Practical Spirituality Series
2022-08-17 19:30 - 20:30, 2022-08-24 19:30 - 20:30 (America/Los_Angeles) | MCC East Bay, 5724 W Las Positas Blvd #300, Pleasanton, CA, 94588, United States
Are you feeling stuck in your relationship with Allah? Feeling unsure about how to progress spiritually while balancing the hustle and bustle of life? If so, this series is for you: https://mcceastbay.org/practical
Join us for a virtual weekly class with Sidi Shahryar Abbasi focused on practical spirituality. Each week, we discuss a topic to help us traverse the spiritual path and ultimately achieve nearness to Allah (SWT). The topics range from how to make intentions, devotions and daily duas (supplications), easy shortcuts to maximize your rewards, the importance of good character, how to balance spirituality as a working professional, and much, much more.
We will primarily be focusing on the text “The Book of Assistance” by the great Saint and Knower of Allah, Imam Abdullah Ibn Alawi Al Haddad.
7:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. | Wednesdays | Sept. 8 to Summer ’22 (suspended in Ramadan) | Watch at https://mcceastbay.org/live and watch past series recordings at https://mcceastbay.org/practical

– More Sidi Shahryar: https://mcceastbay.org/shahryar
– Download Imam Al-Haddad’s “Book of Assistance”: https://mcceastbay.org/assistance
– Download Practical Spirituality Resources: https://mcceastbay.org/awraad
– Sidi Shahryar’s “Real Talk Series”: https://mcceastbay.org/real-talk
– Sidi Shahryar’s “Traits of the Righteous” Series: https://mcceastbay.org/hallmark
– Sidi Shahryar’s “Deceptive Desires” Series: https://mcceastbay.org/desires

Questions? events@mcceastbay.org

Juz Recitation
2022-08-18 18:30 - 19:15, 2022-08-19 18:30 - 19:15, 2022-08-20 18:30 - 19:15, 2022-08-21 18:30 - 19:15, 2022-08-22 18:30 - 19:15, 2022-08-23 18:30 - 19:15, 2022-08-24 18:30 - 19:15
In Ramadan 2022, Qari Amar Bellaha will recite regular rakats (cycles) at MCC’s nightly indoor Taraweeh, which will begin after Isha at 9:30 p.m.
In addition, Qari Amar will virtually also recite one chapter everyday in his sonorous voice.
The daily recitation (schedule) are broadcast after Asr prayer daily from 6:30 p.m. to about 7:15 p.m. on MCC’s Facebook and YouTube.

– Qur’anic Recitation playlist: https://mcceastbay.org/ramadan22
– Daily recitation schedule https://mcceastbay.org/recitation
– Watch Tarawih in Ramadan ’19: https://mcceastbay.org/taraweeh
– More Qari Amar: https://mcceastbay.org/amar
– Qari Amar reciting Juz’ Ama 30 (final chapter of Qur’an): https://mcceastbay.org/juz-ama

Questions? events@mcceastbay.org

Qari Amar’s Taraweh 2022 Recitation Schedule at MCC East Bay

Playlist at https://mcceastbay.org/tarawih

Date
Ramadan ’22 Day
Juz
Ayat (links below from last Ramadan)

Saturday, April 2, 2022
1
1
Al Fatiha 1 – Al Baqarah 141

Sunday, April 3, 2022
2
2
Al Baqarah 142 – Al Baqarah 252

Monday, April 4, 2022
3
3
Al Baqarah 253 – Al Imran 92

Tuesday, April 5, 2022
4
4
Al Imran 93 – An Nisaa 32

Wednesday, April 6, 2022
5
5
An Nisa 33 – Al Nisa 147

Thursday, April 7, 2022
6
6
Al Nisa 148 – Al Ma’edah 82

Friday, April 8, 2022
7
7
Al Ma’edah 83 – Al An’am 110

Saturday, April 9, 2022
8
8
Al-An’am 111 – Al-A’raaf 87

Sunday, April 10, 2022
9
9
Al-A’raaf 88 – Al-Anfal 40

Monday, April 11, 2022
10
10
Al-Anfal 41 – At-Tawbah 92

Tuesday, April 12, 2022
11
11
At-Tawbah 93 – Hud 5

Wednesday, April 13, 2022
12
12
Hud 6 – Yusuf 52

Thursday, April 14, 2022
13
13
Yusuf 53 – Ibrahim 52

Friday, April 15, 2022
14
14
Al-Hijr 1 – An-Nahl 128

Saturday, April 16, 2022
15
15
Al-Isra 1 – Al-Kahf 74

Sunday, April 17, 2022
16
16
Al-Kahf 75 – Taha 135

Monday, April 18, 2022
17
17
Al-Anbiyaa 1 – Al-Hajj 78

Tuesday, April 19, 2022
18
18
Al-Muminun 1 – Al-Furqan 20

Wednesday, April 20, 2022
19
19
Al-Furqan 21 – An-Naml 55

Thursday, April 21, 2022
20
20
An-Naml 56 – Al-Ankabut 45

Friday, April 22, 2022
21
21
Al-Ankabut 46 – Al-Ahzab 30

Saturday, April 23, 2022
22
22
Al-Ahzab 31 – Ya Sin 27

Sunday, April 24, 2022
23
23
Ya Sin 28 – Az-Zumar 31

Monday, April 25, 2022
24
24
Az-Zumar 32 – Fussilat 46

Tuesday, April 26, 2022
25
25
Fussilat 47 – Al-Jathiya 32

Wednesday, April 27, 2022
26
26
Al-Jathiya 33 – Adh-Dhariyat 30

Thursday, April 28, 2022
27
27-28
Adh-Dhariyat 31at – Tahrim 12 (Two Juz)

Friday, April 29, 2022
28
29
At Taghabun 64 to Al Ghashiyah 88

Saturday, April 30, 2022
29
30
Al Na’ba 1– Al Na’s 6

See what else MCC is doing in this Holy Month

https://mcceastbay.org/ramadan

Myths About Therapy Busted By Muslim Therapists | Ustadha Dr. Rania Awaad
2022-08-19 20:00 - 21:45 | MCC East Bay, 5724 W Las Positas Blvd #300, Pleasanton, CA, 94588, United States
MCC is joined by Maristan , a local non-profit organization for our upcoming Family Night! Join Dr. Rania Awaad & Maristan’s Clinical team, Saha Jamshed, Nuzhath Quadri, and Hamed Fatahian as they discuss Muslim mental health and debunk myths around the topic of therapy and other help-seeking behaviors.
8 p.m. to 9:45 p.m. (Maghrib to Isha) | Friday, August 19 | MCC Conference Room | Free | Snacks and coffee provided | In-person or watch virtually at mcceastbay.org/live
Sponsored by Maristan & MCC East Bay

– Maristan’s mental health videos at the mosque: https://mcceastbay.org/maristan
– More Dr. Rania: https://mcceastbay.org/rania
– More mental health talks at MCC: https://mcceastbay.org/mental-health
– More from our Friday Night Series: https://mcceastbay.org/friday-night

Questions? events@mcceastbay.org
Maristan’s Mission
Grounded in Islamic traditions, Maristan aims to lead professional clinical care, education, and research in advancing holistic, mental, and spiritual wellness.
Maristan’s Vision
Maristan strives to revive the Islamic legacy of research and education that informs holistic healing and provides culturally and spiritually congruent, professional, accessible and affordable mental health care for all.
Dr. Rania Awaad | Executive Director, Co-Founder of Maristan
Rania Awaad, M.D. is a Clinical Associate Professor of Psychiatry at the Stanford University School of Medicine where she is the Director of the Stanford Muslim Mental Health & Islamic Psychology Lab as well as Stanford University’s Affiliate Chaplain. She also serves as the Associate Division Chief for Public Mental Health and Population Sciences as well as the Section Co-Chief of Diversity and Cultural Mental Health. In addition, she is a faculty member of the Abbasi Program in Islamic Studies at Stanford University. She pursued her psychiatric residency training at Stanford where she also completed a postdoctoral clinical research fellowship with the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH).
As a nationally recognized leader in Muslim mental health, Dr. Awaad has been invited by Presidents Obama and Biden, the CDC, HHS, and SAMHSA to present her work at national convenings in DC. She has pioneered by establishing the first Muslim Mental Health Community Advisory Board (BAMMH CAB) in the US. Dr. Awaad has also established multiple Muslim mental health clinics as well as custom-tailored clinical and educational training programs for clinicians, and religious and community leaders to address the mental health needs of Muslim communities.
Through community partnerships established by the Stanford Department of Psychiatry, Dr. Awaad is currently the Psychiatric Director of the El Camino Women’s Medical Group where she pursues her interest in women’s mental health. Additionally, she serves as the Executive Director of Maristan, a holistic mental health nonprofit serving Muslim communities. Previously, she served as the founding Clinical Director of the Bay Area branch of the Khalil Center.
Her courses at Stanford range from teaching a pioneering course on Islamic Psychology (PSYC 144/244), to instructing medical students, psychiatry residents, and clinical psychology trainees on implicit bias and integrating culture and religion into medical care (PAU’s CLDV 700 and Stanford’s PGY-3 “Culture and Religion in Psychiatry”), to teaching undergraduate and graduate students the psychology of xenophobia (PSYC 86Q). Some of her recent academic publications include an edited volume on “Islamophobia and Psychiatry” (Springer, 2019), “Applying Islamic Principles to Clinical Mental Health” (Routledge, 2020), and an upcoming clinical textbook on Muslim Mental Health for the American Psychiatric Association. She has also produced a toolkit, fact sheet, CME course on Muslim mental health for the APA.
Dr. Awaad is particularly passionate about uncovering the historical roots of mental health care in the Islamic intellectual heritage and has two upcoming books on the topic. In addition, she is affiliate faculty of Islamic Psychology at the Cambridge Muslim College and The Islamic Seminary of America. She is also a Senior Fellow at the Yaqeen Institute and the Institute for Social Policy and Understanding. She also has an interest in refugee mental health and has traveled to Amman, Jordan multiple times with the Care Program for Refugees (CPR) sponsored by Al-Alusi Foundation. She worked on developing and presenting a “train the trainers” curriculum to aid workers and therapists in Amman working with Syrian and Iraqi refugees.
Prior to studying medicine, she pursued classical Islamic studies in Damascus, Syria, and holds certifications (ijaza) in the Qur’an, Islamic Law, and other branches of the Islamic Sciences. Dr. Awaad has also previously served as the first female Professor of Islamic Law at Zaytuna College, a Muslim Liberal Arts College in Berkeley, CA. In addition, she serves as the Director of The Rahmah Foundation, a non-profit organization dedicated to educating Muslim women and girls. Dr. Awaad has been the recipient of several awards and grants for her work. She is a nationally recognized speaker, award-winning teacher, researcher, and author in both the Islamic and medical sciences. Follow her @Dr.RaniaAwaad
Sara Mostafavi, Secretary of the Board of Directors, Co-Founder
Sara Mostafavi is an attorney who has focused on immigration & nationality law since 2005, with practice interests including VAWA (Violence Against Women Act), human-rights based asylum cases, as well as addressing national security scrutiny faced by Muslims here in the United States.
Community service and intrafaith dialogue are guiding principles that have animated her work as a board member of CAIR – SFBA (Council on American Islamic Relations – SF Bay Area office), a board member for NCIC (Northern California Islamic Council), a member of the Community Advisory Board (CAB) on Muslim Mental Health, as well as her past work at the Hub Foundation and as a board member for ICCNC (Islamic Cultural Center of Northern California).
She has degrees in Sociology and Microbiology from U.C. Davis and has a Juris Doctorate from the George Washington University Law School. Sara lives in Danville with her husband and two daughters and enjoys hiking, camping, traveling, reading, studying about Islamic spirituality, and connecting with her halaqas in her free time.
Saha Jamshed, LCSW
Saha Jamshed is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker in the state of California and currently practices as a Mental Health Therapist at Axis Community Health and Maristan. Saha provides support to individuals, couples, and families from diverse backgrounds presenting with symptoms of depression, anxiety, marital conflict and low self-esteem. She completed her master’s at University of Southern California and completed her training with a focus on Mental Health at John George Psychiatric Hospital. Saha utilizes a multitude of therapeutic intervention modalities based on the needs of the client including Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), Mindfulness, Solution Focused Therapy, Emotionally Focused Therapy (EFT), Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) and stress management. Saha is certified as a Positive Discipline Parent Educator. She provides services in Dari and English. Simultaneously, Saha has been working at NISA, a Muslim domestic violence organization for over 15 years where she provides counseling and case management for survivors of domestic violence and abuse.
Nuzhath Quadri, LMFT
Nuzhath Quadri is a licensed marriage and family therapist. She holds a Masters in Counseling Psychology from University of San Francisco. Most of her 10+ year career has been spent working with youth and their families through the Santa Clara Unified School District school-based therapy program.
Alongside the school work, her experience also includes working in community clinics with clients experiencing anxiety, depression, relationship challenges, grief and personal life challenges. Her education focused on family systems approach but she pulls from various modalities, including CPT, DPT, mindfulness-based interventions, play therapy to meet her clients’ needs.
Hamed Fatahian, AMFT
Hamed Fatahian is a Registered Associate Marriage and Family Therapist and Registered Associate Professional Clinical Counselor who graduated with a master’s in counseling psychology from Palo Alto University. He works at New Paths (Couples Recovery Center). He specializes in couple therapy, especially with the Muslim population. He has also trained in EFT over the past few years from ICEEFT (International Center for Excellence in Emotionally Focused Therapy).

Addiction Family Support Group
2022-08-20 11:00 - 12:00 | MCC East Bay, 5724 W Las Positas Blvd #300, Pleasanton, CA, 94588, United States
Nearly 37 percent of Muslims report personally knowing a person who has or is struggling with addiction. Yet Most Muslims with addiction and their families find little support in their communities.
Are you looking for resources to help you support someone struggling with addiction? Is someone else’s addiction negatively affecting you?
Help is on the way for you and your loved ones struggling with an addiction. MCC is now hosting Al-Anon Family Group meetings.
Join our weekly anonymous meetings from 11 a.m. to noon starting on Saturday, July 30, 2022, at MCC in Room 16. Enter MCC from Suite 150. In this open and confidential setting, you will learn how to apply basic recovery principles to your personal or loved one’s situation.
There is no fee to participate and pre-registration is not required.
This is an open meeting, so families, friends, and observers are welcome. Recovery is for everyone!
For those who cannot attend this in-person weekly support, the Madina House offers a regular virtual family support group: https://www.madinahouse.org/family-group
Regardless of the issue, you are dealing with, we know that hosting space in your spiritual community center is part of the lasting change from the inside out.
Questions? events@mcceastbay.org

What is Al-Anon?
The Al-Anon Family Groups are a fellowship of relatives and friends of those affected by another person’s alcoholism and substance use who share their experiences, strength, and hope, in order to solve their common problems. Addiction is regarded as a family illness, and the philosophy focuses on the principle that changed attitudes can aid recovery.
Al-Anon is not allied with any sect, denomination, political entity, organization, or institution; does not engage in any controversy, and neither endorses nor opposes any cause. There are no dues for membership. Al-Anon is self-supporting through its own voluntary contributions. This Al-Anon Family Group session is called Celebrating Surrender AFG WSO ID 30787606.

– MCC’s Substance Use Family Support Group: https://mcceastbay.org/support-group
– More talks about various forms of use in Muslim Community: https://mcceastbay.org/abuse

Resources

Muslims find a safe place to recover from alcohol addiction: the mosque
For Muslims wrestling with substance abuse, it’s often a silent struggle
Substance Abuse and Addiction in the Muslim Community: Facing Stigma and Seeking Support
The Imam and the Drug Addict, IlmFeed
Overcoming Addiction: An Islamic Approach to Recovery (OAIAR)

Questions? events@mcceastbay.org
FAQs ABOUT AL-ANON
Is this a religious fellowship?
The Al-Anon Family Group is a spiritual fellowship, not a religious one. We avoid discussion of specific religious doctrine, and members of all faiths (or of none) are welcome. Our Twelve Steps ask us to find a “Power greater than ourselves” who can help us solve our problems and find serenity. Each member is free to define that power in his or her own way.
Is an appointment needed?
No advance notification or formal written referral is necessary to attend an Al-Anon or Alateen meeting. Most Al-Anon groups have a contact who can be called for information about the group, our program in general, or for directions to a meeting. For this meeting, it is munir@mcceastbay.org.
How much is this going to cost?
There are no dues or fees in Al-Anon and Alateen meetings. MCC does not charge a fee to provide the space. Some other groups pass a basket for voluntary contributions to support paying rent (if applicable), provide literature, and offer support to local and worldwide service centers.
Is there a registration process to attend Al-Anon meetings?
The meetings are on a walk-in basis. Al-Anon has no membership list and does not take attendance. You’re welcome to attend as frequently or infrequently as you choose. There is never any obligation.
How will Al-Anon help me?
Many who come to Al-Anon/Alateen are in despair, feeling hopeless, unable to believe that things can ever change. We want our lives to be different, but nothing we have done has brought about change. We all come to Al-Anon because we want and need help.
In Al-Anon and Alateen, members share their own experience, strength, and hope with each other. You will meet others who share your feelings and frustrations, if not your exact situation. We come together to learn a better way of life, to find happiness whether our loved one is still addicted or not. It is recommended to try 6 different meetings to determine if Al-anon is right for you.
My friend/loved one is a drug addict. Can I go to an Al-Anon meeting?
You are also welcome to try Al-Anon meetings, then decide if the Al–Anon program might be helpful to you. The primary purpose of Al-Anon is to provide support to those affected by another person’s drinking. In a membership survey 35% of our members said they joined our program because of a loved one’s drug addiction and that their lives had improved since attending meetings. The survey also showed that 78% of these members eventually realized that someone’s drinking also negatively affected their lives.
There is another program, Nar-Anon, which is for people affected by a loved one’s drug addiction. You can visit their web site here: Nar–Anon.org. You are also welcome to try Al–Anon meetings, then decide if the Al-Anon program might be helpful to you.
Will anyone say I’ve been there?
Anonymity is the spiritual foundation of Al-anon, ever a reminder to place principles above personalities. One of the ways this is carried out is by group members introducing themselves by first name only. Meetings are confidential, and we do not disclose whom we see or what we hear at meetings to anyone.
Do I have to say anything at a meeting?
It is your choice to speak or not during the meetings. Newcomers are welcomed to meetings, usually provided with literature and a local meeting list, and invited to listen and learn. Some meetings offer beginners’ meetings, specifically for newcomers. Long-time members are available to answer questions before or after the meetings.
Resources

Al-Anon Family Group (for families with a loved one suffering through an addiction)
East Bay Intergroup of Alcoholics Anonymous (for those suffering through an addiction)
Alameda County Department of Public Health – Substance Abuse Resource List
Alameda County Behavioral Health – Resource List and Helpline (1-844-682-7215)

Weekly Women’s Seerah Bookclub
2022-08-23 18:30 - 20:00 | MCC East Bay, 5724 W Las Positas Blvd #300, Pleasanton, CA, 94588, United States
Join our weekly sisters’ virtual only 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 fall, we are reading “The Prophetic Narrative” by Samira al-Zayid.
RSVP for the live registration link below at https://mcceastbay.org/bookclub. RSVP is needed to join us virtually.

**Sessions changed to online only for the remaining classes.
Event Details:
The discussion takes place every Tuesday from 6:30 p.m. to 8 p.m. and in Fall ’22 runs from Tuesday, August 23 to December 20, 2022. The sessions are now only virtual sessions (no in-person component).
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://daybreak.rabata.org/products/soft-cover-a-compendium-of-the-sources-on-the-prophetic-narrative

Questions? bookclub@mcceastbay.org

About the Book

Internationally acclaimed as “the most authoritative resource” on the Sīra, this two-volume translation textbook is revolutionary in bringing Prophet Muhammad ﷺ’s life to life for everyone who ventures upon it.

This multiple award-winning, comprehensive compilation of narrations and details of the life of Prophet Muhammad (S) has never before been available in English until now! Internationally acclaimed as “the most authoritative resource” on the Sīra, this two-volume translation textbook is revolutionary in bringing his (S) life to life for everyone who ventures upon it. The original volumes have won the approval and praise of numerous scholars. It is finally available as a treasured text for personal or educational development.

Author: Samira al-Zayid
Translators: Susan Imady, Tamara Gray, & Randa Mardini
Binding: Softcover
Pages: Vol 1, 570; Vol 2, 558
Publisher: Daybreak Press

Questions? bookclub@mcceastbay.org
