Faculty & Advisers

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Professor & Chairman of the Canadian Centre For Deen Studies as well as a visiting Professor of Islamic Studies in different Universities and colleges especially in Indonesia , Malaysia and Turkey. He is an educator, a spiritual leader and a chairman for a good number of organizations. He brings to the Centre a rich experience of more than 28 years in both religious studies and resources management. Dr. Slimi teaches:

. Islamic Jurisprudence (Fiqh) and its Fundaments (Usul)

. Objectives of the law (Maqasid) & Legal Maxims (Qawa'id)

. Anthropology of Religion

. Interpersonal Skills Development 

. Ethics, Beliefs and Tasawwuf

. Arabic Language Studies & Translation 

. Counselling & Psycho-Spiritual Therapy

For more details please visit: www.hamidslimi.com

Professor of Exegesis & Islamic thought.

Dr. Arafat Elashi holds a Phd in Arabic and Islamic Studies. He has served as the Canadian Director of the Muslim World League and the Chief of Translation and Research Section at the Ministry of Awqaf and Islamic Affairs in Kuwait. Dr. El-Ashi has also hosted numerous TV and radio shows on Islam and is the author of several notable books on Islam. He is a regular Khatib and lecturer at Sayeda Khadija Centre and many others Islamic Centres in Ontario  

Professor & Adviser

Dr. Liepert teaches interfaith and outreach. A Calgary Anesthesiologist and a Muslim community leader in both roles dedicated to waking people up to a better life and a better world. He is passionate about people and building bridges in society. He chaired many projects and programs including Calgary Shura Council, acted as the VP and spokesperson for Faith of Life and co-chaired the Abraham's Tent interfaith dialogue. He is also dedicated to building future leadership, empowering and training chaplains and young Imams. He served various Canadian Muslim communities either at the board or shura levels including Sayeda Khadija Centre. He has also acted as an adviser on interfaith issues and public relations to a good number of organizations including the council of Imams. He is the author of Muslim, Christian and Jew: Finding a Path to Peace Our faiths can share.

Professor of Law and Ethics

Dr. Al-Nadvi comes from the famous Indian Nadwat-ul-Ulama in Lucknow. He holds a Masters and a PhD from Umm al-Qura University in Makkah. He was a professor there and later moved to Canada as an Imam & educator in Calgary then Oakville. He has been serving as the chairman of the Canadian Council of Imams since 2013 and trained many chaplains and Imams especially in the Canadian forces, public institutions and Masajid. His expertise is Islamic Law and Usual a-Fiqh, Exegesis, Qur'an and Hadith studies and more.

Professor of Canadian Studies & Women in Religion

Dr. Bullock became active in the Muslim community in 1994 when she converted to Islam during the second year of her PhD in political  science. After encountering negative reactions upon her wearing a  headscarf, she decided to change her thesis topic to focus on Western  reactions to the veil. Since then she has been seeking ways to bring  Muslim voices to the fore. Co-founding The Tessellate Institute in 2007  has been part of that journey. Beyond TTI she is a Lecturer at the  University of Toronto, operates a small independent publishing company,  and is Vice-President of the North American Association for Islam and  Muslim Studies. She also works hard at being present for her children.

Dr. Sadaf Sheikh is an individual who wears many hats professionally. She is an MD, a Clinical Researcher a Project Management Professional, an Instructor/Professor at UofT and Humber College and a family oriented female.

She is also a published author of a few medical research publications featured in the most prestigious medical journals. Her research has been published in the Journal of American College of Cardiology, International Diabetes Federation and the Journal of European Society of Cardiology. 

Sadaf also conducts her own mental health workshops which speak about stress management, relationship management, good communication skills and Applied Suicide Interventions Skills training (ASIST). ASIST is a very powerful workshop that allows for anybody who gets certified in it to be able to do suicide first aid. Just like CPR certification is common within our general public and communities, there is a need for suicide first aid to be common as well. 

She has conducted the ASIST program at the Centre for Deen Studies and has delivered workshops in psychospiritual therapy and counseling and other related topics to mental health with Dr. Hamid Slimi. 

Sadaf aims to build a stronger community through her compassion to educate and bring awareness to mental health.

Professor of Qur'an & Arabic Language Studies

Ustadha Rikaz Rabah has been teaching at CCDS since the inception. She brings a very long experience of teaching Arabic for all age groups and all levels. She graduated with a bachelor in Islamic Studies and also Arabic language studies. 

Farah Islam, PhD, completed her doctoral studies at York University and her postdoctoral fellowship at the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health and the University of Toronto. She explores mental health and service access in Canada's racialized and immigrant populations, focusing primarily on Muslim and South Asian populations. Dr. Islam is currently an adjunct professor at Emmanuel College at the University of Toronto and teaches the course “Muslim Mental Health: Research, Policy, and Practice.” She has taught Muslim youth/adolescent mental health courses at the Islamic Institute of Toronto (IIT) and Islamic Online University. Dr. Islam also works at Sound Vision as a Mental Health Specialist and Screenwriter for the children’s TV puppet show, Adam’s World. Dr. Islam orients her research and community work around breaking down the barriers of mental health stigma.

Dr. Khan is an adviser and the Professor of Personal & Community Development as well as Interfaith outreach and relations. In addition to that she has a successful career as Professor of Clinical Medicine at McMaster University and Director of the Calcium Disorders Clinic at McMaster University. Her research interests are parathyroid disorders as well as osteoporosis.  She has been recognized for her contributions to scientific advancements in the management of  these conditions and has  received numerous national and international awards including the International Clinician Instructor of the Year 2011 award by the International Society of Clinical Densitometry.The Queen’s Diamond Jubilee Medal for 2012 for excellence in clinical care, research and teaching  , the International Hypoparathyroidism Award for 2014 as well as the International Osteoporosis Foundation Award for 2017 for publishing excellence. She has published more then 150 scientific papers on osteoporosis and parathyroid disease as well as books and numerous book chapters.

Dr. Khan has also published and lectured on Islam’s contributions to Medicine, and is actively involved in interfaith dialogue and promoting mutual respect and understanding across faiths and cultures. Dr Khan regularly speaks at Churches, Synagogues and Mosques on  the Abrahamic Faiths .Dr Khan was one of the founders of  Abraham’s Children Together an organization consisting of Jews, Christians and Muslims who  jointly sponsored  Syrian refugee families .  She is the chair of Canadians in Support of Refugees In Dire Need (CSRDN) a multifaith organization dedicated to advocating for people facing persecution globally. 

Ustadh Asim Malik is an Industrial Engineer by education and profession as well as one of the first graduates of the Canadian Centre For Deen Studies. He has been studying and serving at the centre for more than 11 years and he has been the student of Dr. Hamid Slimi for more than 15 years. He teaches Fiqh of Ibadat 101 and also Da'wah and communication. 

Resources Management & Ethical Financing

Ust. Rehan Saeed has an MBA in Islamic Banking and Finance from the well renowned International Islamic University of Malaysia and a BA in Information Technology from York University, Toronto, Canada.  

For many years, he has been instrumental in designing papers and contracts for ethical and Islamic financing and coordinates between the experts and his clients till the final stage of endorsement. He acts as an advisor to various Credit unions in Ontario. He also works with Centennial College in Toronto to offer the well renowned Islamic Finance Qualification (IFQ) from the UK and make it part of the business curriculum.

Counseling & Psychotherapy

We have a strong team of spiritual and marriage counselors in addition to marriage and family therapists. We regularly conduct small groups workshops and 1 on 1 training sessions with first hand experience.