Is it Permissible to Take Loans from Banks?

Excerpt from a Q&A session: Dr. Khaled Abou El Fadl provides guidance for Muslims in the west on the issue of interest bearing loans, explaining the purpose of Islamic rules on riba, and how many modern Islamic financial institutions fail to provide satisfactory solutions to this issue.

Full Q&A session link:    • Part 1 of 2: Usuli Institute Q&A with...  

Full question text: There is a long, enduring debate in my local community regarding the permissibility of bank loans to buy a house, start a business or engage in other financial activities. There are different legal opinions on this issue & I find the debate lacking in clarity. The Quranic principle on riba (interest) is a central point in this debate. The majority seem to be of the opinion that due to the need of the circumstance, one can take a bank loan if other avenues are closed. In other words, if the harm in not taking the loan outweighs the harm in taking the loan. How does one decide the limit of harm & how should one negotiate all of this ethically and religiously?

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