Understanding The LGBT Issue From An Islamic Perspective
By Yasir Qadhi | 2026-01-08T06:01:21.573141+00:00 | Topic: Knowledge
Understanding the LGBT Issue from an Islamic Perspective
Shaykh Dr. Yasir Qadhi
Introduction: The Challenge Facing the Next Generation
Allah is my Lord, Islam is my religion, Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah, and my faith is closer to Him, I prostrate in front of Him, accept my prayer, and pray for me. Perhaps the main question that the next generation is struggling with is why does Islam hold such a strict stance from their perspective? Why is it haram? Why would Allah criminalize something that might be natural, or what's the big deal would two consenting adults do in the privacy of their bedroom? And this question has raised doubts in the minds of our next generation to the point that they're considering Islam to be an invalid religion based upon its stance on LGBT. So I want to take a step back, and I want to ask a more philosophical question.
The Purpose and Role of Pleasure in Life
What is the purpose of pleasure? Why do we enjoy certain things over others? And what is the role of pleasure in our daily life? Well, if we look at it, pleasure, whether it is the pleasure of the sensuality, or the pleasure of food and drink, or the pleasure of spending money on a sport, whatever. Pleasure allows us to live our lives in a comfortable manner. We thank Allah that we enjoy eating and drinking.
There's a pleasure associated with that. We thank Allah that intimacy is pleasurable. Because if it weren't, maybe procreation would not be, you know, that important to some amongst mankind.
So if you look at it, Allah has granted us pleasure in various fields to make our life easier for us. Now, in any field we understand that too much pleasure or to go satisfy our desires unconditionally is harmful. This is something we understand in every field.
The Analogy of Food and Balanced Consumption
The most obvious one is that of food and drink. We enjoy certain foods. I enjoy... What's my favorite food, guys? A lot of you know. Ice cream. That's my favorite. Ice cream. But biryani comes there as well, but ice cream. I love ice cream.
Now, a lot of us love sweets. Will anybody say that we should base our food based upon what we enjoy eating? Think about the question I'm asking you, the purpose of pleasure. And how we decide and give value to something.
If I enjoy sweets over protein, should I just consume sweets all day? If your child were to ask you, I don't want to eat the broccoli. I don't want to eat even the protein chicken. I want to eat just cake and ice cream all day long. You as a parent will say, no, I'm sorry, that's not... You have to... Yes, it's fine to have ice
cream at the end in proper quantities, no problem. You know, given the context of what we're doing, you have the protein, you have the peas, you have the broccoli, and then you have a little bit of ice cream or a little bit of cake. My point is, we understand.
Applying the Same Logic to Other Pleasures
The same thing goes for spending money. If a husband, a father, you know, spent all his money on gambling, say, oh, I enjoy gambling. Well, how about rent? How about your children's education? We would say, you are foolish. You cannot just spend based upon pleasure.
Why, when it comes to sexuality, don't we understand the same thing? Why do we just want to have a free for all? You see, there's two different paradigms. The modern world that we live in, it is something called a hedonistic world, where Carpe Diem, YOLO, you live only once, go ahead and do it. The philosophy of the modern world we live in is the philosophy of hedonism, to satisfy the sensual desires.
The Hedonistic Paradigm vs. Islamic Boundaries
And based on that philosophy, if a person wants to engage in multiple intercourse, engage in premarital, extramarital, as long as it's consenting, go for it. But they do not apply the same philosophy of free for all when it comes to the food that they intake, when it comes to what they spend their money on, when it comes to the other pleasures of the body and the soul. They understand that, no, even pleasures come in proportional packages. There are things that you should not do, red lines that you should not cross.
With that introduction, we then get to who decides what those red lines are. Who decides what is good pleasure and what is bad pleasure? Who decides what is halal and haram? And we get back to the initial question that I did downstairs, which is we need a higher power to tell us what good and bad is.
The Evidence Against Unrestricted Sexuality
And of course, when it comes to sexuality, studies after studies have done it. There's a really good book out there, what was it called? Casual sex? I forgot what it is. The book of culture, I forgot. There's a really best-selling book, I just read it last year. And it's a modern researcher who has demonstrated the negative impacts of the hook-up culture.
What is the hook-up culture for our adults in the audience who don't know what the hook-up culture is? The hook-up culture is the free-for-all sexuality. Just anybody has sex with everybody. You know, the rate of intercourse in high schools and colleges, 70% now. 70-75% in high schools and in colleges.
It's something that is shocking. What our generation does not know is that this is a modern statistic. Even one generation ago, in the 60s, one generation ago, the average middle-class American family, the average middle-class male and female, waited until marriage to engage in intercourse.
The Consequences of Licentiousness
All of this free-for-all is one generation old. We are seeing the repercussions of all of this right now. We're seeing the impact in the stability of the family, in the raising of the children, in divorce rates skyrocketing.
So, opening up the door to licentiousness, opening... and it's not just LGBT. Another major issue is pornography. We're seeing for the first time the impacts of pornography on a society and culture. The mainstreaming of that which is taboo is opening up weird fetishes, bizarre kinky desires that is harmful according to almost all people of intelligence. We see the realities and repercussions of just having a free- for-all. And still, we do not understand the wisdom of the sharia.
The Islamic Framework for Sexuality
Sex is a blessing from Allah when it's done properly. When the enjoyment is between husband and wife, it is a blessing from Allah. Our Prophet (peace be upon him) said, it's an act of worship. Why? Because it's a blessing that Allah has given to preserve the family, to build the bonds between two people that will raise the next generation. They're going to care for one another because the average human being needs a mother and father in their life. And again, survey after survey has shown that one of the main factors for the mental and physical well-being of an innocent child is a stable family structure.
Now again, these are deep topics. I'm not saying single family parents always fail. I'm not saying that. But I'm saying the default is what? The norm is what? Having a stable family impacts the next generation. Having a loving father and mother in the household brings about lower crime rates. You know, higher cases of mental and intellectual maturity. You know, growing up to understand that there's responsibilities in the next generation. Having a role model mother, a role model father, this does have an impact on the psyche of the child.
The Rational Argument and Its Limitations
Now, my point is, this is the rational defense of the normal traditional understanding of marriage. However, when it comes to these rational defenses, you can always poke holes, you can always find exceptional scenarios. And I understand this, and I know the back and forth between the traditional marriage folks amongst the Christian Muslim community and between the modern LGBT. And I do admit, if you remove God from the picture, you remove morality from the picture, for every why you can say why not, for every and you can say what if, for every because you can.
So, once you remove morality and God from the picture, it becomes a free for all. Which is why, even though a rational argument can be made for normal traditional understandings of marriage, I say, that needs even faith to fully believe. If you don't have faith, it becomes a free for all.
The Need for Divine Guidance
And when you don't have faith, all I can argue for is, where do you draw the line? Will you consider incest to be rational, bestiality, pedophilia? Where will you draw the line? There is no line to be drawn once you remove God from the picture. So with Allah in the picture, then there has to be a sense of
"- We hear and we obey. So we hear and we obey, and Allah has clearly told us what is right and wrong.
So, before I move on, can you make a rational argument against same-sex sexuality? My answer is, and I'm sorry to disappoint the elders, it's a feeble yes. Yes, but. You can, but. And you can, because there are enough surveys and statistics to show plenty of evidence. But still, if you wanted to, you could dismiss it all, and you can say, well, if this is done and that is done, then why would it be morally wrong to have same-sex? And I understand that paradigm. Which is why I say, the water-proof case, really you have to bring in Allah and His Messenger.
The Package Deal of Faith
You have to say, the validity of Islam is not decided based upon sexuality and its laws. It's decided based upon the Quran, based upon Allah, based upon the bigger questions. Once you know Islam to be true, it comes with a package deal. Whether you understand it or not, Allah says in the Quran, alcohol has some benefit. He's not negating. Allah says in the Quran
- there are benefits for people. Alcohol is beneficial. It's in the Quran. But then Allah says what? But the sin of alcohol, the harms of alcohol is more than the benefit.
How can our limited minds grasp this when we're the ones enjoying alcohol? We're the ones as a humanity getting drunk. We're the politicians. How can we decide? We need Allah to tell us, alcohol is not good. Same goes for sexuality. Who will tell us what sexuality is healthy, what sexuality isn't? Who will tell us where the line is to be drawn? If you open this door, then I challenge you, who is going to close it? Where will that red line be drawn? On what basis is incest going to be made immoral and illegal?
The Slippery Slope Argument
Which is why many theologians, many philosophers who don't believe in God are saying, okay, I guess consenting brothers and sisters, consenting adults, fathers and daughters, (audhu billah, audhu billah). You know, it should be legal for them. And from their paradigm, how can you deny that? So, you can use the floodgate arguments called like, what if you allow it? In the end of the day, Allah has very clearly told us, this type of expression of sexuality is not conducive to society.
And the same goes to premarital and extramarital. It's not just the LGBT. It's also any sexuality outside the bonds of marriage. For our tradition, that intimacy that comes, the feelings that come, the yearning, the pleasure that comes, it comes along with protection and care. We do not want to throw that pleasure
away into a one night stand. That's not valuable. You're wasting that pleasure. That pleasure brings about an emotion. That emotion is meant to keep the family stable. If you just throw it away and have one night stand after one night stand, even in the opposite gender, male, woman, you're destroying what that pleasure is meant. And that is to stabilize families. How much more so when that pleasure is not going to bring about the stabilization of families.
The Role of Faith in Moral Understanding
The bottom line, yes, you can make the rational argument that I feel that it's not something that if you don't believe in God, you'll fully believe. So, we have to bring in the moral argument from religion. Then we get to the second point.
Addressing the Question of Fairness
Okay, but is it fair? Even if you believe in Islam, you say, okay, the story of Lut is very explicit that Allah made this sin to be an evil. But how, why is it fair? How is it fair? And the response to this is, once again we say
"- Allah will never place a burden on a soul more than that soul is capable of bearing.
So, any burden that the person has, any struggle, any desires, whatever exists, Allah will not place more than that person is physically, emotionally capable of dealing with. Therefore, we say, any desire that we have, without exception, any desire, whether it is permissible or not, Allah has given us the tools to deal with that desire internally. If it is permissible, then we channel it to that which is permissible. So, the desire for food and drink, there's plenty of halal options, avoid the haram options. The desire of recreation, plenty of halal options. Go and have fun and play sports, but gambling, no, that is haram. That recreation is haram. The desire of intimacy and sex, halal options are there and haram options. So, for every urge of mankind, there's something that is halal that can be expressed, and there's other that is haram. You will find enough in the halal.
Nature vs. Nurture: A Scientific Perspective
Now, what if somebody says, Oh, but I was born this way, I was created this way, this is beyond my control. The response to this, listen to me carefully, nature versus nurture. Firstly, from a purely scientific perspective, the jury is out on this, even though the latest survey, as we all know, it went viral last week, the latest survey, it appears to be more nurture than nature.
I.e., people are not born predisposed to this or that, rather circumstances occur in their lives that just subconsciously alter them because of their own experiences or upbringing or whatnot. And by the way, I have had, this is anecdotal, don't say this is a scientific survey, me personally, I have had dozens of people come to me because of who I am, confide in me, email me, dozens of people, and again, don't misquote me, I'm not a psychiatrist, I'm not a shrink, I'm not... Anecdotally, everyone who came to me with an issue
of same-sex desire or attraction, it was self-evident, something happened to them as a young person that influenced this, whether they were molested, whether or not they were raped, whether there was a missing father figure or overbearing father figure, whatever it was, just 20 minutes of conversation, and I'm just being generic, this is anecdotal, please don't say this is scientific, I'm just talking about me, myself and I, what I have experienced, and also by the way, what the latest survey has shown, if you read the latest survey, but all that is irrelevant to the next point.
The Islamic Position: Impulse vs. Action
Whether it's nature or nurture, whether the person is born with it or not, Allah has made acting upon certain impulses haram. So even if a person is born with it, that person must control the impulse, and they are not sinful for having the impulse. And I have said this many times, please don't misquote me, being very careful of my wordings, to feel an attraction for the same gender is not sinful. You are no lesser of a Muslim if you are attracted to the same gender. You are not sinful in the eyes of Allah for an attraction of the heart. You are not sinful for an emotion. You are not sinful for the inclination you happen to be in.
Do not feel that you are any lesser of a person in the eyes of Allah because of your inclinations. So, can a Muslim be oriented to be same sex, homosexual or lesbian? We say, a Muslim who is struggling with same sex attractions is no lesser of a Muslim than a Muslim who is struggling with opposite sex attractions. The desire is not sinful.
The Parallel with Opposite-Sex Attractions
I am a regular normal male. If I find a beautiful female attractive and I think that to me, it's my job to lower my gaze. It's my job to control that desire. It's not my responsibility to say, Oh Allah, I can't help it. I find her attractive. I'm gonna go and do whatever I want. No, if I find her attractive, I'm not sinful. If I act upon the attraction, then I am sinful. You understand this point here? Finding somebody attractive, finding somebody to be, you know, Oh, I'm wanting her, desiring her. That's something that is beyond the control of a human being. But to act upon that, to flirt, to go and do this and that, then this is where the sin occurs.
So, if a person has the attraction to the same gender and they are struggling with that attraction, they are no lesser of a Muslim. In fact, maybe, in all likelihood, they are better Muslims if they counteract that desire and control that desire for the sake of Allah.
The Nature of the Sin and Divine Forgiveness
So, to be a lesbian or a homosexual in inclination is not wrong. Please don't misquote me. Inclination, it is not wrong. To act upon it is a sin, just like acting upon opposite desires outside of marriage is a sin. Technically, it's slightly worse of a sin, but it is in the same category of sin, which is fahisha. It is that category of sin called fahisha.
So, a lady or a man who is engaging in the action of intimacy with another lady, or in the case of man, another man, this is a sin in the eyes of Allah. It doesn't make them kafir or murtad. And like every sin, Allah is forgiving to the one who chooses to come to Allah. Allah is ghafoor and raheem for the one who is tawwab, for the one who commits tawbah and returns to Allah.
How to Deal with Those Who Commit This Sin
Therefore, if you know of a Muslim who is engaged in any sin, whether it's this one or any other sin, your job is to cover that sin. Don't publicize it. Your job is to go to that person in private if you're close to that person. If you know somebody taking drugs, are you gonna go and put it on Facebook, Hey, I saw so and so taking drugs. No, if you know somebody going to the bar and drinking, you're gonna say, Hey, yesterday I went, I saw that guy entering the bar over there. None of your business.
Our Prophet (peace be upon him) said, "Whoever covers the faults of his Muslim brother, Allah will cover his faults on judgment day." If you know a person engaged in this sin, you are allowed to go to them directly and speak to them. But you're not allowed to expose their sin to other people. That's between them and Allah. And if you wanna speak to them directly, speak gently like the people, like Lut said to his people.
The Example of Prophet Lut's Approach
Look at how Lut addressed his people. Lut was living in a society where the sin became the norm. Did he go around with a scowl on his face saying, audhu billah, you jabbing at me people, spitting in their direction. No! But did he do that? Or what did he say?
"Indeed, I am, toward your deed, among those who detest [it]." He said, People, this action that you're doing, I don't like it.
You see, when you address the person, you don't say, audhu billah, I hate you. What type of, what type of psychology is that? You don't say, You are filthy. audhu billah. Lut is speaking to the people and he says,
This action that you are doing, I don't like it.
Proper Da'wah Methodology
When you're giving da'wah, you do not give da'wah by making the very people you're giving da'wah to feel less human. audhu billah. They're equally human even if they're committing a sin. Even if the sin is a grave sin. You do not dehumanize them by the sin that they're doing. You separate the sin from the sinner. And you talk about the sin and not the sinner. And you say, This sin is an evil sin. We don't agree with this sin. Don't bring the sinner in and make the sinner feel lesser human. Because the goal is what? To dehumanize him? No. The goal is to make him think that, Is this good or not?
Supporting Those Who Struggle
So, even if you know a Muslim who's engaged in this, your job is to cover the sin and go to them directly. Speak to them directly and say, Brother, sister, you know, is this the case? If it is, you know, should I give them something I can do? What not? And also, I have to say this, brother, sister. And again, because people come to me, they email me, what not? I mean, these are stories I know from the reality of the ummah.
Multiple times this has happened and they've emailed me. A brother or a sister is struggling with same sex desires. They're struggling. And they feel trapped because there's nobody to talk to. They want to talk to somebody. They want help. And the brother will go to a best friend and say, Brother, I need help. I need help. I'm struggling with this.
The Wrong Response: Ostracization
And instead of the best friend helping, instead of confiding and helping and affirming, the person becomes angry, disgusted. Don't talk to me anymore. Don't come to me again. One case, I had a roommate confided in a roommate that he felt finally this is a Muslim that I can confide in. I need help. And the roommate cancelled the contract and said, find another place to live.
Can you imagine how this person's gonna feel? Like you've come for help. He's not coming to flirt with you. He's coming for help. He's saying, my parents don't know. My Imam doesn't know. I need your help. And he comes confiding in you or she will come confiding in a friend and instead you become disgusted. And I don't understand why every one of us, if your friend came and told you anything, you would want to help. If they came and told you they have a drug problem, an alcohol problem, a gambling problem, what would you do? You would feel a genuine sense of sympathy. Oh, I will help. We'll do something. Why is it, dear Muslims? Why is it when they come with this problem, you feel a sense of dehumanization? No, they're coming for help.
The Right Response: Support and Inclusion
So do what you can to help them. They're coming for validation, not of the action, that they're still Muslims. They want to be within the community. And I would be that ostracization, the word spread, we shouldn't come to the masjid. It's none of your business who comes to the masjid, as long as they don't cause problems among other people. We will accept the worst sinner, the drug addict, the whatever. We will accept anybody to come and pray to Allah. Allah did not appoint us to monitor the people coming to repent to Him. We don't do that.
So, even the one who commits the sin remains a Muslim. That means, they have the rights of Islam over you. That means, you will still say salam to them, you will still make dua for them, give them dawah directly, and not embarrass them in public, as you would with any other sinner.
Drawing the Line: Private vs. Public Justification
Now, where do we draw the line? For me, the line is very clear. When the person attempts to justify or preach to others. This is why we say, now, brother, you are not keeping it private. Now, if you come and you want to tell our community to do this, just like if somebody wanted to sell alcohol on a premises, no, I'm sorry, it's legal outside over there, the parking lot, go to the other side of the street, do whatever you want, I can't do anything. But this is our zone. This is our rituals, our akhlaq, our morality.
You come, and you pray to Allah, we will not ask. But you come, and you preach something contrary to our religion, you sell drugs to our kids, even if marijuana might be legal outside, it's not allowed in our parking lots, in our schools, we will ban. So too, if somebody wants to justify, if somebody wants to preach to others, we say, no, this is not something we will tolerate in our masajid.
Separate Institutions for Different Values
You want to do something in this country, you open your own temples, you can call it whatever you want, you have your own, you know, things that you do, that's between you and the government, we will not call it a mosque, you can call it whatever you want, it's legal. It's legal, this is a free world, free country, you want to open your temple of worship, you want to have an LGBT, you know, and there are in America, you know, three, I think three masajid like this, okay, that's legal. Do whatever you want, but do not do this on our property, because this is an embodiment of our religion. We will preach our religion, we will preach our morality. As long as you want to conform to this morality publicly, then you are welcome to come here.
The Essence of Jihad: Internal Struggle
So the bottom line, when it comes to the LGBT within Islam, I'm coming to it outside of Islam, within Islam, we say, those that are struggling with it, without acting upon it, this is the essence of jihad. This is the essence of jihad. And we admire them, and we encourage them in this, in this personal jihad. Keep on struggling with this, and inshallah, in that struggle, there is your jannah.
And we say, that just like certain desires are not helpful, the desire to steal, the desire to rape, the desire to kill. Sometimes we get angry, we want to kill somebody. We say, you have to control it, it doesn't work, you can't just go and express your desire. And there are people that have urges to take alcohol. We say, look, you cannot act on that urge. There are people, they have disgusting perversion, I don't want to be too explicit, but you can imagine, there are disgusting perversions they have, that the government considers, thankfully, to be still illegal.
Controlling Unlawful Desires
Right? And so we say to these people, as well, what are you going to do when you desire something that
is not ethically, morally permissible to the standards of our times? We say, you have to control that desire. So too we say to the LGBT community as well. Well, technically, it's the LG community, as with the BT, we'll come to another question maybe for that one. That's a separate, they're lumped together, but I'm not talking about the trans and the bi-right, I'm talking about the same-sex desires.
Within the Community: Sin vs. Kufr
So that's within the community. Acting upon it as a sin, justifying it might technically be kufr. To say, I don't care what Allah says, to say it is halal in Islam, you are actually, audhu billah, bordering on kufr, to challenge Allah and His Messenger. That's where we draw the line.
Dealing with Non-Muslims: Civil Treatment
Now, as for outside of our community, how do we treat people that are of this persuasion? Honestly, I don't see this to be that complicated. As our religion says, there is no sin worse than shirk. How do we treat people committing shirk around us? If they treat us nice, we treat them nice. We smile, we're nice to them, we're calling. Do you mistreat people committing shirk in your office place? Do you scowl at their faces? Do you refuse to shake their hands? I mean, this is a sin. And shirk is a bigger sin. And we learn to deal with people who are committing shirk, living in a civil manner with them.
So, this is also a sin. And we can deal with the people involved in this in a civil manner. We don't have to endorse their lifestyle. We treat them like we treat everybody else around us. We can smile, yes. We can shake their hands. We can be nice to them. But if they invite us to their wedding, we don't have to attend. There is a line that we draw.
Political Involvement: A Complex Issue
If they want us to join their rally for their civil rights, this is a deeper topic. And my position has been very clear from the beginning, since the Supreme Court allowed this. Muslims, we don't have to get involved in every political issue of this land. And I personally am against endorsing LGBT rights unconditionally. Sometimes it's better to be quiet. We don't necessarily have to speak against them politically. But we must morally preach the truth. If we don't preach the moral truth, then we have failed in the religion of Allah's obligation on us.
Our Duty as Witnesses
"That you will be witnesses upon the people." If we do not say that we believe sexuality is something that is a blessing between marriage and not a blessing outside marriage. We have to preach this to the people. We can tone the words down. We can preach in a wise manner. But preach, we must. Because our goal in this life is to preach the religion of Allah.
Whether they agree or disagree.
"Upon you is only the conveyance [of the message], and upon Us is the account." We cannot change this truth. That intimacy and sexuality is something that is a blessing when it is done properly. And it is potentially a curse when it is not done properly. And you don't have to only mention this. You can also mention others. LGBT, extramarital, others. Anything in this should not be done.
The Complexity of Political Positions
The point being, the issue of politics in LGBT does become complicated in a more technical sense. So much can be said. There is a spectrum of permissive opinion from a theological perspective. Those who want to rally against it, I see where they're coming from and I understand it. Those that are technically saying I will support the political right but not the moral right. This is problematic insofar as it's very nuanced. And very few people will understand. And you're sending a mixed message to your own kids.
Do you really think your children will understand? I don't support you morally but I support you politically. But still, those who do so, I can't say that they are sinful in the eyes of Allah. They might be unwise. They might be doing something foolish in the long run. But morally speaking, they haven't crossed the red line in my eyes. This is my opinion.
The Alcohol Prohibition Analogy
That those who say the American government has no business dictating morality and therefore, I will say the American government should have nothing to do with who gets married and what not. I personally believe this is a dangerous position because you send a double message to our community. That community thinks you're endorsing them. That community feels you're coming on board with them. But then you speak to some of them and say, no, I'm not. I'm actually just, you know, politically.
And then our children as well. And the example I've given is the 21st Amendment which repealed the 18th Amendment. Alcohol, right? Imagine a hundred years ago that there was a debate going on should alcohol be legal or not. Because that's what happened a hundred years ago. Literally, a hundred years ago. There was a debate in America. Should we make alcohol legal or not? Because it was banned. You all know this, right? It was banned for thirteen years. It was completely illegal to purchase alcohol. You could go to jail. The prohibition era.
Now, a movement began. There were protests in the streets. There were protests in the streets. There was marching in Washington, D.C. to make alcohol legal. Do you think Muslims should have participated in those protests? At the forefront. Yes, make alcohol legal. The government has no right telling us what we should drink. Do you think it would make any sense? Yet, for some reason, some Muslims think they should do that for the LGBT community.
Conclusion: The Balanced Approach
My position is that's not wise or safe, but I'm still trying to be technical and say I don't think they've crossed the theological red line as long as they say Islam does not allow this. They're being somewhat hypocritical, but khayr. Let them be. My personal position is you don't have to participate. That's what I know. Neither for nor against politically. Let them do what they're doing, and morally, we are preaching what we're preaching, and Allah is our witness.