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About CoB

 

......a sometimes self-deprecating and occasional tongue-in-cheek look at ourselves and the world around us ......

 

 

Sunday, 28 June 2009

 .Newsletter 0242

 

News you won't find on CNN!

 

 

CCN Competition Winner

 

 

 

 

The winner of the "Group of Five" ticket drawn from the CCN Inbox for the Sounds of Light concert on 10 July is:

 

Amra Zlatic-Dhedhi

 

Congratulations!

 

 

 

The correct answer was FIVE.

Nikah Invitation

 

Mr and Mrs AK Surtie of Brisbane cordially invite you to witness the nikah of their daughter Mariam to Muhammed Kuram Nasir, son of Mr and Mrs M. Ramzan at Kuraby Mosque on Saturday 4 July 2009 at 10.30 am.

 

Healthy Eating for Filipinos and Indians

 

In the past year four Nutrition and Dietetics students of Griffith University and Queensland University of Technology, had their student placement with Public Health Nutrition, Southern Population Health, Queensland Health.

 

They developed and piloted the Healthy Eating program for Sudanese, Vietnamese, Bosnian and Spanish speaking communities, in partnership with the Ethnic Communities Council Queensland (ECCQ).

This semester two students from the Griffith University Master Nutrition and Dietetetics programme, Katie Dowling and Melissa Scattergood, who have been working on the development of two new programs, for Filipino and Indian backgrounds, together with Chetna Seth, Niti Seth and Demi Fanjek, the Indian and Filipino Multicultural Community Health Workers, ECCQ.
 

They would love to present and share their work in a short presentation;

Date: Thursday 2 July
Time: 10.00-11.30 am
Venue: ECCQ House, 253 Boundary Street, West End, Brisbane.
Phone 07 3844 9166 ext 115 or ext 104

Morning tea will be provided.

Please RSVP by Monday 29th June.
 

Little Mosque on the Prairie: Season 3 Episode 9

 

A Hard Days Fight

 

Part 1

 

  

 

Part 2

 

 

 

Part 3

 

'Choice, freedom, identity': wearing the veil

 By News Online's Amy Simmons

 

The idea that the Muslim burqa represents the enslavement of women and undermines their dignity is an ignorant misconception, according to a young, part-Australian Muslim woman.

French President Nicolas Sarkozy has said the burqa is "not a sign of religion", but a sign of "enslavement ... and subservience".

Mr Sarkozy spoke in favour of a recent call by 65 French MPs to create a parliamentary commission to study a small, but growing trend, of wearing the full-body religious garment in France.

"We cannot accept in our country women imprisoned behind netting; cut off from any social life, deprived of any identity," he said.

"This is not the idea the French republic has of a woman's dignity."

But Nada Ibrahim, a Griffith University PhD student, (pictured right) says the veil is an integral part of her identity.

She says she chooses to wear the veil not to satisfy any male influence, but because she believes it is a commandment from God.

"It is actually an obligation that is put in the Koran," she said.

"If you go into a chapter called 'the light', God particularly tells us Muslims to cover ourselves, so it's a commandment from God."

A 2007 study in the Journal Of Muslim Minority Affairs revealed that non-Muslims in Australia feel threatened by burqas and headscarfs.

But Ms Ibrahim says this is an ignorant fear.

"It has nothing to do with Muslim men being oppressive and controlling ... nothing to do with terrorism ... it has everything to do with God commanding you to do it," she said.

"People don't dig further, they don't say 'hang on a minute, is this really true'.

"People don't actually ask a Muslim woman if she is oppressed."

Ms Ibrahim says Muslim women have been wearing the veil for about 1,430 years and that their dress was only put on trial after the events of September 11.

She says people find the female Muslim identity confronting because it does not comply with Western societal norms.

"More than anything, for a lot of people who resist the veil, what they are resisting is that confrontation of identity of a Muslim woman," she said.

"I'm a Muslim woman, I am prepared to wear this and I don't fall into whatever fashion dictates, because at the end of the day I'm not a slave of that - I'm saying no to that.

"And I'm saying no to a huge cosmetic industry; to a huge fashion industry."

Nada says one of the biggest misconceptions about Muslim women who choose to wear the burqa is a lack of education.

"People think just because I am covered, my brain is covered," she said.

"No, it is not. I have my own thinking brain.

"People think that I don't have my own opinion - they get baffled and taken back when they meet Muslim women with strong careers, strong values, strong opinions, and they think 'that doesn't fit the stereotype that I have in my mind about you'."

She says people also impose cultural practices, carried out in various countries, on Islam as a whole.

"For example, it would be unfair and unjust to say that a Muslim woman like myself, living in Australia, is living with the cultural values of Saudi Arabia or Afghanistan," she said.

"I don't know Saudi Arabia or Afghanistan - I've never lived there or observed their cultures - so people should not make judgement calls about what is the Muslim culture."

Nada says there have been some occasions, since living in Australia, where she has felt discriminated against for choosing to wear a veil.

She says it is a matter of respect.

"Yes, you get a lot of comments about the scarf, but at the end of the day how you carry yourself is what matters," she said.

"But if I'm carrying myself and I'm proud of carrying this veil because it is something of my identity as a person, then people respect you for that."

Nada was born in Kenya, raised in various countries around the world, including Egypt, India and Fiji, completed her undergraduate studies in Malaysia, and has lived in Australia for the last 20 years.

She has a Masters of Education in guidance and counselling, and is currently researching her PhD on intimate partner violence in Muslim communities.

 

Source

 

Muslim Americans serving in the US Government

 

 

 

Muslims Pay Tribute to Jackson

 

Muslims across the world paid tribute on Saturday, June 27, to American pop superstar Michael Jackson, who died of an a cardiac arrest this week.


"It's hard to overestimate the impact Jackson had on the world in general, much less the Muslim world," Zahed Amanullah, associate editor of the London-based altmuslim.com, wrote in an article on his website.

"Like young people elsewhere around the world, many Muslims simply loved Michael, for his gentle persona, his raw talent, or the pop culture seed planted in their subconscious.
 

Read the rest.....

 

Michael Jackson's brother Jermaine, the family's official spokesman, prayed for Allah to have mercy on him.

"May Allah be with you, Michael, always," the brother said.

http://news.ninemsn.com.au/entertainment/830303/michael-jackson-rushed-to-hospital-report

 

MBN Careers Evening

 

 

The objective of the MBN careers evening is to assist persons to position themselves in the current environment where unemployment is rising and salaries and promotions are being frozen.

The event is focused on positioning/advising:
• Graduates on how to optimize their opportunities for employment in a market where graduate applications exceed graduate job vacancies (depending on industry);
• Current professionals who are seeking/contemplating new opportunities; and
• Existing professionals to manage their careers.

A senior recruitment consultant will be the keynote speaker for the evening.
 

 

MBN has sourced material from a wide range of recruitment agencies and employers – thereby ensuring that relevant advice is provided to existing and emerging professionals.

 

Research Study FAQ

 

A call was made recently in CCN240 to assist in a research project being conducted by Ms Nada Ibrahim of the Griffith Islamic Research Unit (GIRU).

 

Since that initial call, a number of questions concerning that research and the survey have been raised with Ms Ibrahim by respondents and prospective respondents.

 

To clarify the questions raised and allay any concerns about the conduct of the survey, Ms Ibrahim has prepared an FAQ which you can read here.

 

If you have any further questions you may contact her at n.ibrahim@griffith.edu.au.

 

The CCN Inbox

 

Assalamualaikum Editor,
 

The data on largest population of the Muslim world published in last week's issue of your publication is wrong and outdated.


For example, Bangladesh population in 2002 was 133m (your report says 130m in 2005).


For more updated and accurate data on this you may see the link at http://www.mongabay.com/igapo/world_statistics_by_pop.htm.

 

Regards

Shahjahan Khan

A/Professor of Statistics
Department of Mathematics & Computing
University of Southern Queensland
Toowoomba, Qld.

Dear Editor,
 

I would really appreciate if you could send this call out in your next newsletter.

I am looking at organising the Inaugural "Muslim Masters Golf Tournament" shortly after the end of Ramadan. It will be a one-day event, winner take all. I would like to find out if there is any interest out there in the Queensland community.

If anyone is keen to participate please email me at: abdul.khan@stonebridgegroup.com.au so that i can start to get some numbers and plan the bookings. Also please feel free to mention your favourite golf course.

Jazak-Allah
Abdul Khan

Around the Muslim World with CCN

 

Britain could never debate the burka like France
 

President Sarkozy's proposed ban may be pure politicking, but it does expose a fundamental cross-Channel difference

 

I agree with David, Kent. many moslems demand their traditions, culture and religious beliefs be respected, but they're quite prepared to ignore our tradition and culture.Many do not even bother to learn english.Willing to take the benefits of living in the UK, but not willing to truly integrate.

JJ, Glasgow, Scotland

 

Simple solution: All or no Moslems wear burkas - Male, female, and their children.

A Roma, Miami, Fl., USA

 

I don't think the burka should be outlawed. I sell them.

Abdul, London, UK

 

 

"The burka is not a religious problem, it's a question of liberty and women's dignity. It's not a religious symbol, but a sign of subservience and debasement. I want to say solemnly, the burka is not welcome in France. In our country, we can't accept women prisoners behind a screen, cut off from all social life, deprived of all identity. That is not our idea of freedom.”

So spoke Nicolas Sarkozy in Versailles during his first state of the nation address to France's two chambers, the National Assembly and the Senate. He won rapturous applause and there is little doubt that an overwhelming majority of the French agreed with his every word. I say an overwhelming majority because this issue crosses all party lines in France. Republican principles of equality and secularism are so deeply grounded in the French mind that they belong as much to the Left as to the Right.

For someone like me, firmly on the Left, the defence of secularism is the only way to guarantee cultural diversity and national cohesion. One cannot go without the other. However, when I get on Eurostar to London, I feel totally alien. To my horror, my liberal-left British friends find such a position closer to that of the hard Right.

So does Mr Sarkozy's speech mean France is about to forbid its citizens to wear the burka on the streets? Unlikely. Mr Sarkozy's speech should be seen as piece of politics; he wants to reassure his party of his allegiance to the ideals of the French Republic and to undermine even further the awkward position of the Left.

Read the rest and h
ave your say on www.ccnforum.ning.com
 

 

Czech's Growing Muslims
 

The Prague mosque can hardly accommodate the increasing number of worshippers, especially for the Friday prayer. (IOL photo)

PRAGUE -- Not so long ago the words Czech and Muslim were two polar opposites and it would be almost unthinkable to use them together. But now, two decades after the fall of the Communist regime in Czechoslovakia, Muslims are increasing in numbers, becoming more active and founding new organisations to represent them.

 

21-year-old fresh convert Jitka Cervinkova has created a a new Facebook Group called Muslims from Czech Republic.

 

"I think Facebook is great for meeting other Muslims as I don’t really go to the mosque here in Prague because it is too far for me and it seems that women there are mainly mums with children,"
"I didn’t meet any young girls of my age when I visited."


"About 300 come to the main mosque and at least 200 come to the prayer hall in the centre," Vladimir (Umar) Sanka, one of the managers of the main mosque and prayer hall in Prague, told IslamOnline.net.

He said the numbers of Muslims are slowly but surely growing in the Czech Republic.
 


"The prayer hall is so overcrowded every Friday that we have been forced to have two Friday prayers and lectures so that all the Muslims can even fit."

The mosque had to hire a sports hall for `Eid Al-Adha, one of the two main religious festivals on the Islamic calendar which was celebrated in December, to accommodate the record-breaking number of 1,500 Muslims who showed up.

The increase of Muslims is linked to the growing number of Czechs embracing the Muslim faith.



"In our mosque in Prague we are honoured and happy to witness a new conversion almost every week," says Sanka.

The last recorded number of Muslims was around 12,000 in 2007, but the latest estimate is around 20,000, including 400 converts.

The first official Muslim organisation, the Islamic Foundation, was established in 1991.

In 1998 it opened its first mosque in Brno and then one year later in Prague.

There were also attempts to build mosques in smaller cities, mainly Spa towns which are popular with Arab clients, but these plans were met with resistance from both the public and churches.

Islam itself was not legally accepted as a religion by the Czech state until 2004.

Read the rest......

 

CCN Reader's Discussion Forum

 

Have your say on www.ccnforum.ning.com

 

 

Kareema's Keep Fit Column

 

 

 

 

Q: Dear Kareema, you always talk about using our own body-weight while exercising to achieve great results. Are you able to give us more examples of the type of exercises We can do?
 

 

 

 

 

A:  Try any or all of the following body-weight exercises:

 

PUSH-UPS: for chest, arms and core.
DIPS: for triceps and chest.
CHIN-UPS: for lats (muscles in your back)
BODY-WEIGHT SQUATS: for quads, hamstrings, glutes and posture.
SIT-UPS: for abs (tummy)
HOVER / BRIDGE: for strengthening your core muscles.
SIDE-LYING BRIDGE: for sides / waist (obliques).
STEP-UPS: for quads, hamstrings and glutes.
LUNGES: for quads, hamstrings and glutes.


N-JOY!
 


TOGETHER, LET’S FIGHT GLOBESITY

Kareema

My Health and Fitness

Tel: 0404 844 786

(Accredited Member of Fitness Queensland)

 

Need an answer to a fitness related matter? Send your question to Kareema at  fitness@crescentsofbrisbane.org.

All questions sent in are published here anonymously and without any references to the author of the question.

      

CCN Readers' Book Club: You are what you read!

 

This week

 CCN

recommends

 

God Is Back: How the Global Revival of Faith Is Changing the World

   
  by

John Micklethwait and Adrian Wooldridge

 

Editorial Review

Two Economist writers show how and why religion is booming around the world and reveal its vast effects on the global economy, politics, and more

On the street and in the corridors of power, religion is surging worldwide. From Russia to Turkey to India, nations that swore off faith in the last century—or even tried to stamp it out—are now run by avowedly religious leaders. Formerly secular conflicts like the one in Palestine have taken on an overtly religious cast. God Is Back shines a bright light on this hidden world of faith, from exorcisms in São Paulo to religious skirmishing in Nigeria, to televangelism in California and house churches in China.

Since the Enlightenment, intellectuals have assumed that modernization would kill religion—and that religious America is an oddity. As God Is Back argues, religion and modernity can thrive together, and America is becoming the norm. Many things helped spark the global revival of religion, including the failure of communism and the rise of globalism. But, above all, twenty-first century religion is being fueled by a very American emphasis on competition and a customer- driven approach to salvation. These qualities have characterized this country’s faith ever since the Founders separated church and state, creating a religious free market defined by entrepreneurship, choice, and personal revelation. As market forces reshape the world, the tools and ideals of American evangelism are now spreading everywhere.

The global rise of faith will have a dramatic and far-reaching impact on our century. Indeed, its destabilizing effects can already be seen far from Iraq or the World Trade Center. Religion plays a role in civil wars from Sri Lanka to Sudan. Along the tenth parallel, from West Africa to the Philippines, religious fervor and political unrest are reinforcing each other. God Is Back concludes by showing how the same American ideas that created our unique religious style can be applied around the globe to channel the rising tide of faith away from volatility and violence.

 

Other readers' reviews

 

Would you like to see the cover of your favourite book on our book shelves below?

Then simply email the title and author to thebookclub@crescentsofbrisbane.org

 

Double click a book cover to find out what others think of the book

 

CCN has set up an online Book Club at Shelfari to connect with CCN book readers at:

http://www.shelfari.com/CCN_BookClub

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.

The CCN Readers' Book Club

KB's Culinary Corner

  

   Chicken Pin Wheels
 

Ingredients
4 cups Flour
125g Butter
2 tbls Sugar
1 tsp Salt
10g Yeast
1 ½ to one and three quarter cups - lukewarm Milk.
 

Filling
Cook 1 Kg cubed chicken with green chilies, ginger garlic, salt, lemon juice and jeeru. Add 1 Grated tomato and braise, then add frozen corn and grated carrot or mixed vegetables.
 

Sauce
11/2 cup milk. 1 tbls Corn Flour, ¼ tsp pepper, Add to filling and braise. Allow the filling to cool.
 

Method for Dough
Sift Flour and salt and add sugar. Rub in butter and then add yeast. Make a soft dough with lukewarm milk & leave to rise. Divide dough into 6 equal portions. Roll each ball out and then fill like a swiss roll. Slice & sprinkle with sesame seeds.
Bake in a moderate oven until light brown.

Do you have a recipe to share with CCN readers?
Send in your favourite recipe to ccn@crescentsofbrisbane.org and be our "guest chef" for the week.

 

The CCN Chuckle

 

 

 

A young Mula Nasruddin Jr. gets 0 in his exam paper.


Mula Nasruddin Snr. angrily asks what is this?


Mula Nasruddin Jr. replies, Teacher has no star to give me and so, she gave me the whole moon!!!

 

Notice Board

 

Click on image to enlarge

 

Sounds of Light

MBN Careers & Employment

Parenting Workshop

USQ Islamic Centre Open Day

Islamophobia Conference

Speed Intros

Course: Road to Recovery

Annual Quran Competition

Unity Cup Indoor Soccer Tournament

Romeo & Juliet

butter chickened!

 

 

Golf Weekend

6-8 June CANCELLED

NEW DATE

Islamic Classes for Teenagers

AMAL Muslim Helpline

 

 

The CCN Date Claimer

 

 

(provisional)

Date

Day

Event

(Click on link)

Organizer

Venue

Contact

Time

1 July

Wednesday

Careers & Employment Issues

Muslim Business Network

Runcorn Tavern

0411 625 462

7pm

19 July

(provisional)

Sunday

Lailatul Me'raj

10 July

Friday

Sounds of Light Concert 2009

Human Appeal International

QPAC, Southbank

1300 760 155

6.30pm

13 July

Monday

Symposium: Prof. Kamali - ‘Shariah: A View from the Higher Objectives’

GIRU & MBN

Function Room, Runcorn Tavern, 124 Gowan Rd, Runcorn

0422 349 785

6pm

17 July

Friday

Speed Intros for Muslims

Julu Latif

Sebel Citigate Hotel, Brisbane

0400 142 786

8pm

19-21 July

Sunday

National Social Cohesion Symposium & Conference: Challenging Islamophobia

Affinity Intercultural Foundation

Auditorium, Law Building, Sydney University

0400 142 786

see details

24-25 July

Fri & Sat

Romeo & Juliet: butter chickened!

NS Charity

Schonell Theatre, University of Queensland

0450 769 803

10.30am to 3pm

25 July

Saturday

USQ Islamic Centre Open Day

Islamic Soc. of Toowoomba & USQ Multicultural Centre

USQ Islamic Centre, TOOWOOMBA

3735 7051

10am to 3pm

26 July

Sunday

Mini Tennis Tournament

Shabir Elias

Griffith University, Mt Gravatt Campus

0415 467 868

8.30am

26 July

Sunday

Annual Quran Competition

Islamic Council of Queensland

Islamic College of Brisbane, Karawatha

3849 4876

9am to 1pm

6 August

(provisional)

Thursday

Lailatul Baraat

9 August

Sunday

Unity Cup Soccer Tournament

Queensland Muslims

Acacia Ridge Futsal Centre

0412 786 168

9am

22 August

(provisional)

Saturday

Start of Ramadhan

16 September

(provisional)

Wednesday

Lailatul Qadr

19 September

(provisional)

Saturday

End of Ramadhan

20 September

(provisional)

Sunday

Eid-ul-Fitr

26 September

Saturday

Eidfest

Eidfest Committee

Mt Gravatt Showgrounds

0418 722 353

All day

27 September

Sunday

MBN Eid Dinner

Muslim Business Network

The Coffee Club, RNA Showground

secretary@mbn.net.au

7pm

3 October

Saturday

QPS/EECQ Cup: 2009 Qld Multicultural football tournament

QPS & ECCQ

TBA

0438 114 619

9am to 5pm

3 October

Saturday

Eid Dinner

Islamic Society of Darra

Darra Mosque, 219 Douglas St, Oxley

0418 757 157

5.45pm

4 October

Sunday

QPS/EECQ Cup: FINALS

and

FESTIVAL DAY

QPS & ECCQ

TBA

0438 114 619

9am to 5pm

24 October

Saturday

Breast Cancer Awareness

Crescents of Brisbane

TBA

0404 296 297

TBA

27 November

(provisional)

Sunday

Eid-ul-Adha

18 December

(provisional)

Friday

Islamic New Year

27 December

(provisional)

Sunday

Day of Ashura

 

To claim your date for your event email ccn@crescentsofbrisbane.org.

 

 

RECURRING EVENTS

The ladies Taaleem programme this Thursday will be at the home of

Shahena Dudhia
20 Delaney Circuit

Carindale
11-12pm
 All Ladies Welcome!

Sunnah Inspirations

http://www.sunnahinspirations.org

Contact: 0408 270 421

University of Queensland,
323 Hawken Drive, St. Lucia

 

Every Monday

Event: Weekly Learning Circle: Sharh Riyad-us-Saliheen (An Explanation of 'Gardens of the Righteous'

Venue: Prayer Room, University of Queensland

Time: 6.45pm to 7.30pm

 

Every Friday

Subject: Fiqh Made Easy

Venue: Room E215 Building 1 (Forgan Smith), University of Queensland

Time: 7pm to 7.50pm

Every Friday

Subject: Tafseer al Qur'an (Explanation of the Qur'an)

Venue: Room E215 Building 1 (Forgan Smith), University of Queensland

Time: 8pm to 9pm

 

Sunnah Inspirations is a non-profit organisation to cater for Muslim social support and supplying information to Muslims and non-Muslims.  They have been doing various activities around Australia, and have organised Da'wah information stalls at various universities in Brisbane.  More info can be found on their website above.

 

CCN @ Facebook

 

Catch Crescents Community News at

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Crescents-Community-News-CCN/30163063922

Please feel free to post an entry on our Wall, start up a Discussion thread and/or become a Fan.

 

Useful Links

 

Crescents Community News (CCN) Readers' Forum

 Discussion Forum & Social Network for CCN Readers

Queensland Muslim Historical Society Inc.

Promoting the study and awareness of the rich history of the Muslims of Queensland

Young Muslims of Queensland

Social network for young Muslims of Brisbane

Sunnah Inspirations

Providing information about Islam - its beliefs, culture, practices, dispelling misconceptions

Kuraby Mosque

Holland Park Mosque

Al-Nisa

Provide young Muslim women in Queensland with support and opportunities to express themselves

Gold Coast Mosque

South African National Halaal Authority (SANHA)

Muslim Womens' Convert Support Group (MWCSG)

Network of Muslim women converts from the Brisbane and Gold Coast areas of Queensland.

Australian International Islamic College (Durack)

Eidfest 2009

Kotku Mosque - Dubbo NSW

Islamic Society of Algester

Jamiatul Ulama Western Australia

Body of Muslim Theologians (Ulama, Religious Scholars)

 

If you would like a link to your website email ccn@crescentsofbrisbane.org.

 

Write For Us

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 libelous, 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.