Hassan Al-Qazwini

Sayyid Hassan al-Musawi al-Qazwini (; born October 16, 1964) is an Iraqi-American Shia Imam. He was the resident scholar of the Islamic Center of America for eighteen years. He then founded the Islamic Institute of America in Dearborn Heights, Michigan.

Early life and education Al-Qazwini was born in Karbala in 1964. His father is Murtadha al-Qazwini from the al-Qazwini family, and his mother is the daughter of Abd al-Amir Nasrallah, from the Nasrallah family. His family was exiled from Iraq whilst he was still young, and upon settling in Qom in 1980, he joined the seminary and began his religious education.

He completed his religious education in 1992 and managed to grasp an in-depth understanding of the fundamentals of Islamic jurisprudence and Quranic commentary. During his studies, he administered a prominent Islamic journal called an-Nibras (The eternal light).

Dearborn Heights In 2015, al-Qazwini left the ICA and opened his own mosque, known as the Islamic Institute of America. He also established the Muslim Youth Connection (MYC) as the new youth organization.

Public appearances Since the September 11 attacks, al-Qazwini stepped up his efforts to act as an ambassador for Muslim Americans, speaking at numerous churches, colleges and universities, hoping to dispel what he sees as common misconceptions about them.

He has met with Presidents Bill Clinton and George W. Bush, as well as with then senator Barack Obama.

al-Qazwini met Pope Francis during the Abrahamic Faiths Initiative on January 14, 2020 in Vatican City. The initiative brought leaders from Christianity, Judaism and Islam to work together to promote peaceful expression of faith and the renunciation of violence.

al-Qazwini endorsed Bernie Sanders in March, 2020. He addressed a Dearborn rally in Arabic on Saturday, encouraging support for Sanders.

Works Al-Qazwini authored two books:

Meditation on Sahihain: A Critique of Sahih Al-Bukhari and Sahih Muslim Prophet Mohammad: The Ethical Prospect

American Crescent Al-Qazwini is the author of American Crescent: A Muslim Cleric on the Power of His Faith, the Struggle Against Prejudice, and the Future of Islam and America.

Rashid Khalidi of Columbia University wrote in The New York Times: This book is many things. It is, first, a personal chronicle of Imam Hassan Qazwini's own trajectory from Karbala, Iraq, where he was born in 1964, to exile in Kuwait and Iran, to Dearborn, Mich., where he currently heads the Islamic Center of America. Second, it is an argument for Qazwini's variety of Shia Islam, rooted in Iraq and Iran and adapted for America. Finally, it is a political statement — in fact, two of them — a plea for Muslim Americans to immerse themselves in the life of the United States while simultaneously deepening their identification as Muslims, and also for a particular outcome in Iraq, where Qazwini's father, a leading ayatollah, is Imam of the mosque of Imam Hussein in Karbala.

Personal life Al-Qazwini is married to the daughter of Muhammad al-Shirazi. He has four sons, including Muhammad Baqer and Ahmed.