As part of the Syrian Future Movement’s series of tributes to Syrian figures who supported the revolution and stood up for the values of dignity and truth, we celebrate today one of the most prominent figures in scholarship and advocacy, the man with the resounding voice and thunderous pulpit, the venerable Sheikh Karim Rajeh.
A Biography of Knowledge and Jihad:
- Born in 1926 in the town of Kafr Hawr, southwest of Damascus, he grew up in the al-Midan neighborhood of Damascus in a poor family that worked in the meat industry. He learned the Quran.
- He memorized the Quran under Sheikh Yassin al-Zarzur and received his religious education at the Manjak Mosque. He then enrolled in the Faculty of Sharia at Damascus University, earning a diploma in education.
- He was certified in the ten readings of the Shatibiyyah and al-Durrah, and studied under prominent scholars such as Sheikh Ahmed al-Halwani and Sheikh Abdul Qader Quwaider.
- He worked as a Sharia teacher for more than four decades, teaching at the al-Fath Institute and the Sharia Secondary School, and delivering lessons and sermons in several mosques in Damascus.
- He assumed the position of Sheikh of the Qur’an reciters of the Levant after the death of Sheikh Hussein Khattab in 1988, and was pledged allegiance to at the Umayyad Mosque in the presence of prominent scholars of the Levant.
- He has valuable works on Quranic interpretation and recitations, including: Awda al-Bayan, Mukhtasar Tafsir al-Qurtubi, Mukhtasar Tafsir Ibn Kathir, and The Ten Recitations of the Mutawatir.
- His sermons were distinguished by their powerful influence and support for just causes, and he gained a reputation as one of the most prominent and influential preachers in Syria and the Islamic world.
Revolutionary and Religious Stance:
- He stood boldly with the Syrian revolution from its inception, considering it a revolution of truth against injustice.
- He announced his resignation from the pulpit of the al-Hassan Mosque on May 20, 2011, in protest against the brutal repression of demonstrators. He said:
“I send a message from here to the Minister of Endowments and to the Director of Endowments that I will not preach from today until these matters are resolved.” - He co-founded the Association of Scholars of the Levant in 2012 and headed the Sheikhdom of Reciters in the Syrian Islamic Council in 2017.
- He called for jihad for Syria and considered resisting injustice a religious duty that goes beyond fighting to awareness and stance.
- He issued bold stances in support of the nation’s causes, including his famous fatwa prohibiting the construction of a steel wall between Egypt and Gaza.
The Movement’s Shield: Honoring the Position and the Message:
We, in the Syrian Future Movement, and out of our belief in the role of scholars and preachers in shaping awareness and confronting tyranny, announce the honoring of Sheikh Karim Rajeh, the Sheikh of Reciters of the Levant, by awarding him the Movement’s symbolic shield in appreciation of his courageous stances, his role in supporting the Syrian revolution, and his sincere support for humanitarian values, freedom, and human rights.
