Dear Dr. Hatem al-Haj,
As-Salam Alaikum- Warahmatullahi May Allah bless you through your achievements in the Duniah and Akhirah. Please answer my following questions regarding the balance between Dunyah and Akhirah (secular VS religious education). 1.Is studying medicine in the USA Halal (for men/women)? As you know the problems in medical schools… free mixing, lab involving ‘awrah, study of human anatomy in a mixed environment, please explain. Please note salafi scholars says it is haram!! Is it realistic? 2.If someone wants to please Allah, learn the Deen, and wants to do Dawah, how does one bring a balance in a realistic sense while learning a profession like yours (i.e., medical school)? Jazak Allah Khair
Alhamdu-li-llah wa as-Salatu wa as-Salamu ‘ala Rasool-il-llah,
Studying medicine is a great need for us Muslims. We should procure that need in a way that is least compromising to our religious commitment. As for free mixing, there is also free mixing in all other schools in the USA. Also, there are not enough slots in single gender schools in KSA and wherever else they are for all Muslims. If someone has the ability to find one that is good, then they should study there if they could afford it, and there are no other hindrances. If not, then they should do their best in preserving their piety, while attaining the necessary knowledge and skills, not only in medicine, but in other sciences as well. The very vast majority of Muslim scholars allowed the study of medicine in the Muslim countries, despite having the problems mentioned by you. That is because the communal need for learning medicine warrants the making of some concessions and exemptions. Those problems may be somewhat more pronounced in the USA, but they should still not deter us from studying medicine. For the sisters, it is a matter of being capable of observing her hijab and avoiding seclusion … etc. If she feels she can’t observe her religious duties in Medical School, she may find another one, where she can observe them, or even get a medical degree from another place where she can observe those duties as much as possible.
As for the Salafi scholars, I never heard of a consensus by them or any other scholars on the impermissibility of studying medicine here in the USA.
As for the balance, there is so much that we can do if we rely on Allah, seek His help, and waste no time without some benefit. The Prophet (blessings and peace be upon him) said,
”استعن بالله ولا تعجز“
“Seek Allah’s help, and never act powerless.”
May Allah grant you the best of this life and the one to come.
Allah knows best.