Last week hundreds of millions of Muslims from throughout the world looked to the sky for the sighting of the new moon to begin their holy month of Ramadan. Muslims celebrate this month by abstaining from eating, drinking, smoking and other human endeavors during the daylight hours. This year the month falls during the summer heat for many throughout the world adding another level of mortification.
Many of the families rise early before sunrise to have breakfast together before the long hours of fast and gather in mosques and homes after sunset for a community break-the-fast meal called the iftar.
Muslims believe that Allah (God) revealed the Quran (Muslim scripture) to their Prophet Muhammad during the month of Ramadan. Muslims are called upon to use this month to re-evaluate their lives in light of the teachings of Islam. They are called upon to make peace with those they are at odds with and are called to strengthen ties with their family and friends. They are called upon to avoid any bad habits.
The Arabic word for fasting is sawm and it literally means “to refrain.” Not just from food and drink but from all evil actions, thoughts and words. The fasting is not just merely physical but is rather the total commitment of the person’s body and soul to the spirit of the fast. Ramadan is a time to practice self-restraint and a time to cleanse both body and soul from impurities and to refocus one’s self on the worship of God.
As we all know this particular Ramadan season here in America is being celebrated during an interesting and painful national conversation about the appropriateness of building an Islamic center that will house a small mosque two blocks from the former World Trade Center known as Ground Zero. While I certainly do not want to wade into the political morass of this particular tug of war, I think it’s important to note that Muslims have had a difficult time in the United States since the tragic events of 9-11, both when it comes to their image as a faith community and in their plight to build houses of worship in various communities.
Here in our own South Jersey community we experienced a microcosm of this national debate in the controversy that surrounded the building of a mosque in Voorhees a couple of years ago. You may recall that a local Muslim community wanted to build an Islamic center and mosque in Voorhees by converting a commercially zoned building for their religious needs.
An anonymous group of opponents began to distribute fliers that warned residents that extremists “with connections to terrorists” might worship at the site. The fliers also claimed that the mosque run by the Muslim American Community Association, a group of around 15 families at that time, would attract hundreds of worshippers for prayers five times a day.
The local Muslim community trying to build this house of worship turned to the local Christian and Jewish communities to help them in their efforts to build the center. Catholics and Jews, who themselves as communities of faith that have historically experienced similar opposition to their establishment of religious buildings, came to their aid. Ultimately, the members of the Voorhees zoning board unanimously approved the mosque plan after their attorney told them that there was no legal reason to reject it. Since then the mosque has been a center not only for Islamic worship but a welcoming place for interreligious dialogue and outreach here in our local community.
These events were chronicled in a documentary film, Talking Through Walls, made by Unity Productions, that was broadcasted nationwide on PBS stations. It tells the story of Zia Rahman, a good friend of mine, who passed away last year, and his efforts, along with our interfaith coalition that overcame fear and prejudice in the building of the mosque in Voorhees.
If any Catholic school, religious education or adult education group would like information on this groundbreaking film, do not hesitate to contact the Office of Ecumenical and Interreligious Affairs for the Diocese of Camden or Unity Productions Foundation online.
We pray that our Muslim brothers and sisters will experience a fruitful and spiritually deepening experience of Ramadan this year and that peace and mutual respect will prevail in our interreligious dialogue as a nation.
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