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His Eminence Imam Mohamad Jebara delivered newspapers as a ten-year-old, and recycled discarded items, which he repaired and sold to fund his Islamic education. The religious classes jettisoned an artistically-inclined Jebara, perhaps unexpectedly, into the realm of senior Islamic scholarship.
Young Jebara became a prodigy, completing his memorization of the Quran by age 12, then developing encyclopedic expertise in Semitic languages, history, Biblical studies and Islamic jurisprudence. Jebara had his breakout role as a 13-year-old imam-in-training when he founded Cordova Academy, aiming to popularize advanced subjects of classical Arabic and Quranic learning, making them accessible to a popular Western audience.
From that point forward, Jebara’s list of successes feels longer than a phone book. As Chief Imam he served hundreds of diverse communities around the world, and has written 109 books on diverse topics ranging from language (Classical Arabic: The Gateway) and poetry (The Illustrious Garden) to history (Muhammad the World-Changer) and exegesis (The Life of the Quran). Additionally, Jebara founded several academic institutes ranging from an elite training school (Andalusia College) to a seminary (Instantia Seminary) through which he taught over 40,000 students.
Now, Jebara is a world-renowned scriptural philologist, jurist, linguist and prominent exegetist known for his nuanced writings, eloquent oratory style and unique efforts to bridge cultural and religious divides.
A polymath, Jebara has been called the “coolest Imam” by Canadian newspapers for his annual bikeathon (Cycling Cleric) in support of various charities and causes ranging from women’s health (Breast Cancer Foundation) and children’s wellbeing (United Way) to international development (UNICEF) and emergency relief (The Red Cross). Jebara has had his art featured in popular galleries (such as the Shenkman Art Center), written in prominent magazines (NewLines), features on national tv (CBC’s the National and the BBC) and advised senior diplomats and officials in the Canadian parliament and American Congress.
In 2021, St. Martin’s Press published his groundbreaking biography of Islam’s prophet “Muhammad the World-Changer: An Intimate Portrait” and in February will publish a companion biography: “The Life of the Quran.” The New York Times hailed Muhammad the World-Changer as a November 2021 highlight book, and The Washington Post praised how Jebara “takes established sources and weaves them together for a fresh telling.” The official launch event for the book was hosted by the French Consulate in New York City and attended by dignitaries.
“Muhammad the World-Changer: An Intimate Portrait” has been lauded by critics for its balanced—scholarly, yet accessible—rendering of the life of prophet Muhammad. Book events have been hosted by world-famous venues, such as the Cosmos club in Washington DC.
Jebara has lectured at prominent universities around the world, including McGill, Queens, Tufts, the Universiti Sains Islam in Malaysia, Muhammadiyyah University in Indonesia, Qarawiyyin University in Morocco, and Al-Azhar University in Lebanon. A nod to his role in positively impacting the lives of millions of congregants around the world in his role of Chief Imam, and his extensive retraining of hundreds of clerics, Jebara was granted the illustrious title “His Eminence the Most Venerable Chief Imam” by the late Grand Mufti of Lebanon.
Despite achieving professional and artistic success, Jebara had to overcome debilitating setbacks and great obstacles. As such, several of Jebara’s works explore traditional Islamic themes of recovery and healing fractures – noting how Quranic concepts of reconciling fractions inspired the invention of Algebra and other world-changing innovations by polymath scholars during Islam’s Golden Age. Jebara’s message is that the ancient wisdom of Islamic scholarship is more relevant than ever in our post-modern age and can help people of all spiritual outlooks elevate their life-journeys.
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