Khaleel Mohammed (1955 – January 2022) was a Guyanese-born professor of

Religion Religion is a range of social system, social-cultural systems, including designated religious behaviour, behaviors and practices, morals, beliefs, worldviews, religious text, texts, sanctified places, prophecies, ethics in religion, ethics, or ...

at San Diego State University (SDSU), in

San Diego, California San Diego ( , ) is a city on the Pacific coast of Southern California, adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a population of over 1.4 million, it is the List of United States cities by population, eighth-most populous city in t ...

, a member of Homeland Security Master's Program, and, as of January 2021, Director of SDSU's Center for Islamic and Arabic Studies.

Biography

Khaleel Mohammed was born in

Guyana Guyana, officially the Co-operative Republic of Guyana, is a country on the northern coast of South America, part of the historic British West Indies. entry "Guyana" Georgetown, Guyana, Georgetown is the capital of Guyana and is also the co ...

. He was a

Muslim Muslims () are people who adhere to Islam, a Monotheism, monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God ...

, and studied Islamic law at Imam Muhammad ibn Saud Islamic University in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. After completing an MA in Judaism and Islam at Concordia University, Montreal, he obtained a PhD in Islamic law at McGill University in Montreal. He then moved to

Brandeis University Brandeis University () is a Private university, private research university in Waltham, Massachusetts, United States. It is located within the Greater Boston area. Founded in 1948 as a nonsectarian, non-sectarian, coeducational university, Bra ...

where he completed a two year Kraft-Hiatt postdoctoral fellowship on the subject of the imagery of the Jew in Hadith literature.

Academic career

Mohammed's specialties were Islam,

Islamic Law Sharia, Sharī'ah, Shari'a, or Shariah () is a body of religious law that forms a part of the Islamic tradition based on scriptures of Islam, particularly the Qur'an and hadith. In Islamic terminology ''sharīʿah'' refers to immutable, intan ...

, and Comparative Religion. His research interests included

Islam Islam is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the Quran, and the teachings of Muhammad. Adherents of Islam are called Muslims, who are estimated to number Islam by country, 2 billion worldwide and are the world ...

ic and Arabic studies,

Islamic law Sharia, Sharī'ah, Shari'a, or Shariah () is a body of religious law that forms a part of the Islamic tradition based on scriptures of Islam, particularly the Qur'an and hadith. In Islamic terminology ''sharīʿah'' refers to immutable, intan ...

(classical and modern), comparative religion,

Jewish Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of History of ancient Israel and Judah, ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, rel ...

Christian A Christian () is a person who follows or adheres to Christianity, a Monotheism, monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus in Christianity, Jesus Christ. Christians form the largest religious community in the wo ...

/Islamic encounter,

Qur'anic exegesis Tafsir ( ; ) refers to an exegesis, or commentary, of the Quran. An author of a ''tafsir'' is a ' (; plural: ). A Quranic ''tafsir'' attempts to provide elucidation, explanation, interpretation, context or commentary for clear understanding ...

(classical and modern),

hadith Hadith is the Arabic word for a 'report' or an 'account f an event and refers to the Islamic oral tradition of anecdotes containing the purported words, actions, and the silent approvals of the Islamic prophet Muhammad or his immediate circle ...

, gender/sex issues and

sexuality Human sexuality is the way people experience and express themselves sexually. This involves biological, psychological, physical, erotic, emotional, social, or spiritual feelings and behaviors. Because it is a broad term, which has varied ...

in Islam, terrorism,

antisemitism in Islam There is considerable debate about the nature of antisemitism in Islam, including Muslim attitudes towards Jews, Islamic teachings on Jews and Judaism, and the treatment of Jews in Islamic societies throughout the history of Islam. Islamic holy b ...

, Arab-Israeli relations, and reform in Islam. He was a proponent of

inter-faith marriage Interfaith marriage, sometimes called interreligious marriage or mixed marriage, is marriage between spouses professing and being legally part of different religions. Although interfaith marriages are often established as civil marriages, in som ...

(between Muslim women and non-Muslim men) without the traditionally required conversion of the non-Muslim spouse, and was a registered marriage-officiant. Mohammed taught courses on

World Religions World religions is a socially-constructed category used in the study of religion to demarcate religions that are deemed to have been especially large, internationally widespread, or influential in the development of human societies. It typicall ...

The Qur'an The Quran, also romanized Qur'an or Koran, is the central religious text of Islam, believed by Muslims to be a revelation directly from God (''Allāh''). It is organized in 114 chapters (, ) which consist of individual verses ('). Besides i ...

, Religious Violence and Non-Violence, Sex and Gender in Islam, and

Abrahamic Religions The term Abrahamic religions is used to group together monotheistic religions revering the Biblical figure Abraham, namely Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. The religions share doctrinal, historical, and geographic overlap that contrasts them wit ...

br>courses_khaleel mohammed
Mohammed has testified as an "

expert witness An expert witness, particularly in common law countries such as the United Kingdom, Australia, and the United States, is a person whose opinion by virtue of education, training, certification, skills or experience, is accepted by the judge as ...

" for the prosecution in cases involving allegations of

terrorism Terrorism, in its broadest sense, is the use of violence against non-combatants to achieve political or ideological aims. The term is used in this regard primarily to refer to intentional violence during peacetime or in the context of war aga ...

-related activities.

Controversies

Khaleel Mohammed has stated that in some cases foreign-born

Imam Imam (; , '; : , ') is an Islamic leadership position. For Sunni Islam, Sunni Muslims, Imam is most commonly used as the title of a prayer leader of a mosque. In this context, imams may lead Salah, Islamic prayers, serve as community leaders, ...

s "are a threat to Canada" and that "They come from Bangladesh, South Africa, Guyana, Egypt and Syria etc. and they bring their cultural baggage with them." He has also suggested that the fact that immigrants native languages are used in Canadian mosques is a problem and that "They (Canadian imams) have to speak English...All mosques I've been to -- give or take five per cent -- have been using an overwhelming amount of Arabic". Mohammed has been both praised and lambasted by far right and

Zionist Zionism is an Ethnic nationalism, ethnocultural nationalist movement that emerged in History of Europe#From revolution to imperialism (1789–1914), Europe in the late 19th century that aimed to establish and maintain a national home for the ...

publications such as

Campus Watch Campus Watch is a web-based project of the Middle East Forum, a think tank with its headquarters in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. According to its website, Campus Watch "reviews and critiques Middle East studies in North America with an aim to impr ...

. He has appeared in '' Obsession: Radical Islam's War Against the West'' a film widely criticized as Islamophobic and produced by the anti-Muslim

Clarion Project The Clarion Project (formerly Clarion Fund Inc.) is an American nonprofit organization based in Washington, D.C. that was founded in 2006. The organization has been involved in the production and distribution of the films '' Obsession: Radical I ...

. Mohammed later claimed to have been misquoted, and accused the producers of the film of demonizing Muslims in
response
titled
"An 'Obsession' to obscure the truth"
on the Religion News Service. He stated that he was once accused of being racist, for having stated that "95% of contemporary Muslims are exposed to

anti-Semitic Antisemitism or Jew-hatred is hostility to, prejudice towards, or discrimination against Jews. A person who harbours it is called an antisemite. Whether antisemitism is considered a form of racism depends on the school of thought. Antisemi ...

teachings". He has received hate mail for his statements.

Teachings on Israel

Mohammed attracted attention for a 2004 interview in which he stated that Qur'an 5:21,Q5:21
50+ translations, Islamawakened.com and the

medieval In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the 5th to the late 15th centuries, similarly to the post-classical period of World history (field), global history. It began with the fall of the West ...

exegetes of the Qur'an, say that

Israel Israel, officially the State of Israel, is a country in West Asia. It Borders of Israel, shares borders with Lebanon to the north, Syria to the north-east, Jordan to the east, Egypt to the south-west, and the Mediterranean Sea to the west. Isr ...

belongs to the

Jews Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of History of ancient Israel and Judah, ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, rel ...

. He translates it thus: :" oses said O my people! Enter the Holy Land which God has written for you, and do not turn tail, otherwise you will be losers." Mohammed said of Israel, "It's in the Muslim consciousness that the land first belonged to the Jews. It doesn't matter if the Jews were exiled 500 years or 2000 years, the Holy Land, as mentioned in Quran belongs to Moses and his people, the Jews."Handler, Judd. "The dissenting Muslim". San Diego Jewish Journal, August 2004. He stated that the issues about the land of Israel ought not to be settled via references to scripture, but rather by the use of human rights legislation.

Death

Mohammed died at the age of sixty-six in January 2022. No cause of death was announced.

Published works

"Islam and Violence," Cambridge University Press, 2019. "David in the Muslim Tradition: A study of the Bathsheba Affair" Lexington Press, 2014. "Introduction to World Religions," Polymath Learning, 2014. "Coming to Terms with the Qur'an," IPI, 2008. Co-edited with Andrew Rippin
"Assessing English Translations of the Qur’an"
''Middle East Quarterly'', Spring 2005, Volume XII (2): 59-72. * "Revisiting Tyan on the issue of the Early Islamic Judicature" ''Islamic Studies'', Autumn 2004 (3): 447-55. * "Muslim Exegesis, the Hadith and the Jews" ''Judaism'', #209/210 (53) Winter-Spring 2004: 3-11. * "A Muslim Perspective on Human Rights", ''Social Science and Modern Society'' (Volume 41, #2), January/February 2004: 29-35. * "Probing the Identity of the Sacrificial Son in the Qur’an", ''Journal of Religion and Culture'' (13), 1999, Concordia University: 125-38. * "The Foundations of the Muslim Prayer". ''Medieval Encounters'' (5), March 1999, E.J.Brill: 17-28. * "Demonizing the Jew: Examining the Antichrist Traditions in the Sahihayn". Co-author: Professor Kadir Baksh. ''Journal of Religion and Culture'' (12) 1998, Concordia University: 151-64. * "Abraham Geiger and Heinrich Graetz: A Comparison of their Different Perspectives on Jewish History", ''Journal of Religion and Culture'' (11) 1997, Concordia University: 141-60. * "The Concept of Abrogation in the Qur’an". Published under the culturally arabized version of his name,

Allama ''Allamah'' () is an Islamic honorary title for a profound scholar, a polymath, a man of vast reading and erudition, or a great learned one. The title is carried by scholars of Islamic fiqh (jurisprudence) and philosophy. It is used as an hon ...

Dr. Abu Yusuf Khaleel Al- Corentini. ''Journal of Religion and Culture'' (10) 1996, Concordia University: 63-76.
The Jewish and Christian Influences in the Eschatological Imagery of Sahih Muslim, published Concordia University Montreal, Quebec, Canada, 1997, under his full name: Khaleelul Iqbal Mohammed"
* "The Art of Heeding" in Interfaith Dialogue at the Grass Roots Level. Ecumenical Press. 2008 * "The Identity of the Qur’an’s Ahl al-Dhikr", in ''Coming to Terms with the Qur’an''. Ed. by Andrew Rippin and Khaleel Mohammed. Islamic Publications INternational. 2008. * "Islam and Human Rights", in ''Religion and Human Rights'', ed. Adam Seligman. Interreligious Center on Public Life, Hollis Publishing: 2004: 55-68. * "Al-Rida's Argumentation Against the Leaders of the People of the Book, the Magians, the Sabeans and Others" (excerpted from

Al-Istibsar () is the fourth hadith collection of the Four Books of Shia Islam. it was compiled by Persian scholar al-Tusi It includes the same subjects as (Rectification of the Statutes) but in a shorter form. Author Al-Tusi lived during the first ha ...

). Translated as chapter for ''Theology of Shi‘ism: A Debate Between Imam Ali Rida and People of Other Beliefs''. Ed. By Saeed Argomand. Global Publications, State University of New York, Binghamton, 1999.

Translations

* World of Our Youth. Translation of Husayn Fadlallah’s Duniya al-Shabab. Montreal, Damascus and Beirut: Organization for Advancement of Islamic Knowledge, Montreal, 1998.

Book reviews and encyclopedia entries

* "Sex, Sexuality and Family in the Qur’an", Encyclopedia article for ''Blackwell Encyclopedia of the Qur’an''. Ed. Andrew Rippin. 2006. * "A New Introduction to Islam", by Daniel Brown. Middle Eastern Studies Bulletin, 38 (1), June 2004: 78-79. * "An Introduction to Islam". by David Waines. Middle East Quarterly, XI (3), Summer 2004: 86. * "Islam Under Siege", by Akbar Ahmed. In Islamic Studies, Spring 2004 (Volume 43/1): 132-35. * "Excellence and Precedence", by Asma Afsaruddin. H-Mideast-Medieval, H-Net Reviews, 2004. Available online on the H-Net Web site. * "The Qur’an-A Contemporary Translation", by Ahmed Ali. Middle East Studies Association Bulletin, Volume. XXXVI (1) Summer 2002: 47. Article also available online on the Arizona.edu Website. * "The Koran: A Very Short Introduction", by Michael Cook. H-Mideast-Medieval, H-Net Reviews, February 2003. Available also available online on the H-Net Web site. Electronically Accessible Publications * "Produce your proof: Muslim exegesis, the Hadith, and the Jews", Published: Spring 2004.

References

External links

Home page

Response published at ''ForPeopleWhoThink.org'' website
under the arabized cultural version of his name: "

Dr. Abu Yusuf Khaleel Al- Corentini
"The Dissenting Moslem," 8/04
- '' San Diego Jewish Journal''
"Khaleel Mohammed Probes the Heart of Islam," 6/13/05"Khaleel Mohammed The Scathing Scholar, Published by The Ottawa Citizen (scroll down one article)" 2/10/07

Audio/Video

"Khaleel Mohammed on CBC Radio (Audio) 3/07/2007"
{{DEFAULTSORT:Mohammed, Khaleel 1955 births 2022 deaths Canadian Zionists Canadian people of Indo-Guyanese descent Guyanese emigrants to Canada American theologians San Diego State University faculty Religion academics Concordia University alumni Former Muslim critics of Islam Place of birth missing