Talk Islam

Latest Updates: mosques RSS

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  aziz 12:46 pm on March 1, 2010 | 12 Permalink | Reply
  Tags: mosques, women (80)

  There was a “sit in” at a mosque in Washington DC – women sat to pray in the main hall. The mosque administrators called the police. What happened next? Read Asra Nomani’s article to find out.

  Its a touch and sensitive issue. I dont fully buy the civil rights analogy because there is no “right” to sit somewhere in a private building. The analogy to Rosa Parks is tempting, but do we want the government imposing rules on our practice of faith?

  Still, its hard not to be impressed. I would have been even more impressed if the women had followed through with the civil rights analogy in full… but thats spoiling the narrative. Go read it.

   

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  thabet 4:21 am on February 25, 2010 | 0 Permalink | Reply
  Tags: military of defence, mosques, sandhurst, united kingdom (732)

  The Ministry of Defence is opposing plans for a mosque near Sandhurst.

   
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  shahed 8:58 am on February 20, 2010 | 0 Permalink | Reply
  Tags: demographics (34), gender (16), khutbah (3), mosques

  This article by the AP’s Rachel Zoll is based on demographic data from my salatomatic.com site. Now that it has been online for five years, we’ve gathered enough data points on US/Canada/UK mosques to do some interesting analyses and hope to put out a comprehensive report soon.

  Here’s a teaser:
  

  15% of US mosques do not allow women to serve on their boards. In Canada, this jumps to 20%. In the UK, it is 24%. (Data copyright 2010 Halalfire Media)

  This information is reported to us either by the mosques themselves or by people who attend them. Interesting in that I believe an official stance like this is illegal in all these countries.

   
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  thabet 4:56 am on February 14, 2010 | 1 Permalink | Reply
  Tags: michael gove (3), mosques, neoconservatives (17), politics (765), quilliam (8), quilliam foundation (19), tories (6), united kingdom (732)

  Maybe Quilliam need to update their FAQ explaining the role of warmongering Tory politician Michael Gove on their board of advisers?

  A Conservative frontbench spokesman, Michael Gove, has opposed plans to build a mosque in his constituency after it became the target of an “inflammatory and offensive” online campaign.

  The shadow schools secretary, who warned that the west was facing a “total war” from Islamists in his book Celsius 7/7, had initially refused to take sides in the dispute over proposals to build a mosque next to Sandhurst barracks in Camberley, Surrey. But this week he said he had been convinced that the strength of feeling was threatening the area’s “good community relations” and called on local Muslims to withdraw the application.

  “The issue has become a flashpoint and people from inside and outside the community were making statements that I did not think would further community relations,” he said.

   
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  thabet 12:29 pm on February 10, 2010 | 5 Permalink | Reply
  Tags: British Muslims (42), child abuse (31), law (91), london (19), mosques, social power, united kingdom (732)

  Imam from east London mosque is jailed for beating a nine-year-old boy:

  A RELIGIOUS leader has been jailed for punching and kicking a nine-year-old boy, then beating him with a bamboo stick.

  Gulam Hussain, 44, of Knotts Green Road, in Leyton, was jailed for 12 weeks today at Walthamstow Magistrates’ Court after pleading guilty to common assault by beating.

  The court heard that Hussain, who was an Imam at The Jamia Mosque in Lea Bridge Road, Leyton, had previously been cautioned in 2005 for a charge of actual bodily harm (ABH) against an 11-year-old.

  Chair magistrate Dr Paul Davis told Hussain through an Urdu interpreter that he was being jailed, “for the protection of the public”.

  This mosque has shall we say a ‘colourful’ history to anyone who grew up in the area. Wouldn’t surprise me if accusations of dirty dealings between the boys parents and people keen to take charge of the mosque committee emerge, such as those which have surfaced on a forum frequented by British Muslims. But whatever the truth of these accusations, this doesn’t excuse the teacher for abusing his power over the children.

   
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  thabet 7:42 am on February 5, 2010 | 0 Permalink | Reply
  Tags: europe (82), european muslims (16), far right (63), freedom of religion (61), germany (35), minaret ban (6), mosques, neo-nazis (13)

  “I am against the Islamification of our fatherland!”

   
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  thabet 2:54 pm on December 29, 2009 | 2 Permalink | Reply
  Tags: arson (5), Crime (54), islamophobia (227), mosques, racism (201), united kingdom (732)

  Mosque in the West Midlands burnt to the ground:

  CRADLEY Heath’s Muslim community is appealing for help after its mosque was burnt to the ground by arsonists.

  A fire engulfed the Cradley Heath Mosque and Islamic Centre in Plant Street on Boxing Day destroying the building and the religious countless books inside.

  It is the second time in five years that the building has been targeted by arsonists and police are hunting the culprits.

   
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  johnpi 12:55 pm on December 27, 2009 | 0 Permalink | Reply
  Tags: diversity (10), diversity in religious practice (4), hate crimes (23), mosques, Muslim-on-Muslim violence (76), Pakistan (568), sectarian divide (7), sectarianism (34)

  An editorial decries the rising tide of hatred in Pakistan.

  Two NWFP ministers of the beleaguered ANP-led government, who made it to the tragic sites [of a car bombing that killed 120 in October] within minutes of the blasts, were seen and heard across the country pointing in vain to the enemy within. Both are roundly rebuked and branded foreign agents.

  Those differing with them walk through the streets and narrow alleys of the interior city but they choose to ignore the signs and sights of the orgy of death that has engulfed us. Several deadly blasts have taken place in the one-kilometre radius area in and around the fabled Qissa Khwani Bazaar in the recent past. All impacted sites are at a stone’s throw from each other. The area is like a game reserve with teeming flocks of game birds for the gamekeepers presently engaged in ideological war games. And why shouldn’t it be?

  Hate is inscribed in clear and bold fonts all across the area. Massive billboards, which in previous days were a feature of cinema houses, now hold the larger-than-life portraits of militant leaders of certain sectarian organisations. Ancient and sweet-sounding names of the streets have all been discarded and replaced with the names of those who have fallen in the sectarian warfare. Posters and graffiti proclaiming the title of infidel for the adherents of rival groups and death for the US, India and Israel adorn all walls in the area.

  And most disturbing of all:

  Mosques that had jealously guarded their nameless structures for eons have been labelled in factional colours and hence declared restricted places of worship.

   
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  johnpi 8:15 am on December 19, 2009 | 0 Permalink | Reply
  Tags: Atlanta, georgia (10), mosque construction (15), mosque expansion (14), mosques, new mosques (14)

  Atlanta-suburb Muslim congregation sues over mosque rejection.

  A Muslim congregation filed a federal discrimination lawsuit against Lilburn after the suburban Atlanta city’s council rejected its request to build a 20,000-square-foot mosque.

  The complaint, filed Thursday, seeks to overturn the city council’s Nov. 18 decision that barred the Dar-E-Abbas congregation from building a new complex that included a cemetery and gymnasium on an eight-acre plot.

  The council said the plans would pose traffic problems and violate the city’s land-use plan.

  The lawsuit claims the city council’s 4-0 decision was “unreasonable.”

   
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  johnpi 10:51 am on December 14, 2009 | 0 Permalink | Reply
  Tags: mosque control (3), mosque leadership (3), mosques

  A side-effect of anti-Muslim bigotry may be to reinvigorate the leadership of some UK mosques.

  An attack on a mosque is an attack on a very sacred institution – as an attack on any place of worship would be. Muslim professionals who would otherwise not have been involved in mosque activities came forward to assist the mosque. In the past professionals have often been so disappointed with the competence of those managing the mosques that they have tended not to invest their time and expertise in them. Some mosque managers have also been quite content with this arrangement, running them on tribal lines, more suited to Pakistani villages than British cities. Given the external threat now directed at mosques and the need for them to raise their game in the public domain, there might now be a greater convergence between these two groups.

  For some reason, this famous speech from “The Caine Mutiny” came to mind…

   
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  johnpi 11:58 am on November 6, 2009 | 39 Permalink | Reply
  Tags: American Muslim leaders (10), American Muslims (70), associating with Muslims (2), campus Muslims (2), conservative Muslims (7), gay muslims (11), mosque control (3), mosque leadership (3), mosques, muslim american (20), muslim american extremism (25), Muslim converts (7), Muslim dissidents (2), Muslim families (3), Muslim family life (3), muslim fanatics (18), Muslim feminists (6), Muslim Identity (2), Muslim Leaders, Muslim Leaders of Tomorrow (2), muslim liberals (7), Muslim Schools (8), Muslim unity (2), Muslim women (80), Muslim World (13), muslims condemn (3), Muslims in America (36), Muslims in Politics (5), peace activist Muslims (3), progressive muslims (6), western muslims (8)

  Interesting conversation I was having with another moderate Muslim.

  Her point: Mainstream/moderate American Muslims deserve the suspicion of our fellow Americans for having allowed this thing to grow among us that resulted in the violence at Fort Hood and other recent expressions of extremism, for shrinking back from mosque boards and private school committees when those of the puritanical strain among us take them over, for allowing ourselves to be put on the spot at mosque functions and social events instead of turning it around and not putting them on the spot.

  Agree or disagree?

   
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  johnpi 8:22 am on November 6, 2009 | 3 Permalink | Reply
  Tags: mosque construction (15), mosque expansion (14), mosques, new mosques (14)

  Modified Muslim center plans in Chicago suburb addresses criticisms from earlier public meetings.

  Stipulations designed to accommodate the qualms of residents near a proposed Muslim center in unincorporated DuPage County just east of Naperville were put in black and white for a special meeting Thursday, but neighbors still left with some of their questions remaining unanswered.

  A dozen conditions were spelled out by the county’s Development Committee after its members agreed last month to recommend granting a permit for the Irshad Learning Center, which would go on the north side of 75th Street east of Naper Boulevard.

  Several of the stipulations concern hours of worship, one of which (no activities onsite before 6 am) is going to make the mosque off-limits to morning prayer for a significant chunk of the year:

  (More …)

   
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  johnpi 1:49 pm on October 31, 2009 | 1 Permalink | Reply
  Tags: antiquities (2), Cairo (4), cultural history (4), Islamic History (8), mosque construction (15), mosques, religious history (4)

  14th century Cairo mosque restored to glory.

  Developers unveiled the restoration of a 650-year-old mosque in Cairo’s old city, part of an effort to revitalize the impoverished district and boost tourism to the country’s treasure trove of Islamic sites.

  The three-year, $1.4 million project restored the Aslam al-Silahdar Mosque, built in 1344-1345 by Aslam al-Bahai, an amir or nobleman who rose to the position of “silahdar,” or “swordbearer” for Sultan al-Nasir Mohammed, one of the most powerful of Egypt’s Mamluk rulers.

  It is tucked into Cairo’s al-Darb al-Ahmar district, a dense warren of narrow, dusty alleyways. Many of its 92,000 inhabitants are among the poorest in Egypt, living on less than $1 a day, according to the Canadian Development Agency, which works in the community.

  The neighborhood is also packed with antiquities — an Islamic monument about every 20 yards (meters), ranging from Cairo’s early days in the 11th century to more modern times.

  The area is “comparable to Rome” in terms of monuments, said Luis Monreal, the general manager of the Agha Khan Trust for Culture, an agency of the Agha Khan Development Network, which directed the renovation of the Aslam Mosque, unveiled on Wednesday.

  A handful of American donors contributed to the conservation efforts, including the American Research Center in Egypt with a grant from USAID, and the U.S. Ambassador Fund.

   
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  Kawthar 3:57 am on October 19, 2009 | 0 Permalink | Reply
  Tags: architecture (7), Islamic Architecture (2), mosques

  The National has an article on the design of mosques, and whether there is such a thing as “Islamic architecture”.

  My sister used to constantly have arguments with a professor of hers who believed that in this day and age, minarets serve no purpose as mosques are equipped with loudspeakers.

   
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  thabet 5:31 am on October 11, 2009 | 3 Permalink | Reply
  Tags: architecture (7), freedom of religion (61), minarets (9), mosques, switzerland (23)

  Just over half of those polled say they do not support a ban on minarets in Switzerland.

   
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  thabet 5:51 am on September 7, 2009 | 0 Permalink | Reply
  Tags: freedom of religion (61), mosques, Muslim women (80), uzbekistan (11)

  Registan has a blog post about women being banned from mosques in Bukhara.

   
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  Kawthar 7:21 am on August 19, 2009 | 0 Permalink | Reply
  Tags: mosques, uzbekistan (11)

  The city of Bukhara, Uzbekistan has prohibited women from attending prayers in mosques

   
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  thabet 8:26 am on August 17, 2009 | 0 Permalink | Reply
  Tags: islamophobia (227), minarets (9), mosques, politics (765), racism (201), switzerland (23)

  Racist party in Switzerland launches anti-minaret campaign:

  Switzerland’s “stop minaret” movement is backed by the influential ultra-conservative Swiss People’s Party, (SVP) which was re-elected in 2007 with its largest ever share of the vote after mounting an anti-foreigner campaign that was denounced by the United Nations as racist.

  Ulrich Schüler, an SVP parliamentarian and leading member of the anti-minaret movement, says the edifices are political rather than religious. “They are symbols of a desire for power, of an Islam which wants to establish a legal and social order fundamentally contrary to the liberties guaranteed in our constitution,” he said.

  There’s a (derogatory) saying I’ve often heard from some European colleagues about ’scratching a Swiss’ and finding a Nazi underneath…

   
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  johnpi 9:22 am on July 31, 2009 | 0 Permalink | Reply
  Tags: eclipse, mosque (7), mosques

  

  In this photo released by China’s Xinhua News Agency, the minaret of a mosque is silhouetted against the solar eclipse in Yinchuan, capital of northwest China’s Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, at 8:43 a.m. on Wednesday, July 22, 2009. Scientists, students and nature enthusiasts gathered in open spaces in parts of India Wednesday to watch the longest total solar eclipse of the 21st century, although heavy cloud cover and overnight rains threatened to spoil the party.

   
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  thabet 2:44 pm on July 12, 2009 | 0 Permalink | Reply
  Tags: Crime (54), islamophobia (227), mosques, united kingdom (732)

  More attacks on mosques in southeast London and Bishop Stortford.

   
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  thabet 9:35 am on June 10, 2009 | 0 Permalink | Reply
  Tags: belgium (4), europe (82), far right (63), fascists (6), freedom of religion (61), mosques, muslims (346), right-wing (96), Superior Sophisticated Civilisation Watch (25), switzerland (23), united kingdom (732)

  A proposal by rightwing groups to ban new minarets in Switzerland has been overwhelmingly dismissed in parliament.

  In Belgium, Vlaams Belang (a Belgian ethnic-nationalist party) held a protest yesterday against the proposed mosque at the Sint-Bernardsesteenweg in Antwerp.

  And in Oldham, a ‘giant’ mosque has been given the go ahead. What’s so giant about it?

   
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  shahed 6:32 pm on June 7, 2009 | 0 Permalink | Reply
  Tags: halal food (5), iphone, mosques

  After weeks of late night programming, I’m proud to announce the release of zabihah for iPhone, which lets you search from 10,000 halal restaurants and mosques directly from your iPhone. Now available on the iPhone App Store!

  (End shameless plug.)

   
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  thabet 4:19 am on June 7, 2009 | 0 Permalink | Reply
  Tags: militants (9), mosques, Pakistan (568), Pakistan Taliban (124), violence (161)

  This happened following an attack on a mosque on Friday (during the prayer no less):

  Hundreds of Pakistanis banded together and attacked Taliban strongholds in a troubled northwestern region to avenge a deadly suicide bombing at a local mosque, a top government official said Sunday.

  Maybe these Pakistanis just didn’t but into the ‘alternative narratives’ being offered…

  And another blast, this time in Islamabad, happened yesterday.

   
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  thabet 1:27 am on June 5, 2009 | 0 Permalink | Reply
  Tags: freedom of religion (61), isle of man, mosques

  Muslims living in the Isle of Man face online opposition to their campaign for a mosque.

   
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  thabet 1:24 am on June 5, 2009 | 0 Permalink | Reply
  Tags: Crime (54), islamophobia (227), mosques, united states (576), vandalism (2)

  A Southern California mosque was vandalized with graffiti including expletives and threats early Thursday, shortly after President Barack Obama’s address in Egypt to the Muslim world.

   
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  Kawthar 2:49 am on May 21, 2009 | 1 Permalink | Reply
  Tags: child sexual abuse (11), mosques

  Father tells of boy’s sexual abuse at Tampa mosque

  No one thought to check [the Imam's] background.

   
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  thabet 11:49 am on April 22, 2009 | 0 Permalink | Reply
  Tags: freedom of religion (61), history (133), mosques, united kingdom (732)

  A proposed mosque in Lichfield has drawn online protests opposed to the creation of a mosque in an historic part of the city. There is a cathedral in the area which is also being used as part of the BNP’s campaigning in the area.

   
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  thabet 10:33 am on April 7, 2009 | 0 Permalink | Reply
  Tags: mosques

  Could do with this in some masajid…

   
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  thabet 7:19 am on April 1, 2009 | 0 Permalink | Reply
  Tags: Extremism (166), mosques, policy exchange, politics (765), united kingdom (732)

  The Policy Exchange has removed a report, which accused a number of mosques of spreading extremism, from its website. Pickled Politics has more.

   
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  thabet 2:40 pm on February 25, 2009 | 0 Permalink | Reply
  Tags: education (70), Islam (241), mosques, muslims (346), religion (364), united kingdom (732)

  The Quilliam Foundation have a report on the state of British mosques (pdf).

  I haven’t read the report in detail (there’s no bloody summary!), but from a skim read of it, the report is basically saying mosques in the UK are dominated by foreign-born (usually Subcontinental), low-waged, men with conservative views, who do not, or cannot, communicate with younger Muslims in English.

  I don’t know if this is addressed in this report, but if the above is true might it be that younger Muslims in the UK are not interested in becoming imams; therefore, mosques turn to foreign-born imams to carry out customs such as birth, marriage, funerals, etc*?

  I am also in favour of promoting multi-lingualism, rather than ensuring the supermacy of English to the detriment of other languages — monolinguialism is one of the bad things about Britain and can be problematic. So, I don’t see the problem with Friday sermons being in a couple of languages.

  (Via Andrew Brown, who discusses Quilliam Foundation from an alternative viewpoint.)

  *Not a comparable example, but I remember reading that by the 1950s, the new Turkish Republic was forced to create schools in which imams could be trained to carry out these sorts of rites.