Amer Jamil

Shaykh Amer Jamil is an Islamic religious scholar and co-founder of the Solas Foundation and iSyllabus programme, the latter of which he is currently the Project Director.[1][2] He holds a (LLB) law degree from the University of Strathclyde and BA (Hons) in Islamic studies from the University of Wales.[3] He is also currently the Muslim Chaplain at Glasgow Caledonian University.[1][4]

Shaykh

Amer Jamil
TitleShaykh
Personal
Born1977
Glasgow, Scotland
ReligionIslam
CitizenshipScotland
EraModern era
DenominationSunni
JurisprudenceHanafi
CreedMaturidi
EducationUniversity of Strathclyde,

University of Wales, Abu Noor University (Syria), al-Fath Islamic Law institute (Syria),

Dar al-Mustafa Institute (Tarim)
OccupationIslamic scholar
Founder ofiSyllabus
Muslim leader
Websitewww.amerjamil.com

Media appearances

Jamil regularly contributes to national newspapers such as the Scotsman,[5] Sunday Herald[6][3][2][7] and the BBC.[8] He is a frequent contributor to local radio programmes.[4] In 2012 he addressed the Scottish Parliament with a short reminder on the importance of morally righteous behaviour, particularly for those who are in positions of authority.[9] In 2016, he appeared on the Islamic site Seekers Guidance where he talked about the popular issue of black magic.[10] In 2017 he appeared on a series of podcasts for the Deenspiration podcast show.[11][12][13][14]

Work on domestic violence

He was an early and outspoken advocate on tackling forced marriage in the Asian community,[15] stating "the practice has no place in Islam".[8]

In 2007, he authored the booklet What Islam Really Says About Domestic Abuse.[16] The booklet methodically explains topics such as 'The concept of harm in Islam', 'The example of the Prophet ﷺ' as well as clarifying the oft misunderstood verse in the Qur'an about hitting, explaining that domestic violence is irrefutably not allowed in Islam. The work was supported by the Strathclyde Police and Scottish Government. It was translated into 5 other languages and 8000 copies were distributed to various women's groups, social work and the Police as well as other relevant organisations.[4][17][18]

In 2010, he launched a national campaign on raising awareness and tackling domestic abuse in the Muslim community.[17][2][7] In the same year, he also authored the work titled "Islam and Domestic Violence: A Commentary"[19] with Louise Riley. In 2013, he was asked by the Scottish Government to share his views on the proposal put forth to criminalise forced marriage.[20] In the same year, the Assistant Chief Constable, Iain Livingstone, invited him to speak at a conference regarding honour-based violence.[21]

Jamil is also the lead of Unity Family Services, a Glasgow based charity which focuses on family support and guidance in the Muslim population. Amongst its aims are to prevent and tackle forced marriages, domestic abuse, as well as solving wider societal family issues as well as providing support for social workers on how to engage with Muslim clients.[4][22]

He also signed his name alongside over 30 religious leaders across Scotland voicing his rejection of forced marriage in Islam. The campaign was backed by the Scottish government and The West of Scotland Religious Equality Council.[23] He is currently conducting PhD research on the relationship between Islamic family law and Scots family law.[4]

Secular qualifications

Jamil holds a (LLB) law degree from the University of Strathclyde.

Religious qualifications

After travelling to France, Jamil travelled to a wide range of Muslim countries seeking sacred knowledge from a wide range of distinguished scholars in the Muslim world.

He first travelled to Syria, attending the Abu Noor University, founded by former Grand Mufti of Syria Shaykh Ahmed Kuftaro (1912 - 2004). Whilst in Syria he also attended private classes with distinguished Shaykhs from the both the Abu Noor University and the prestigious al-Fath Islamic Law Institute whose lead Shaykh was the current mufti of Damascus, Shaykh Abd al-Fattah al-Bizm[4]

After this he travelled to Yemen, where he studied in the renowned Dar al-Mustafa Institute (Tarim) under the well known scholars Habib Umar bin Hafiz and Habib Ali al-Jiffri.[4] Whilst here he studied the science of Tazkiah (purification of the heart), religious dialogue and family law, the latter of which is now his primary field of interest. He has studied family law in depth from the perspective of all 4 schools of Sunni Islamic law (Fiqh): Whilst in Yemen he studied the Maliki and Shafi‘i schools of thought. Whilst in Syria, he studied the Hanafi and Hanbali schools of thought.[4][3][16]

Teaching licences (Ijazah)

He has earned Ijazah (teaching license) in the following traditional Islamic sciences:

  • Arabic
  • Jurisprudence (Fiqh)
  • Principles of law (Usul Al-Fiqh)
  • Qur’anic exegesis (Tafsir)
  • Sufism (Tasawwaf),
  • The life of the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ (Seerah)
  • The Prophet's ﷺ character (Shamail)
  • Beliefs and doctrine
  • Legal maxims
  • Family law[3][16]
  • The science of Hadith terminology
  • Inheritance law

"Reminder" leaflet series

Jamil is also the author of “Reminder,” a leaflet series which focuses on issues facing British Muslims.

The following have been topics of the "Reminder" Series:[24]

  • "Smoking and Islam" (supported by the NHS)
  • "Terrorism in Islam" (Prepared in response to the 2007 Glasgow Airport attack at the request of Strathclyde Police. This piece was posted as a piece of good practice on the Home Office's intranet).
  • "Domestic abuse" (supported by Strathclyde Police)
  • "Muslim youth in Scotland" (supported by the Scottish Islamic Foundation)
  • "DIY Islam"
  • "Identity crisis"
  • "Understanding jihad"

Awards
List of Awards Amer Jamil has been nominated for
Award Year Result
British Muslim Awards - 'Religious Advocate of the Year' [25][26] 2014 Won
British Muslim Awards - 'Religious Advocate of the Year' [27] 2017 Nominated
gollark: ... but my phone can play audio fine?
gollark: Especially since the alternative seems to just be proprietary headphone things which use up the one port on most phones.
gollark: I think being annoyed about the dropping of a standard and useful I/O feature for dubious reasons is fair.
gollark: This is true. It seems like it's a pretty easy process on Google Pixels and stuff, but due to google bad you then lose the various payment things.
gollark: I think the best way to avoid badness is to buy a reasonably popular mid-range or old high-end phone and flash LineageOS or something, although that might take up time to do too.

References
  1. "Shaykh Amer Jamil". Abu Zahra Foundation. 3 June 2020.
  2. Hamill, Jasper (20 June 1010). "Imams Urged to Condemn Domestic Abuse". The Herald.
  3. Jamil, Amer. "Shaykh Amer Jamil's profile". Al Buruj Press.
  4. Institute for Social Policy and Understanding (1 June 2010). "Tackling Muslim Radicalization: Lessons from Scotland" (PDF).
  5. Jamil, Amer (2012). "Act to help victims of forced marriage". The Scotsman. Retrieved 15 November 2019.
  6. Hamill, Jasper (20 June 2010). "Imams urged to condemn domestic abuse". Sunday Herald.
  7. Hamill, Jasper (15 July 2010). "Imams urged to condemn domestic abuse". Progressive Scottish Muslim.
  8. Taneja, Poonam (1 May 2012). "Forced marriage campaign targets mosques in Scotland". BBC.
  9. "Scottish Parliment - Shaykh Amer Jamil delivers an important reminder". 31 July 2012.
  10. Rabanni, Faraz (2 December 2016). "Jinn, Black Magic and How to Protect Yourself, by Shaykh Amer Jamil". Seekers Guidance.
  11. Jamil, Amer (17 June 2017). "A Very Easy Way To Purify Your Heart". Deenspiration.
  12. Jamil, Amer (3 August 2017). ""But it's only a Sunnah!"". Deenspiration.
  13. Majid, Usman (4 May 2018). "Preparing for Ramadan - a Heart 2 Heart with Shaykh Amer Jamil".
  14. Majid, Usman (4 May 2018). "EP 24: Preparing for Ramadan – feat. Shaykh Amer Jamil". Deenspiration.
  15. Humza, Yousaf (8 June 2011). "Humza Yousaf: If extremism is to be conquered, the Muslim community must be given tools for the job". The Scotsman.
  16. "Shaykh Amer Jamil". Archived from the original on 2020-06-03.
  17. Rahila, Bano (21 July 2010). "Domestic abuse campaign targets mosques in Scotland". BBC.
  18. Jamil, Amer (2007). "What Islam Really Says About Domestic Abuse" (PDF).
  19. Jamil, Amer (2010). Islam and Domestic Violence: A commentary. White Ribbon Campaign. ISBN 978-0956745903.
  20. Jamil, Amer (16 December 2013). "Justice Committee: Supplementary Legislative Consent Memorandum on the Anti-social Behaviour, Crime and Policing Bill" (PDF). Scottish Government.
  21. The Newsroom (26 September 2010). "Police plea to victims of 'honour' crimes". The Scotsman.
  22. "Family Support Consultant - Shaykh Amer Jamil". Unity Family Services.
  23. "IMAMS AGAINST FORCED MARRIAGE" (PDF). Scottish Government. 1 June 2020.
  24. Jamil, Amer (2007). "The Reminder Leaflet Series". The Reminder.
  25. Asian Image Reporter (31 January 2014). "British Muslim Awards 2014 winners". Asian Image.
  26. "Nominees for British Muslim Awards 2014". The Asian Today. 13 January 2014.
  27. "Finalists are revealed for the 2017 British Muslim Awards". 15 January 2017.
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