The fund raising dinner held on
Wednesday night at the Islamic College of
Brisbane (Karawatha) for the victims of the
recent Pakistan floods was a resounding success
(see the CCN Inbox below) thanks to the
sterling work of ZaffarKhan and
the teachers and parents of the school.
The main meal of chicken tikka,
lamb and vegetable curries and saffron rice was
prepared by Mr India Halal Restaurant in
Underwood, and for those who had to wait their
turn patiently it was certainly worth the
wait.
A bountiful spread of gourmet
desserts, prepared by the parents of the school
children, topped off an enjoyable night.
As part of his PhD candidature,
Abdi Hersi is conducting research titled
“Understanding the meanings of Integration:
Perspectives of Muslims, members of the wider
Public and the State.
He is inviting CCN readers to participate in one
of four focus groups at the 06th, 13th and 20th
of November, 2010 to be held at Kuraby Community
Hall. Each focus group will run for about 90
minutes.
Members of the focus group will be asked to
discuss the following issues:
In the context of how Muslims need to fit
into the wider Australian society, what is
integration?
How do you know when a person
integrates and how much?
Are Muslims in Australia
Integrating? Why and why not?
Should you be interested in
participating in a focus group, contact Abdi
Hersi via email:
a.hersi@griffith.edu.au for further details.
Should
Americans Fear Islam
Mosque
protests 'hurting tourism'
Middle Eastern visitors generated $80 million
last year
THE tourism industry is worried
protests about Islamic developments could hurt
international tourism from the Middle East on
the Gold Coast.
Gold Coast Tourism chief
executive Martin Winter said protests over the
Islamic school at Carrara in late 2008 and the
current resistance to the Islamic Worship Centre
at Worongary had the potential to damage the
Middle Eastern tourism market.
Middle Eastern tourists inject
millions of dollars into the Gold Coast which
help tourism operators stay afloat in the
quieter months.
Mr Winter said the Middle East
was worth about $80 million to the Coast last
year and was expected to grow in the coming
years.
"Being a friendly and welcoming
city has always been part of the Gold Coast's
attraction as Australia's most popular holiday
destination making visitors feel welcome should
be part of our culture," he said.
It comes as Tourism Queensland
launched its global tourism campaign
'Queensland, Where Australia Shines'.
Deputy director of Griffith
University's Islamic research unit, Dr Halim
Rane, said protests against Islamic developments
could be avoided by more open interaction
between the Islamic community and the wider
community.
"There is the potential for
images of protests Middle Eastern visitors
generated $80 million last year. to send the
message that
Islam and Muslims aren't welcome," he said.
Dr Rane said understanding and
education would help lessen negativity towards
Muslims.
Leader of the action against the
Worongary mosque Sean Mann said the main
concerns were traffic issues and possible
property devaluation.
"If it was a McDonald's we'd be
doing the exact same thing," said Mr Mann.
Source: Gold Coast Sun Wednesday
6/10/2010
The CCN
Quote of the Week
"How else could Pastor Jones,
who used Mel Gibson’s movie “Braveheart” as an
inspiration to preach his anti-Islamic mumbo
jumbo—in between roaming the Dove World Outreach
Centre compound in Gainesville, Florida porting
a pistol on his hip—get anyone to listen to a
single word of his inglorious claptrap? I don’t
think it’s going too far to say that if God
spent a moment listening to anything this
meandering clown had to say, he himself would
probably come to doubt Intelligent Design."
ImamZiyaad
Ravat of Brisbane, who is currently in Pakistan
overseeing flood relief activities on behalf of
Queensland's
Muslim Charitable Foundation (MCF), sent in a
video clip of his experiences there:
From the
desk of the Welfare Shop........
By Janeth Deen
We thank all the donors for goods
brought into the shop over the Ramadan period
and hope you all had a happy Eid. The shop was
so full of donations, we had to close the doors
for a whole month, which was not good for paying
the rent, but the goods had to be processed.
However, the goods have not gone to waste, as
the Welfare Shop is now assisting authorities
who are in charge of caring for asylum seekers
with clothing, prayer mats, Qurans, hijabs,
skull caps and whatever is needed. We have been
alerted to the fact that a great proportion of
these asylum seekers are Muslims and up to now
have not had their needs met in regards to
Muslim clothing.
Janeth Deen on behalf of the Queensland Muslim
Welfare Association Inc has assured the
authorities that we can supply whatever is
needed for these asylum seekers to follow their
religious needs and make life a little more
bearable in the detention centres. The goods are
collected by the authorities in charge on a
weekly basis, usually on a Wednesday from the
shop in Woodridge. We are not in contact with
any of the asylum seekers as they have not yet
been processed by the government. We want to act
within the limits of the law, to assist, not to
hinder those in need.
We are short of prayer mats and Qurans in Arabic
and other languages, skull caps, and men's
prayer clothes. We have ample women's modest
clothing and children's clothing.
Religious books, especially to teach Islam to
children are also needed as we have detention
centres all around Australia. We are catering
for all the centres around Australia from our
shop. Christmas Island has the greatest
proportion of asylum seekers as is common
knowledge.
We are aware that toys are not permitted into
the complexes as they could pose a risk in one
way or another. The use of toys are closely
monitored.
The Welfare shop has continued to help those who
come to ask for help from the local community.
We have assisted with furniture, household
goods, linen, clothing and even white goods -
all donated from the local Muslim community. We
can assure you, the work is continuing and the
Welfare shop is playing the role it was set up
to play. Remember, if you know of anyone in
need, the Welfare shop is the first organisation
that should come to mind.
Australian electorates
Ever wondered what percentage of
Muslims there are in some of our electorates?
Time is running out to buy your
early bird tickets for the Faith and Cultural
Exchanges Inc. (FACE) 2010 Women’s Only Eid Ul
Adha Ball.
Early bird specials close on the
1st of November and can save participants up to
$50 per ticket.
The event organiser invites
Islamic organisations to inform guests about the
services and activities they have for women
within the community.
Juanita
Taylor the event organiser states “I want an
event that promotes unity, catering for all
Muslim women, that’s fun and fresh but that
remembers Allah and joins women together and
informs them of how much there is going on out
there for us.”
“The whole event has been planned
using shura, we have asked the women to vote on
every aspect of the ball, from the location, to
the theme and we have used this information when
making the decisions, this way the women get
what they want. It’s great.”
“This year the theme is circus.
The women of course will wear ball gowns, but
the decorating and the entertainment will have a
circus theme. We are going to have a full buffet
and I am particularly looking forward to the
entertainment.”
“This year we are holding the
event in a hotel on the Gold Coast. We have
hired the entire floor and river front balcony
ensuring privacy for the women. The event is
duff only I believe this caters for all Muslim
women, those that want to get up and dance can
in a way that is comfortable for everyone.”
Tickets can be purchased by going
to
http://eidball.wordpress.com and the
developments of the ball can be followed on
Facebook. If you run an organisation that has
events and activities for women the organiser
would also love to hear from you.
Muslims
call for peace
THE Gold Coast's Islamic
community extended an olive branch to the city's
Christians as anger rages over a new mosque
planned for the region.
The Coast's only Islamic College
last week hosted the city's first Interfaith
Symposium in a move to bring Muslims and
Christians together.
It comes after tension over a
mosque planned for the hinterland suburb of
Worongary.
Two week's ago more than 300
protesters signed a petition against the worship
centre, proposed for Alkira Way in Worongary, a
quiet semi-rural suburb near Mudgeeraba.
There were several angry rallies
against the Islamic College last year, with Oz
rock anthems blaring from stereos and placards
bearing signs such as "Go home".
The Gold Coast has several
thousand practising Muslims, most of whom
worship at a single mosque at Arundel.
The college, which opened this
year, has about 30 students. Those protesting
against the Worongary mosque say they are not
religious bigots, but are more concerned with
noise and traffic problems.
Last night's symposium featured
addresses from Brisbane Archbishop the Reverend
John Bathersby, Islamic Sheik Dr Fedaa Majzoub
and the Anglican Church's Reverend Jonathan
Holland.
Islamic Friendship Association of
Australia president Keysar Trad said the
symposium was a chance to dispel fears about
Muslims.
"We have our dreams and our fears
and our insecurities, and we probably share a
lot of common interests," he said.
He blamed "uninformed comments"
by some politicians for inciting some of the
negative feelings towards Muslims.
Gold Coast Mayor Ron Clarke said
the city was proudly multicultural and blamed
the "issues" on a small minority.
"People are people and they come
in all shapes, sizes and religions and they are
all equally welcome in our city," he said.
Adapted from Courier Mail
Saturday 2/10/2010
On the
road again.... Durban to Damascus
Notunlike the intrepid
14th century Muslim traveller,
Ibn Battuta, YusufOmar, who
lived in Brisbane for a few years before
returning to South Africa to study journalism at
Rhodes University in Grahamstown in Eastern Cape
Province is planning to hitchhike from Durban to
Damascus starting sometime in November this
year.
The Webcast link
to the Al-Ghazzali Centre in Sydney scheduled to
be beamed live on Friday nights has been
cancelled due to lack of demand.
The link was to a study series, presented by Imam Afroz Ali, focusing on the twenty-first book of
Imam Al-Ghazali's Ihya Ulum al-Din, 'The
Marvels of the Heart'.
Instead expressions of interest
are called for a delayed repeat broadcast to be
shown on Sundays from 2pm to 4pm.
Time: 2pm to 4pm every
Sunday for 10
weeks
Cost: $5 / person/ class.
Venue: Al-Mustapha Institute of
Brisbane, 39 Bushmills St, Hillcrest.
On behalf of the Islamic College of Brisbane and
Brother Mohammed Yousaf Chairman of the Board, first
of all I would like to say thank you because
Crescents of brisbane was the first organization to
give a cheque towards this noble cause. Through CCN
I would like to say thank you to all of the
individuals and organizations, who assisted us a lot
in sponsoring, selling tickets for the dinner and
assisted in all other ways, including giving us
donations.
It was a great and successful night for all of us
and I am proud to say with the help of our
communities (Muslim and non Muslim), and with the
help of my dedicated team, we were able to achieve
around $60,000 and attendees were over 750, and I am
still getting wonderful responses, which will give
benefits to the next charity functions, inshallah.
Can I ask each and every one of our community
member, their family and friends to deposit directly
into the following account, and add the message
“Pakistan Flood Victims”, so the money can go
directly to the people who are affected by flood.
MCF
The Bank of Queensland
BSB: 124-155
Account Number: 2089 7395
Winter is getting very close in Pakistan and we need
to give them Quilts. They are not asking heaters,
they just need Quilts, as you know one quilt is for
$10. At the time of depositing funds into MCF
account they can mention the word QUILT.
Once again thank you very much CCN and your team.
All the best
Zaffar Khan
Salaams
In the Crescent Newsletter of 03/10/10 you have an
article on Muslims being Blamed for Squat Pans.
Below is an article that throws a different light
about Squat Pans. For anyone interested in reading
the full article please go to the following website:
JEDDAH: The
newly established Mashair
Railway, which links the
holy sites of Mina, Arafat
and Muzdalifa with Makkah,
will have a 30-day test run
before opening to transport
domestic and GCC pilgrims
during the upcoming Haj
season.
Municipal and Rural Affairs
Minister Prince Mansour bin
Miteb will inspect the
railway (also known as the
Makkah Metro) on Tuesday to
make sure the facility is
ready to transport the
guests of God. The railway
will bring about a dramatic
change in pilgrim
transportation between the
holy sites.
Established at a cost of
SR6.5 billion, the new
railway will have a capacity
to transport 72,000 pilgrims
in an hour. Nine stations
have been constructed in
Arafat, Mina and Muzdalifa,
each having three stations.
This is the second largest
project implemented by the
Ministry of Municipal and
Rural Affairs after the
SR4.5 billion high-tech
Jamrat Bridge project in
Mina.
Habib Zain Al-Abidine,
deputy minister of municipal
and rural affairs, said the
railway will have 10 trains
in the first phase, each
with a length of 300 meters.
“Each train will carry 3,000
passengers.”
He said Saudi authorities
have not yet fixed the fare.
“The matter is in the hands
of Second Deputy Premier and
Minister of Interior Prince
Naif, chairman of the
Supreme Haj Committee. Once
the prince gives his
directives, we’ll announce
the fare,” he said.
The time for transporting
pilgrims from Arafat to
Muzdalifa will be reduced to
five minutes on the 9th of
Dul Hijjah when the faithful
will move together from the
plain of Arafat to Muzdalifa.
And another five minutes
will take them from
Muzdalifa to Mina on the
10th.
Zain Al-Abidine said the
railway would operate
throughout the year.
The second phase of the
project will link Mashair
Railway with the Grand
Mosque in Makkah with a
station on Umm Al-Qura Road.
It will also be linked with
the Haramain Railway that
connects Makkah with Madinah
and Jeddah.
The trains will have a test
run covering 6,000 km each
before starting regular
operations. The first test
run took place last
Thursday. The railway will
have 20 trains in the next
stage, each with 12
carriages and each carriage
holding 250 passengers.
About 20 percent of
passengers will be seated
while 80 percent will be
standing. Trains will have a
speed of 80 to 120 km/hour.
.
THE
makers of the latest installment of the popular video
game Medal of Honor have caved in to public pressure and
removed the option for players to call themselves
members of the Taliban.
Electronic Arts dropped the Taliban label
from the game - due for release on October 12 - after
families of troops complained it was offensive.
Military bases across the US had banned the sale of
Medal of Honor in reaction to those family protests.
"We are making this change for the men and women serving
in the military and for the families of those who have
paid the ultimate sacrifice," wrote Greg Goodrich, the
game's executive producer, in a blog post on the game's
website.
"This franchise will never willfully disrespect,
intentionally or otherwise, your memory and service," he
said.
Courier Mail
Mehdi
Hasan interviews Baroness Sayeeda Warsi in the New
Statesman
UK:
Mehdi Hasan’s interview with Baroness Sayeeda Warsi (picturedleft), which was published in the New Statesman
last week, offered some very interesting views and
points of consideration for the Muslim community.
Among other things, she talks of the role
of each generation in laying the ground work for
engagement; of the anti-Islam sentiment of the British
press; of the need for confidence in the British Muslim
community.
“Each generation has to play a role.
Yes, they are not of my political ilk, but had people
like Khalid Mahmood not done what they did, had people
like Lord Ahmed not done what they did, then people like
me and Sadiq Khan, Rushanara Ali and Yasmin Qureshi
could not have done what we did. And we will play our
role and then we will have a new generation of BME
[black and minority ethnic] politicians."
.......
"The worst thing that could happen to
the British Muslim community is if it retreats into
victimhood, because there is no coming back from that. I
think the British Muslim community has to be
broad-shouldered and have to say that, yes, there are
challenges, but with challenges come huge
opportunities."
Engage
English
Defence League (EDL) protests against Blackburn’s KFC
serving halal chicken
Lancashire
News reports that police have obtained an order against
extremist right-wing group, the English Defence League (EDL),
over their protests against Blackburn’s KFC serving
halal chicken.
The EDL extremists have picked up on the campaign over
the last few weeks, instigated by the Mail on Sunday,
against halal meat. The report by the Mail on Sunday
sparked a torrent of coverage by the usual right-wing
suspect tabloids, attempting to manufacture outrage at
the fact that businesses were serving halal meat to
their customers.
Engage
Sadiq
Khan appointed as Shadow Lord Chancellor
UK:
THE former Shadow Transport Secretary, Sadiq
Khan, was promoted to Shadow Lord Chancellor and
Secretary of Justice in Ed Miliband’s first front-bench
team.
“The appointment shows how far Muslims have advanced in
mainstream politics in recent years with Baroness Warsi
also being a member of Prime Minister, David Cameron’s
Cabinet,” said Editor of The Muslim News, Ahmed J Versi.
“It puts paid to much negative news about the community
and to detractors claiming Muslims are not committed to
playing prominent and dynamic roles for the betterment
of British society,” Versi said.
Khan, who successfully ran Miliband’s leadership
campaign, became the first ethnic-minority MP to be
elected to Labour’s shadow cabinet after winning the
vote of 128 of his colleagues.
At the age of 40, he is also the youngest member elected
by Labour’s 258 MPs. Last year, he also became the first
Muslim member to attend Cabinet meetings when Labour was
in Government.
His post shadows that of Kenneth Clark, who as Lord
Chancellor is responsible in law for the efficient
functioning and independence of the courts.
In his role as shadow justice secretary, Khan, a human
rights lawyer, has also been given responsibility for
Political and Constitutional Reform, which Deputy Prime
Minister Nick Clegg includes in his portfolio.
Using the book club you can see what books
fellow CCN readers have on their shelves,
what they are reading and even what they,
and others, think of them.
KB SAYS:This recipe was
borrowed from Suraya Lockhat. I've made dozens of
different types of doughs in the past but this one is
quick and easy to make and practically fool and flop
proof. Add your own toppings to give it your personal
touch. I made a batch last week for a Mehndi and they
went down well with the ladies.
Ingredients
1 egg
¼ cup oil
½ cup warm milk
½ cup warm water
3 ½ cups of flour
2 tsp instant yeast
1 tsp sugar
¼ tsp salt
Method
1. Sift all the dry ingredients.
2. Beat the egg and oil and add the warm
milk and water.
3. Combine the above to form a soft dough.
4. Cover and leave to rise in a warm place
for approx 1 hour.
5. Once risen, punch down.
6. Spread onto 3 greased pizza pans or roll
out and using a small cutter cutting out
several mini rounds.
7. Spread tomato chutney, sprinkle with a
combination of mozzarella and cheddar cheese
and a topping of your choice e.g. cubed green
and red peppers, cooked chicken or steak, or
jalapeños and bake in a moderate oven until
the cheese is melted.
Kareema's Q&A Keep Fit Column
from Los Angeles, California
TAKE ON THE GREAT OUTDOORS....MOUNTAIN HIKE
We have so
many good places to go hiking in this beautiful country
of ours...and it's not even a world away! Why not take
advantage of it.
Along with being a good way to clear the mind, enjoy the
warmer weather and taking in some fresh air, hiking is
great for the heart. It will help reduce blood pressure,
and, if done at a more rapid pace every few minutes,
you'll get a great aerobic workout too.
Pack up the
family and go for a wander - you'll tone your lower body
as you follow the trails and discover your 'own
backyard'!
All questions sent in are published here anonymously
and without any references to the author of the
question.
The CCN Chuckle
The King of
a Middle Eastern fiefdom is invited to tea with
Barack Obama.
He asks
Obama: “As a well known and well liked leader in
your country what is your leadership
philosophy?”
Obama’s
response was that he always surrounded himself
with intelligent people.
The King
asks how he knew if they were intelligent.
"I do so by
asking them the right questions," says Obama.
"Allow me to demonstrate."
The King
watches as Obama phones his friend Nelson
Mandela and says,
"Mr.
President, please answer this question: Your
mother has a child, and your father has a child,
and this child is not your brother or sister.
Who is it?"
Nelson
Mandela immediately responds, "It's me, Barack!"
"Correct.
Thank you and good-bye" says Obama. He hangs up
and says," Did you get that, sir?"
The King
nods: "Yes Mr. Obama. Thanks a lot.
I'll
definitely be using that!"
The King,
upon returning to his country, decides he'd
better put his political advisor Mula Nasruddin
to the test.
He summons
Mula Nasruddin to his palace and says,
"Nasruddin,
I wonder if you can answer a question for me."
"Why, of
course, sir. What's on your mind?"
The King
poses the question: "Uhh, your mother has a
child, and your father has a child, and this
child is not your brother or your sister. Who is
it?"
Mula
Nasruddin was puzzled and finally asks, "Can I
think about it and get back to you?"
The King
agrees, and Mula Nasruddin leaves.
Mula Nasruddin immediately calls a meeting of
senior religious advisors, and they puzzle over
the question for several hours, but nobody can
come up with an answer.
Finally, in
desperation, Nasruddin calls his Mufti and
explains the problem.
"Mufti, your
mother has a child, and your father has a child,
and this child is not your brother or your
sister.. Who is it?"
The Mufti answers immediately, "It's me, of
course."
Much relieved, Mula Nasruddin rushes back to the
Palace, gets an audience with the King, and
exclaims, "I know the answer, sir! I know who it
is!
It's our
Mufti!"
And the King
replies in disgust, "Wrong, it's Nelson
Mandela!"
Notice
Board
Click on image to enlarge
Events and Functions
World Famous Qari
in Australia
From Atheism to Islam: A
Journey of Reason & Conviction
Pakistan Flood Relief
Appeal @ Islamic College of Brisbane,
KARAWATHA
Taleem
this week will be held on Thursday 14
October
from 11am-12pm at the
residence of:
Zuleikhamasi
33 Gungurru Cres
Kuraby
All ladies
welcome
Inspiration
talk, pizza, BBQ, fun and games
Topics that
are relevant, Iman-boosting and
mind-capturing. Where: AMYN Islamic Youth Centre,
16/157 North Road, Woodridge When: Every Saturday,after Maghrib
Info:
www.AMYNweb.com Everyone is invited
Australian Muslim Youth
Network (AMYN)
Find out about the latest
events, outings, fun-days,
soccer tournaments, BBQs
organised by AMYN. Network
with other young Muslims on
the
AMYN Forum
The best ideas and the best feedback come from
our community of readers. If you have a topic or
opinion that you want to write about or want
seen covered or any news item that you think
might be of benefit to the Crescents Community
please e-mail
ccn@crescentsofbrisbane.org.
Share your thoughts, feelings and ambitions for
our community through CCN.
If there is someone you know who would like to
subscribe to CCN please encourage them to send
an e-mail to
ccn@crescentsofbrisbane.org with the words
“Subscribe Me” in the subject line.
Disclaimer
Articles and opinions appearing in this newsletter do
not necessarily reflect the opinions of the Crescents of
Brisbane Team, CCN, its Editor or its Sponsors,
particularly if they eventually turn out to be libellous,
unfounded, objectionable, obnoxious, offensive,
slanderous and/or downright distasteful.
It is the usual policy of
CCN to include from time to time, notices of events that
some readers may find interesting or relevant. Such
notices are often posted as received. Including such
messages or providing the details of such events does
not necessarily imply endorsement of the contents of
these events by either CCN or Crescents of Brisbane Inc.
THE
makers of the latest installment of the popular video
game Medal of Honor have caved in to public pressure and
removed the option for players to call themselves
members of the Taliban. 
UK:
Mehdi Hasan’s interview with Baroness Sayeeda Warsi (pictured
left), which was published in the New Statesman
last week, offered some very interesting views and
points of consideration for the Muslim community. 
Lancashire
News reports that police have obtained an order against
extremist right-wing group, the English Defence League (EDL),
over their protests against Blackburn’s KFC serving
halal chicken.
UK:
THE former Shadow Transport Secretary, Sadiq
Khan, was promoted to Shadow Lord Chancellor and
Secretary of Justice in Ed Miliband’s first front-bench
team. 
.jpg)
