We Can't Even Tolerate Our Own People...

About this lecture

In this opening lecture of a new module on sectarianism, Shaykh Yasir Qadhi takes a unique sociological and psychological approach — before citing any Quranic verses or hadith — to help the audience understand why religious communities fracture and why intra-faith hostility is often fiercer than interfaith tensions. Drawing on thinkers like Henri Tajfel, Jonathan Haidt, and Max Weber, he introduces five key cognitive and sociological biases: the paradox of sacred values, the narcissism of small differences, social identity theory, cognitive dissonance amplification, and competition for authority and legitimacy. The lecture challenges Muslims to develop self-awareness about these ingrained human tendencies so they can engage with sectarianism more maturely and honestly.