Academy Alive wishes you and
your family Eid Mubarak.
As we
celebrate the Eid
al-Adha with our
family and friends,
the MAA and MCF
teams would like to
take this
opportunity to wish
you and your family
a safe and blessed
Eid Mubarak!
The Prophet Muhammad
(PBUH) said, He who
does not thank
people, does not
thank Allah. (Ahmad,
Tirmidhi)
We would like to
thank you for your
generosity in
sharing your Qurban
with the world's
poorest communities
in over 25
countries.
Not only have you
provided the poor
and needy with the
best quality meat
available, you've
allowed them to
continue to practice
the Sunnah of our
Prophet PBUH.
Thank you for
bringing joy and
happiness in to the
lives of those less
fortunate.
If you have not
donated your Qurban
yet, you still have
time. To donate,
call 1800 100 786 or
visit
www.maainternational.org.au.
On
behalf of ICQ and
its member
organisations I take
this opportunity to
wish the Muslim
community of
Queensland a joyous
Eid Ul Adha.
May
your efforts in the
first ten days of
this blessed month
be rewarded in
abundance.
To
those that had the
privilege of
performing Hajj this
year, we wish you
Hajj Mabroor.
We
pray that those who
have not yet been on
this journey of a
lifetime, be invited
soon to fulfil this
compulsory
obligation.
Whilst we celebrate
let us not forget
the plight of our
Brothers and Sisters
in many parts of the
world that face
starvation, misery,
suffering and
bombardment.
Let
us all unite and
pray sincerely to
ease the burden of
all those that are
suffering.
Eid
Mubarak to one and
all.
Habib
Jamal
President: Islamic
Council of QLD (ICQ)
Eid Mubarak from IWAA
Staff and Management
Committee
A range of speakers shared
their migration stories at
the 2019 Migrant Expo
yesterday (Saturday) along
with cultural stalls, food
and entertainment.
Organized by the Queensland
Multicultural Council (QMC),
the event showcased the
contribution of the migrant
community to Australia and
in so doing transformed it
"from a white nation to one
of the world's most
successful multi-cultural
country".
The event was put together
by Janeth Deen and the
members the QMC.
Umesh Chandra and Mohammed
Mamdu Bah took on the role
of Master
of Ceremonies, and Aunty
Betty did the Welcome to
Country.
I have landed in Tanzania to
implement MAA's Qurban
project. We'll be carrying
out the final inspections on
the animals to ensure they
meet the right Islamic
specifications to be
accepted as Qurban as well
as to ensure the Qurban is
sacrificed humanely and the
distribution is provided to
those in need.
I humbly request your duas
and forgiveness if I have
wronged you in any way.
If you have not yet made
your Qurban donation you can
contact me today or tomorrow
before 3pm. You can also
visit the links below or
call our office on 1800 100
786.
Ms
Rita Markwell joins the
Australian Muslim Advocacy
Network (AMAN) as its first
Policy Advisor.
Rita Jabri Markwell is a
writer, advocate and lawyer.
She was adviser to Minister
Jenny Macklin and Shadow
Minister Chris Evans across
the portfolio of Indigenous
Affairs from 2005-2010.
In this time, she worked on
the National Apology to
Australia's Indigenous
peoples and focussed on
building stakeholder
relationships and common
ground across the political
spectrum.
Her interest in the Stolen
Generations began early in
her career in her role as
research legal assistant for
the Trevorrow test case,
which became the first and
only successful Stolen
Generations compensation
outcome.
In following years, she was
contracted by various
Indigenous non-government
bodies to translate their
aspirations, knowledge and
insight to the government
sphere, contributing to
government policy.
As a member of the Muslim
community, Rita was inspired
following the Christchurch
massacre to research what
would be needed in a
national response to
vilification and hate crime
in Australia.
Ms Markwell told CCN:
I'd like Muslim
sisters and brothers to
know they can be
involved in shaping our
country and our
democracy.
InshaAllah AMAN will
become a source of
strength to the
community.
Advocacy is labour
intensive - it's all the
research and
relationship building
that happens behind the
scenes. Getting to
understand the full
picture by talking to
people across the
political spectrum.
We will be able to
support and partner with
Muslim peaks and other
bodies.
Our first priority is
responding to rising
Islamophobia and
anti-Muslim hatred.
Extremism can't be
normalised in a liberal
democracy like
Australia. And as one of
affected groups, it's
our responsibility to
push back and argue for
action. We want to keep
Australia safe for
everyone.
Canberra doctor Nathem Al-Naser
can continue to perform
circumcisions after a ban
imposed by the Medical Board
of Australia was overturned.
ACT Civil and Administrative
Tribunal (ACAT) documents
revealed in September 2018
Dr Al-Naser performed a
circumcision on a
five-month-old boy.
For the next two days the
boy continued to bleed.
The boy's father said his
son was distressed, crying
and had "a lot" of blood in
his nappy.
His mother said the child
was screaming continuously.
According to the documents,
the parents said they sent
Dr Al-Naser a photo and
claimed that in a follow-up
phone call, Dr Al-Naser said
it "looks normal" and "you
don't need to worry".
The boy ended up having to
be admitted to the Canberra
Hospital, where he underwent
surgery to remove a blood
clot and received a blood
transfusion.
A month later, the boy's
mother complained to the
Australian Health
Practitioner Regulation
Agency and an investigation
was launched.
The ACT Board of the Medical
Board of Australia banned Dr
Al-Naser from performing
circumcisions in December
last year.
Dr Al-Naser appealed the
decision to ACAT and the
matter was heard in July.
By Ryan
Al-Natour -
This is an edited extract from Racism
and Recipes by Ryan Al-Natour, published
in Arab Australian Other: Stories on
Race & Identity (Picador Australia).
Ryan Al-Natour as a toddler
in Palestine
Continued from last week's CCN....
I'm proudly 'of Middle
Eastern appearance'
My father's side of the
family is fair-skinned. When
my father and amo (uncle)
sailed to Australia during
the white Australia policy
era, people often read their
appearance as European.
I am dark-skinned and
proudly "of Middle Eastern
appearance" - despite the
media/policing abuse of this
as a racialised descriptor.
Unlike my uncles and some of
my cousins, no-one would
mistakenly think I am white.
The waitress didn't do
anything unusual in assuming
that I was Muslim. Perhaps
it is common for non-Arabs
to assume that all Arabs are
Muslim - even though the
majority of Arab-Australians
are Christians.
I don't have a problem with
being mistaken as Muslim. A
sizable portion of
Palestinians are Orthodox
Christians and we are
proudly a culturally Islamic
society.
Avoiding stereotypes
Back to Rockhampton, where
it had taken two hours for
me - a
Palestinian-Arab-Christian -
to experience some form of Islamophobia in my new home.
Surely this was a one-off
incident? I was just
unlucky? Right?
Wrong.
The next day a white man
delivering my new fridge
informed me that he knew I
was a "wog" from my last
name on the customer
receipt. The day after, a
white woman told me (yes,
again - out of nowhere) that
Australia was under threat
from Middle Eastern men who
were secretly working for
Islamic State.
Within my new workplace,
things were not easier.
Behind my back, colleagues
identified me as "someone
from overseas". One
colleague told me that her
husband was "like me"
because he was an
Indonesian. In passing,
another person described me
as a "really good-looking
Indian".
Perhaps one of the most
memorable instances was when
a random white male talked
about me - in front of me -
to his friends as they
walked past.
"Look at Raul over there!"
he yelled as if this was an
insult. Something within me
snapped. I responded with
rage. "MY NAME IS NOT RAUL!"
He looked scared. The crazy
angry Arab male that he
probably saw depicted on A
Current Affair had just paid
him a visit.
"Oh sorry, I thought it
was."
"You think every person with
a tan has the same name?" He
ran away. His friends
followed him.
Salih Yucel and Abu Bakr
Sirajuddin Cook, editors Australian
Journal of Islamic Studies
Editors' Introduction (Vol 3
No 3 2018):
The history of Islam within
Australia is an important,
yet often overlooked, part
of Australian history.
Muslim presence in Australia
has helped shape
multicultural experience
facilitating intercultural
dialogue as well as
contributing significantly
to the development of the
Australian nation. However,
to date, it has received
minimal scholarly attention.
There have been significant
studies on the engagements
of the Maccasans, Muslim
fishermen from Indonesia,
with the Indigenous peoples
of northern Australia. These
studies have detailed the
cultural interactions and
trade between them and the
lasting impacts of the
inclusion of language
foreign to Australian soil.
There is also an increasing
awareness of Australia's
cameleers, many of whom were
Muslims, and the
contribution they made to
maintaining trade routes and
assisting early Australian
explorers. Despite the
growing interest in the
field, the history of Islam
in Australia remains an
understudied area of
research. This rich history
dates back further than we
thought and has possibly had
a greater impact than what
is recognised. Given the
current political and social
climate surrounding Islam
globally, it is timely that
this volume of the
Australian Journal of
Islamic Studies is
published. This volume
brings to light the depth
and richness of Australia's
Islamic heritage,
challenging some of the
prevalent assumptions on the
topic, and calls for further
studies in this field.
Australia has proclaimed
itself as being a successful
example of a multicultural
society. It is a society
that has been shaped, and
continues to be shaped, by a
diverse range of cultural
inputs. With this being the
case, it is justifiable to
ask how and why the
contributions of Muslims to
Australia have been largely
overlooked.
Over the weeks, CCN
highlights extracts from the
Australian Journal of
Islamic Studies which is an
open access, double-blind
peer-reviewed journal
dedicated to the scholarly
study of Islam.
ANZAC Muslims: An Untold
Story
By Dzavid Haveric, Charles
Sturt University
.
Abstract: When the
Commonwealth of Australia
became immersed in two World
Wars, Australian Muslims
accepted the national call
-they shed their blood and
gave their lives for
Australia's freedom and
democracy. With their
Australian brothers-in-arms
and allies they fought
courageously with honour
against their common enemies
in different battlefields
-but this is an almost
forgotten history. Muslims
in Australia were challenged
by Britain's imperial might
and by their status as
British subjects and
'aliens' to take part in
ANZAC showing their
commitment to their adopted
country.
The virtue of justice, sense
of responsibility and
loyalty are peculiar
qualities that find their
full justification in the
organised welfare of
Australian society. This
pioneering article, based on
ongoing research on ANZAC
Muslims, makes known their
unique contribution. It
reveals historic facts about
ANZAC Muslims who were
members of what has come to
be known as the Heroic
Generation. Although their
names have not appeared in
history books, they achieved
the glory of victory for a
better future for new
generations to come. Their
contribution is part of
Australian National Heritage
-Lest we forget.
INTRODUCTION
....continued from last
week's CCN.....
Together, Australian
soldiers, Muslim as much as
those of other backgrounds,
fought against their common
enemies in different
battlefields. Service
records for recruited
soldiers do not ask about
race. Like other
Australian soldiers, Muslims were recruited from
all states to be trained to
become an efficient military
force, while maintaining
their physical strength,
stamina and strong spirit.
They were treated well and
willingly accepted the
national call. Airmen, air
traffic controllers, pilots,
parachutists, sailors,
gunners, horsemen, camel
drivers, volunteers and
others were accepted for
service and commissioned
according to their
abilities, becoming
responsible for carrying out
whatever duties and tasks
they were assigned.
Despite their involvement in
Australia's defence forces,
their Australian Muslim
identities were not recorded
accurately in historic
accounts for a few reasons.
Muslims were 'invisible'
minority groups in
Australia, hence they were
absorbed by majority groups.
They often were publicly
silent about expressing
their identities, while
others used Anglicised names
and/or nicknames and some
embraced diverse cultures.
For instance, Mariyam Crenan,
a third generation
Australian from Mackay of
Javanese origin whose father
and brothers went to war,
explained that many parents
in the early 20th century
did not know their children
could be registered with
Muslim names even though
they were born in Australia.
Their identities were
misperceived due to their
part-or full-assimilation.
Those who had a Muslim or
part-Islamic family link did
not always practise their
religion, even though they
had an awareness of their
heritage. Some even
converted to other faiths.
At that time, there were no
Islamic schools in
Australia, which taught
Arabic, a language of the
Qur'an, nor an available
English translation of the
holy book for their
generations to develop
knowledge on Islam and to
facilitate
self-determination of a
Muslim identity. Their
identities were often
misinterpreted by others due
to their lack of knowledge
of Islam. They were often
recorded as 'Mohammedans' or
followers of other religion,
while others had blank
spaces in their recruitment
files.
It is the usual policy of CCN to
include notices of events, video links and articles that
some readers may find interesting or relevant. Such notices
are often posted as received. Including such messages/links
or providing the details of such events does not necessarily
imply endorsement or agreement by CCN of the contents
therein.
Ten years ago, I
thought Britain
was becoming
more tolerant. I
was wrong
Autobiography
and memoir by
Sarfraz Manzoor
Sarfraz
Manzoor
recalled
the
racism
of his
childhood
in Luton
in his
memoir
Greetings
from
Bury
Park. As
a film
adaptation
is
released,
he asks
how much
has
really
changed
A
quest to
belong …
Sarfraz
Manzoor.
CONTINUED
FROM LAST WEEK'S CCN......
So how will the
film look to
viewers today?
Will the message
of hope still
resonate here,
or in the US,
where the
election of
Trump has
overturned the
happy ending of
the Obama years?
When it
premiered at the
Sundance
festival, the
film landed one
of the biggest
deals, for $15m
from Warner
Bros. Earlier
this year I flew
to Hollywood,
Las Vegas and
New York to
attend preview
screenings, and
the responses of
those who saw it
were
fascinating.
After the
Hollywood
screening, a
young woman
approached me
and told me she
was raised in a
Baptist
community in
Tennessee and
had wanted to
chase a dream of
being a singer
songwriter but
her parents
disapproved.
"Your story was
my story," she
told me. In New
York I met a
couple who had
come for the
Springsteen
plotline, but
had been
affected by the
story of a boy
wanting to
belong. They
said they did
not know anyone
Muslim, but that
I was "basically
just a Pakistani
version" of
them.
We are living in
a time when many
of the battles I
believed had
been won are
having to be
refought. But
the strongest
weapon against
those who seek
to sow division
is empathy. That
this film is
being made now,
that it will
reach audiences
who haven't read
the book, gives
me a reason to
feel hopeful.
Stacey Dooley: BBC apologises after
Panorama host calls Muslim prayer gesture
'Isis salute'
Blunder was
described as 'insulting and
offensive to Muslims and
journalists'
UK: The BBC has issued an apology after
Stacey Dooley referred to a Muslim
prayer gesture as an "Isis salute".
The documentary presenter made the
blunder in the Panorama episode "Meet
the IS Brides", which was broadcast last
night (Monday 5 August).
In the programme, Dooley, who is the
Strictly Come Dancing champion, visited
camps in northern Syria and spoke to
women who had left their own countries
to join Isis.
The offending scene, which showed Dooley
using the term "Isis salute" to describe
women raising their fingers in the air,
was cut from the programme after being
used in the documentary. A clip on
Sunday's BBC News at Ten has also been
taken off iPlayer.
Some Isis militants have attempted to
co-opt the gesture by posing with one
finger raised in propaganda images.
However, the raised index finger is a
symbol of Tawhid, meaning "the unity and
uniqueness of God as creator and
sustainer of the universe". The gesture
is a common part of Islamic prayer, and
has been used by a number of Muslim
football players during goal
celebrations.
TellMamaUK, a social media watchdog for
anti-Muslim incidents, condemned the
moment and tweeted: "To reduce such a
fundamental and important concept to a
mere 'Isis salute' is grossly wrong,
ignorant and damaging."
Award-winning BBC journalist Anisa
Subedar tweeted: "Does Stacey Dooley
know us Muslims raise it every time we
pray (that's five times a day) to remind
us of the oneness of God?
"This is what happens when you pass over
real journalists to cover these kinds of
stories - those that require cultural
sensitivity and compassion.
"What happened here is insulting and
offensive to Muslims and journalists."
Journalist Oz Katerji tweeted the BBC's
response after he submitted a complaint,
and linked the mistake to a lack of
diversity in newsrooms.
"While I am disappointed Stacey herself
has not apologised, I am satisfied with
the BBC response and will draw a line
under this here," he said.
"I have no doubt that this retraction
was prompted not by me, but by dozens of
female Muslim BBC journalists that were
also offended and expressed their
feelings about it. I can't stress this
enough, newsrooms need to be diverse,
and if you hire more diverse staff, this
won't happen.
"I hope Stacey and producers involved
also see how many racist responses my
complaint instigated, and how many
people tweeted me to tell me that there
is no difference between IS and Islam.
This is what incidents like this cause,
and the media has a responsibility to
prevent that."
In response to the backlash, a BBC
spokesperson said: "We wrongly described
a gesture made by women filmed in a
Kurdish controlled detention camp in
northern Syria as an 'IS salute'.
"While Isis have attempted to adopt this
for their own propaganda purposes, for
accuracy we should have been clear that
many people of Muslim faith use this
gesture to signify the oneness of Allah.
"We apologise for this error and have
removed this description from the
footage."
Dooley has been criticised in the past
for her perceived lack of knowledge or
understanding while presenting various
documentaries.
Earlier this year, she became embroiled
in a "white saviour" row with Labour MP
David Lammy over her Comic Relief trip
to Uganda, which the politician said
perpetuated "tired and unhelpful
stereotypes".
Visceral and
energetic, Omar Sakr's poetry confronts
notions of identity and belonging
head-on. Braiding together sexuality and
divinity, conflict and redemption, The
Lost Arabs is a seething, urgent
collection from a distinct new voice.
REVIEW
If you are a
reader who seeks comfort or assurance, a
sense of belonging and identity, or just
entertainment - none of which are easily
dismissed - then you might not welcome
The Lost Arabs. This is a book written
to disturb, about disturbance.
The lost Arabs are displaced peoples,
men, women and children caught between
cultures, lands, histories; travellers
who have confronted borders, foreign
languages and hard labour. There are
lots of names for them. They are called
- mostly by the rooted - diasporic,
refugee, migrant, foreigner, rootless,
and worse. Omar Sakr - the voices in
these poems, not simply the man - speaks
from within just such a whirlwind of
displacement and loss.
But Sakr's poetry is also very much
Australian and contemporary. It is
written not to claim an identity - Arab
Australian, Lebanese/Turkish man, gay or
bisexual man - but to show how it is to
live in and out of identity, between,
lost, in "endless migration".
So what am I, a rooted, Christian, white
Anglo-Australian reader doing, reading
this poetry, the poetry of a
first-generation Turkish and Lebanese,
Muslim, bisexual man? Perhaps I am the
most unsuitable of readers. Or, on
another count, could I be the kind of
reader who needs to read outside their
own settled comforts?
Sakr's landscapes are simultaneously
earthed, fleshy, sexual, and they are
existentially and politically
questioning. But "questioning" seems
too ordinary a word for the incendiary,
devastated places this poetry visits.
Sometimes they are recognisable places
of war and war-mongering - Lebanon,
Turkey, Israel and Palestine, western
Sydney, and that place where so many
wars begin, America, where "Everyone
has the blizzard on their lips./ Batten
down. Turn the word over:/ a large or
overwhelming number of things/ arriving
suddenly. What could be/ more
appropriate to sum up the American/
condition?" (Waiting for the American
Spring.)
Poetry and politics are constantly spun
together, are inextricable, in Sakr's
work. America as origin of wars and
ideological mayhem becomes a metaphor,
and an actual landscape, in a world
"where the stolen/ refuse to remain
lost, buried in snow./ They get up on
lips...You can't build a wall around a
season, a forest of bone, a land always
dying". (Waiting for the American
Spring.) So the metaphors of suffering,
oppression, borders and walls keep
exploding, both for nations and for
individuals, in Sakr's poems.
But further, the terrors of war and
human displacement are also routes. They
lead to death, of course, but while the
poet takes us to places where "... every
dead body is impossibly foreign",
"Still their names my name will be
lodged/in throats. I will replace the
lost with my blood." The un-grammar of
"their names my name" contains a deep
humanity, a hard-won value that refuses
sentimentalism or easy association.
We are in Kafka country, visiting places
where there is barely hope of
redemption, and yet the poet keeps
looking: "Would you believe I keep
trying to find the poetry/ In a wound?
How foolish. How graceless. And yet:/ a
man who knows his history told me it was
in my blood/ What idiot put it there?
.../ My certainty collapses. That I am
lost. Or can be found./ That there is
such a thing as Arab." (The Lost
Arabs.)
Poised between identities, between faith
and cynicism, Sakr's poetry is a
restless, heaving practice. But in these
in-between states of his poems, the poet
manages to create a tentative, imagined
wisdom. In the midst of the war zone
"you never know/ what you'll be bending
to recover, whether your fingers will
meet skin,/ or plastic, or metal. No
matter, the result/is always the same: a
name erupting." (Boys with their pins
pulled.)
This wisdom could be called stoicism, or
existential acceptance. But in fact it
finds its roots, tangled and tentative
as they are, in a fragmented faith. The
god of lost Arabs is both believed in
and is as absent as those lost parents,
the lost family who can be remembered
only at the cost of great pain. And yet
... in dreaming of heaven, the speaker of
the last poem conjures al-Jannah -
paradise - in this way: "I can't
imagine it, whatever it is, as a place/
gated. What need the spirit for doors?
What god/ bothers with a wall?" (Heaven
is a Bad Name.)
At once political and spiritual, Sakr's
poetics embrace restlessness, a constant
travelling away: "Don't stay/ home or
still. You can't be rewarded/ if you're
never there and lack/ of reward is where
poetry lives." (Great Waters Keep
Moving Us.)
To claim, in any way, that Omar Sakr's
poetry is "Australian" is an honour
for Australia. A multi-voiced, multi-faithed,
diasporic people, we are slowly learning
both the Indigenous stories and
beginnings of this place, and the
restless, questing nature of its
peoples. It is possibly redemptive to
see why and how our "certainty
collapses".
120g butter,
softened
400g Caster Sugar
360g cake flour
1 1/2 tbsp baking powder
40g desiccated coconut, toasted
pinch of salt
3 large eggs
360ml coconut milk
Caramel Mousse Filling
2 tsp gelatine powder (agar agar powder)
3 tbsp water
2 x 400g tins condensed milk, boiled (or take a shortcut and
use tinned caramel)
1 tsp vanilla
pinch of salt
500ml cream, whipped to stiff peaks
400g peppermint crisp chocolate,
200g coconut tea biscuits, crumbled
Preheat
the oven to 170C and line 3 x 20cm springform tins with
baking paper.
Beat the
butter, caster sugar, flour, baking powder, coconut and
salt together on a low speed until a sandy texture form.
Whisk
the eggs and coconut milk together in a jug then slowly
add to the dry ingredients while the mixer is running,
to form a batter.
Divide
the cake batter evenly between the prepared tins and
bake in the preheated oven for 20-25 minutes or until a
skewer inserted comes out clean, and the cakes are
golden.
Allow to
cool a little in the tin before turning out onto a cake
rack.
Trim the
cooled cakes by levelling the tops. Place one cake layer
back inside one of the cleaned
springform cake tin.
Next,
make the mousse; sprinkle the gelatine over the water
and allow to bloom. Microwave in short bursts until just
melted the stir in half the tin of cooked condensed milk
(reserve the rest), vanilla and salt. Fold in the cream
until no streaks remain.
Spread
the remaining caramel on top of the sponge then pour
half of the mousse on top.
Crumble
over 1/3 of the peppermint crisp and biscuits and top
with another cake layer.
Repeat
with the remaining caramel, mousse, peppermint crisp and
biscuits, ending with a cake layer.
Refrigerate for 2 hours or until set.
To
unmould, run a warm palette knife around the edges.
Decorate
with peppermint crisp shards, tennis biscuits and
caramel.
Do you have a recipe to share with CCN
readers?
Send in your favourite recipe to me at
admin@ccnonline.com.au and be my "guest chef" for the week.
Dear Kareema, I'm fairly new to exercising and
am already struggling with stitches during my
workouts. Any suggestions?
.
A:
The good news is, if you're getting a stitch it
probably means you've been totally smashing your
workouts. Although rarely serious, the stitch or
stabbing sensation you feel while working out
can affect your performance and reduce the
effectiveness of your session.
Because you're new, I'd suggest you pace
yourself - stitches seem to be more common in
newcomers. Take little sips of water during your
workout rather than too much before as this
could increase the chances of stitches. Also,
don't eat too close to the start of your sweat
sesh. Try focusing on deep breathing while
working out. If you haven't already, be sure to
get clearance from your GP for exercising.
Welcome to my weekly
column on
Self-Care and
Clarity of Mind.
If you're taking
time out to read
this, pat yourself
on the back because
you have shown
commitment to taking
care of your mind
and body.
Today, In Shaa
ALLAH, we will
explore the topic:
Do I Stay Or Leave?
Thinking back to
that Mother's Day
afternoon in 2011, I
don't exactly
remember whether it
was the electric
cord that he
strangled me with
that triggered the
warrior in me or the
one solid punch on
my head where I was
housing a golf-ball
sized brain tumor.
What I do recall
vividly is when I
saw my tiny
seven-year-old
daughter from the
corner of my eye,
shivering with fear
and screaming at the
top of her lungs "Papa, let her go,
please, let her go!"
was when the moment
of truth hit me like
a ton of
bricks...Was this
the legacy I was
leaving for my
daughter? This was
not about her father
being violent to her
mother...this was
about her parents
mentally torturing
her, abusing her in
a way that may never
heal.
Astaghfirullah.
Being in a toxic
relationship brings
about death. Death
to peace, love,
light, joy and
abundance. It slowly
sucks life out of
you until you start
mirroring toxicity
in your thoughts,
words and deeds. Not
all toxic
relationships are
physically violent.
Emotional torture,
insults,
money-control,
spying (hacking into
social media
accounts, or
checking phone
messages), constant
accusations are some
of many signs of a
toxic relationship.
What happened in
2011 to me was not a
one-off incident. It
started when I began
dating him back in
2001. All these
little things and
signs that I chose
to dismiss because a
part of me convinced
me of two things;
one, that I deserved
them - taking blame,
making excuses for
his violence. And
two, that I could
change him if I
tried harder. These
two reasons were a
clear indication
that I lacked
self-worth,
self-respect,
self-love,
self-compassion and
gratitude to ALLAH
for the beautiful
life that HE had
blessed me with.
Instead of choosing
love, light, peace
and joy, I was
choosing toxicity
and perpetuating it
further. When
motherhood happened,
the excuse to stay
became even more
ridiculous: I'm
staying because my
child needs a
complete family, she
needs both parents.
It's not fun sharing
this truth with my
readers. However,
self-transformation
is only possible
when there is
self-reflection and
awareness of
patterns of
thinking.
Self-sabotaging
thought patterns
that trap you into
staying on in toxic
relationships
(marriages,
friendships and
business
partnerships) only
bring about
darkness, ill
health, resentment
and fear.
Before you know it,
you become addicted
to this toxicity and
fear propels you to
find excuses to
remain stuck in this
stagnant existence.
ALLAH created you to
live your life to
your full potential
and worship HIM. How
can you do that if
you are stuck in
existing in such
toxicity?
Know the
difference between
merely existing and
actually living.
Where are you in
your life right now?
How do you feel
about your growth?
How is your
relationship helping
you grow? Is it
helping you grow? If
not, why not?
So, Stay Or
Leave?
No one can make you
leave. You need to
decide that for
yourself. People
sometimes say things
like, "If it's that
bad, just leave."
Well, it's not that
simple...because you
need to understand
that in order to
leave a toxic
relationship, you
need to first and
foremost become
aware that you are
in fact living in
the toxicity.
Choice is the
most fundamental and
crucial part of
decision-making.
You can CHOOSE to:
• Fight and argue
daily OR be in a
peaceful, soulful
companionship
• Fear being
yourself OR feel the
freedom to be who
you are and live
your purpose
• Feel useless,
hopeless, anxious
and depressed OR
feel positive,
light, loving and
joyful
• Cry alone and
blame others or self
OR cry it out to a
trusted professional
to guide you
• Retaliate with
violence and
aggression OR
realise your
self-worth and rise
above these toxic
behavioural choices
• Continue making
excuses for this
toxic situation OR
take action to do
something to change
your life for the
better
• Continue being
ignorant about your
rights OR find the
right people to help
you understand your
rights
• Remain in this
prison till you die
OR walk out of this
prison NOW because
you actually can.
DOWNLOAD
Muslimah Reflections
- my new ebook of
poetry and
affirmations
DOWNLOAD The
Ultimate Self-Care
Guide For Muslimahs
WATCH VIDEOS
from Muslimah Mind
Matters YouTube
Channel.
DOWNLOAD
Muslimah Meditation
Moments - audio
files for
self-awareness
meditation.
If you wish to know
about a specific
topic with regards
to Self-Care and
Clarity of Mind,
please text or email
me or visit
www.muslimahmindmatters.com.
If you wish to have
a FREE one hour
Finding Clarity
telephone session,
contact me on
0451977786.
Mrs. Jallalludin: If I mention a country, you will run
to the left side of the room and touch the wall. And if
I mention a bird you will run to the right side of the
room and touch the wall. If you run to the wrong
direction, you will give me all your salary for the
month.
Jallalludin: Ok and if you fail, I will have your salary
too right?
Mrs. Jallalludin: Yes darling
Jallalludin: OK
Mrs. Jallalludin: Are you ready?
Jallalludin: Yes ready.
Mrs. Jallalludin: Turkey
It has been 4 hours now and Jallalludin is still
standing at the spot wondering if she meant the country
or the bird.
Those who love the life of
this world more than the
Hereafter, who hinder (men)
from the path of Allah and
seek therein something
crooked: they are astray by
a long distance.
A
narrative on
engaging the
community's
Mental Health
Issues
This is a FREE
event
The growing
interest
regarding the
state of Mental
Health (MH)
nationally has
stoked
discussions on
how and what the
Muslim community
is doing to
support and
resolve the
concerns of its
community
members
particularly in
regards to
addiction and
radical
behaviourism.
Major factors
that
influence/cause
mental health
disorders are
social,
psychological
and
environmental.
This forum will
explore aspects
of mental health
from a clinical,
Islamic
worldview and
social
perspective.
Panel Members:
Dr Riyad
Rahimullah -
Academic
Researcher in
Psychology
Aneesa Kathrada
- Dept of
Education, EQ
Mental Health
Coach
Ustadh Aftab
Malik - Guest
Lecturer, Dept
of Law, Uni of
Sydney
Dr Mohamed
Ghilan -
Neuroscientist
Brought to you
by Brisbane
Muslim
Conference.
Contact Muhammad
Khatree on 0401
972 865.
Do you have a
disability?
You could be
eligible for
financial support
from the government.
As-salaamu Alaykum,
ICQ is pleased to
offer a free seminar
on the National
Disability Insurance
Scheme (NDIS).
Please see the
attached poster. We
are running this
seminar in
partnership with
Carers Queensland.
This seminar will
explain how NDIS
works and how to
apply for funding.
We have people in
our communities who
are not aware of the
process, or don't
know how to apply,
or have language
difficulties. As a
result, they miss
out on funding that
would otherwise make
their lives a bit
easier.
Please share this
with your mailing
lists and encourage
people to attend.
The details are as
follows:
Saturday 17 August,
10am
Bottom hall, Islamic
College of Brisbane
(45 Acacia Road,
Karawatha)
Register here:
http://bit.ly/NDIS2019
If asked for a
password, enter
"NDIS2019"
This is run for the
benefit of all
Muslim communities
so please don't miss
out on this
opportunity.
Located in the hear of St.Lucia and open
from 11:00am-9:30PM Daily, Zambeekas St.Lucia is always available
when you need it.
Zambeekas St. Lucia opened on
the 1st of May 2019 boasting the same delicious flame grilled BBQ
chicken flavour that Zambeekas is renowned for.
What started as an
inherited recipe of homemade basting sauces from a small town family of
the Zambezia Province has evolved into an intriguing range of Portuguese
cuisine tempting even the finest taste buds!
Who would have thought the
flavours of a small Portuguese settlement in
Mozambique in the 1500's would unite these two vastly different flavours
so wonderfully!
This fusion is what Zambeekas is known for. Pop
into our St.Lucia Store and get to know why Brisbane loves Zambeekas!
At Sisters
Support Services Inc we have
qualified volunteers who help
women in their darkest moments &
time of need to empower them to
make the right choices for
better outcomes for their own
lives.
Here are some examples of our
cases over the past few months.
ALL names have been changed to
protect client identities.
1. Aisha, a victim of Domestic
Violence came to us for
assistance. We assisted her by
giving her money to buy clothing
and personal items as she left
her home quickly and with very
little. Aisha has also needed
ongoing counselling which she
has been receiving from us for
the past few months. She was
taken to appointments and
connected with the right people
who helped her start a new life
in a safe environment.
"Thank you so
much for your help. I am so very
grateful. Thank you to Sister
Services. Allah bless you all."
2. Katie, a revert sister with
young kids needed ongoing
counselling and support as she
had not been coping well at home
and was not able to look after
herself and her family. Sisters
Support Services was there for
her; "I can't tell you enough in
words how grateful I am, just by
listening to me when I was
feeling so low. Life is not
looking so dark anymore !"
3. Sarah also a revert sister
recently divorced with a young
child arrived in Brisbane with
virtually nothing. We have
helped her with everyday
essentials, food supplies &
assisted her to find suitable
accommodation. Sarah has some
health issues & needed financial
support with purchasing
medications & by being driven to
medical appointments by our
volunteers.
"So happy with
the help I've received from
Sisters Support Services."
1. All Islamic Event dates given above are supplied by
the Council of Imams QLD (CIQ) and are provided as a guide and 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.
HikmahWay offers online and
in-person Islamic courses to
equip Muslims of today with
the knowledge, understanding
and wisdom to lead balanced,
wholesome and beneficial
lives.
Articles and
opinions appearing in this newsletter do not necessarily
reflect the opinions of the CCN Team, 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 CCN
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 us..
Share your
thoughts, feelings and ambitions for our community through CCN.
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someone you know who would like to subscribe to CCN please
encourage them to enter their details
here.
As
Salaamu Alaikum,
Ms
Rita Markwell joins the
Australian Muslim Advocacy
Network (AMAN) as its first
Policy Advisor.
Stacey Dooley: BBC apologises after
Panorama host calls Muslim prayer gesture
'Isis salute' 
post comments on
our Wall
7
August 2011