Message International

A tribute from the Islamic Circle of North America to a teacher, author, and quiet servant of the American Muslim community. Inna lillahi wa inna ilayhi raji’un. Indeed, to Allah we belong, and to Him we return. Islamic Circle of North America (ICNA) mourns the passing of Brother Yahiya John Emerick (1971–2026), rahimahullah, a Muslim American educator, author, publisher, and community teacher whose books shaped the Islamic literacy of a generation of North American Muslims. He died July 11, 2026.

This article is the first in a series entitled “Navigating West: A Vision For A Renewed America”. Imagine you are walking in Boston, New York City, or any other American town. Looking around, you notice the banks are no longer predatory, society’s riches are providing for the needy, inner cities are safe and secure, and income inequality and racism have largely vanished.

Every summer, without fail, it happens. The Texas heat index ratchets up, the temperatures climb, often into the triple digits, and suddenly complete strangers become deeply invested in my wardrobe choices.

This is the fourth and final article in a series entitled “Under the Throne of Allah: Dua and Dhikr.” Take a minute, take a few deep breaths, and focus on your heart. Close your eyes and ask yourself, where is your heart today? What is it carrying? If it’s carrying negative emotions, stress, or if you’re feeling overwhelmed or distracted, it’s OK, and it’s OK even if your heart isn’t fully focused on your goals and priorities.

Muslim engagement in U.S. politics spans decades, journeying from Republican to progressive. During that time, American Muslims also have become more intimately involved, shifting from a position as mere spectators to active civic engagement, then to voting and finally to holding office and acting as policy partners. Let’s take a look at a general timeline of these events.

This interview first appeared on the Muslim Home Newsletter July 12, 2023. It has been reprinted with the author’s permission and has been edited for content and length.

The Islamic world and the Roman Empire share a millennium of history, beginning with reported interactions between the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) and Byzantine Emperor Heraclius and ending with the Fall of Constantinople. The Islamic Empire’s territorial expansion led it to numerous battles with the Byzantines in the Levant and, later on, Northern Africa and Constantinople.

Adoption and foster care are topics seldom discussed in many Muslim circles today. However, caring for orphaned children and at-risk youth is a practice repeatedly mentioned in our Islamic tradition through the Qur’an and the life of the Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him. In what Allah describes as “the best of stories,” the chapter of Prophet Yusuf (Joseph) in the Qur’an, we read of the Aziz of Egypt purchasing Yusuf and telling his wife to honor him so perhaps they may adopt him as a son.

Some conversations never leave you; rather, they linger and leave a mark. Years ago, I experienced such a moment, and from that moment a poem was born. It was 2012, and I waiting for my ride home at a coffee shop after work. As I sat, a man approached me, and, so impactful was our interaction, I was inspired to channel our conversation – nearly word for word – into art. At the time, I didn’t realize how the moment would stay with me or how relevant it would still feel today.

For many people, Ramadan is celebrated with others, from community iftar dinners to collective taraweeh prayers as well as numerous gatherings aimed at charity or worship. However, some of us struggle with social anxiety and isolate to cope, while others may be grappling with a loss and crippling grief, and still some folks have obligations that keep them indoors or have no family with which to enjoy the holy month of fasting.