Women’s Seerah Bookclub (in-person & virtual) | Ustadha Leila Fakira
2026-02-02 11:00 - 12:30, 2026-02-09 11:00 - 12:30 (America/Los_Angeles) | MCC East Bay, 5724 W Las Positas Blvd #300, Pleasanton, CA, 94588, United States
Join our weekly sisters’ in-person & virtual Seerah book club, where we have an active discussion, take away lessons for our daily lives, and inshaAllah fall in love with the Prophet ﷺ. This year, we are reading from Our Lady Fatima al-Zahra (R.A.) by Muhammad Abduh Yamani.

Every Monday, in-person & virtual | 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. | MCC | Women only | RSVP for the live registration link at https://mcceastbay.org/bookclub | RSVP is needed to join us virtually

Event Details:

The in-person & virtual discussion takes place every Monday from 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. with a break in Ramadan ’26.

Please register online to receive the link to the WhatsApp thread where all communication and updates will be made.

Book Purchase:

If you wish to follow along with the book, please purchase the book. The book can be purchased here:

https://www.meccabooks.com/products/our-lady-fatima-al-zahra
https://store.celebratemercy.com/products/our-lady-fatima-al-zahra?srsltid=AfmBOoolySfro5MbF50JY0y6f-0yyRMdaGwsDMa2DqstKJWBykrF1Tpa
https://bookshop.rabata.org/search?q=pur+lady&options%5Bprefix%5D=last

For those local in the Bay Area:

Rumi Bookstore
Zaytuna Bookstore

Questions? bookclub@mcceastbay.org

About the Book

This book is about the life and virtues of the eminent lady Sayyidatunā Fāṭima al-Zahra ﵂. Through her, with Sayyidunā ‘Alī ﵁, the blessed lineage of her father, the Messenger of God ﷺ, was preserved. She resembled him in every way, and of all people she was the dearest to his heart. She stood with him ﷺ and strove always to serve and aid him, taking care of him after the death of her mother, Sayyidatunā Khadīja ﵂. Fāṭima was brave, strong, forbearing, dutiful, gracious, and protective. She was a loving mother and an inspiring example to her sons, Imams Ḥasan and Ḥusayn ﵁. Fāṭima al-Zahrā ﵂ tells the life story of its subject in a vivid, straightforward manner, linking it to the history of Islam from the early times of tribulation to the establishment of the Dīn and the Community based in al-Madīna. Its style and approach are very suitable for children, as well as for older readers. The author, Dr Muhammad Abduh Yamani (d.1431/2010), who served for several years as Saudi Arabia’s Minister of Information, was a distinguished educationalist, author and businessman, notable also for his piety and philanthropy.

Purification of the Heart – Men’s Book Club
2026-02-05 18:30 - 20:00, 2026-02-12 18:30 - 20:00, 2026-02-19 18:30 - 20:00, 2026-02-26 18:30 - 20:00
Join us for a weekly book club and discussion group as we collectively strive to purify our hearts and grow closer to Allah through understanding and treating the spiritual diseases that afflict us all. We will read and reflect on Hamza Yusuf’s translation and commentary of Imam Mawlud’s classical work, Purification of the Heart: Signs, Symptoms, and Cures of the Spiritual Diseases of the Heart.
Each session will cover one chapter, including group discussions and reflections on the diseases of the heart and their cures.
While we encourage consistent attendance for the benefit of shared reflection and continuity, each session is self-contained, and participants are welcome to drop in even if they cannot commit to every week. Sidi Mohammed Kaddoura facilitates this group.
Starts October 16 | Thursdays | 6:30 p.m. – 8:00 p.m. | Conference Room | In-person only
Class Schedule: Tracking Chapters: Purification of the Heart– Men’s Book Club

Disclaimer
This book club is intended to stimulate thought and reflection, not to teach deen. It is not a fiqh or aqidah class.

Discussion Group Guidelines

Everyone has something to say; everyone has something to learn.

Shy participants are encouraged to contribute.
Talkative participants are encouraged to listen more.

Confidentiality is essential.

Do not share other participants’ reflections outside the group. It’s okay to say, “someone in my book club made me think about…” but not “so-and-so said…”

Give 70 excuses.

Assume good intentions. If disagreements arise, remember our shared goal is growth. We leave differences in the room and continue with brotherhood outside of it.

Maintain emotional awareness.

The topics we discuss may evoke strong emotions. All participants are expected to remain calm, respectful, and emotionally intelligent. Please avoid getting carried away in conversation. Proper etiquette is required at all times.

Book Purchase
Please purchase the book in advance if you want to follow along. Available at:
Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Purification-Heart-Symptoms-Spiritual-Diseases/dp/1929694156
Zaytuna Bookstore: https://bookstore.zaytuna.edu/products/purificationoftheheart
About the Book
This exploration of Islamic spirituality delves into the psychological diseases and cures of the heart. The causes and practical cures of these diseases are discussed, offering a penetrating glimpse into how Islam deals with spiritual and psychological problems and demonstrating how all people can benefit from these teachings.

Author: Imam Mawlud (translated and with extensive commentary by Hamza Yusuf)

About the Translator
Hamza Yusuf is an American Islamic scholar and co-founder of Zaytuna College, the first accredited Muslim liberal arts college in the United States. He is one of the most influential Islamic educators in the Western world, known for his ability to bridge traditional Islamic scholarship with contemporary issues.

Questions? events@mcceastbay.org

Women's Weekly Friday Evening Halaqa | The Rahmah Foundation
2026-02-06 19:00 - 21:00, 2026-02-13 19:00 - 21:00, 2026-02-20 19:00 - 21:00, 2026-02-27 19:00 - 21:00
Ustadha Dr. Rania Awaad holds a weekly women’s gathering on Friday evenings to discuss navigating contemporary issues. This program runs in parallel to the Friday night girl’s halaqa.

7 p.m. to 9 p.m. | Every Friday from September 19, 2025, to May 22, 2026 | MCC Conference Room | Free; no registration or RSVP required to attend in person | To join virtually, register at https://mcceastbay.org/zoom

– More Dr. Rania: https://mcceastbay.org/rania
– Watch past Dr. Rania’s Friday Night Halaqa (FNH) recordings: https://mcceastbay.org/womens-halaqa
– Join Dr. Rania’s WhatsUp group: https://chat.whatsapp.com/HlHmFFnGbwvCvLl6uGD1C4
– The Rahmah Foundation’s Holiday Calendar: https://mcceastbay.org/rahmah-calendar

The FNH Fall session runs from Friday, September 19, 2025, to May 22, 2026, with no halaqas on the following dates: Friday, November 28, December 19, December 26, January 2, February 20 through March 27, April 3, and April 10. See calendar.

Free weekly babysitting is provided in Room 23. Facility map: https://mcceastbay.org/facility-map

Questions? events@mcceastbay.org

This women’s halaqa is hosted at MCC and runs parallel to the girls & teens program in partnership with The Rahmah Foundation.

Ustadha Rania Awaad was raised in the U.S. and began her formal study of the traditional Islamic sciences when her parents permitted her to travel to Damascus, Syria, at 14. Her desire to continue studying the Deen resulted in multiple trips back to Damascus, interspersed between her high school, college, and medical studies. She was honored to receive Ijazah (authorization to teach) several branches of the Shari’ah sciences at the hands of many renowned scholars, including many female scholars. She has received Ijazah to teach Tajwid in the Hafs and Warsh recitations from the late eminent Syrian scholar Shaykh Abu Hassan al-Kurdi. In addition to completing several advanced texts of the Shafi’i madhhab, she is licensed to teach texts of Maliki fiqh, Adab, and Ihsan. Currently, Ustadha Rania teaches online and local classes for The Rahmah Foundation, Rabata. She is on the faculty of Zaytuna College, where she teaches courses in Shafi’i fiqh and women’s issues in fiqh and has helped develop and co-direct the Tajweed and Hifz program.

Ustadha Rania is also a medical doctor with a specialty in Psychiatry. She completed her Psychiatric residency and fellowship training at Stanford University, where she is currently on the faculty as a Clinical Instructor in the Stanford Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences department. Her medical interests include addressing mental health care concerns in the Muslim community- particularly that of Muslim women and girls. She has been awarded grants from the NIMH (National Institute of Mental Health) to research this topic and has presented her findings at several medical conferences. Other ongoing endeavors include compiling manuscripts addressing female-related mental health and medical issues from a fiqh-oriented perspective. She is the Director of the Rahmah Foundation, a non-profit organization that teaches traditional Islamic knowledge to Muslim women and girls. In this capacity, she also heads the Murbbiyah Mentoring Program, which trains young women to teach and mentor Muslim girls and teens. Ustadha Rania is both a wife and a mother; she has been counseling and teaching women classes on Tajwid, Shafi’i Fiqh, Ihsan, marriage, and raising children since 1999.

Learn more about Dr. Rania and her work at http://med.stanford.edu/psychiatry/research/MuslimMHLab.html

Every Friday evening, the MCC bustles with activity. MCC hosts four halaqas to increase God-consciousness for youth, women, and men.

Join Dr. Rania Awaad‘s women’s gathering on navigating contemporary issues from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. This wide-ranging Muslimah halaqa is in the MCC Conference Room, and the first hour is live-streamed here (watch past sessions at https://mcceastbay.org/halaqa). This halaqa is organized in partnership with The Rahmah Foundation. Questions? events@mcceastbay.org
