From Cairo to Carolina: The Qur’an First Approach and the True Legacy of Islamic Reform

By Imam Halim Mustafa El-Bey | Indigenous Muslim American Muur Society (IMAMS)Throughout history, Allah has raised men and women of courage to awaken the sleeping conscience of their people. When imitation replaces insight and division replaces divine unity, the message of al-Islām—the natural way of harmony and balance—becomes buried beneath centuries of commentary, dogma, and colonial distortion.In the late 19th century, during a time of Western occupation across the Muslim world, two reformers—Jamal al-Din al-Afghani and Muhammad ‘Abduh—called for a return to the Qur’an and the use of reason (‘aql) as the key to reviving the Muslim mind. Their movement, known as Salafiyyah, was not the rigid sectarianism that bears that name today. It was an intellectual liberation rooted in Tawḥīd, the Oneness of Allah, and the unity of the ummah.They stood against blind imitation (taqlīd) of inherited doctrines. They believed that the Book of Allah is a living revelation—sufficient, self-explanatory, and compatible with sound intellect. They sought to reopen the gates of ijtihād, to reawaken the Muslim mind to the same creative energy that built the early civilizations of Islam.This was the original Salafiyyah—a reform of thought, not a policing of behavior; a revival of spirit, not an enforcement of uniformity.Over time, however, the word Salafiyyah was hijacked. What began as a revival of Qur’anic intellect became a movement of narrow literalism and political submission. Funded and exported through petro-kingdoms and state-controlled institutions, modern “Salafism” came to mean blind allegiance to men rather than reflection upon Allah’s words. It promoted sectarian division instead of unity, and silenced spiritual reason in favor of rigid conformity.This was never the way of the Prophets, nor the message of the Qur’an.In our time, a new awakening has begun—the Indigenous Muslim American Muur Society (IMAMS) and its guiding philosophy, the Qur’an First Approach (QFA). Like Afghani and ‘Abduh, we affirm that the Qur’an is the Criterion (al-Furqān) by which all truth is measured. But unlike earlier reformists who operated within the framework of colonial modernity, the QFA goes further: it seeks to decolonize the very foundations of religious identity and restore Islam to its natural, Indigenous roots.QFA is not a new sect or ideology. It is a return to the natural order (al-dīn al-fiṭrah) that the Qur’an describes as the original covenant of all creation. It reminds us that Islam did not begin in Arabia, nor does it belong to any race or sect—it is the divine pattern woven into the very fabric of life.To put the Qur’an first is to remove all intermediaries between the Creator and His creation. It is to read, reflect, and respond to the divine signs in both scripture and nature. It is to reclaim the clarity that Allah Himself promised:“And We have certainly made the Qur’an easy to remember—so is there any who will remember?” — Qur’an 54:17Qur’an First. Fitrah Always. No Sects, Just Truth.When “Reform” Became RegressionThe Qur’an First Approach (QFA)