Women Excel
The Perfect Imam is a Woman
Ibn Arabi (1165-1240 CE) the esteemed Muslim theologian, philosopher and mystic voiced an insightful statement:
“The most perfect man is a woman”
Aisha College modifies the predicate: The perfect imam is a woman. The data is irrefutable. Women are better suited for the occupation of imam than men. For example, if I were 6’ 5” and weighed 200 pounds I would not excel as a professional horse racing jockey. Typically, success in that field is a weight between 110-118 lbs. and short height. My point is that women possess maternal, biological and psychological advantages for spiritual leadership. Consider these three:
- Oxytocin: The Biological Foundation of Mercy
Women’s higher oxytocin levels promote compassion, aligning with prophetic rahmah (mercy). This enhances empathy for spiritual struggles, facilitates trust within the jama’ah, and provides calming stability during crises. - Nurturing Orientation: Tarbiyah as Vocation
Women’s maternal approach addresses believers holistically—emotional, physical, social, and spiritual needs—rather than focusing narrowly on doctrine. This protective patience sustains long-term spiritual development while shielding believers from extremism. - Relationship Building: The Foundation of Ummah
Women’s collaborative leadership fosters collective spiritual ownership. Superior communication skills—emotional expression, active listening, nonverbal awareness—enable effective teaching and counsel while preserving relationships during conflict.
Conclusion: Men have been socialized to suppress emotions—not to cry, hug, or express feelings. This makes the crucial “18-inch journey from head to heart” difficult for male religious leaders. Women make this journey naturally and frequently. They are natural relationship builders who excel at community formation—essential functions for any imam serving the ummah.
Three Qur’anic Nails in the Coffin of Male Religious Supremacy
First — Equal Reward (3:195)
So their Lord responded to them: “I will never deny any of you—male or female—the reward of your deeds. Both are equal in reward. Those who migrated or were expelled from their homes, and were persecuted for My sake and fought and ˹some˺ were martyred—I will certainly forgive their sins and admit them into Gardens under which rivers flow, as a reward from Allah. And with Allah is the finest reward!”
Second —Equal Righteousness (33:35)
“Surely ˹for˺ Muslim men and women, believing men and women, devout men and women, truthful men and women, patient men and women, humble men and women, charitable men and women, fasting men and women, men and women who guard their chastity, and men and women who remember Allah often—Allah has prepared for them forgiveness and a great reward.”
Third — Equal Culpability & Equal Forgiveness (20:121)
Much of the hadith-based argumentation against female religious leadership borrows — consciously or not — from the Biblical framework of female culpability and untrustworthiness. The Qur’an provides no such foundation. By refusing to scapegoat the woman, the Qur’an refuses to provide theological ground for her permanent subordination. This is precisely the argument Aisha College makes: the barriers against female imams have no Qur’anic basis — only cultural and Biblical contamination dressed in Islamic clothing.
In Genesis 3, Eve is portrayed as the primary agent of the Fall — she is tempted first, she eats first, she gives the fruit to Adam. God then curses her specifically: “I will greatly multiply your pain in childbearing… and your desire shall be for your husband, and he shall rule over you” (Genesis 3:16). Eve’s initiative in disobedience becomes the theological justification for male dominion over women.
This narrative was weaponized for centuries by Christian and later Islamic patriarchal scholars to argue that:
- Women are more susceptible to deception than men
- Women cannot be trusted with religious authority
- Women’s subordination to men is divinely ordained punishment for Eve’s sin
- Women should not teach or lead men spiritually
The Apostle Paul made this explicit in 1 Timothy 2:12–14: “I do not permit a woman to teach or to assume authority over a man… For Adam was formed first, then Eve. And Adam was not the one deceived; it was the woman who was deceived and became a sinner.”
The Qur’anic Correction
The Qur’an tells the story without assigning primary blame to the woman. In Surah Al-A’raf (7:20–23), Iblis whispers to both of them together. Both eat. Both are addressed by Allah together. Both repent together. Both are forgiven together. Critically, in Surah Ta-Ha (20:121), the Qur’an states: “Thus Adam disobeyed his Lord and erred” — placing the primary moral responsibility on Adam, not his wife.