introduces primary source analysis, Arabic text navigation, and academic research conventions in Islamic studies. Prepares students for independent scholarly inquiry.

Lesson 3 • Islamic Bioethics and Medical Issues

Applies Islamic legal and ethical frameworks to medical decisions including end-of-life care, organ donation, and reproductive technology. Integrates fiqh and contemporary bioethics.

Lesson 4 • Islam and Gender: Scholarship and Debate

Critically examines classical and reformist scholarship on gender, women's leadership, and Islamic feminism. Equips students to engage with contested gender debates in Islamic studies.