Ingrid Mattson (1963-)

1. Ingrid Mattson(1963-) Presented by Amir Hanif bin Ibrahim Nor Atikah binti Abdul Wahid Edited by Dr. Md. Mahmudul hasan International Islamic university malaysia 2011

2. Ingrid Mattson

3. Born in Kitchener in Ontario, Canada in 1963. • Raised in a Catholic household. Renounced the Catholic faith in 1978 when she was 15. • Converted to Islam at the age of 23 in 1986. • Volunteered to help Afghan refugees in Pakistan in 1987. • Married fellow volunteer, AamerAtek, an Egyptian engineer. • Currently staying in Connecticut with husband and their 2 children.

4. Obtained a degree in Philosophy and Fine Arts from the University of Waterloo in 1987. • Served as advisor to the Afghan delegation to the United Nations Commission on the Status of Women in 1995. • Earned a PhD degree in Islamic Studies from the University of Chicago in 1999. • Elected Vice-President of Islamic Society of North America (ISNA) in 2001. • Elected the first female President of ISNA in 2006. • Currently the Director of Islamic Chaplaincy and Professor at the Macdonald Center for Islamic Studies and Christian-Muslim Relations at Hartford Seminary in Hartford, Connecticut. • Important publication: The Story of the Qur'an: Its History and Place in Muslim Life”

5. “Finding the Prophet in his People” • Before accepting Islam, Mattson tried to find inner peace through her studies in fine art. • “Completing a degree in Philosophy and Fine Arts, I sat for hours in darkened classrooms where my professors projected pictures of great works of Western art on the wall.” • “What was I seeking in such an intense engagement with visual art? Perhaps some of the transcendence I felt as a child in the cool darkness of the Catholic church I loved.” • However, even her passion in art does was not fulfilling enough for her. • “But each time the aesthetic response flared up, then died down, it left no basis for action.”

6. Then in the final year of her undergraduate studies, she went on a trip to Paris, France, which she terms as ‘the summer I met Muslims’. • During this trip, Mattson was acquainted with Senegalese and Mauritian Muslims. She began to learn about Islam and Muslims from her new friends and felt that the Muslims ‘carried a light within them’. • After the trip, Mattson began to study the Qur’an, the Arabic language and Islam diligently. • “I was really surprised the first time I prayed…. I was not a Muslim at that time. I was just starting to study the Qur'an and study some Arabic… But as soon as I prostrated… I felt such a holistic connection to God.” • Within a year, Mattson embraced Islam. She was 23 years old.

7. The Story of The Qur’an Its History and place in Muslim life • (2007)

8. In this book, Ingrid Mattson discusses six issues: • God Speaks to Humanity • The Prophet Conveys the Message • The Voice and the Pen • Blessed words: The Qur’an and Culture • What God Really Means: Interpreting the Qur’an • Listening for God

9. God hears and responds • Zihar uttered by Aws Ibn Samit where he accuses his wife Khawla as equivalent to his mothers’ backside. The Prophet said that the customs remains normative unless God reveals a new ruling. Then God revealed verses 58: 1-2. • Defining the Qur’an • God’s speech elicited by the concerns of ordinary people and not just the Prophet’s concern alone. The Qur’an is basically a guide for people from all walks of life.

10. Some of her writings available online are: • Zakat In America: The evolving role of Islamic charity in community cohesion • Respecting the Qur’an • Between Faith and Country: Muslims in America • Christians and Muslims • Islamic Dress and Muslim Norms of Modesty: Can a Woman be an Imam? • (http://macdonald.hartsem.edu/mattson.htm)