CCN has
conducted a
preliminary drilling down of
the latest statistics to
come out of the 2011
Australian Census:
1. There
are 476,290 Muslims in
Australia making up 2.2%
of the Australian
population, an increase
of almost 40% from the
2006 census figure of
340,392.
2.
Queensland's Muslims
number 34,048 (0.8% of
the Queensland
population) - an
increase of around 68%
from 2006.
3. The
South-East Queensland
suburb of Kuraby has the
largest concentration of
Muslims in Queensland -
almost 20% of the
residents of Kuraby
cited Islam as their
religious affiliation.
Just under 7% of the
residents of the suburb
of Stretton are Muslims.
4. The
state of New South Wales
has a Muslim population
of 219,377 (3.2% of the
population of the state)
with more Muslims
(8,031) residing in Lakemba
(just over 50%) than any
of the other religious
groupings in the suburb.
The suburb of Auburn has
13,922 Muslims (42% of
the residents of the
suburb).
5. The
state of Victoria has a
Muslim population of
152,775 (2.9% of the
population of the
state). WesternAustralia has 39,117
(1.8% of the state's
residents), South
Australia (19,511 and
1.2%) and the Northern
Territories (1589 and
under 1%).
5.
Nationally, Arabic is
the third most common
second language in
Australia after Mandarin
and Italian, with
Cantonese and Greek in
fourth and fifth places
(Note: Not all Arabic
speakers are Muslims).
The
competition for the
CCN Young Muslim
Writers Awards (YMWA)
for 2012 is now
open.
Please encourage our
young boys and girls
to participate.
Last
year's inaugural
awards were a
resounding
successful with
entries coming from
all around Australia
and many considered
by our independent
panel of judges as
being of very high
standard.
The
Australian International
Islamic College (AIIC) of
Durack was very successful
in the recent Quran
Recitation Competition
organized by the Islamic
Council of Queensland (ICQ).
Amongst the
winners was MohammedAbdirahman (pictured
left) in the 9-10 years
Boys category.
A full report
on the school's achievements
and all the results is
documented
here.
Australians
get a bad rap overseas, and
our stocks seem especially
low in India. In fact, a
sizeable chunk of India's
1.2 billion people think
Aussies are dumb, drunk and
racist.
But doesn't every
country have its negative
stereotypes?
In this
six-part factual series,
journalist Joe Hildebrand
takes four Indians on a road
trip around Australia to
examine our worst
stereotypes -- are we really
beer-swilling, racist
bogans, or are we simply
misunderstood?
Shot on
location in India and across
Australia, this series puts
its Indian protagonists
smack bang in the middle of
passionate debates and
immersive experiences that
could change their opinion
of Australia forever.
After three
weeks of seeing the good,
the bad and the ugly up
close, will our intrepid
Indian travellers still
think that Australians are
dumb, drunk and racist?
And what will
we think of ourselves, after
seeing Australia through
their eyes?
Journalist
Joe Hildebrand sets out on a
pilgrimage to Delhi and
beyond to examine this
anti-Australian sentiment.
While in India Joe meets the
four locals who will join
him on a road trip across
Australia. As a newsreader
and journalist for a Hindi
network, Gurmeet Chaudhary
was shocked by the negative
stories appearing regularly
in the Indian media. Call
centre worker Mahima
Bhardwaj takes Joe through
the unpleasant encounters
she’s had with Aussies over
the phone. Amer Singh is a
third year law student in
Chandigargh who decided it
was safer to stay in India
to study. Radhika Budhwar
advises Indian students
where they should study
overseas; she hasn’t
recommended Australia for
the last five years. All
agree to risk life and limb
to visit our reviled and
dangerous country.
Episode 1
(Warning:
Classified MA)
Joe
kicks off the Australian
tour by mixing the glitz
and glamour of Sydney
Harbour with Australia’s
most renowned beach,
Bondi. The travellers
quickly become seduced
by the beauty Down
Under. But before his
guests relax too much,
Joe stops them in their
tracks with a
provocative mural
plastered on an inner
city wall. The mural -
which reads, ‘Say No to
Burqas’ - sparks off the
first heated debate… and
the Indians aren’t the
only ones upset by the
message the mural
carries.
A
new not-for-profit virtual
institute has been
established by a group of
Australians offering the
community the opportunity to
enhance their knowledge of
Islam "in a polite,
scholarly manner that is
graceful and eloquent,
consistent with both
traditional Islam and the
modern context."
Dr Mohamad Abdalla, one of
the founders of this
initiative, told CCN that
Revival is being led by a
group of Australians who are
well respected for their
specialisations and
community involvement. "This
distinction allows them to
understand the needs of the
Australian community and the
context in which they
operate."
They include
Imams, community leaders,
lawyers, educators, and
academics.
"Revival’s
mission stems from the core
Islamic belief that humans
are created to strive for
the attainment of the
cognisance of God [Ma’rifa]
and the reformation of the
soul."
"Revival
teachers are highly
qualified in the traditional
and contemporary Islamic
sciences including: Islamic
law & jurisprudence, the
sciences of Quran and Hadith,
Islamic finance, Islamic
history and civilisation,
Arabic grammar & morphology,
Islam in Australia and Islam
in the Australian news
media, to name just a few."
Revival will
enhance community education
through lectures, seminars,
symposiums and workshops for
Muslims and non-Muslims.
Programs will include:
• Intensive Shariah programs
• Intensive Arabic courses
• Outreach to non-Muslim
religions and cultures
• Understanding Islam &
Muslim culture for
non-Muslim organisations &
service providers
• Countering domestic
violence from an Islamic
perspective
• Countering drug addiction
and abuse from an Islamic
perspective
• History of Islam in
Australia
• Islam's Influence on
Western Civilisation
• Indigenous history and
culture for Muslims
• Parenting Course: Raising
boys & girls
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:
Date:
Day:
Event:
Organizer:
Venue:
Contact phone no.:
Time:
The Crescent was NOT
sighted anywhere in Australia on
Wednesday night.
Therefore, the 1st day of Sha'aban
1433 falls on Friday the 22nd of
June 2012
http://crescentwatch-australia.alghazzali.org/
A six-part
series tells the story of
the birth and flourishing of
civilisation in the Middle
East and its huge influence
on the West.
From the
foundation
of science,
monotheism,
commerce,
justice,
civil rights
and artistic
expression -
look
Eastward.
The series contends that
history that starts from an
ancient Greek perspective
distorts the true path of
civilisation. For crucial
phases in world history, the
political, economic and
cultural centre was the
Middle East.
Episode 1
– Between Two Rivers
This episode follows the
birth of civilization in
Anatolia and the Middle
East. We go back to the very
beginnings; hunter-gatherers
pause in Gobekli Tepe and
start to build the world’s
first structures around
12,000 years ago. We follow
the first stages of
civilization: the rise of
agriculture, governance and
writing in Mesopotamia. We
visit ancient Babylon (Iraq)
and Mari (Syria) to explore
the world’s earliest cities.
The latter part of the
episode explores Alexander’s
arrival in Troy and his
conquest of the Persian
Empire – a journey that made
him realise what he owed to
the East. In Miletus
remarkable new finds show
that the Greek god Aphrodite
began as the eastern god
Ishtar.
Episode 2 – The Triumph
of Monotheism
Today one god is worshipped
by two thirds of humanity.
It is the culmination of an
extraordinary story by which
a single deity emerged from
a pantheon of thousands in
the crucible of religious
ideas that was the ancient
Middle East. In this episode
we trace the birth,
development and explosion of
the religion of Abraham and
Moses, from its very
beginnings in Judaism to its
triumph as Christianity
within the Roman Empire. We
also look at the earliest
form of monotheism, as
devised by Akhenaten in
ancient Egypt.
Episode 3 – A Force from
the Desert
We trace the origins of the
Arabs and Islam, from
nomadic Bedouins to the
sophisticated Nabataean
cultures at Petra and the
magnificent city of Palmyra.
We then follow the story of
the Prophet Mohammed in
Mecca and the spread of the
empire through the Middle
East and North Africa.
This episode balances the
usual images of fanatical
jihadis, to reveal the
surprisingly peaceful and
tolerant process by which
the Islamic empire spread.
We travel from Mecca to
Damascus, Jerusalem to
Cairo, Fez to Cordoba.
Episode 4 – The Muslim
Renaissance
In this film we will reveal
how a golden age of
invention and scholarship
thrived in the Islamic World
at a time when Europe
lingered in a dark age; how
Muslim scholars brought
together for the first time
the ideas of the Greeks and
Romans with Persian and
Indian mathematics and
astronomy and developed it
into the beginnings of
modern Science. We will
reveal the first contacts by
which European scholars
discovered this treasury of
knowledge and how it was
developed by generations of
Arab-admirers (including
Galileo & Copernicus) into
modern science.
This episode focuses on the
House of Wisdom in Baghdad,
the great university mosques
of Cairo and uncovers
ancient documents translated
in Baghdad by Islamic
scholars, now in the
Bodleian Library, Oxford.
Episode 5 – The Asian
Crucible
This spectacular episode
explores the extraordinary
powers and civilizations
that have emerged from
central Asia. First the
Seljuk Turks took on the
Byzantines, pushing their
way into Anatolia. In a cave
in Cappadocia we discover a
long lost painting that
reveals how the two cultures
co-existed.
Then we follow the Mongol
invasions – in Bukhara we
explore its destruction and
in Esfahan, Iran we see how
the Mongols eventually
converted to Islam and began
to settle. Then in
Uzbekistan again the film
traces the rise of Timur and
the explores the glories of
Samarkand.
Finally the programme
follows the successors of
Timur as they spread south
into India, creating the
wonders of the Mughal
Empire. The film ends at the
Taj Mahal.
Episode 6 – The Rise of
the Ottomans
At the time of Elizabeth I,
the greatest power in the
world was not England,
France or Florence, it was
the Ottoman Empire – one of
the world’s first truly
global and multicultural
Empires. The film follows
the rise of the Ottomans in
the Anatolian city of Bursa
and tells the dramatic story
of how they conquered
Byzantium and transformed
Istanbul.
The great Topkapı Palace of
Istanbul is the stage on
which we describe the growth
of the Ottoman Empire and
hear of the unprecedented
developments in science and
the arts ushered in by the
rule of enlightened Sultans.
Episode 7 – The Ottomans
and the West
The film looks at the wider
Ottoman world, taking in
superb merchants’ houses in
Birgi (Anatolia) and
Damascus. At the edge of
empire, on the Persian
border near Mt Ararat, we
discover how the Ottoman’s
controlled the extremities
of Empire at Ishak Pasha’s
magnificent palace.
The programme then explores
the growing European
fascination with ‘The
Orient’ throughout the 19th
century, both as a place of
culture and also as a
trading partner and market
for mass produced western
goods. We end by tracing the
decline of the Ottoman
Empire in the dying days of
the19th century, a time when
the Sultans still managed to
achieve great feats,
including the building of
the great Hejaz Railway
across the Arabian desert.
'The
Insignificant' is a short
film that seeks to
accentuate the significant
issues that Australia's
society faces as opposed to
other minor issues that are
unfortunately given
disproportionate media and
political attention.
Journey through the shoes of
a burqa-clad woman as she
witnesses the many
substantial health, social
and environmental issues
prevalent within Australian
society.
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. 26
Sheikh
Ahmad Tijani
Ali Cisse
Leader of
the
Tijaniyya
Sufi Order
Sheikh Ahmad
Tijani Ali Cisse
is the spiritual
leader of
the Tijaniyya
Sufi order. The
Tijaniyya is the
largest Sufi
order in Western
Africa, and its
leader commands
a following of
close to 100
million people,
who see him as
their guide to
true Islam.
Leader of
Tijani Muslims
Cisse is based
in Senegal,
however, Tijani
Muslims are
located
throughout
Western Africa
and further
afield. As an
order, Tijanis
give allegiance
to their sheikh
giving him
significant
influence as a
leader. Cisse is
installed as
Imam of the
Grand Mosque in
Medina Baye,
which is one of
Western Africa’s
key positions of
Islamic
leadership.
Descendent of
the Tijaniyya
Founder
The Tijaniyya is a
Sufi order
founded by Ahmad
al Tijani Hasani,
an Algerian, in
the late 18th
century. As the
spiritual leader
of the
Tijaniyya, Cisse
is considered to
be the bearer of
a spiritual
inspiration
called the Fayda
Tijaniyya,
giving him
authority to
carry on the
teachings of
Ahmad al Tijani
Hasani. Because
of this
position, some
Tijani Muslims
refer to Cisse
as the reviver
of the Sunnah.
This is Ameera here. You may remember that a few
months back I was looking for sponsorships to attend
the Global Young Leaders Conference in Washington DC
and New York City this June/July.
Thank you to everyone who so generously assisted me
in achieving my goal.
Alhamdulillah, I shall be leaving this Saturday for
the conference and I look forward to returning with
some positive life experience and pictures!
The one place
to do all your Ramadan and
Eid Shopping.
We have
literally brought the IBC –
Islamic Books & Clothing
shop from Melbourne to
Brisbane for 3 days next
weekend Friday June 29,
Saturday June 30 & Sunday
July 1.
We’ve loaded up a great
collection of Ladies, Men’s,
Girls & Boys Islamic
Clothing (Abbayahs, Thobes,
Caps, Scarves), Islamic
Books (Quran, Seerah,
Children’s Books), Prayer
Mats, Wall Frames, Attar,
Tasbih, Zam Zam Water, DVD’s
(Mufti Ismail Menk, Khalid
Yasin, Children’s DVD’s) and
heaps more.
Lots of
specials too:
• Buy
1 Get 1 Free Audio CD’s –
Yusuf Islam, Zain Bhikha,
Sami Yusuf
• Pashmina
Scarves $10 each, 3 for $25
• Long
Scarves $8 each, 3 for $20
• Ladies
Swimwear 20% off
• Large
Attar $5 each, 3 for $12
Free DVD –
The Empire of Islam, valued
at $15 for all purchases
over $100 (limited stock)
PLUS MUCH MORE
The ladies clothing range
includes linen skirts, cool
cotton/linen tops and a
range of Maxi dresses with
matching cotton cardigans.
There are a variety of
scarves too square scarves,
long scarves, designer rose
scarves, hijabs, khimars,
headbands & caps. There is
something to suit everyone.
Our men’s range of Thobes
offers many styles, colours
and fabrics including pin
striped Thobes, Morrocan
style Thobes with hoods as
well as traditional white
cotton Thobes. Men’s caps
are available in a wide
variety of colours & styles
– cotton, knit from the
traditional to the trendy.
Children’s Clothing:
Girls Abbayahs - for ages 5
– 16.
Small Boys Thobes - for ages
1 to 8.
Young Boys Thobes - for ages
9 – 16, (traditional and
Omani-no collar), cotton,
rayon, white & colours
WHERE: Islamic
College of Brisbane Hall, 45
Acacia Rd, Karawatha
Friday
June 29th (after Juma) until
8 pm Saturday (June
30) from 10am – 5 pm. Sunday (July
1) from 10am – 5 pm.
EFTPOS &
Credit Card facilities
available
Ahmed Imam is looking
forward to meeting up with
old friends and making many
new ones too.
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.
Boulevard
Tower Residence
The Heart of Surfers
Paradise
Relax
in one of the newest and
most exciting developments
in the heart of Surfers
Paradise - Boulevard Tower
located at 6 Orchid Ave
Surfers Paradise. A stroll
away from the beautiful
sandy beaches of Surfers
Paradise. Walk to Hard Rock
Cafe, and enjoy the
convenience of shops,
supermarkets, restaurants,
cafes, boutiques etc right
at your doorstep.
Our two bedrooms residences
offer luxury in abundance
with extensive floor space,
convenient open-plan layout,
two bedrooms, two bathrooms,
separate living and dining
areas, fully equipped
kitchens and internal
laundry. Experience pure
tranquillity from your
residence with expansive
ocean views over the famous
Surfers Paradise Beach.
Please
contact the booking office
to check dates required on
P: 0422237860 or E:
yunus.omar@yahoo.com.au
SEE THE NEW LOOK
ISLAM TV
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CHANNELS FOR
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ISLAM
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BY SALAM CARD
SUPPORTING LOCAL
MUSLIM AND
MUSLIM FRIENDLY
BUSINESS
The notion that
all modern madrasahs are terrorist factories is a falsehood
based on ignorance.
This book reveals
the daily routine of one well-known madrasah in India and so
lifts the veil on that ignorance.
It is an account
that academics, journalists, pundits and all those concerned
with current events and issues should read.
It demonstrates
that students in a traditional madrasah are given grounding
in religious life without any weakening of intellectual
breadth and refinement.
Above all, the
students learn to tolerate and accept different arguments
and points of view and to appreciate different human
temperament.
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: Inspired by MasterChef's
Amina's contribution at the Salamanca marketplace in the
Tasmanian episode, I decided during the week to give a
gozleme a go. It turned out be a delicious complement to
the pumpkin and leek soup on a very cold Brisbane winter's
night.
METHOD
1. Combine warm water, yeast and sugar in a jug.
Whisk to dissolve yeast. Stand in a warm place
for 10 minutes or until frothy.
2. Sift flour and salt into a bowl. Add yeast
mixture and 1 tablespoon olive oil. Mix to form
a soft dough. Turn dough onto a lightly floured
surface. Knead for 5 minutes or until elastic.
Place in a lightly greased bowl. Cover with
plastic wrap and stand in a warm place for 30
minutes or until dough doubles in size.
3. Divide dough into 8 equal portions. Roll 1
piece into a 32cm x 20cm rectangle. Place
spinach and feta filling over one half of
rectangle. Brush opposite edge with water. Fold
dough over to enclose filling. Press edges
together to seal. Repeat with remaining dough.
You could make it into circles and place filling
on one half of the circle and fold dough over to
make a semi-circle.
4. Heat a frying pan over medium heat. Brush one
side of each gozleme with olive oil. Cook for 3
minutes or until base is golden. Brush uncooked
side using remaining oil. Turn over. Cook for 3
minutes or until golden and crisp. Transfer to a
board. Cut each gozleme into slices. Serve warm.
Spinach and Feta Filling
INGREDIENTS
• 2 tablespoons olive oil,
• One large sliced onion
• 1 tsp crushed garlic
• 1 tsp green chillies
• 1 punnet of spinach, chopped
• 200 gram of fetta crumbeds
• 1 tab lemon juice
METHOD
1. Heat 2 tablespoons olive oil in a frying pan
over medium-high heat.
2.
Add sliced onion and garlic to pan.
3.
Cook, stirring, for 3 minutes or until onion has
softened.
4.
Add green chillies, stir, remove from the heat
and add chopped spinach and mix well. When cool
stir through feta and lemon juice.
To add variety you could you could use a mince
or a steak filling.
Carrying extra weight, especially now during the colder
months, can not only be painful, but cause discomfort as
well.
Studies show that excess fat may be associated with an
increase in inflammation, which can set the stage for
painful conditions such as arthritis; lower back, shoulder
and neck pain; etc.; which in turn will make it difficult to
stay active, creating a vicious cycle of pain, inactivity
and even more weight gain.
So
now is the time to get up off that comfy couch and start
walking – don’t let the cold weather ‘weigh’ you down.
In
fact, you’ll have to work harder (burning more fat) in the
colder months as the body takes slightly longer to warm up
and get the heart pumping, so take advantage of the cold and
make it work in your favour..
Shortly
after an Ehihad Airways flight had reached its cruising
altitude, the captain announced:
'Ladies and Gentlemen, this is your Captain. Welcome to
Flight 293, non-stop from Abu Dhabi to Brisbane. The
weather ahead is good, so we should have a smooth
uneventful flight. So sit back, relax and..... OH, MY
GOD !'
Silence followed!
Some moments later the captain came back on the
intercom.
'Ladies and gentlemen, I'm sorry if I scared you . While
I was talking to you, a flight attendant accidentally
spilled a cup of hot coffee in my lap. You should see
the front of my pants!'
Jallaludin yelled from somewhere in the middle of the
plane......
'That’s OK brother........you should see the back of
mine!!!’
Glory to
Allah, Who created in pairs
all things that the earth
produces, as well as their
own (human) kind and (other)
things of which they have no
knowledge.
.
'Tis all a Chequer-board of
Nights and Days
Where Destiny with Men for
Pieces plays:
Hither and thither moves,
and mates, and slays,
And one by one back in the
Closet lays.
The Moving Finger writes;
and, having writ,
Moves on: nor all thy Piety
nor Wit
Shall lure it back to cancel
half a Line,
Nor all thy Tears wash out a
Word of it.
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.