Shaykh Shadee Elmasry, Ph.D., is a popular Muslim American scholar with a large online following.

Imam Hafiz Shafique turned to young adults at Masjid Al Qur’an in Milwaukee to suggest a speaker at their annual celebration of the Prophet’s birthday. The result—one of the most popular Islamic scholars on the internet will speak at the masjid this Friday, Shadee Elmasry, Ph.D.

Dr. Elmasry of New Jersey began his studies of Islam at 18, studying in Yemen, Morocco, Mecca and Madina, London and Cairo under several respected uluma (scholars of Islamic doctrine and law who are considered the guardians, transmitters and interpreters of Islam). He also completed an undergraduate degree in sociology from Rutgers University, a master’s degree in religious studies from George Washington University and a doctorate degree from the University of London with a dissertation on Da’wa in the Works of Imam Abd Allah bin Alawi al-Haddad in record time, before his 27th birthday.

Now in his mid-forties, Dr. Elmasry is the New Brunswick Islamic Center’s scholar-in-residence and director of Education and Community Affairs. He is the founder and head of the Safina Society, an institution dedicated to traditional Islamic education in the West.

He hosts Safina Society’s popular livestream YouTube channel with more than 118,000 subscribers. He also launched an online learning platform, Arkview. He has 47,300 followers on Instagram and 133,000 followers on Facebook.

(Left-right) Mohid Fazeel, Imam Warfa Dualeh, Hussain Shafique and Zain Hussain discuss Dr. Elmasry’s upcoming visit to Masjid Al Qur’an in Milwaukee. 

Trusting our youth

“Celebrating the birth of Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him, with a mawlid program is something we do every year,” said Imam Shafique. “Even before I came here in 2000, the masjid held this event, inviting different national and sometimes international scholars to speak.”

The Mawlid is the annual celebration of the birth of the Prophet, held on the 12th day of Rabi’ al-Awwal, the third month of the Islamic calendar. The guest scholars “usually talk about the seerah (the biography or life journey) of the Prophet.

Imam Hafiz Shafique of Masjid Al Qur’an (left) learned about scholar Shadee ElMasry, Ph.D., from Zain Hussain (right) who helped plan the mosque’s celebration of the Prophet’s birth.
 
A group of young people have grown up in Masjid Al Qur’an’s community who are very engaged, Imam Shafique explained. “Since childhood, these young people, like my sons and others, have participated here. Now they are grown up and take on more responsibility. They know what to do, even better than we did at their age, and, to be honest, they have made a lot of improvements. They know how to use social media and other forums to reach out to the community.

“I give Zain Hussain, who is very active, mashallah, tasks to coordinate for us. I see he works with other youth and they work with him, showing some good leadership qualities. Now we can give him the task of organizing events and coordinating with scholars and other youth, promoting them on social media and other tasks. I’m very happy about it.”

Friday’s mawlid program is very important, Imam Shafique added. “It is an opportunity when people can get closer to the Prophet, peace be upon him. It’s only when you learn more about the Prophet’s life, his personality and character that you can become closer to him. He is our role model.

“That’s why we have this event every year, even with the terrible things we see happening every day in Palestine. These are definitely not times when we feel like having any other celebrations, but when it comes to the Prophet, peace be upon him, it is an important connection for us. We see the people of Palestine, whatever they are going through, continue to show their love and affection for the Prophet.”

Sharing opinions about Shaykh Elmasry

Wisconsin Muslim Journal asked a few young Muslims to tell us why they follow Shaykh Elmasry. Here’s what they told us:

Imam Warfa Dualeh, Masjid Al Qur’an

I’ve known about Shaykh Shadee Elmasry for about a year or so. I follow him from time to time because he relates well to young Muslim adults growing up in America. He understands our struggles and questions, and he doesn’t shy away from tackling them directly—especially topics like marriage, work and the workplace, and family dynamics—which makes his talks both relevant and engaging. Find Imam Dualeh on Instagram here.

Zain Hussain, Milwaukee

I’ve been a big fan of Shaykh Shadee, following him and I’ve listened to his little shorts that he has on YouTube and Instagram. He has a lot of podcasts and reels. Our friend groups are listening to him. He addresses a wide variety of topics that are very interesting and caught my attention.

Taaha Zuberi , Islamic Society of Milwaukee Youth Director

Dr. Shadee Elmasry is a scholar who brings clarity and relevance to Islam in today’s world. His ability to explain complex topics in a way that speaks to both the heart and mind has benefited many, and I look forward to his upcoming visit to Milwaukee. He recently talked about Bid’ah (innovations in Islam) with a panel. Also, his stories of awliya (people of faith) series in Ramadan was very well done and something I looked forward to each day. He mentioned a lot of individuals and stories many people don’t usually mention.

Rafaey Fazeel, Milwaukee

He’s a different type of sheik with a different style.  He talks the way we do other than like the older generations. He sounds more familiar to young people. I’ve been following him since early this year. He started popping up on my social media. 

I would like to hear him talk about how to get closer to Islam and how to make your heart purified. In recent years, people have been getting off track, away from our deen (religion). We’ve had very big events at Masjid Al Qur’an but, out of any of them, I am most excited for this one. I’m very hyped about it.”

Hussain Shafique, Milwaukee

A few months ago, my friend introduced me to Shaykh Shadee and showed me a few of his videos. I got really interested because of the way he speaks. He knows how to connect with the youth and he knows exactly what to say and when to say it to hook the audience and keep them entertained. He keeps us from getting distracted. For example, he talked about what’s on the internet, things kids are into—what we should avoid, what to be careful about—something other scholars aren’t talking about. Like anime, he said it is something we should approach with caution. Some scholars stay away from these topics.”

Mohid Fazeel, Milwaukee

I’ve heard a few of his lectures and find them very interesting. He explains the importance of loving our prophet. I want to ask him how to gain more understanding about the deen. I think he is a very humble, very nice guy who is knowledgeable in his field. I’m looking forward to the event, too. It is such a great event.