It has been
another
challenging
year for the
community,
but we hope
and pray
that through
our
continuing
to work
together for
a safe and
secure
future for
all that we
will
overcome the
trials and
tribulations
that have
befallen us
over the
past few
months and
years.
Brisbane's
best Asian
community
football
talent will
be showcased
in the
inaugural
Brisbane
Asian
Community
Cup today
(Sunday 28
December)
from 9am-4pm
at Brisbane
Knights
Centre
(Croatian
Centre),
Dunn Road,
Rocklea.
16 Open
Men's teams
from Asian
Football
Confederation
countries
will compete
to become
the
champions
and the
teams
competing
are Iraq,
Chin FC,
Lebanon,
Australia,
Gurkha FC,
Knights,
Bhutan,
Thailand,
Vietnam,
Zamurai,
Thai Brissy,
Warriors,
Young Boys,
Burma, Japan
and HingKong.
.
The teams
will play 30
minute games
in four
knockout
pools
culminating
in the Grand
final at
3pm.
The event is
organised by
Asian Cup
Community
Ambassadors
with support
from the
Local
Organising
Committee of
the AFC
Asian Cup
2015,
Football
Queensland
and Red
Elephant
Projects.
Jim Bellos,
Asian Cup
Community
Ambassador
said "The
Asian Cup
Community
Ambassadors
are proud to
present the
inaugural
Brisbane
Asian
Community
Cup in
partnership
with
Football
Queensland
and the AFC
Asian Cup
2015,”
“Brisbane
is proud of
its diverse
communities
and this
tournament
will
showcase
Asian
community
football
ahead of the
Asian Cup in
January."
Mr Bellos
added.
Michael
Brown, CEO
of the Local
Organising
Committee of
the AFC
Asian Cup
2015 said:
"With less
than three
weeks to go
until the
Asian Cup,
the Brisbane
Asian
Community
Cup is a
wonderful
event to
bring the
communities
together in
celebration,"
"We look
forward to a
high
standard of
football and
may the best
team win."
Mr Brown
added.
Event
Details: Event:
Brisbane
Asian
Community
Cup Date:
9am-4pm,
Sunday 28
December,
2014, (Grand
Final 3pm) Venue:
Brisbane
Knights
Centre
(Croatian
Centre),
Dunn Road,
Rocklea Entry:
Free
Groups:
A- Iraq,
Chin FC,
Lebanon,
Australia
B- Gurkha
FC, Knights,
Bhutan,
Thailand
C- Vietnam,
Zamurai,
Thai Brissy,
Warriors
D- Young
Boys, Burma,
Japan, Hong
Kong
Nasrin
pulled on
her long
black abaya
and pinned
her hijab in
place. She
did it
despite
knowing that
this day,
more than
ever, her
Islamic
dress would
make her a
target.
It was the
Tuesday
morning
after the
Sydney siege
at the Lindt
cafe in
Martin Place
and
Australia
had woken to
horror
headlines of
the death of
two
hostages.
While Nasrin
grieved for
the victims,
she also
steeled
herself for
the worst.
As she left
her house in
the outer
Melbourne
suburb of
Fawkner, she
decided that
she would
remove the
password
lock from
her mobile,
to save her
a few
seconds if
she needed
to call
police.
Sure enough,
the
mother-of-three
would later
dial triple
zero after a
man
allegedly
began
shouting
expletives
at her as
she
travelled
into the
city to
work. More
than a week
later, the
police
investigation
remains
ongoing
after a
40-year-old
Merlynston
man was
spoken to
and
released.
Since
October, the
IT
professional
says she has
been abused
three times
by strangers
who have
taken
offence to
her Islamic
dress.
Two of the
episodes
took place
on the
Upfield
train line
during or
shortly
after the
fatal cafe
siege.
The other
was in
October,
when Nasrin,
who wished
to use just
her first
name, said
some
politicians
were
advocating
banning the
burqa in
Australia,
fuelling
anti-Islamic
sentiment.
"The
government
isn't doing
anything to
address
these issues
and I'm an
innocent
victim of
their
ignorant
bigoted
comments by
the
parliament
members,"
she said.
"We need to
hold people
accountable
from the
top."
There has
recently
been a surge
in reports
of violence
and
harassment
against
Australian
Muslims. In
the six days
to Tuesday
there were
27 reports
made to the
Islamophobia
Register,
including at
least three
in Victoria.
The
register's
spokeswoman,
Lydia
Shelly,
suspects
there may be
many other
cases that
have gone
unreported.
She said the
majority of
public
attacks were
against
women and
often in the
presence of
children.
Victoria
Police
confirmed
that more
Muslim
people were
reporting
public
assaults. A
spokeswoman
said it was
concerning
to hear that
incidents of
racism,
discrimination
and crimes
motivated by
prejudice
were
occurring,
"All members
of Victoria
Police take
all
incidents of
racism,
discrimination
or
vilification
based on
religion,
culture or
nationality
seriously
and will be
investigated
and met with
the full
force of the
law," she
said.
Yet despite
this tough
rhetoric,
Islamic
Council of
Victoria
executive
member
Monique
Toohey said
there
remained a
"pervasive
understanding"
within the
Muslim
community
that
complaints
about abuse
would not
always be
taken
seriously.
Ms Toohey
said
although the
top ranks of
Victoria
Police had
been
excellent in
their
attempt to
address
discrimination,
she said the
message did
not always
seem to be
filtering
down to some
front-line
officers.
Nasrin has
reported all
her recent
incidents of
alleged
harassment
to police,
but said
officers had
often seemed
unwilling to
pursue them.
It was only
this week
that she
discovered
the October
case had
been closed
after
calling
Victoria
Police.
"In the past
I have heard
other women
don't report
all these
cases
because they
think it's a
waste of
time talking
to the
police
because they
don't do
anything,"
she said.
Police are
still
appealing
for
information
about the
most-recent
assault,
when fellow
commuters
stood up for
Nasrin as
she was
allegedly
abused,
forming a
protective
barricade
with a
bicycle and
shouting
down her
attacker.
But
investigators
have decided
not to
pursue
claims
Nasrin was
targeted by
a blonde
woman as she
travelled
home from
work in the
midst of the
hostage
siege on
Monday last
week because
they found
"no offence
detected".
Nasrin said
she was
reading her
prayer book
on the train
about 6pm
when the
professionally-dressed
woman with a
foreign
accent
started
pushing her
with her bag
and
repeatedly
yelling at
her to "go
to Sydney
and pray
over there".
"Her facial
expression
was just
aggressive,"
she said.
"She told me
to go back
to the
Middle East,
even though
I was not
born there.
"I told her
that I am as
much an
Australian
as her and
that you
cannot abuse
me like
this, and
you cannot
harass me
like this."
Nasrin
intends to
pursue the
two dropped
cases
despite the
decision
from police.
"You can
imagine what
it would be
like to go
through the
hassle of
reporting an
incident to
the police
only to find
out that it
will just
turn into an
'information
only' case
and not a
criminal
offence,"
she said.
Newlywed Manal
Kassem arrived at the memorial
with her husband, Mahmod Homaisi,
to place her wedding bouquet
with the tens of thousands of
other floral tributes in the
square
As the
memorial to
the victims
of the
Sydney siege
continues to
grow, a
Muslim bride
has made a
pilgrimage
on her
wedding day
to lay
flowers at
Martin
Place.
Adorned in a
white
wedding
dress, which
included a
traditional
white hijab
and veil,
newlywed
Manal Kassem
arrived at
the memorial
with her
husband,
Mahmod
Homaisi, to
place her
wedding
bouquet
among the
tens of
thousands of
other floral
tributes in
the square.
The
23-year-old
bride had
planned for
her wedding
photos to be
taken in the
city, but
had been
hesitant to
continue
after the
tragic
events of
Tuesday
morning
which
claimed the
lives of
three
people.
'She was
going to
cancel [the
photoshoot]
because she
didn't want
to be
judged...celebrating
her wedding
in a scarf
while people
were
terrorised,'
said the
couple's
wedding
planner Dina
Kheir.
'But she
made is a
priority to
visit the
memorial
site as the
first pit
stop,' Ms
Kheir said.
A witness
said that as
the couple
approached,
clad in
their
wedding
gear, the
crowd that
had gathered
to lay their
own floral
tributes
stared in
surprise.
When Ms
Kassem, from
Punchbowl,
placed her
bouquet of
white roses
held
together
with ribbon
at the
memorial,
the crowd
erupted in
applause.
'She did it
out of
respect for
her country,
that will
one day be
the country
of her
children and
grandchildren,'
said Ms
Kheir.
Readers have
brought to
our
attention
that the
story we
published in
last week's
CCN about
Mohammed
Islam making
a fortune
trading
stocks has
been found
to be a
fake.
Queensland Muslims handed out wooden roses to the public with messages of peace and harmony that that were endorsed by a number of Queensland Muslim organizations at the Roma Park last week during the commemoration ceremony of the Sydney siege victims, the children and teachers who were killed in Peshawar and the 8 children murdered in Cairns.
Organizations signatory to the message of goodwill were:
Aafiya
AlNisa
Al-Seraj Iraqi Association
Australian International Islamic College
Australian Muslim Times
Bozniak Society of Queensland
Brisbane Islamic Centre
Crescents Community News (CCN)
Crescents of Brisbane
FAMSY QLD
Fatima Zahra Imamia Centre (FZIC)
Gold Coast Halal Certification Services
Islamic Council of Queensland (ICQ)
Islamic Educational Trust of Queensland
Islamic Information Service Cooloola
Islamic Medical Association of QLD
Islamic Multicultural Association of the Gold Coast
Islamic Relief Australia
Islamic Shia Council of Qld
Islamic Society of Algester (Algester Mosque)
Islamic Society of Bald Hills (Masjid Taqwa)
Islamic Society of Central Queensland (ISCQ)
Islamic Society of Gold Coast (Gold Coast Mosque)
Islamic Society of Holland Park (Holland Park Mosque)
Two members
of an
anti-Muslim
extremist
group have
been refused
bail after
being
charged over
inciting a
brawl in
Sydney's
south-west
last night.
Ralph
Cerminara,
36,
(pictured
above)
who is the
leader of
the
Australian
Defence
League (ADL)
and another
member of
the group,
Zane Commins,
19, have
been charged
with affray
and behaving
in an
offensive
manner.
It is
alleged the
pair went to
Lakemba on
Monday night
where
witnesses
said they
taunted
locals with
religious
slurs and
started a
brawl.
Two men
suffered
minor
injuries in
the brawl
while an
officer
sustained
fractures to
his left
shoulder and
is
undergoing
hospital
treatment.
In court on
Tuesday
afternoon
the pair was
refused
bail, with
Justice Les
Brennan not
mincing his
words.
"The last
thing this
community
needs,
bearing in
mind what's
happened in
recent days,
is boofheads
like this
stirring up
a certain
section of
the
community,"
Justice
Brennan
said.
Community
leader Hakan
Harman said
the ADL was
a fringe
group that
should be
ignored.
"[We should]
concentrate
on the 99.99
per cent of
all of the
positive
that's
around us,
and really
not be
giving
voice,
giving air,
to these
extremes,"
he said.
Police
superintendent
Michael
McLean said
groups like
the ADL were
"keyboard
warriors",
adding there
were very
few people
attached to
them.
A
43-year-old
man from
Wiley Park,
who is not
an ADL
member, has
been granted
bail after
also being
charged with
affray and
resist or
hinder
police in
the
execution of
duty.
A Longreach
restaurant
that placed
a sign
reading
"Sorry No
Muslims"
outside its
front doors
has caused
consternation
on social
media.
Local Helen
Day posted
pictures of
the
chalkboard
outside the
Eagle's Nest
Bar and
Grill on its
Facebook
review page
last Friday.
"Just a bit
surprised to
see the sign
up [reading]
'Sorry No
Muslims' ...
what's that
about?" Ms
Day wrote.
"I certainly
won't be
going into a
place where
my Muslim
friends are
not
welcome!"
The full
handwritten
message on
the sign
read "2000
years ago
Jesus Christ
made
headlines
turning
water into
wine...the
tradition
continues...We
turn money
into beer
[Sorry No
Muslims]."
Ms Day's
pictures
were
reposted by
Facebook
group
Boycott
Halal in
Australia?
No Way, and
a moderator
for that
group told
Brisbane
Times the
image had
since been
shared
widely.
"Our page
has only
been going
three weeks
and we had a
'Total
Reach' of up
to 7,000
people," the
moderator
said.
"We put the
story up a
day and a
half ago and
are now
reaching
almost
80,000
people and
rising,
because of
that one
post."
Anti-Islamic
sentiment
has risen in
Australia
since last
week's
Sydney cafe
siege, with
movements
like #illridewithyou
acting as a
counter
argument.
Comments on
the Eagle's
Nest Bar and
Grill's
Facebook
page have
ranged from
outraged to
unapologetic.
The
moderator of
the page,
who wished
to remain
anonymous,
said some
Facebook
groups were
trying to
shut it own,
or making
comments
such as
Islam
forbids
alcohol
consumption
anyway so it
shouldn't
matter if
Muslims
can't enter
a bar.
"We've been
deleting
disgusting
and hateful
posts from
members of
the
Australian
Defence
League,
Australian
Brotherhood,
Boycott
Halal in
Australia
and lots of
other
anti-Muslim
pages since
we put up
the post,"
the
moderator
said.
A Longreach
Regional
Council
spokesman
confirmed a
verbal
complaint
had been
received.
He said they
were seeking
more
information
about the
sign and
would
consider an
investigation,
or referring
the matter
to the
appropriate
body.
The
spokesman
said the
operator of
the Eagle's
Nest had a
history of
writing
quirky,
tongue-in-cheek
slogans on
his
chalkboard
that changed
daily.
A
spokeswoman
for the
Anti-Discrimination
Commission
of
Queensland
said it had
not yet
received any
formal
complaints
about the
sign.
"I
understand
the
Australian
Human Rights
Commission
has received
some
enquiries
about it and
they have
referred the
enquirers to
us," she
said.
"So it may
just be a
matter of
time."
However, the
spokeswoman
said under
the legal
definition
of religious
discrimination,
the
complaint
would have
to come from
someone
directly
affected.
"Therefore
if there was
a Muslim
person in
Longreach
who wanted
to obtain
the goods
and services
from Eagle's
Nest Bar and
Grill but
couldn't
because they
didn't serve
Muslims,
then that
person could
make a
complaint to
the ADCQ,"
she said.
The Eagle's
Nest
restaurant
is closed on
Mondays and
Tuesdays,
and calls to
the owners'
home went
unanswered.
The
moderator of
the Boycott
Halal in
Australia?
No Way
Facebook
group said
they should
own up to
writing the
message.
"If they
would only
apologise
and say they
made a
mistake,
we'd be the
first to
publicise
that. I wish
they'd just
clear it up
so we can
all move
on," they
said.
Pope puts onus on Muslim
leaders to combat Islamophobia
Turkish
President Recep Tayyip Erdogan
shakes hands with Pope Francis
TURKEY: During a three-day
visit to Turkey this month, the Pope
provoked controversy by suggesting that the
onus was on Muslim leaders to help stop the
Islamophobia by issuing a global
condemnation of terrorism.
“It would be beautiful if all Islamic
leaders, whether they are political,
religious or academic leaders, would speak
out clearly and condemn this because this
would help the majority of Muslim people,”
Pope Francis said.
The 77-year old pontiff
revealed during a press conference on his
return flight from Turkey that he had
offered the advice during a meeting with
Turkish President, Tayyip Erdogan, when
speaking about the issue of Islamophobia and
breaking the demonisation of Muslims with
terrorists.
“There needs to be an international
condemnation from Muslims across the world.
It needs to say, ‘No, this is not what the
Qur’an is about!’ There should also always
be a distinction between what a religion
proposes and the concrete use of that
proposal by a concrete government,” he said.
“I can understand this. And I sincerely
believe that we cannot say all Muslims are
terrorists, just as we cannot say that all
Christians are fundamentalists – we also
have fundamentalists among us, all religions
have these little groups,” he said according
to comments highlighted by the media.
Western leaders continue to argue that the
scourge of terrorism has nothing to do with
politics and claim that the gravest threat
come from a “distorted view” of Islam which
Muslims are allegedly easily misled.
During his visit, the leader of the Catholic
Church called for inter-religious dialogue
and action against poverty to help end the
conflicts in the region. He also went
further than his predecessors by praying
alongside Muslim leaders in Istanbul’s Blue
Mosque.
The last pope, Benedict XVI, provoked
international outrage in a controversial
address in the old Bavarian city of
Regensburg in 2006, when he quoted derisory
remarks from a medieval Byzantine emperor
about the Prophet, which he later apologised
for.
How 100,000 Britons have
chosen to become Muslim... and average
convert is 27-year-old white woman
UK: The number of Muslim
converts in Britain has passed 100,000,
fuelled by a surge in young white women
adopting the Islamic faith.
The figure has almost doubled in ten years –
with the average convert now a 27-year-old
white woman fed up with British consumerism
and immorality.
The numbers, revealed in a study by
multi-faith group Faith Matters, have led to
claims that the country is undergoing a
process of ‘Islamification’.
But the organisation’s report argued that
most converts saw their religion as
‘perfectly compatible’ with living in
Britain.
It said: ‘Converts do not represent a
devious fifth column determined to undermine
the Western way of life – this is a group of
normal people united in their adherence to a
religion which they, for the most part, see
as perfectly compatible with Western life.’
The report estimated around 5,200 men and
women have adopted Islam over the past 12
months, including 1,400 in London. Nearly
two-thirds were women, more than 70 per cent
were white and the average age at conversion
was 27.
In this 2004
file photo, an Acehnese man
walks through debris near the
Baiturrahman Grand Mosque in
Banda Aceh, about 240 kilometers
from the earthquake's epicenter,
Indonesia.
BANDA ACEH, INDONESIA: When a
powerful tsunami smashed into this
Indonesian city ten years ago, the only
structures left standing in many
neighbourhoods were mosques.
For the hundreds who found refuge within
their walls, the buildings' lifesaving role
has not been forgotten - and for many, that
experience strengthened their faith.
Architectural experts say the mosques in
Banda Aceh survived because they were
sturdily built and had stronger foundations
than surrounding structures, many of which
were likely constructed of shoddier
materials.
But many survivors believe the mosques were
spared by divine intervention.
“It's because the mosque is the house of
Allah, the creator of such a tsunami. It's
protected,” said Ahmad Junaidi, a survivor
who fled to safety in the majestic
Baiturrahman Grand Mosque, a major landmark
in the city with its 35-meter minaret, white
walls and seven black domes.
Q: Dear Kareema, I’ve been
trying for a few month now to lose the ‘baby’
fat around by tummy area. I’ve seen a little
change but not as much as I’d like. Please help.
A: The key is consistency and variation
in your workouts.
You can’t really spot reduce.
The body determines where it
loses the fat.
So you can focus on your tummy
but do an all over body workout for quicker
results.
Do whatever you have been and add
some weights for resistance training.
Cardio exercises will burn fat
and weight bearing exercises will tone.
The Muslim Jesus: Sayings and Stories in Islamic
Literature
(Convergences: Inventories of the Present)
by
Tarif Khalidi
Synopsis
This
work presents in English translation the largest collection
ever assembled of the sayings and stories of Jesus in Arabic
Islamic literature.
In doing so, it traces a tradition of love
and reverence for Jesus that has characterized Islamic
thought for more than a thousand years.
An invaluable resource for the history of
religions, the collection documents how one culture, that of
Islam, assimilated the towering religious figure of another,
that of Christianity.
As such, it is a work of great significance
for the understanding of both, and of profound implications
for modern-day intersectarian relations and ecumenical
dialogue.
Tarif Khalidi's introduction and commentaries
place the sayings and stories in their historical context,
showing how and why this "gospel" arose and the function it
served within Muslim devotion.
The Jesus that emerges here is a compelling
figure of deep and life-giving spirituality.
The sayings and stories, some 300 in number
and arranged in chronological order, show us how the image
of this Jesus evolved throughout a millennium of Islamic
history.
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: You can
vary this recipe with grated carrots, cucumbers
etc. and serve with potato crisps. For a lighter
filling add cottage cheese without taking away
anything from it remaining a gourmet lunch.
Gourmet Chicken and Walnut Sandwiches
Ingredients
500g chicken breast
with skin off
Ľ cup of peppercorns
Ľ cup of mayonnaise
Ľ cup sour cream
Ľ cup chopped walnuts
1 tab chopped cranberries
Salt and crushed pepper to taste
Method
1. Poach the chicken in a pot of water with the
peppercorns and cook until done.
2. Remove the peppercorns.
3. When cool, shred the chicken using your
fingertips.
4. Add all the remaining ingredients and mix
well.
5. Your sandwich filling could be placed on a
bed of lettuce on your choice of bread.
6. The loaf of bread can be cut up horizontally,
layered the filling on top and then rolled it
into a Swiss roll and sliced it into small
slices as you would see in the photo.
Those who
believe (in the Qur'an), and
those who follow the Jewish
(scriptures), and the
Christians and the Sabians,
any who believe in Allah and
the Last Day, and work
righteousness, shall have
their reward with their
Lord: on them shall be no
fear, nor shall they grieve.
1. All Islamic Event dates given above are tentative and
subject to the sighting of the moon.
2. The Islamic date changes to the next day starting in
the evenings after maghrib. Therefore, exceptfor Lailatul
Mehraj,
Lailatul Bhahraat
and
Lailatul Qadr – these dates refer to the commencement of the event
starting in the evening of the corresponding day.
Monday: Junior Class
Tuesday: Junior Arabic
Friday: Adult Quran Class
For more information call 0470 671 109
Holland Park Mosque
All programs are conducted by Imam
Uzair Akbar
DAY
MONDAY
TUESDAY
PROGRAM
Tafseer Program
Basics of Islam
Tafseer Program
AUDIENCE
Men
Ladies
TIME
after Maghrib Salat
Taleem Programe at Kuraby Mosque
Every Thursdays 10.30-11.30am
Bald Hills Mosque Weekly Tafseer
Day
Event
Time
Monday
Tafseer
after Isha
Tuesday
Dars Nizame (Urdu)
after Isha
Wednesday
Seerath
after Isha
Thursday
Dars Nizame (Urdu)
after Isha
Friday
Biyaan
after Isha
Sunday
Joula
after Maghrib
Sunday
Biyaan
after Isha
The Tafseer gets recorded and uploaded on to our website end
of each week, please visit our website to download these
recordings at
www.masjidtaqwa.org.au.
The Tuesday and Thursdays Dars Nizame program is in Urdu,
these sessions too are recorded as well as webcasted live.
For webcast details please contact us via our website
“contact us” page. The recordings are sent via a download
link, if you are interested please again contact us via our
website “contact us” page.
Queensland Police Service/Muslim
Community Consultative Group
Meeting Dates & Times
Time: 7.00pm sharp Date: Tuesday 2 December 2014 Venue: Islamic College of Brisbane - 45 Acacia Road
Karawatha
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
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The
CCN Inbox: Letters
to the Editor
This
work presents in English translation the largest collection
ever assembled of the sayings and stories of Jesus in Arabic
Islamic literature. 
post comments on
our Wall
7
August 2011
