The Ramadan
Awareness Campaign
organization is running a
Ramadan competition to give
you a better understanding
of this blessed month in a
way that is easy, fun and
exciting.
Up for grabs
is a fully paid Hajj trip,
iPhones, iPods and much much
more.
The
Australian International
Islamic College at Durack is
inviting organizations to
participate in their Annual
fete which will take place
on Sunday 2 September.
The
Palestinian Arts Culture &
Sports Inc is selling the
Entertainment™ Book as a
fundraiser.
Proceeds of
20% of book sales of over 10
books will go to PACSI to
fund its activities.
A list of participating
HALAL RESTAURANT discounts
are below:
- Efendi's - (Offer: 25% off
the TOTAL BILL of Up to:
$35.00 value)
- Mado - (Offer: 25% off the
TOTAL BILL of Up to: $30.00
value)
madorestaurant.com.au
- Ahmets - (Offer: 25% off
the TOTAL BILL of Up to:
$30.00 value)
www.ahmets.com
- Harem (similar)
When you buy a book, you
receive the discount % off
the purchase price of your
meals from those restaurants
up to the limit, effectively
paying the cost of the book
back to you, if you only go
to 2 of the restaurants and
receive the full discount
before 1 June 2013.
More savings and discounts
are in the book for other
food outlets (like Nandos),
plus loads of retail,
accommodation (anywhere in
NZ or Australia), and theme
parks like Australia Zoo,
Seaworld, Dreamworld and
more. For $65 (price of the
book), you can enjoy over
$15,000 worth of savings
from Brisbane, Sunshine
Coast & surrounds top
restaurants, café's,
takeaway chains, retail
outlets & many more up until
June 1, 2013.
PACSI currently have a
limited number of 2012/2013
Entertainment Books
remaining, so if you want
one, or for any queries,
contact Rebecca Edmund on
0401755580 or
Email:pacsi2012@gmail.com.
To purchase your copy
online, complete the order
form
here.
PACSI is a Queensland
non-for-profit incorporated
association whose primary
objectives are to encourage
the appreciation, and
promotion, of Palestinian
culture, history, arts, and
sports.
"THE entry of
Muslims into this country
must be stopped," argued
one.
"The Muslims
have already infiltrated
every country in the west
and it's just a matter of
time now before they have
the numbers to elect their
own leaders around the
world," said another.
This is only
a small sample of the
comments the Sunshine Coast
Daily was able to post
online in response to two
articles concerning Muslims
and refugees. Many more were
too racist and defamatory to
be publicised.
While
bloggers appear to be giving
the Sunshine Coast the
reputation of a red-necked,
racist community, the
reality experienced by
Muslims living here is
different.
Malik
Achig-Zai is probably the
only Muslim attending a
Catholic school on the
Sunshine Coast. And like
many other Muslims, Malik
Achig-Zai says Aussies
aren't racist.
Malik is
observing Ramadan at the
moment. This only earns the
support and respect of his
fellow classmates. "They say
they feel bad at morning tea
and lunch time eating their
lunch in front of me," he
said.
He has never
experienced any of the
vitriolic hatred evident
from the bloggers.
"People
asking my story are very
supportive. They have a
positive view," he said.
Malik was
brought to the Sunshine
Coast by his brother, Abdul,
and his wife Meg Foley four
years ago.
Meg met Abdul
at the Port Hedland
immigration detention
facility in Western
Australia when she was a
teenager at Siena College.
Through their
letter writing, they fell in
love, married and then
arranged to bring young
Malik to the Coast. Malik
says he hasn't experienced
any racism here.
Bronwyn Bell
from Sunshine Coast-based
refugee support also
believed the opinion of the
bloggers was "not
representative of those held
by the silent majority".
"Perhaps that
majority needs to break its
silence and speak up more
strongly for the values of
compassion and tolerance,"
she said.
Source:
Sunshine Coast Daily 24 Jul
2012, by Bu Kathy Sljndstrom
WHEN
Australian husband and wife
taekwondo team Safwan Khalil
and Carmen Marton
(pictured left) arrive
in London, the first thing
they will do is find
something to eat.
As Muslims, the pair will
have been observing the
Islamic month of Ramadan,
during which they refrain
from eating or drinking
during daylight hours.
Ramadan this year begins on
July 20, four days before
the team arrives in London.
Normally during Ramadan the
couple would tailor training
and any competition around a
full month of fasting from
5am until sundown daily. But
with the Olympics on the
other side of the world,
they have a reprieve.
"It is something we have had
to live with in the past,''
said Khalil, 25, who won
gold at last year's World
Universiade Games in China.
"I had to do most of my
preparation for the World
Universiade Games during
Ramadan, which made things
pretty difficult.
"This year
things have worked out in
our favour if you travel a
certain distance you are
exempt from fasting and can
make it up at a later time.
We will have been fasting
for only four days before we
get to London so it won't
take us too long to get back
to normal.''
The travel exemption has a
downside, says Marton, 26.
"It is good for our Olympic
preparation but obviously we
would prefer to do Ramadan
when everyone else does it.
It is a really good family
bonding time.''
While Lebanon-born Khalil
has been a Muslim all his
life, Marton was born and
raised Catholic and
converted in 2009 after the
couple met at the Junior
World Championships in
Greece.
"I watched Saf and the way
he prayed and lived his
life,'' Marton said. ``I
looked into it and found
that the way we had been
brought up was similar.''
The couple, married under
Islamic law, will have an
Australian civil ceremony
after the Games. It will end
a long period of separation,
with Marton living in
Melbourne to train with her
long-time coach, and Khalil
preparing in Sydney with his
brother and Olympic coach
Ali.
While
orthodox finance is in a
mess, Islamic finance is
growing strong. Maybe a
little financial sharia law
would help everybody? Before
you cast judgment, let us
explain about God and
mammon.
"Jesus
Saves, Moses Lends, Muhammad
Invests"
It's
pretty clear what Jesus
thought of the financial
sector. The only example in
the Gospels of him using
physical force against
anyone was when he upset the
tables of the moneychangers
in the temple.
It's pretty clear, too, what
Shakespeare thought. Take
Lord Polonius's advice in
Hamlet, oft quoted over the
400-odd years since it was
written: "Neither a borrower
nor a lender be; For loan
oft loses both itself and
friend." How vindicated
would they feel if they were
alive today? Our
heedlessness is ruining us
all. It's been almost five
years since the start of the
so-called global financial
crisis, and almost every
day, it seems, brings some
piece of news showing again
how hopelessly we are in
thrall to the moneylenders.
"Australia
could lay the foundation to
become a leader in the
Asia-Pacific Islamic-finance
market.”
ROVANIEMI,
Finland — How do you observe
dawn-to-dusk fasting when
there is neither dawn nor
dusk?
It’s a question facing a
small but growing number of
Muslims celebrating the holy
month of Ramadan on the
northern tip of Europe,
where the the sun barely
dips below the horizon at
this time of year.
In Rovaniemi, a northern
Finland town that straddles
the Arctic Circle, the sun
rises around 3:20 a.m. and
sets about 11:20pm. That
means Muslims who observe
Ramadan could be required to
go without food or drink for
20 hours.
In a few years, Ramadan will
begin even closer to the
summer solstice in late
June, when the sun doesn’t
set at all.
“We have to use common
sense,” said Mahmoud Said,
27, who came to Finnish
Lapland from Kenya three
years ago.
To Said, that means
following the fasting hours
of the nearest Muslim
country: Turkey.
“It involves 14 or 15 hours
of fasting which is okay,
it’s not bad,” said Said,
who works for a
non-governmental
organization helping
immigrants settle in the
area. He estimates there are
a little over 100 Muslims in
Rovaniemi, mainly from Iraq,
Somalia and Afghanistan.
There is no unanimity on how
to deal with the issue,
which is becoming more
pressing as more Muslim
immigrants find their way to
sparsely inhabited areas
near the Arctic.
In Alaska, the Islamic
Community Center of
Anchorage, “after
consultation with scholars,”
advises Muslims to follow
the fasting hours of Mecca,
Islam’s holiest city.
The Dublin-based European
Council for Fatwa and
Research, however, said
Muslims need to follow the
local sunrise and sunset,
even up north.
In response
to the violence on Myanmar
Muslims and the media
blackout on the subject,
Muslims Australia (AFIC)
issued a
Press Release and a
letter to Hon. Bob Carr.
Ramadhan Lecture Series: AR RAZZAQ – THE SUSTAINER
Sister's House
Sister's House
0431 747 356
6pm followed by Isha & Taraweeh
5/12/18 August
Sunday
Ladies Islamic Studies Group
161 Underwood Rd, Eight Mile Plains
0452 200 551
11am to 12pm
11
August
Saturday
Ifthaar: Experience the tastes of Indonesia
Indonesian
Islamic Society of Brisbane
QUT, Kelvin Grove TBA
0407 632 492
After Maghrib
If
you’re holding
public iftars,
lectures,
exhibitions,
homeless food
collections,
fund-raising
initiatives or
anything else this
Ramadan email
ccn@crescentsofbrisbane.org
with the following
details:
Ifthaar hosted
by the
Indonesian
Islamic Society
of Brisbane at
the University
of Queensland
last Saturday
Daily Ifthaar at Kuraby
Mosque
Imams and friends
enjoy a post-taraweeh get-together
and BBQ-ed Portuguese chicken and
chips at the Algester Mosque last
night (Saturday)
Local Woolies getting
into the spirit of the month
Ifthaar hosted by The
Islamic Women's Association of Qld
and the Embassy of the United Arab
Emirates at the Clairvaux
Mackillop College Hall in Upper Mt
Gravatt last night (Saturday)
LIVE from MAKKAH
A comprehensive
list of answers
of the most
common questions
to do with
Ramadan that
covers topics
such as what
breaks your
fast, illness
and pregnancy,
taraweeh, not
fasting due to
hardship, making
up fasts, Laylat
Al Qadar, Itikaf
(spiritual
retreat) + more
is available
from
Seekers Guidance.
There are
over 1.6
billion
Muslims in
the world
today,
making up
approximately
23% of the
world's
population,
or more than
one-fifth of
mankind.
The
Muslim500
publication
is part of
an annual
series that
provides a
window into
the movers
and shakers
of the
Muslim
world. It
gives
valuable
insight into
the
different
ways that
Muslims
impact the
world, and
also shows
the
diversity of
how people
are living
as Muslims
today.
The 2011
Muslim500 lists the
world's most
influential
Muslims who
have
impacted on
their
community,
or on behalf
of their
community.
Influence
is: any
person who
has the
power (be it
cultural,
ideological,
financial,
political or
otherwise)
to make a
change that
will have a
significant
impact on
the Muslim
World. The
impact can
be either
positive or
negative.
The
influence
can be of a
religious
scholar
directly
addressing
Muslims and
influencing
their
beliefs,
ideas and
behaviour,
or it can be
of a ruler
shaping the
socio-economic
factors
within which
people live
their lives,
or of
artists
forming
popular
culture.
Over the
coming
weeks, CCN
will publish
a
personality
selected
from the
list:
No. 31
H.E.
Sheikh
Abdullah Bin
Bayyah
Deputy-Head
of the
International
Union of
Muslim
Scholars
Country:
Mauritania Born: 1935 (age 76) in
Maruitania Source of Influence: Scholarly Influence: Significant influence
as a leading contemporary scholar of Islamic
Jurisprudence
School of Thought: Traditional Sunni,
Maliki
Sheikh Abdullah
Bin Bayyah’s
influence is
derived from his
scholarship and
preaching.
Uniquely, all
of the different
sects and
schools of
Muslims respect
him as a
scholar. A
testament to
this is the
notable fact
that whilst he
is not a Salafi,
the Saudi
government
promulgates his
fatwas as
authoritative.
He is an
instructor at
King Abdul Aziz
University in
Jeddah and is
the deputy head
of the Union of
Muslim Scholars,
under Yusuf al
Qaradawi.
Diplomat
As a member of
the
International
Islamic Fiqh
Academy or Al
Majma’ al Fiqhi
of the
Organization of
the Islamic
Conference,
Sheikh Bin
Bayyah is at the
forefront of the
legal arm of a
dynamic
organization
with a permanent
delegation to
the United
Nations.
Author
Having written
numerous texts,
Sheikh Bin
Bayyah’s
scholarly
explorations
have gone global
through speaking
engagements
that draw crowds
of tens of
thousands. He
has spoken at
length
about the
endurance of the
Islamic legal
tradition and
also written
extensively on
rulings for
Muslims living
as
minorities in
foreign lands,
or fiqh al
aqaliyaat.
Download a pricelist.
Call Laila on 0415467868 /
32197808 to place your
order.
Please note that we already
have many pre booked orders
so please place your orders
asap as we will be only
taking a limited number of
orders.
Hashim
Amla is 'overwhelmed' by record-breaking
knock for South Africa
UK:
Only Don Bradman and Brian Lara have scored
more runs against England in a single
innings than Amla's unbeaten 311 at the
Oval, making him the first South African to
score a Test triple hundred.
Amla claims that he eats like a rabbit but,
unfortunately from the perspective of
England's bowlers, he does not bat like one.
The only surprise is that this devout Muslim
is eating at all, for it is Ramadan and in
the past not even Test cricket has been
allowed to interrupt the vigilance of his
religious observance. Here, though, he has
put fasting on hold.
"Because I'm travelling away from home I
don't have to fast," he said. "So I haven't
been fasting. But I will make it up when I
get home."
The Guardian
Tariq
warns against 'playing with Islam and hudud'
Malaysia:
As the country’s Malay based parties - PAS
and Umno - try to outdo each other by
showing who is more Islamic, an influential
Islamic thinker and philosopher has warned
against using hudud on non-Muslims.
In a lecture organised by the
Penang Islamic Foundation, Prof Tariq
Ramadan said even in the harshest Islamic
position, to say hudud is to be implemented
on non-Muslim is “un-Islamic”.
Tariq - who lectures at
Oxford University - warned against political
parties “playing with Islam” and using hudud
as a means of competition to show who is
more Islamic.
UK:
The Guardian’s blog on the Olympic Games
carries an article by feature writer, Homa
Khalili on the way in which the relaxation
of clothing rules in sports as well as
changes in the design of sportswear,
including hijabs made for sports, is
increasing Muslim women’s access to sport.
From the Guardian:
“Amid the furore over the
state of undress of one of the UK's most
successful female cyclists, the increasing
aceptance [sic] of sportswear that allows
Muslim women to compete has garnered little
attention."
Homa notes the decision by FIFA earlier this
month to overturn a ban on headscarves after
a campaign was led by Prince Ali Bin al
Hussein of Jordan. It came to late for some,
as Homa highlights that the women's Iranian
football team had already been prevented
“from playing in their 2012 Olympic
qualifying match last year”.
Homa continues, “Fifa is just one of several
international bodies to relax clothing rules
and so allow more Muslim women to compete in
the Games.” She adds that “It's impossible
to know how many women will be competing
with their head covered this year, but they
include judo player Wodjan Ali Seraj
Abdulrahim and Saudi Arabian runner Sarah
Attar, as well as footballers."
Europe
needs a “European Spring” to overcome racism
and intolerance
EU: The Commissioner for
Human Rights at the Council of Europe, Nils
Muiznieks has written an article in which he
argues that European governments have
allowed and in some cases worsened an
environment which is increasingly hostile to
Muslims and which hinders integration. He
argues that the continent needs to have its
own “European Spring” to overcome racism and
intolerance.
From the article:
“Muslims in Europe want to interact with
other Europeans and participate as full and
equal members of society, but regularly face
various forms of prejudice, discrimination
and violence that reinforce their social
exclusion. This is the conclusion of recent
research by various international
organisations and NGOs. Unfortunately,
commentators on the Arab Spring missed the
historic opportunity to deconstruct harmful
stereotypes about the alleged
incompatibility of Islam and democracy,
instead exaggerating the risk of migration
to Europe."
Muiznieks argues that “Muslims have become
the primary “other” in right-wing populist
discourse in Europe.” He notes the rise in
anti-Muslim populist discourse, which has
also been adopted by established mainstream
parties who have suggested that
multiculturalism has failed in their
respective countries. He also noted how
“Since the terrorist attacks on 9/11 and
thereafter, Muslims have become inextricably
linked in the public mind with terrorism.”
This discourse has arguably become so
naturalised that societies often fail to
comprehend terrorism in other guises,
jumping to the gun that any act of terrorism
is carried out by a ‘jihadist’, as was the
case at the time of Ander’s Breivik’s attack
in Norway.
US: Imagine this scenario: a
group of women in southern California ask
their local YMCA for an extra swim class.
The YMCA would have to stay open a bit later
than usual, but it happily obliges. It is
summer, and the women, who are content to
pay for the class, are eager to use this
opportunity to improve their health. For
many of them, it will even be their first
time in the pool.
Isn't
it a
testament to
America that
Muslim women
of any
socioeconomic
status can
find or even
create
suitable
spaces for
exercise
here? Even
more
remarkable
is that they
are doing
this at the
Young Men's
Christian
Association.
Why did they ask for this class in the first
place? Perhaps their work schedule prohibits
them from finding another suitable time.
Perhaps they are shy and prefer not to swim
around other people, even men. Perhaps this
is a unique opportunity for the women in the
community to bond together. Any of those
reasons would have probably been met with
widespread approval or even indifference.
None would have sparked the outcry that this
class did.
When a San Diego YMCA recently set up an
extra swim class for a group of East African
Muslim women, it caused an unprecedented
backlash. The women who requested this class
sought a safe space to exercise without men
around -- in a way that would honour their
Muslim faith and their personal traditions
of modesty.
The website Jihad Watch called the class
"racist" and likened it to "all-white
swimming hours."
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: I have had a number of
requests to repeat this recipe which I had posted in this
column a few Ramadans ago. This is an improved version after
trying and testing it over a few Ramadan iftaars recently.
Calzone
Ingredients
3 cups flour
2 Tab sugar
1 tsp salt
2tsp yeast (10g)
¼ cup oil
1 egg
½ cup warm milk and ½ cup warm water
Method
1. Dissolve the yeast and sugar in the warm milk
and water and keep aside allowing it to bubble.
2. Sift the flour and the salt.
3. Beat the egg and oil and very gently rub into
the dry ingredients
4. Lastly add the yeast mixture to the flour
mixture and knead to form soft dough.
5. Cover the dough and leave to rise until
almost double in size.
Ingredients for the Filling
2 cups of chicken fillet cubed
1 tsp ground cumin (jeeru)
1 tsp salt
¼ cup lemon juice
1 tsp ground green chillies
1 tsp lemon pepper
1 tsp garlic
2 tab oil or ghee
Method
Heat the oil and add all the above and cook the
chicken until tender and then add 2 tab corn
flour, mix in for a minute and then add 1¼ cups
of milk and let it simmer for a few minutes and
then allow it to cool. Your mixture must be
saucy.
To make the calzone:
Punch the dough down and then using half the
dough at a time, roll it out, using an 8cm
cutter, cut out circles, brush with beaten egg,
place the filling in the one half and then fold
over, Brush with beaten egg and sprinkle with
cheese and cubed tomatoes and green peppers and
bake at 180 degrees until light brown.
Q: Dear Kareema, I’m about to start a weight training
program but am unsure of which weights to start off with.
Can you steer me in the right direction?
A: You need to start with a suitable weight for your
fitness.
I
suggest you concentrate on your technique and posture while
starting with a light weight and then build from there.
Your
aim should be to not only challenge yourself while toning
and building muscle, but also to be safe throughout your
workout.
So
start light (enough to challenge your fitness level) and
slowly build the weight as the weeks go by.
Mula
Nasruddin who has been fasting the entire day and is
almost faint with hunger decides to call into his
favourite radio station, Channel Islam for a request.
O men!
Here is a parable set forth!
Listen to it! Those on whom,
besides Allah, you call,
cannot create (even) a fly,
if they all met together for
the purpose! And if the fly
should snatch away anything
from them, they would have
no power to release it from
the fly. Feeble are those
who petition and those whom
they petition.
The Immense Ocean by Imam Ahmed Ibn Ajiba
al Hasani
Date: Saturday 3 March 2012, then
every second Saturday of each month Time: 3pm - 4:30pm Venue: IWAQ Office, 11 Watland St, Springwood
Light refreshments provided.
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.
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 CCN Inbox:
Letters to the
Editor
The
Palestinian Arts Culture &
Sports Inc is selling the
Entertainment™ Book as a
fundraiser.
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%20Prayer%20Times,%20Qiblah,%20Mosques%20(Masji.jpg)
UK:
Only Don Bradman and Brian Lara have scored
more runs against England in a single
innings than Amla's unbeaten 311 at the
Oval, making him the first South African to
score a Test triple hundred.
Malaysia:
As the country’s Malay based parties - PAS
and Umno - try to outdo each other by
showing who is more Islamic, an influential
Islamic thinker and philosopher has warned
against using hudud on non-Muslims.
UK:
The Guardian’s blog on the Olympic Games
carries an article by feature writer, Homa
Khalili on the way in which the relaxation
of clothing rules in sports as well as
changes in the design of sportswear,
including hijabs made for sports, is
increasing Muslim women’s access to sport.
post comments on
our Wall
7
August 2011