"There is no god but God: Sufi Understandings on the Shahada" Khutbah by Noor-Malika Chishti (2/26/16)

Khateebah Noor-Malika Chishti delivers the 14th khutbah for The Women's Mosque of America on February 26th, 2016. As the mosque's first Sufi khateebah, Sister Noor-Malika shared her wisdom and insights from the Sufi tradition in understanding the Shahada (Muslim declaration of faith). After the jumma'a prayer service was over, Sister Noor-Malika led the congregation of women in a beautiful dhikr (remembrance) in honor of the Shahada.

Bio:
Sister Noor-Malika Chishti has been involved in interfaith work for over 40 years. Her training—beginning in 1972—in the Inayati Order introduced her to the diverse ways in which people approach spiritual practice. In 1999, she began exploring the Islamic roots of Sufism and, on the Night of Laylat al-Qadr, accepted Islam. Today, she serves as Vice President of reGeneration, an American interfaith non-profit organization that advances quality early childhood development and education in the Middle East, building bridges locally to effect sustainable change for future generations. Sister Noor-Malika is also a founding member of the Southern California Muslim-Jewish Forum, an umbrella body focused on strengthening Muslim-Jewish ties in Greater Los Angeles, and she is a founding member and Vice Chair Emeritus of the Southern California Committee for the Parliament of World Religions (SCCPW). She has been a member of the West Los Angeles Cousins group, where Jewish and Muslim women meet to engage in dialogue and service, for 13 years. Sister Noor-Malika’s professional background was in the non-profit sector before she retired to become an administrator for the Crossroads School for the Arts & Sciences in Santa Monica, CA. She is a recipient of the “Golden Heart Award” of the Inayati Order “in recognition of [her] vital efforts in the service of the Message of Love, Harmony and Beauty.” In 2008, she founded Musallah Tauhid, where Sufi Muslims from different orders share a sacred space with a Jewish and Christian congregation in which they work to come to know one another and protect the environment. She is also a grandmother and a poet.