Jan 7, 2012
Montreal, Quebec, January 6th, 2012- The Muslim Council of Montreal (MCM) expressed its alarm over the second attack of vandalism in one week at the Outaouais Islamic Centre in Gatineau, Quebec.
Graffiti containing anti-Islamic and anti-Arab messages were found on the walls of the mosque on Thursday. It is the third time in the last month and the fourth time in the last four months that the mosque has been a victim of vandalism. Earlier this week, vandals attempted to set fire to two cars in the mosque parking lot. Two windows of the mosque were also broken.
“The increasing number of attacks against Islamic institutions in Canada point towards the serious problem of Islamaphobia, racism and hate,” stated Salam Elmenyawi, president of MCM. “There must be zero tolerance for such violent, hateful acts committed against any community and it must be made clear that such attacks go against the values of our charter and constitution. It is time for our government officials to also recognize the gravity of these attacks and to take concerted action to ensure that they do not happen again.”
“We call on all Canadians to speak out against such attacks and work together to promote peace and social harmony. There is also a need for increased training for the police departments to help recognize potential hate motivated crimes and to dedicate more resources to preventing such criminal acts. Religious institutions and other community organizations that are often targets for such crimes should also be helped to install adequate security systems to help deter such attacks.”
MCM calls on the Gatineau police department to thoroughly investigate the incident as a potential hate crime and to move quickly to bring the perpetrators of this criminal act to justice. MCM further urges all officials and members of the community to exercise increased caution and report any suspicious individuals or activity to the authorities immediately.
Jan 7, 2012
Bismillahir-Rahmaanir-Raheem
as-salaamu alaikum wa rahmatullahi wa barakatuhu
Greif
The most difficult period in the life of the Prophet (s.a.a.w) was called the Year of Greif. In this year, his wife and soul-mate Khadijah (r.a) passed away and his protector and sponsor Abu Talib died while still a disbeliever. He (s.a.a.w) knew that he needed to seek new protection, so he travelled to Ta’if, but instead of finding protection, he was attacked, humiliated, and pelted with stones.After escaping the severe attack, the Prophet (s.a.a.w) made the following supplication:
اللَّهُمَّ إِلَيْكَ أَشْكُو ضَعْفَ قُوَّتِي وَقِلَّةَ حِيلَتِي وَهَوَانِي عَلَى النَّاسِ يَا أَرْحَمَ الرَّاحِمِينَ
O Allah, I complain to You of my own weakness, and of my lack of resources / creativity, and of the lack of my respect in the eyes of the people, O Most Merciful of the merciful ones.1
أَنْتَ رَبُّ الْمُسْتَضْعَفِينَ وَأَنْتَ رَبِّي إِلَى من تَكِلَنِي إِلَى بَعِيد يتجهمني أَوْ إِلَى عَدُوّ مَلَّكْتَهُ أَمْرِي إِنْ لَمْ يَكُنْ بِكَ غضب عَلَيَّ فَلاَ أُبَالِي غَيْرَ أَنْ عَافِيتَكَ هِيَ أَوْسَعُ لِي
You are the Lord of the weak ones, and You are my Lord. To whom will You entrust me? To a distant (stranger) who will show me an unwelcoming face? Or to an enemy whom You have given control over my situation? If You are not angry with me then I do not mind, though safety from You is easier for me.2
أَعُوذُ بِنُورِ وَجْهِكَ الَّذِي أَشْرَقَتْ لَهُ الظُّلُمَاتُ وَصَلُحَ عَلَيْهِ أَمْرُ الدُّنْيَا وَالْآخِرَةِ أَنْ يَنْزِلَ بِي غَضَبُكَ أَوْ تُحِلَّ عَلَيَّ سُخْطَكَ لَكَ الْعُتْبَى حَتَّى تَرْضَى وَلَا حَوْلَ وَلَا قُوَّةَ إِلَّا بِكَ
I take refuge with the Light of Your Face, which brings light to darkness, and upon which the affairs of the world and the Hereafter become right – from Your anger descending upon me, or Your displeasure befalling me. I will continue to seek Your Pleasure, until You become pleased (with me). And there is neither might nor power except with You.3
1.In this portion he places all the blame for his misfortune upon himself, not on Allah (swt), not on the people who are causing all of this hardship.
2.In this portion he affirms his acceptance of any and all hardships so long as it is not an indication of Allah’s displeasure.
3.Finally, he begs Allah to not be displeased with him as if his hardship was a punishment, and as if the people rejected him due to a deficiency in his da’wah. (both of which are obviously not the case)
Jan 6, 2012
The month went very fast. The coming week end if our reserved weekend for our Monthly event. Do not miss it.
* A delicious dinner
* Entertainment
* Prizes
All are welcome (but please inform us in order to arrange enough food). We are expecting 100 people but last time the crowd was larger.
Jan 3, 2012
Montreal, Quebec, January 3rd, 2012– The Muslim Council of Montreal (MCM) expressed its concern over an attack of vandalism at the Outaouais Islamic Centre in Gatineau this Monday.
The vandals attempted to set fire to two cars in the mosque parking lot, in addition to smashing the windows of the cars. Two windows of the mosque were also broken. It is the second time in the last month and the third time in the last four months that the mosque has been a victim of vandalism.
“Canada is a place of peace, tolerance, diversity and pluralism and such hateful actions go against all the values of our charter, constitution and country,” stated Salam Elmenyawi, president of MCM. “It must be made clear that such violent acts of hate and racism that target religious institutions have no place in our country and will not be tolerated. We call on all Canadians to speak out against such attacks and work together to promote peace and social harmony.”
MCM asks the Gatineau police department to investigate the incident as a potential hate crime and to move quickly to bring the perpetrators to justice. MCM further urges all officials and members of the community to exercise increased caution and report any suspicious individuals or activity to the authorities immediately.
Jan 2, 2012
AsSalaamu alaikum wa rahmatullahi wa barakatuh
We are all aware that there are certain Mosques that emphasize the importance of memorizing the Qur’an with absolutely no emphasis on understanding the Qur’an.
We also know that the Prophet (s.a.a.w) told us that:
“You will surely follow those who came before you, inch by inch, step by step; so much so that if they were to enter into a lizard’s hole, you would follow them. We (the Sahaabah) said: ‘O messenger of Allaah! Do you mean the Jews and the Christians?’ He (saw) said: Who else?” (Saheeh Muslim, Book of Knowledge, chapter 3 hadeeth #2669)
So the Question is: Is memorizing our Holy Book without understanding a practice of our misguided predecessors?
Well, the Qur’an itself answers in a very explicit manner:
“The similitude of those who were charged with the (obligations of the) Torah, but who subsequently failed in those (obligations), is that of a donkey which carries huge books (but understands them not).(62:5)
So to summarize:
Allah compares the Jews to donkeys for carrying huge books and understanding nothing in them, and us Muslims have leaders that try to make children Huffaz of Qur’an without understanding anything… and to top it off, the Prophet (s.a.a.w) warned us that we would copy the Jews and Christians… As future leaders, we should all be concerned.
If anyone still isn’t convinced, you can watch the speech provided below on youtube by Zakir Naik called: Al Quran read with understanding
Dec 22, 2011
If we examine the life of an average human, we come to realize that life consists of four periods. Childhood: This usually lasts for thirteen to fourteen years. The teenage years which usually lasts for six to eight years depending on when he gets married, (The Period of Youth). The third part of his life is from the time he gets married until his old age, which usually lasts for merely twenty to thirty years, and then lastly his old age whose exact time period cannot be said with certainty, depending on when death takes him.
Now out of these four parts of an average human life, the most crucial stage of his life is the period of youth. The period of youth is a time when a person goes through many changes and experiences; he undergoes and partake many new things which he has never experienced before. The youth begins to feel as though he has control over the whole world, and that he can do whatever he wishes. His desires are increasing day by day becoming attached to the opposite sex, he enjoys lustfully gazing and flirting with them..
Now, this is that period of his life that if he was to control his desires a bit, and sacrifice a few of these devilish desires, he can become a future role-model for Muslims. He can become a leader for his community, and the biggest achievement he can gain is success in the hereafter.
As being admitted into paradise, and being saved from the hell fire, is, in reality truly the greatest success a person can gain. Allah has described this as a ‘great success’ in the Holy Qur’an.
The reason why this period of human life is so important and crucial is because this period of youth is generally what determines the way in which this period of his life is spent. If he spends this period of his life in an Islamic environment, visiting the Masjid for the five daily prayers, associating with the pious people and the true scholars of Islam, sitting in their gatherings, then, it is greatly hoped that he will spend the rest of his life in the same way.
On the other hand, if the youth stays away from the Masjid and doesn’t associate himself with the pious and scholars of Islam, but spends his time visiting the pubs/clubs, associating himself with mischievous people, then it is most likely that the rest of his life will be spent in a similar manner, away from the Masjid and away from Deen, except if Allah wishes otherwise.
Just like everything, life is also a gift from Allah and every aspect of it should be regarded as a gift and a trust from Allah. Allah expects us to spend this youth in His worship and obedience, seeking knowledge of Islam and acting upon it. This in itself is a form of gratefulness.
In a Hadith, the Messenger of Allah said that the feet of the son of Adam will not be able to move until he is questioned regarding four things.
Out of these four questions, one question asked will be regarding how one spent his time as a youth. In another Hadith, the Messenger of Allah has said that on the Day of Judgement, there are seven types of people to whom Allah will give shade to. It is stated in Bukhari that on the Day of Judgement there will be no shade except for Allah’s shade. And from amongst these groups, one group will be those youth who spent their youth in the worship of Allah.
The reason being is because a youth has many desires, so whosoever goes against his desires and controls them in this delicate period of youth, and obeys the command of Allah, and tries his best to follow the Islamic Shariah, in such a time of his life when his desires are at their peak, then Allah will give him a great reward.
Once the great Imam Abu Hanifah (rahamtullahe alayhe) was giving advice to his student Imam Abu Yusuf (rahamtullahe alayhe). He said that in your youth you should spend your time in seeking Islamic knowledge, and thereafter seek a job, and when you get enough money then you should get married.
Similarly, a wise man once said that how many old men are there who repent to Allah. How great would it be to see youngsters repenting to Allah.
Therefore, the period of youth is a very delicate and important period in a Muslim’s life. If spent in the right way his time as a youth will benefit not only himself but also others. By visiting the Masjid, attending the gatherings of the scholars of Islam and seeking their advice and knowledge, serving one’s parents and trying to carry out Allah Taa’la’s orders to the best of ability then it is greatly hoped that one will grow up to become a leader of the Muslim community and become the coolness of one’s parents eyes. If wasted by continuously committing sins, disobeying Allah’s commands, then it is possible that on the Day of Judgment Allah will reprimand him regarding this.
So dear youngster! Realize your value and importance for the future fate of the Ummah lies in your hands. May Allah guide and protect us all on the day of Judgement.
