Posts filed under ‘Politics, Policy, & Law’
Week 16 – Special Guest Sh. Ismail Batnuni on Ottawa Islamic School + What the youth really need and want + Tigers in Ottawa?
Hosts: Omar (GreenKufi) and Ahmed Khalil + Guest Sh. Ismail Batnuni
Quran
Al-Maidah [ch. 5 v. 1-6 | Recited by Abdullah Basfar -عبد الله بن علي بصفر ]
Discussion
Local Community News
Tigers in Ottawa?
Galloway speaks anyway!Two weeks ago we told you that George Galloway the Banned Mp from the UK was going to speak to the Canadian Public regardless of the ban. Here is how he did it and what he had to say. |
Global Muslim News
| HELP IMAM SIRAJ WAHAJ Imam Siraj Wahhaj, the voice of Da’wah in the West was diagnosed with prostate cancer in March of 2009. Since then, he has been receiving treatment and needs help to pay his medical bills. He was there when we needed him; now he needs us! Yasir Qadhi, Suhaib Webb, Zaid Shakir, Faraz Rabbani Nasihah: An Online Fundraiser for Imam Siraj Wahhaj Saturday, April 25th, 2009 – 7PM EST |
Tadthkirah
The Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: “The relationship between one believer and another is like a structure, parts of which support other parts,” and he interlaced his fingers.” Agreed upon.
And he (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: “The likeness of the believers in their mutual love, mercy and compassion is that of the body; if one part of it complains, the rest of the body joins it in staying awake and suffering fever.” Narrated by al-Bukhaari and Muslim in their Saheehs.
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This week’s tip: The power of Words.
Upcoming Action
Anticipate: The Biggest Quran Competition in Ottawa’s History.. Qabeelat Ansar presents, AlKiraam Albararrah; Juz Tabarak Memorization & Recitation Competition… Featuring Local Talents.. Brothers and Sisters… coming April 25th in sha Allah
Registrations for the 10th Annual Zawiyah Retreat on Tazkiyat al-Nafs by Shaykh Mokhtar Maghraoui will on April 15th at 6pm. The popular retreat will be from June 13th to June 23rd.
LUL: Friday night Aqeedah in Action, the topic will be: “The best of the best”, and it will be, as always, at the Ottawa main mosque right after Maghrib prayer in chaa Allah.
The Islamic Society Of Cumberland will be conducting a 28 Week Comprehensive Weekend Course for brothers over 16 in a variety of areas including tafsir of short surahs, introductory tajweed, and the basics of faith.
Classes start May 2nd at the Mussalah on Innes Rd. in Orleans taught by Imam Mohammad Badat.
Purpose of Fearing Allah?, Why should we fear Allah?
What our Youth today are like? Why are they far from deen? & Turning to Allah as a Youth.
Sun April 12.09 Sh. Ismail Al-Batnuni Topic: Fearing Allah
Mon April 13.09 Br. Rashid Mohamud Topic: Youth Today
Location: Assalam Masjid
Time: Both Programs will start after Maghrib and will run until Isha Salat.
The Ottawa Muslim Women’s Organization extends an invitation to all Canadians to attend its annual dinner at the St. Elias Centre on Sunday April 26, 2009 at 5:30pm
Keynote Speakers: Right Honourable Alexa McDonough (former NDP leader) and Dr. Monia Mazigh (wife of Maher Arar)
This dinner supports:
a) The Osteoporosis Society of Canada and
b) The Centre for The Study of Islam at Carleton University, Ottawa.
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Week 14 – Is Sara Mohamed Fake? + Habitat for Humanity + What’s happening with George Galloway? + Are you ready for this…?
Host: Omar (Green Kufi)
Quran:
Qaf [ch. 50 v. 1-6 | Recited by Abdullah Basfar -عبد الله بن علي بصفر ]
Discussion:
Sara Mohamed may not be real. But does it really matter?
 |
We have heard from some that Sarah Mohamed may not even be a real person. Jennifer Green, senior writer of the Ottawa Citizen, said the paper had come to that conclusion and Sarah has never stepped forward to refute that allegation. This may simply be a result of “Sarah” being concern to identify herself publicly. While others have said that in fact she is a real person and may be simply hiding her identity.
The bottom line is that it doesn’t really matter either way. Going to the citizen was not the best choice, nor the wisest. But then again we are talking about a “distressed youth”.
So my question is; what to do now? We either accept what is in place, and live with it until things get better over time and people get into comfort zones, and things run smoothly. But is that fair? What about these youth who feel left out? How long do they have to wait to be heard and how long until they feel some connection to the mosque? How long until the antics and unilateral decision a few will affect the community at large?
As we said yesterday Muslims should be taking action. For the benefit of our community, our youth, and our responsibility of being a powerful voice for the Canadian Muslim across the country. Vote if you have the opportunity, become a member of the OMA, and don’t just complain. Pick up a pen to vote, right an email, or start painting the walls. But don’t sit back and whine.
On the topic of doing something useful for the community:
Habitat for Humanity inter-faith build:
Back in October a Muslim family broke ground with establishing their new home with the help of Habitat for Humanity.
Well, there is some more good new on this. If you’ve ever wanted to have your try at building a house or simply wanted to give back to your community this next project is for you.
Habitat for Humanity is planing to have a faith-build where people from different faith participate to help out the needy of the community to establish a home. The beautiful thing about this is that it is a contribution of the family, the community, interested businesses, and you to help out. What’s even cooler than all of this is that the home is sold to the family at well bellow cost, and with an (brace yourself for this…) interest free loan!
That makes this home have more barakah, and be more halal than many of the homes we live in.
Out of 30 homes established in Ottawa, 5 house Muslim families.
So, rally your local Masjid to come up with the funds to send five or ten people to help build one of these homes and really contribute to building a community. If you are interested and need some guidance or help checkout salamottawa.ca/about/communityprojects/h4h/ or contact us at community_outreach [@] salamottawa.ca.
Nasheed
Coming Up
Anticipate: The Biggest Quran Competition in Ottawa’s History.. Qabeelat Ansar presents, AlKiraam Albararrah; Juz Tabarak Memorization & Recitation Competition… Featuring Local Talents.. Brothers and Sisters… coming April 25th in sha Allah
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Community News:
George Galloway to speak in Ottawa in spite of the ban on his entry to Canada.
Report from the Ottawa Peace Assembly
[Canadian Press] TORONTO – A court decision Monday upholding a ban on George Galloway from entering the country amid allegations he engaged in terrorist acts will see the British MP deliver speeches to Canadian audiences via a live video link from New York.
Following the Federal Court ruling, organizers of Galloway’s now aborted speaking tour said the maverick politician would not attempt to enter Canada.
“We’re not interested in doing anything illegal whatsoever,” said James Clark, a peace activist and one of the speaking tour’s organizers.
“Our expectations were such that we were already implementing Plan B, which was to make sure that he can still deliver the speech from a live broadcast.”
Galloway had been set to visit Toronto on Monday, the first of four scheduled speaking engagements in Canada.
The Canada Border Services Agency advised Galloway, in a letter dated March 20, that he had been deemed inadmissible to Canada on the grounds he allegedly engaged in terrorist activities… [see link for removed text]
However, Justice Luc Martineau ruled Monday he was not in a position to allow Galloway into the country although he did say there were “serious issues to be tried” if the judicial review occurs.
“The arguments raised by the applicants are not frivolous or vexatious,” Martineau ruled. “However, a proper factual record and the benefit of full legal argument . . . are lacking at the present time.”
The decision represented a “partial victory” in that the court did recognize there was a serious issue at stake, Clark said.
“We want to pursue and examine all the questions that have come up about how and why the (border agency) preemptorily issued this ruling of inadmissibility to Mr. Galloway,” Clark said.
Supporters were also concerned about alleged political interference from Ottawa in light of comments by Immigration Minister Jason Kenney, Clark said.
Kenney has said he did not ask the border agency to rule on Galloway’s admissibility, but would not use his ministerial power to overturn their decision.
Galloway planned to deliver his speeches to Toronto, Mississauga, Ont., Montreal and Ottawa this week from a studio in New York City.
In the letter to Galloway, the government said he had given $45,000 to Hamas, which is a banned terrorist organization in Canada.
Under Canada’s Anti-Terrorism Act, it is an offence to knowingly participate in or contribute to any activity of a terrorist group.
His supporters say Galloway had given money to the head of the government in Gaza but not to the head of Hamas, even though they are the same person.
Canadian Jewish Congress CEO Bernie Farber said the fact Galloway would still broadcast what he had to say showed that free speech was not at stake.
http://www.google.com/hostednews/canadianpress/article/ALeqM5gU2uqE_jfXZDlngIUha7WuKzhd3w
From georgegalloway.com
George Galloway on The Hour, Canada’s award-winning late-night TV talk show,
WORLDPRESSNETWORK – 27 March 2009
George Galloway will be on The Hour with George Stroumboulopoulos, Canada’s award-winning late-night TV talk show, on Monday, March 30. Ccatch the interview after it airs on The Hour [Video: http://www.cbc.ca/thehour/videos.html?id=728665230]
From www.SpideredNews.com
Week 13 – Imam Khalid, the Citizen, and the Youth: call-in! George Galloway Banned in Canada from Speaking at a Peace Organization
Hosts: Omar (GreenKufi) & Ahmed Khalil
Quran:
ArRa’d [ch. 13 v. 5-11 | Recited by Abdullah Basfar -عبد الله بن علي بصفر ]
“Verily Allah will never change the condition of a people until they change it themselves (with their own souls)” (3:37 – 8:24)
Discussion
Imam Khalid, the Citizen’s article and the Youth:
There is this illness amongst many people, and we’ve see this in the character of critics of Islam as well. Since, they can find no qualm with the essence, basis, and fundamentals of something they must pick on the minor details that alone may seem unusual, yet in full context are the salt and pepper of all that is beautiful. People who wish to defame Islam will find nothing that contravenes logic in the basics and fundamental of this beautiful religion. Instead they spend their entire lives and the focus of their life’s workon debating wheatehr a word meaning raisins or women. This seems to be no different when it comes to this issue here in Ottawa with our Imam Khalid may Allah protect him and aid him. People ignore the fact that he is a qualified, well versed, Imam and scholar of Islam. Something Ottawa has been starving for for some time. Yet when people have some concerns about the community at large (justifiably or not) their actions reflect how much they really care about these concerns deep down in side. In other words, no action means no care. So why all the noise? Well as one of our listeners said, “Muslims like to talk”. And in the case of Imam Khalid treat him like “a drop off box”.
Now of course we can’t expect the Ottawa Citizen to realize this. Far from them being a balance source of information about Muslims, it is also a non-Muslim entity that could not possible understand the intricacies of Islam and Muslim (whom have shown to be very complex, socially). But what we did expect, naively as it was, that the Muslims who had their concern would have addressed it where it matters; within the Muslim community.
I can’t imagine, now that the Ottawa Citizen has published this article that we will be seeing droves of Imams crawling out of the wood works. Nor would we expect that the general Ottawa public will have something valuable to contribute when it comes to managing a Masjid. The reality is that the situation we are in is a result of our own apathy. Our own indifference, our own laziness, our own ignorance, and our own inaction.
Unfortunately, because some of our elders have lived their lives with indifference, it is natural that our youth would follow suite, except those whom Allah guides, of course.
There is no denying that the youth are in a dire situation, and a dire need of spiritual uplift. But the citizen? Really? They could have come to us, here on Salam Ottawa, or the Muslim Link, or other imams in town, or other community leaders, if they felt the Muslim public should know. In fact, I would love to have them on Salam Ottawa in order to properly hear what they have to say. I seriously doubt the Citizen had the Muslim youth’s interest in mind when editing their piece.
Perhaps these youth really do have something to say. So how about those youth head over to Slam Ottawa (the only Muslim Radio program in Ottawa) to have their say heard without the editing hand on the citizen puppeteering Muslims against each other.
Now it is true. The youth are in a totally differnt dimension than many of the Imams that are being offered as spiritual guidance. But then they are also in an absolutely differnt dimension than many of thier parents.
So what is the solution? Those who talk and care should be stepping up to take on the resoponsibility of building Muslim community. I’m not talking about mosques, by the way. Not even Islamic centers. I’m talking about building people. From our elders and our parents to the community works and the youth. everyone needs to step up and be Muslim in all that the word means.
Be a Muslim in our behaviour. Be a Muslim in our daily actions. Be a Muslim in how we feel about things.
The prophet peace be upon him said: “Whoever does not give care to the affairs of the Muslims is not one of them”. The arabic word is beautiful in this hadit; Yahtam. It does not simply mean “care” in the sense of a thought or feeling. It means those who move either internaly or in their actions when the Muslims are in need. So where are teh people of himmah or ambitoon and action? Well, they are busy with thier lives. Oh, so their family and children… No, no no. Children? The school takes care of them. Then I drop them off after school to the brother to learn quran and that’s it.
Where is the care and action with your children? The onse who now have grown up and know no where better to turn than the Ottawa Citizen. Why aren’t we as a whole community caring for our community?
SOME COMMENTS FROM OUR LISTENERS ABOUT THIS TOPIC
Local News
George Gallaway banned from Attending a peace meeting in Ottawa next week:
Weekly Tadthkirah
Pride and Arrogance:
The Prophet peace and blessing of Allah be upon him said:
“He shall not enter paradise whosoever has in his heart even an atom’s worth of pride.”
Green Kufi’s Greening Muslims
Brought to you by Green Kufi Enviro
Don’t Forget Earth Hour this March 28, 2009. And just like many of the special hours, days, weeks, or months of the year that draw attention to important things we should be practicing the encouraged actions and habits all year round. It is our responsibility. Allah says in the Qura’an: (and we presented the “trust” (Amanah, responsibility, stewardship) to Heavens, and the Earth, and the mountains, but they declined to uphold it, so we had mercy upon them, so mankind upheld it” Al-Ahzaab 72.
As stewards and representatives Allah has given us guidelines and rules to follow. One of which is against mindless, wasteful and extravagant consumption. Islam teaches us to exhibit justice and conserve, and preserve what we have been given as a responsibility. Allah says:“And don’t be wasteful” and He also warns us that “In deed those who are wasteful are the brethren of devils”. Lets cut the waste and hit the power switch off when we don’t need it. Keep on Greening, Muslims.
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Comedy
The Art of Complaining:
Nasheed
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