Bismillah.

For those of us who are serious about studying Islam and becoming full-time teachers and preachers, it is necessary to have a solid educational foundation in Islam. To achieve this, a person must systematically study each of the basic Islamic sciences while specializing in one or two that most interest them. It must be noted that without a solid educational foundation in Islamic sciences, the person will (generally) lack the depth to do any serious academic work.

But before we jump into the glorious world of Islamic sciences, we must satisfy the two mighty prerequisites: Qur’an and Arabic. The student of Islamic knowledge must be proficient in his/her reading of Qur’an (ideally, should be a hafidh of Qur’an), should know basic tafsir of the ayaat and should recite and ponder over the Qur’an habitually.

As for Arabic, proficiency in Arabic consists of reading comprehension, listening comprehension, writing/typing proficiency, and solid understanding of the grammar.

For those of us who satisfy these two prerequisites, we often face a stubborn obstacle: its not always feasible to travel abroad for a period of 4-6 years to study Islam.

But alhamdulillah, now there is a great alternative available. Those who are proficient in Qur’an and Arabic and want to study Islam from authentic sources systematically – which means studying all the basic sciences and specializing in one or two – there is Al-Madinah International University.

Continue reading here.