Unite The Muslims

Muslim Rep. Ellison preaches peace, democracy, here and abroad

Minnesota is home to a fair number of African immigrants, so Ellison’s work on Africa is local as well as international. This year, he hosted a forum in Minnesota on the Horn of Africa, with the chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Africa subcommittee, New Jersey Democrat Donald Payne.

“We had these immigrant communities from Somalia, Ethiopia, Eritrea and Kenya voice how they felt about U.S. policy toward the Horn of Africa,” Ellison said. “It was a tough meeting, because everybody wanted to be heard. You had people with long-standing grievances, really just wanting to be heard by people who represent them.”

At one point, someone said he supported the Ethiopian presence in Somalia — “a minority view,” Ellison noted.

“And people began to shout him down. I then stood up and said, ‘Everyone gets to say what they think here, and we’ll listen.”‘

I was at the forum.  He handled it very well. 

Ellison accompanied local Muslims for Islamic prayers in Mauritania and Kenya, and in Saudi Arabia, the king invited him to go on the hajj pilgrimage to Mecca.

That’s one trip that Ellison plans to do as a private citizen — not as a guest of the king, but “on my own nickel.”

Ellison said he gets plenty of invitations to go on congressional trips, but as for the rest of this year, “The only place I really hope to go is Mecca.”

May Allah (swt) make the trip easy and accept his hajj, ameen.

Umm Sharik (May Allah be pleased with her) reported: I heard the Prophet (salAllahu alaihi wasalam) saying, “People will run away from Dajjal (the Antichrist) seeking shelter in the mountains.”
[Muslim].

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- Naksibendi (Naqshbandi) Sufi Zawiya in the Catskill Mountains, New York

As a former team athlete, I remember well the preparations our team used to make before big matches. Our coaches used to work hard with us on both physical and mental preparation so that we could best be ready to meet the biggest challenge of whatever team came our way. We wanted to be at peak condition physically and mentally “psyched up” so that we wouldn’t waste a second of the clock scoring points. As we approach Ramadan though, it makes me saddened how much preparation people will put in for a “game”, and how many of us just hit Ramadan, and all of the potential virtue to be had in it, in a sleepy and dry manner. So, with less than a week left we must ask ourselves, “What have I prepared for this great month?”.

As with any great act of worship, how we prepare for it will influence our success in it as well as the reward and blessing we take from it. Take the prayer for example. The act of ablution (wudu‘) is our preparation before this great act of daily devotion and it has been narrated that some of the salaf would become pale as they made their wudu and they were asked what was the matter with them. They would reply, “I know before Whom I am going to stand.” Thus the wudu was the beginning of their preparation for the devotion of prayer as opposed to the last rak’a as many of us are accustomed to experiencing. In the same way, we need to “hit the ground running” when it comes to Ramadan so that we are reaping its rewards and blessings from the first second, as opposed to warming up for the first half in order to be serious for the last ten days alone.

The first step in this regards then is the first step in any act of worship (more…)

As a former team athlete, I remember well the preparations our team used to make before big matches. Our coaches used to work hard with us on both physical and mental preparation so that we could best be ready to meet the biggest challenge of whatever team came our way. We wanted to be at peak condition physically and mentally “psyched up” so that we wouldn’t waste a second of the clock scoring points. As we approach Ramadan though, it makes me saddened how much preparation people will put in for a “game”, and how many of us just hit Ramadan, and all of the potential virtue to be had in it, in a sleepy and dry manner. So, with less than a week left we must ask ourselves, “What have I prepared for this great month?”.

As with any great act of worship, how we prepare for it will influence our success in it as well as the reward and blessing we take from it. Take the prayer for example. The act of ablution (wudu‘) is our preparation before this great act of daily devotion and it has been narrated that some of the salaf would become pale as they made their wudu and they were asked what was the matter with them. They would reply, “I know before Whom I am going to stand.” Thus the wudu was the beginning of their preparation for the devotion of prayer as opposed to the last rak’a as many of us are accustomed to experiencing. In the same way, we need to “hit the ground running” when it comes to Ramadan so that we are reaping its rewards and blessings from the first second, as opposed to warming up for the first half in order to be serious for the last ten days alone.

The first step in this regards then is the first step in any act of worship (more…)

Gallup reports today that instead of getting a post-selection bounce, Obama has actually lost poll points after the Joe Biden pick:

An analysis of historical election poll trends by Gallup Poll Managing Editor Jeff Jones shows that recent presidential campaigns have enjoyed a small (though short-lived) bounce from the running mate announcement. This includes a four percentage point bounce for John Kerry in 2004 after selecting John Edwards, a 5-point bounce for Al Gore in 2000 with his announcement of Joe Lieberman, and a 3-point bounce for George W. Bush in 2000 upon choosing Dick Cheney. Bob Dole received an extraordinary 9-point bounce in 1996 after bringing Jack Kemp onto his ticket.

The official Gallup records will show that support for Obama declined by two percentage points in Gallup Poll Daily tracking (from 46% to 44%) conducted immediately before and after the Aug. 23 Biden announcement. (Because the announcement was made at 3 a.m. on Saturday, Aug. 23, all Gallup interviewing conducted that day can be considered post announcement.)

Don’t say I told you so.

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Oh no wait, it’s Ingrid Mattson.  It’s all I can do just to shake my head at the foolishness of the right wing blogosphere.  Seriously, really, she’s a radical islamist?  If she’s radical, who’s not?

Faith is what we live for

Another [standing ovation] was reserved for Mattson, who said she tells Islamic leaders abroad that Muslims in the United States still face discrimination constantly.

Despite the difficulties, Mattson said she remains convinced that the United States “is still the best place in the world to practice our faith.”

Democrats kick off convention with interfaith gathering

Among the most compelling remarks, however, were those from Ingrid Mattson, the president of the Islamic Society of North America. She said she had been asked in whispers by Muslims abroad about how Muslims have been treated in the United States since the 2001 terrorist attacks.

While there is prejudice, Mattson said, there is also tolerance. She recognized other religious leaders who have stood up for Muslims.

“This is still the best place in the world to practice our faith,” she said.

You can view the entire event here on the CSPAN website.  I haven’t looked through it yet, so I’m not sure where she speaks.

                                              [Official BMCUI Campaign Video]

السلام عليكم ورحمة الله وبركاته

`As’salaamu `Alaikum Wa Rahmatulllahi Wa Barakatu

We are currently trying to raise money to build a Masjid in our community. 

Your Help is Needed!

A brief intro to this project:

Can you picture your children or loved ones growing up in an environment with fornication, rape, murder, swearing, disobedience, vandalism, and drugs?

Surely, it is hard for any parent to raise their children in such an environment, especially if you are a Muslim. Unfortunately, thousands of Muslim children are growing up in such an environment in Fordham Road area, located in Bronx, New York.

However, Alhamdulillah, a few dedicated members of the community sat down and came up with a perfect solution, which is to build a Masjid and an Islamic Center. This non-profit institution will be known as Bronx Muslim Center USA Inc.

The main purpose of this organization will be to create an Islamic environment for our community by providing them with a place to establish daily prayers, gain an Islamic Education an also to hold activities, halaqas and events like Eid for the whole community, young and old, to benefit from.

This can only be possible with the help of Allah (SWT)and us. Insha’Allah , if WE all work together, we can bring our children back to Islam and help them lead an Islamic way of life. And, this is the GREATEST gift we can give our children in this world and the hereafter.

Please help us build this Masjid and Islamic Center with your generous donations which will help to build a better future for our children. Please donate what you can and also spread the message to others.

Besides donation, there are many other ways to help this project:

*1. Download Flyers , Posters and Banners from the Multimedia Section, you can then hand them out to friends, family, Masajid, Organizations or post them on your website, blog, forum, etc. Please visit this section to download the flyers, posters and banners: Multimedia (Flyers/Posters )

*2. Share the ‘Chip In’ Donation Meter Link! Add it to websites, blogs, MySpace, Facebook, etc. Please visit the Donation page of the site.

*3. Encourage your Masjid to hold a fundraising drive for this Masjid, even if only for one day. Please go to the section contact us and we insha’Allah can send your Masajid official legal documents, and tips to help them start up a fundraising drive.

*4. You can also share the Masjid Fundraising video with all of your contacts, or reupload it to your Youtube, IslamicTube, YoutubeIslam, MuslimChannels or DailyMotion Profile. Insha’Allah you will be rewarded for leading to good.

If you know of other ways to help, please send us an email insha’Allah !

“Whoever builds a mosque for the sake of Allaah, like a sparrow’s nest or even smaller, Allaah will build for him a house in Paradise.”

Also: Narrated Abu Mas’ud Uqbah ibn ‘Amr Al-Ansari Al Badri: Allah ’s Messenger (Sallahu Alayhi Wa Salaam) said: “Whoever guides someone to virtue will be rewarded equivalent to him who practices that good action”. (Muslim)

*~—–~*

May Allah help You to Purchase a House in Jannah, ameen

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With this article, please welcome Iesa Galloway to MM’s Staff as Public Relations Coordinator. Iesa is the Principle of Galloway Public Relations, LLC, and has been involved with CAIR-Houston, TDC, and F&J. A short bio has been added on his author’s page.

Dr. Aafia Siddiqui’s Case: Hearts on our Sleeves or Heads in the Sand?
A guide to charting the waters of community response by Iesa Galloway

Amad’s recent article: The Grey Lady of Bagram: Dr. Aafia Siddiqui and many of the posts it prompted clearly demonstrate how complex an issue Dr. Aafia Siddiqui’s case really is.

Complexity often makes for murky waters and with all the factors surrounding this case, be assured that the path forward can be perilous.

This article is not a discussion of the case’s legal merits or its moral implications. Rather, the purpose is to explore constructive ways to respond to such issues, so that the American Muslim community is neither used for an agenda that it does not support nor relegated to an ineffective role that promotes feelings of resentment, disenfranchisement or detachment from society.

The steps are simple to understand, yet can be difficult to employ:

1. Separate emotional responses from core and universal principles
2. Tolerate different and opposing points of view
3. Identify effective ways to promote justice
4. Build lasting relationships that promote the greater good

In a case like this the feeling of clarity is often rooted in emotional and preconceived perspectives. This is because as members of the public, we do not have full access to the facts or the perspectives of the opposing parties. With the astounding accusations made by all invested in the case’s outcome, it is vitally important that as individuals we understand the basic ways that this and similar cases can be used.

For example, a xenophobe whose pre-trial commentary on Dr. Siddiqui implies or declares guilt will (more…)

We received the following photos on the Press Conference. There was a story on the Associated Press of Pakistan, the full text being posted below the sleeve. Main points from this story:

• Elizabeth Fink (lawyer for Dr. Aafia) demanded that Dr. Aafia be transferred to a hospital for the proper, “recommended” care, ordered by the Court.
• Fink called the U.S. authorities’ indifference towards her client as “cruel and inhuman” and in violation of American laws.
• U.S. Attorney Michael Garcia (the prosecutor) informed her through a letter on Friday that an 11-year-old boy detained along with Dr. Siddiqui appears to be the Pakistani woman’s son.
  • Child is American citizen, not Pakistani– needs to be collected by State Department from the Afghan government. [US Govt’s behavior is unbelievable in their treatment of this young child]
• Ms. Siddiqui has recently refused to meet with her lawyers, because the prison changed its policy and now requires her to undergo a full strip search before meeting visitors. The abdominal wound and other health problems recently observed during a medical examination make it too painful for Siddiqui to undergo an invasive full-body search, Ms. Fink said, calling the procedure “dehumanizing and degrading.”.

If we receive any further word, we will post it here

(more…)

We received the following photos on the Press Conference. There was a story on the Associated Press of Pakistan, the full text being posted below the sleeve. Main points from this story:

• Elizabeth Fink (lawyer for Dr. Aafia) demanded that Dr. Aafia be transferred to a hospital for the proper, “recommended” care, ordered by the Court.
• Fink called the U.S. authorities’ indifference towards her client as “cruel and inhuman” and in violation of American laws.
• U.S. Attorney Michael Garcia (the prosecutor) informed her through a letter on Friday that an 11-year-old boy detained along with Dr. Siddiqui appears to be the Pakistani woman’s son.
  • Child is American citizen, not Pakistani– needs to be collected by State Department from the Afghan government. [US Govt’s behavior is unbelievable in their treatment of this young child]
• Ms. Siddiqui has recently refused to meet with her lawyers, because the prison changed its policy and now requires her to undergo a full strip search before meeting visitors. The abdominal wound and other health problems recently observed during a medical examination make it too painful for Siddiqui to undergo an invasive full-body search, Ms. Fink said, calling the procedure “dehumanizing and degrading.”.

If we receive any further word, we will post it here

(more…)

Tajdid Iman:
Oleh Dr Juanda Jaya

PERJUANGAN: Islam janjikan kemuliaan kepada sesiapa berjuang menegakkan yang hak dan menentang kezaliman.

Sejarah buktikan perjuangan tegak kedaulatan agama, bangsa dipelopori ulama’

KETIKA memperingati Hari Kebangsaan, kita perlu merenung sambil cuba menjelajah sejarah yang menumpahkan darah syuhada bangsa. Apakah yang menguatkan azam dan keberanian jiwa mereka menentang penjajah.

Agaknya ada sesuatu yang amat besar mampu melahirkan semangat kepahlawanan dalam diri syuhada. Roh Islamlah sebenarnya berperanan menghidupkan jiwa mereka menentang kolonialisme. Islam yang menjanjikan kemuliaan kepada sesiapa berjuang menegakkan yang hak.

Data sejarah merakamkan gerakan antipenjajahan British yang dipelopori ulama sama ada di Sarawak, Melaka, Perak, Pahang, Kelantan dan Terengganu.

Catatan sejarah menyatakan pada 17 Ogos 1844, Sharif Sahab, Sharif Mashor, Datu Patinggi Ali, Datu Patinggi Imam Abdul Gafur, Imam Masjid Besar Sarawak yang pertama bersama penduduk tempatan dari kalangan Dayak melakukan penentangan bersenjata secara serentak terhadap penjajahan Brooke di Sarawak.

Akibat pertempuran itu, Datu Patinggi Ali gugur dalam Pertempuran Beting Maru, manakala Sharif Mashor yang gigih menentang penjajah akhirnya dibuang negeri ke Singapura. (Zaini Ahmad, Rakis 1978)

Pada 1895, di Pahang muncul Datuk Bahaman yang disokong Tok Ku Paloh dari Terengganu mengisytiharkan perang jihad menentang British. Pada awal abad ke-20, muncul pula Tok Janggut Mat Hasan di Kelantan.

Pada 1922, Abdul Rahman Limbong memimpin gerakan Islam menentang British di Terengganu bersama rakan beliau seperti Musa Abdul Ghani. Hasil daripada kesedaran serta semangat kebangsaan dan keIslaman orang Melayu, maka lahirlah parti politik seperti Hizbul Muslimin, Umno dan Pas pada pertengahan abad ke-20.

Walaupun antara parti politik ini ada perbezaan dari segi strategi dan taktik perjuangan, matlamat yang dituju adalah satu iaitu membela kedaulatan agama Islam dan Melayu. (Mahayudin Haji Yahya, Islam di Alam Melayu 1998)

Prof Dr Hamka yang mengkaji gerakan ulama di Nusantara mengabadikan nama besar pahlawan Islam di serata Kepulauan Indonesia. Antara yang beliau sebutkan ialah Sultan Iskandar Muda di Acheh, Sultan Agung Tirtayasa di Banten, Sultan Agung Hanyotokusumo di Mataram, Sultan Hasanudin di Makasar, Raja Haji di Bugis, Raja Muda di Riau, Diponegoro memimpin tanah Jawa, Teuku Imam Bonjol, Pattimura di Ambon dan gurunya Said Partintah dari Saparua, seorang berketurunan Arab. (Hamka, Dari hati ke hati, tentang Agama, Sosial, Budaya dan Politik 2002)

Semua pahlawan negara itu menjadikan ajaran Islam sebagai pedoman dalam gerakan dan perjuangannya. Patutkah kita melupakan jasa ulama di Alam Melayu Nusantara ini? Alangkah lemahnya pandangan mata hati yang tidak mahu mengakui bahawa roh Islamlah sebenarnya yang menggerakkan perjuangan mereka.

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