Twitter, scripture and practice: A twessay on #ttQuran

• In the name of God, the Most Compassionate, the Most Merciful¹The opening phrase of almost all the chapters of the Qur’an, and a phrase Muslims use to begin almost any activity. #ttQuran

• What is #ttQuran?
• We will tell you what is #ttQuran.

• What is #ttQuran?
• Truly you do not know what is #ttQuran.
• To know #ttQuran is beyond.
• It is only my ability to tell you about #ttQuran.
• #ttQuran is a revelation.

• Again, #ttQuran is a revelation.

• #ttQuran is not a revelation from God, but is a revelation for me, @islamoyankee.
• When I started #ttQuran as #Quran back in 2009, I had the advice and support of many others.
• We tried to move to #ttq, but that was a disaster²At the time, #ttq was used for “true teen quotes,” a stream that was almost a case study of sacred and profane. so @azizhp gave us #ttQuran.

• In 2011, @bibifatemeh connected me with @USATODAY. They wanted to talk #ttQuran.
• When @usatoday asked about #ttQuran, I was walking with @wajahatali. I passed him the phone.

• When we started #ttQuran, so few people, but so dedicated.
• Too many people to thank but must try.
• @thehoopoe @velveteenrabbi @shahed @MaggieM_S @ryanmakhani #ttQuran
• @loveinshallah @samarkahmad @altmuslimah @preciousspeaks @hindmakki @drsuad #ttQuran
• In #ttQuran there are many names mentioned, many others not, but all are important.
• These people are important for #ttQuran because they spread the word, but also taught me.
• There are many great questions about #ttQuran and what it means.

• What are the lessons of #ttQuran?
• The lessons of #ttQuran are many, but for each reader they differ. These are mine.

• What are the lessons of #ttQuran?
• #ttQuran was as inter-faith as intra-faith: the #Quran is kitab³ Book. and there are other ahl al-kitab.⁴People of the Book—communities (like Jews and Christians) that have received revelation.
• The ocean of the #Quran comes out in #ttQuran as we read it with those who know #Torah #Talmud #Midrash #Gospels and #Commentary.
• And the interfaith conversations of before are made now with #ttQuran, and point to the future.

• What are the lessons of #ttQuran?
• The “printing” of #ttQuran is different than the print of the book. It is conversation made word.
• Through #ttQuran the #Quran as printed text returns to its origins of being “heard” in bits.
• And in #ttQuran others engage with it with me, so it’s “heard” by community again.

• What are the lessons of #ttQuran?
• #ttQuran is dialogue and dialogic.
• To see the story of #Imamah emerge from #ttQuran is new for many.
• In discussing #ttQuran, the standards and assumptions of those new to #Quran are challenged
• & those who approach #Quran for the 1st time through #ttQuran hear resonances w/their traditions that their ears were surprised to hear
• & those who study #Torah #Talmud #Midrash #Gospels and #Commentary encounter new methodologies.

• What are the lessons of #ttQuran?
• Watch #ttQuran and see that it is open and for those who are curious.
• There are no limits on #ttQuran, but there is no hate.
• In the community of #ttQuran, hate can’t be a family value.
• With #ttQuran, all are welcome to build arguments that reflect positive engagement.
• Hearing #ttQuran means pushing to new meanings in shades, not absolutes.
• In this way, #ttQuran lets us see the #Quran in a new way, the old way.

• What are the lessons of #ttQuran?
• New and old verses are the core of my #ttQuran.
• The #Quran offers favorite phrases that keep reappearing in #ttQuran.
• & new verses reflect my inner life and the outer world during #ttQuran.

• What are the lessons of #ttQuran?
• One can see when the ruh  ⁵Soul. Divine Breath. The spiritual part of a human being. dominates, and when the dunya⁶The world. does in #ttQuran.

• What are the lessons of #ttQuran?
• The Mercy and Compassion of God are always in #ttQuran.
• And in #ttQuran the question of “which of your Lord’s favors would you deny?”⁷A constant refrain from Chapter 55 of the Qur’an. is always asked.
• I always use #ttQuran to show God’s love of the ahl ul-bayt.⁸People of the House. The five members of Prophet Muhammad’s household—Prophet Muhammad, Bibi Fatimah, Imam Ali, Imam Hasan, Imam Husayn (peace and blessings on them all) – whom the Qur’an explicitly selects for special blessings.
• Nur⁹A metaphysical light, usually of Divine origin and manifest in the world. and guidance are continuous themes of #ttQuran.

• What are the lessons of #ttQuran?
• Justice screams from the pages of #Quran and thus #ttQuran as well.
• Some verses of #Quran and some types of justice are more relevant in #ttQuran depending on what’s happening in the world.

• What are the lessons of #ttQuran?
• #ttQuran poses the fundamental question of the relationship between din and dunya.¹⁰≈ Religion.
• If din and dunya are separate, can we improve religion only by ignoring the world, even #ttQuran?
• Does technology, even #ttQuran, take us away from spirituality during #Ramadan☪?
• During #Ramadan☪ is #ttQuran a help or hinderance to spirituality?
• But is not the #Quran manifest in the world? Therefore, #ttQuran is religion in the world?
• If dunya and din are all part of God’s gift to us, doesn’t #ttQuran bring them together?

• What are the lessons of #ttQuran?
• #ttQuran is a tool.
• The world shapes religion, and religion should change the world for the better.
• #ttQuran uses the world to engage religion.
• #ttQuran can increase engagement with #Quran, then with religion, then with faith.

• #ttQuran engages with the world to increase maslaha.¹¹The common good.
• The lack of adalah¹²Justice. in the world makes us lose sakinah,¹³Contentment and peace/serenity/tranquility of the heart; the surety of God’s presence. & #ttQuran is a salve.
• With loss of ease, we turn to faith, manifest in religion, & seek adalah to restore sakinah. #ttQuran.

• What are the lessons of #ttQuran?
• #ttQuran brings about consciousness, awareness, and intentionality.
• In #ttQuran one has ikhwan,¹⁴Literally “brotherhood,” but more appropriately “companionship.” zaman,¹⁵Time. During the month of Ramadan, the Qur’an is read after the fast is broken, so it’s the right time to Tweet the Qur’an. and work to make the world a proper makan.¹⁶Place. There are places where it is inappropriate to read the Qur’an (like bathrooms), but we can work to make more places appropriate through technology.¹⁷These three components – ikhwan, zaman, makan – are considered basic considerations in constructing spiritual practices.

• These are some of the lessons of #ttQuran.
• But the learnings and knowledge and wisdom of #ttQuran are inexhaustible,
• for the learnings, knowledge, and wisdom of the #Quran are inexhaustible. #ttQuran

• What is #ttQuran?
• #ttQuran is a revelation of the Revelation.

• What is #ttQuran?
• #ttQuran are words for the unknown and ineffable, that use the new to make the old new, by making it old again.

• What is #ttQuran?
• The #Quran is an ongoing guidance, (re)made for each time, and for us, part of the remaking is through #ttQuran.

• What is #ttQuran?
• #ttQuran is a reflection of unfolding revelation.
• The people of #ttQuran are new every time, different from a year before or coming for the first time.

• What is #ttQuran?
• #ttQuran is an invitation to a conversation that is not ours, but is for us.¹⁸The Qur’an is a conversation with the believer and with itself, constantly revealing itself in every engagement. It is also an invitation to a conversation with God. The text and the conversation are God’s, but we are invited to it for our own benefit.

• What is #ttQuran?

Note from the Editors: This piece was updated on 2/13/2020 to remove an expired link to a Storify collection of social media posts.