Shaykh Sāriyah al-Rifāʿī was a prominent Syrian scholar, preacher and charitable leader from Damascus. Born in 1948, he was the son of the renowned Damascene…
Shaykh Sāriyah al-Rifāʿī was a prominent Syrian scholar, preacher and charitable leader from Damascus. Born in 1948, he was the son of the renowned Damascene scholar Shaykh ʿAbd al-Karīm al-Rifāʿī and grew up within the educational and spiritual environment of the Zayd ibn Thābit movement founded by his father. He studied at the al-Gharrāʾ Institute before graduating from the Faculty of Uṣūl al-Dīn at al-Azhar University and completing postgraduate studies in Qur’anic exegesis. After returning to Damascus, he became the imam and teacher of Jāmiʿ Zayd ibn Thābit and devoted himself to religious education, community service and charitable work. He helped establish projects concerned with Qur’anic teaching, supporting orphans, assisting poor families and distributing surplus food and clothing to those in need. He was also a member of the League of Scholars of al-Shām and the Syrian Islamic Council. Shaykh Sāriyah was forced to leave Syria during periods of political persecution and later became known for publicly opposing violence against civilians during the Syrian uprising. He died in Istanbul on 6 January 2025, after suffering a stroke, and his body was returned to Damascus, where he was buried in the historic Bāb al-Ṣaghīr Graveyard.