The
official launch of the MuslimYouthofQueensland (MYQ) took
place yesterday (Saturday, 2 October) at Griffith
University-Nathan Campus.
Over 100 people attended the
function and heard about the objectives of the
recently formed networking body which aims to
provide a common platform for the various youth
organizations in Queensland to enable them to
coordinate their individual efforts.
The future vision is to attract
all the other states in Australia, creating a
body that will be strong enough to be recognised
by other Muslim youth and non-youth
organisations and official government bodies
both state-wide and federally.
The organizations that have
already committed themselves to working with MYQ
each gave a short presentation about the work
they do in the community. At present, Alnisa,
the Australian Muslim Youth Network (AMYN), the
Federation of Australian Muslim Students and
Youth (FAMSY), Gold Coast Youth and United
Muslims Brisbane (UMB) are members.
A great result was recorded from
last weekend's taekwondo competition in
Melbourne for the Rawlins fighters. MustafaaOlomi and JacobWhite (picturedright) qualified for the National Team.
Mustafaa qualified for the Oceana
Competition which will be held in New Caledonia
in December, and both of the young men will
compete in India for the Games to be held in January
in Chennai.
This is a self funded competition and if anyone
is interested in sponsoring the two boys should
contact their head instructor Haris on
0402716707.
MAQ
Awards Night
(Standing left to right)
Sultan Deen (Eidfest), Yasmin Khan (Eidfest),
Chalani Gunasekara (ECCQ), Irene Cayas (ECCQ),
Victoria Zografos (ECCQ)
(Seated left to right) Muna
Ibrahim (IWAQ), Fatima Abdel-Karim (IWAQ),
Galila Abdelsalam (IWAQ) and Desley Scott (MP)
The Multicultural Affairs
Queensland (MAQ) Awards night held at the
Sofitel Hotel during the week was a glittering
affair with radio host, MadonnaKing, as the
Master of Ceremonies.
This year MAQ recognized
achievers in a number of categories including
outstanding volunteer; community organisation;
private enterprise; public sector; education;
media and the Minister's awards.
The Townsville Multicultural
Support Group, a not-for-profit, community-based
organisation that assists migrants in the wider
Townsville was the winner in the community
organization category in which the Queensland Eidfest Association Inc, the Islamic Women's
Association of Queensland (IWAQ) and the Ethnic
Communities Council of Queensland (ECCQ) were given
honourable mentions.
The award recipient for the
Minister's Multicultural Community Award was The
Indian Community.
This award acknowledged and
commended all members of Queensland's Indian
community, in particular those who have worked
closely with the Queensland Government, through
Multicultural Affairs Queensland, over the past
12 months to support international students in
this state to have a positive educational,
social and cultural experience.
The Minister for Disability
Services and Multicultural Affairs,
AnnastaciaPalaszczuk, told the
invited guests that over the
past year, Indian community and faith
organisations have supported international
students by coordinating student meetings and
forums, linking students groups to the broader
community and vice versa; and assisting students
to access relevant government assistance.
The night's entertainment
was an eclectic collection of traditional African
folk songs (including a very nostalgic rendition
of
shosholoza) performed by the
Multicultural Development Association Diversity
Choir, and some highly energetic dance routines
by the Indian dance troupe from the Asha and Bollywood Dhamaka.
For the complete list of all the
award winners and highly commendables
go here.
In a press release soon after the event the
Minister for Natural Resources, Mines & Energy
and Minister for Trade, StephenRobertson MP,
acknowledged the work of the organizations who
were nominated for awards.
Donald
Trump vs David Letterman
2010
NAPLAN Results - Muslims Australia Schools Score Above
the State and National Averages
In an press release, the
President of Muslims Australia – AFIC, Mr Ikebal
Patel announced that all of Muslims Australia
schools, namely Malek Fahd Islamic School in
Sydney, Islamic School of Brisbane, Islamic
College of South Australia, Islamic School of
Canberra and Langford Islamic College in Perth
have achieved results above the national and
state averages.
Mr Patel stated, “the NAPLAN mean marks of our
students at Malek Fahd Islamic School in all the
tests are higher than the New South Wales and
the national mean.” and added that the results
at the Islamic School of Brisbane and the
Islamic College of South Australia were also
above the respective State means.
The Islamic School of Canberra
ranked above the ACT and the national average in
3 out of five subjects and Langford Islamic
College had similar above
average achievements in the year 3 class
compared to the WA State mean results.
Mr Patel attributed the students' achievements
to the focus and visionary goal of each School
community in achieving it best and fullest
potential through concerted effort, study and
pride in hard work.
He congratulated the students, teachers, and
parents at all of Muslims Australia schools who
had contributed to the exemplary NAPLAN
achievements.
New MP is
first in Australia to be sworn in with Koran
Ed Husic with wife Bridget
(left) and mother Joan outside Blacktown
With union boss turned western
Sydney MP EdHusic taking his seat
in the 43rd parliament of Australia, history was
made.
Mr Husic, the son of Yugoslavian
migrants, is the first Muslim elected to federal
parliament and this week became the first MP
sworn in by the Chief Justice of the High Court
with his hand on a copy of the Koran.
The Blacktown-based former national president of
the Communications Electrical and Plumbing Union
arrived in Canberra carrying with him the Koran
of his proud migrant parents who watched on from
the public gallery as he took his oath.
While downplaying his religion and the
significance of his contribution to Australian
political history, the MP for Chifley said
"getting elected to parliament, full stop, is an
enormous privilege".
But Mr Husic conceded others might well see his
oath as a significant moment for Muslim
Australians.
"Given my background, there are some people
taking a small slice of pride or happiness."
The Lord Mayor's Multicultural
Unit is now accepting expressions of interest
for the Lord Mayor's Multicultural Business
Scholarship program.
Now in its third year, The Lord Mayor’s
Multicultural Business Scholarship Program
recognises the success of our multicultural
community and its contribution towards making
Brisbane a more vibrant, diverse and
internationally competitive city.
The Scholarship Program provides business
training scholarships to people from Brisbane's
multicultural community who are interested in
starting or improving their own business.
It aims to develop students'
business management and entrepreneurial skills
while giving them the confidence to engage with
Brisbane’s business community.
For more information on the program
visit the BCC website. Applications close 29
October 2010.
Multicultural Festival Roma Street
A range of volunteer
opportunities exist for aspiring event managers
at this year’s
Queensland Multicultural Festival on Sunday
17 October.
The
Tourism Volunteering portal provides a
central point for new and experienced volunteers
to find out what opportunities are coming up in
their region. It also allows organisations
seeking volunteers to register and promote their
tourism volunteering opportunities on the site.
The portal is hosted by Volunteering Queensland,
the State’s peak body for volunteering.
The festival which is held at
Roma Street Parkland was the ultimate showcase
of Queensland’s cultural diversity with a
program that incorporates a citizenship
ceremony, roving artists, children's activities,
international food and beverages, and craft
stalls, and has attracted over 280,000 people
since the inaugural event in 2004.
Organisers are seeking volunteers
for a number of positions that provide a behind
the scenes look at the management of a large
scale event. A range of roles include stage and
information assistants are available.
`Community
Newsletters and Updates
The Al-Ghazalli Newsletter
of the Sydney-based Al-Ghazalli Centre can be
viewed
here.
Topics include
• Clarification
of the Marvels of the Heart
• XpressO - Australasian Launch of The
Blessed Tree
• XpressO Movie Night - Melbourne
• The Ansaar Project @ Exodus
• Mizaan Ecology – Cooks River Regeneration
Project
• Night of Remembrance - Sisters Only
• Foundations Diploma in Islamic Sciences -
Cert 2
• Fiqh of Zakat
• The Ansaar Project @ Elizabeth Bay
• Crescent Sighting - Dhul Qaida
• Mizaan Ecology - Newcastle
The Inbox
Dear Editor,
Thank for attending our Eid Festival and those
wonderful pictures you have posted in your last
newsletter.
Your presence and presentation gave
us for the first time sense of belonging,
Generally speaking we Somalis feel we
are claimed by the Queensland Muslim community
organizations (most cases when applying for activity
Funds) as we are 100% Muslims and on the other hand
by African community as we are from Africans and we
belong to none.
In most cases we are not included in
activity planning processes. We are not part of
management committees of both parties and we don't
fit any of those groups, we have identity crisis.
CCN's participation in our Eid has
boosted our moral and given us a sense of belonging
for the first time.
Thank you and please sent us your
newsletter regularly.
Warm Regards
Hussein Ali Ahmed
President- United Somali Association of Queensland
incorporated
Salaams Everyone
Just wanted to make everyone
aware...especially with the weekend grocery shopping
that Coles is running a 'sports for school'
promotion.
Our Islamic school on the Gold
Coast is very new and still building it's resources.
This is a great opportunity for everyone inshallah
to contribute to this school with little to no cost
to yourself.
When you shop at Coles from now
until end of October, each $10 spent will give you
one sports voucher. This means a $100 grocery bill
would provide 10 vouchers. We ask that everyone
collect these vouchers and please put them aside for
our school and then either drop them in or mail them
to the school at:
19 Chisholm Rd, Carrara, QLD
4211
Because the Gold Coast campus
is still in its first year, there will be no funding
from the government until later next year. Which is
why this is such an excellent opportunity to get
some much needed equipment.
Here is the link should you
wish to find out more about the deal:
Remember to collect the
vouchers at the time of payment otherwise they will
be lost. The vouchers need to be forwarded to our
school by the first week of November to allow
claiming of equipment.
Inshallah your concern for the
children will be rewarded.
RaahatDhedhi
Hello CCN Readers
We are looking for some feedback from our valued
Muslim customers!
Since Ramadan has finished, we have not seen many of
our Muslim customers return to our store and our
Naan sales of dramatically dropped. We are unsure
why we have not seen many customers return and we
are asking if there has been discussions amongst
yourselves about any potential problem or
dissatisfaction that is being experienced in our
store?
We have only last week renewed our Halal
certification and we are wondering if it is even
worth us continuing with being a Halal bakery.
We are the ONLY halal bakery in Brisbane and we
would LOVE LOVE LOVE to see our Muslim customers
return. If there is any feedback you can provide it
would be greatly appreciated.
With our NAAN, we are now stopping all Tuesday
production as we are simply not selling any and we
are losing money by throwing these breads in the bin
at the end of the day. We ask for pre-ordering to
gauge the demand, however nobody has pre-ordered in
months.
If anyone would like to ring and discuss any issues
or feedback, please do not hesitate to call the
store or us personally.
UK: On the
21st October, ‘The Muslim
Debate Initiative’ is
hosting an exclusive event
at The London Muslim centre
– the UK’s leading Mosque.
For the first time, the
doors of a British mosque
will be open to the public
to critically discuss Islam,
in particular the Muslim
concept of God. The event
has been hailed as a
confirmation that the
British Muslim community is
willing to engage in
critical dialogue concerning
their faith, with fellow
non-Muslim citizens.
Top Atheist
philosopher, lecturer and
author, Dr Brendan Larvor
debates Muslim International
public speaker, and Muslim
philosopher, Adam Deen in a
debate over the existence of
God, and the Islamic concept
of God at the London Muslim
Centre (adjacent to East
London Mosque)
Brendan
Larvor studied philosophy
and mathematics at Balliol
College before embarking on
a brief career as a systems
analyst. He quickly resumed
his studies in philosophy,
taking an MA from Queen's
University Ontario before
returning to Balliol to
write a doctoral thesis on
the philosophy of
mathematics of Imre Lakatos.
He taught at the
Universities of Liverpool
and Oxford before joining
Hertfordshire in 1997. He
specialises in the history
and philosophy of
mathematics and science. His
current project is to
develop a historically
sensitive and properly
philosophical approach to
the study of mathematical
practice.
Adam Deen is an
international public speaker
on Muslim Apologetics. A
former Islam channel
presenter and Muslim
philosopher who has been
working in the field of
Muslim apologetics for
almost a decade. He has
contributed to debates on
issues ranging from ethics,
to religious philosophy and
theology. His work draws on
contemporary philosophy to
defend Islam in public
debates. He has appeared on
mainstream TV and debated
USA's leading atheist Dan
Barker author of 'Godless'.
Another
day, another Muslim-bashing story in the tabloids
A
shopping centre in Rochdale, Greater Manchester, has
installed new 'squat' toilets for customers after bosses
reportedly went on a cultural diversity training course.
Two of Rochdale's Exchange shopping
centre's fourteen toilets have been converted into nile
pans.
Manchester Evening News reports:
'Community activist Ghulam Rasul Shahzad said managers
decided to offer the toilets after attending one of his
training courses.
'The retired Rochdale council training officer, who has
an OBE for community work, took centre manager Lorenzo
O’Reilly and his team on a tour of the town’s central
mosque, including a look at its toilets.
‘He said: "The management at the centre were very
committed to improving the service they offered to the
community and were very responsive.
‘"We always work together to understand each other from
both sides and find a balance.
‘"That is the beauty of Rochdale. That is why I am proud
to be a Rochdalian."’
What is essentially a local issue, involving merely two
toilets, has been used by the national media to once
again incite anti-Muslim prejudice and toe the ‘special
treatment of minorities’ narrative.
The Daily Star's article titled 'Muslim public loo fury'
reported 'Fury has erupted after a shopping centre
became the first in Britain to introduce Muslim-only
toilets.'
The Daily Express' article on the matter is headlined
'Shopping centre plans squat loos designed for Muslims.'
The paper reports: 'They are being installed for Muslim
customers.’
The Sun, Daily Mail and Sky news focused on the 'Asian'
community, making little or no mention of Muslims
throughout their report.
Disappointingly, the BBC once again picked up on a
non-story, utilised by the right-wing press to foment
fear about the ‘Islamification’ of Britain.
Nile pans are used all around the world - in France,
Italy and Greece among other countries. But as usual,
some sections of the media could not pass up the
opportunity of taking yet another swipe at Muslims.
The PCC has adjudicated on a complaint
lodged by a reader against the Daily Star on the paper’s
inaccurate and inflammatory coverage of ‘squat’ toilets
that were installed in a Rochdale shopping centre.
The PCC upholding the complaint on the paper’s breach of
clause 1 (Accuracy) of the Editor’s Code of Practice,
stated:
"In this prominent story, there were two clear errors
of fact which, in the circumstances, would have misled
readers in a significant manner: the toilets could not
be described as "Muslim only"; and were not paid for by
the local council. While the newspaper had accepted that
the article was wrong - and offered to correct the item
- the Commission was particularly concerned at the lack
of care the newspaper had taken in its presentation of
the story. This led to a breach of Clause 1 of the Code
which makes clear that newspapers must "take care not to
publish inaccurate, misleading or distorted
information". The complaint was upheld."
The Minbar of Saladin: Reconstructing
a Jewel of Islamic Art
edited by
Lynette Singer
The
story of how this magnificent Islamic treasure was
painstakingly reconstructed under the aegis of the
Jordanian royal family.
Early one morning in August 1969 a
firebomb was set off in the al-Aqsa mosque in the heart
of one of the holiest places in Jerusalem. A devastating
blaze soon engulfed the thousand-year-old building,
severely damaging the interior. When the firemen had put
out the flames, a sodden pile of ashes was discovered,
all that remained of one of the jewels of Islamic
art—the Minbar of Saladin.
An extraordinary piece of craftsmanship,
the Minbar, or pulpit, had been installed by Saladin in
the mosque on his triumphant recapture of Jerusalem from
the Crusaders in 1187. Made of 16,000 pieces of
intricately carved wood, adorned with ivory and ebony,
it was widely acknowledged as a pinnacle of Islamic
design and woodcarving.
This book on the Minbar's reconstruction
tells of the quest to fathom the principles of Islamic
sacred geometry and to decipher how the Minbar's complex
patterns were created. This was followed by a worldwide
search for materials and for craftsmen who still
possessed the necessary skills—skills that had seemed
lost in today's world of mass production and modern
technology.
The book also illustrates the work of the
Prince of Wales's School of Traditional Arts in London
and the College of Traditional Islamic Arts &
Architecture in al-Salt, Jordan, where many of the
crafts for which Islamic art and architecture are
celebrated are being revived.
Published to accompany the documentary
film Stairway to Heaven, narrated by Kenneth Branagh.
Forewords by HRH The Prince of Wales and HRH Prince
Ghazi bin Muhammad of Jordan.
Would you
like to see the cover of your favourite book on our book
shelves below?
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:Last week I promised
you a delicious chutney to go with your savouries.
I have Bilkish Omar to thank for
providing me with the basis for this tantalizing recipe.
She calls it her 5-minute-sauce – and she is absolutely
right.
It's sweet, sour and chilly flavour
has made this sauce very popular amongst our friends in
Brisbane.
It enhances the off-the-shelf sauces
with traditional spices to give you a unique taste. I am
sure you are going to enjoy this over and over again.
Ingredients
1. A bottle of
Mrs. Balls Chutney (470g)
2. One 250ml bottle of chilli sauce (Packo
or Crosse and Blackwell)
3. 200ml bottle tomato sauce
4. 1 tsp red crushed chillies or methi
masala mix (available at an Indian grocer)
5. 1 tsp salt
6. 1 tsp mustard seeds
7. 3 tsp crushed garlic
8. 2 tab curry leaves
9. 1 tsp green chillies
10. 1 tsp jeero (cumin seeds)
11. 2 Tab oil
Method
Heat the oil and add items 6 to 10.
Fry for a minute
and then add items 1 to 5 and bring it to a
simmer stage and allow to simmer for approx
5 minutes.
When the sauce
is cool, you could liquidize it if you like
the sauce to be of a smooth consistency.
Q:
Dear Kareema, with school holidays here yet again,
we're off for some R and R. I'm hoping to focus on
myself as well and fit in some exercises whenever
possible. A little help please....
A: I am sorry I am responding to your question so late,
particularly now that the Queensland school holidays are
just about over. But I hope that you may still find this
useful for the next lot of holidays.
I do what I call my 'any-wear' workout whenever I'm
away. Doesn't matter where I am or what I'm wearing, I
make it work to my advantage!
If
you're heading towards the ocean, you've got the option
of soft-sand running - stop every minute or so and
include some push-ups, sit-ups, dips and hovers, etc.
Be
sure to make at least one of your sessions on the sand a
yoga / stretch session for improved flexibility.
No gym? - No worries, just be sure to pack your skipping
rope, joggers, sunnies and hat. Go for an early morning
walk / jog before everyone wakes up.
Skip for a few
minutes as a warm-up before you pound the pavement and
don't forget your all- important stretching routine.
This will get you off to a great start and you can focus
on the family once you're back from your walk ..
Not
only will you feel refreshed, you'll seem to have a few
extra hours at hand because of your early start.
There's always the option of hopping into the pool (if
there's one on site), and splashing around with the
kids, turning it into a great muscle-toner while you're
at it.
Kids will love it and you will be working hard
without even realising it.
Be creative while sitting and watching a movie with the
kids, do some arm and leg raises, etc. or use a ball
between your knees and squeeze and release the knees
while lengthening and strengthening the spine..
Taleem
this week will be held on Thursday 7
October
from 11am-12pm at the
residence of:
FarahnaazOmar
57 Dandelion St
Eight Mile Plains
Tel: 34230190
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
Weekly
webcast from Sydney
Live Webcast link
to the Al-Ghazzali Centre in Sydney for the next
Friday night 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'.
Time: 7.30pm every Friday for 10
weeks starting Friday 1st of October.
Cost: $5 / person/ class.
Venue: Al-Mustapha Institute of
Brisbane, 39 Bushmills St, Hillcrest.
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.
In an press release, the
President of Muslims Australia – AFIC, Mr Ikebal
Patel announced that all of Muslims Australia
schools, namely Malek Fahd Islamic School in
Sydney, Islamic School of Brisbane, Islamic
College of South Australia, Islamic School of
Canberra and Langford Islamic College in Perth
have achieved results above the national and
state averages.
A
shopping centre in Rochdale, Greater Manchester, has
installed new 'squat' toilets for customers after bosses
reportedly went on a cultural diversity training course.
The
story of how this magnificent Islamic treasure was
painstakingly reconstructed under the aegis of the
Jordanian royal family. 
If
you're heading towards the ocean, you've got the option
of soft-sand running - stop every minute or so and
include some push-ups, sit-ups, dips and hovers, etc. 
