Understanding Suffering: Faith, Justice & Divine Wisdom

Instructor: Dr. Daoud Nassimi

Why does Allah allow suffering? What is the purpose of trials? How do divine decree, human choice, justice, and mercy fit together when we encounter hardship?

These questions have profound implications for how we understand Allah and respond to the difficulties of life.

Over five weeks, Dr. Daoud Nassimi will examine suffering from an Islamic perspective, beginning with the purpose of human life and the role of tests and trials. Students will explore divine guidance and human responsibility, different forms of suffering and the wisdom that may lie behind them, and the relationship between justice in this world and ultimate justice in the Hereafter.

The course will also consider the spiritual response to hardship—including patience, gratitude, hope, perseverance, and trust in Allah.

The aim is not to offer simplistic answers to difficult experiences, but to develop a more grounded Islamic framework for understanding suffering while strengthening faith in Allah’s wisdom, justice, and mercy.

Location: ADAMS Leesburg
Schedule: Fridays, after Maghrib
Start Date: November 6, 2026
Duration: 5 weeks
Audience: Open to all adults

Topics include: Purpose of Life; Tests and Trials; Divine Guidance and Human Free Will; Forms of Suffering and Their Wisdom; Divine Justice in the Hereafter.