Women apply for most Islamic
divorces in Australia, but imams
often refuse to grant them.
Muslim leaders have condemned
domestic violence, though some
still teach that husbands can
control their wives.
This feature is part of
an ongoing investigation by
ABC News edited by Julia
Baird and Hayley Gleeson
into religion and domestic
violence. Other articles in
this series have examined
Islam, mainstream Protestant
denominations, the Catholic
Church, Christian clergy
wives, Hindu and Sikh
communities, and Jewish
divorce laws.
The first time Noor* visited
the Board of Imams Victoria,
in Melbourne's Coburg North,
to apply for an Islamic
divorce, she took with her
an audio recording she had
secretly made during one of
her husband's violent
outbursts.
"It was of one night when he
was screaming and yelling at
me in front of the
children," said Noor, a
Muslim who wore a niqab
during her decades-long
marriage.
"He was verbally abusing me,
smashing doors, ripping up
sheets, putting down me and
my family ... I taped it
thinking no one would
believe me."
Once inside the building, a
glass-fronted office space
wedged between an electrical
store and a denture clinic
on a sleepy stretch of
Sydney Road, Noor sat down
nervously before a panel of
five male imams and
carefully recounted the
years of physical, emotional
and financial abuse she had
suffered at the hands of her
husband, who had recently
breached the intervention
order she had taken out
against him.
He often criticised and
yelled at her in front of
the kids, she told ABC News,
for petty reasons — for
example, if she didn't
prepare food to his liking.
And he beat her, she said,
when she confronted him
about his escalating
financial abuse.
For a long time, she
believed his violence was
her fault. "I would think it
was reasonable", she said,
"because I thought I'd done
something wrong, and I
deserved it."
He also repeatedly
threatened to take another
wife, which hurt and
distressed Noor, not only
because they were already
struggling financially.
"I'm allowed to marry four
women," he told her. "You
have to change your Western
mentality."
Now he was refusing to grant
her a religious divorce.
Muslims in Australia may
have a civil divorce, but if
they do not also obtain a
religious divorce, they are
considered still married in
Islamic law — and in the
eyes of their community.
Getting an Islamic divorce,
however, can be a difficult
and protracted process,
especially for women, who
face stricter requirements
for initiating divorce than
men, depending on the laws
of their cultural community.
While a husband is allowed
to divorce his wife at any
time, without cause, often
imams will not grant a woman
divorce without her
husband's consent, or proof
she has legitimate grounds
for an annulment (which,
depending on the legal
school, can include
infidelity, physical,
financial or emotional harm,
and sexual dysfunction).
In theory, domestic violence
is one such reason: if a
woman can prove her husband
has been abusive — for
example, by producing an
intervention order, or
photographs of her physical
injuries — imams in
Australia say they'll
dissolve the marriage and
hand over the paperwork, no
problem.
But in practice, advocates
and survivors say many imams
are denying women the right
to divorce, in too many
cases detaining them in
abusive marriages for years.
This was Noor's experience.
Having presented the Board
of Imams with what she
believed was sufficient
evidence, she was hopeful
they'd acknowledge her
husband's violence and
swiftly grant a divorce.
Instead they dismissed the
tape, she said, and told her
to give the relationship
another chance. "I honestly
thought they weren't
listening to me," she said.
"They wanted me to go back
and try again for the sake
of the kids."
When she insisted she had
tried, that she had made up
her mind, they told her they
needed to hear her husband's
"side of the story" and that
they'd be in touch after
that.
It took six months for the
Board of Imams to get back
to her, Noor said, at which
point they claimed to have
forgotten the details of her
case and asked her to come
back in to retell her story.
Eventually, after a year of
waiting, calling, praying,
Noor — who had moved in with
her parents — withdrew her
divorce application,
defeated and depleted.
"It killed me," she said. At
that stage she wasn't
interested in starting a new
relationship; she simply
longed to be free of a man
who for years had controlled
every aspect of her life.
"For me to move on
psychologically I had to get
that Islamic divorce ... I
just wanted closure for me
and my children, and at the
same time I wanted [my ex]
to stop saying I was his
wife."
'It's easier to divorce in
some Muslim countries'
In many Muslim countries
around the world, women-led
campaigns to reform Islamic
laws governing marriage and
divorce are gaining
momentum.
In India, for example, the
government is set to
introduce new laws banning
Muslim men from instantly
divorcing their wives simply
by pronouncing "talaq" — the
Arabic word for divorce —
three times.
Some countries — including
Pakistan, Indonesia,
Malaysia and Morocco — also
stipulate women's right to
initiate divorce in standard
marriage contracts.
But in Australia, where
Islamic law (sharia)
operates in the shadow of
the official legal system
and the all-male imams who
administer it with impunity,
Muslim women's right to
leave a marriage is not
always recognised.
Compounding the problem,
social workers and survivors
say, is the fact that many
imams are ignorant or
dismissive of the dynamics
and seriousness of domestic
violence.
(There is no evidence
suggesting Muslim women
experience domestic abuse at
a higher rate; no reliable
data on this question has
ever been collected in
Australia.)
ABC News has interviewed
several Muslim women in
Australia who have
experienced great difficulty
getting a divorce.
Many were threatened, raped
or beaten by their husbands
after instigating the
process; one, a Lebanese
Muslim woman living in
Melbourne, said she had left
her husband nine years ago
but had been denied a
divorce several times by the
Board of Imams Victoria, who
said they couldn't track the
man down to seek his
approval.
Now, advocates are sounding
the alarm and demanding
agency and equality for
women in the Islamic divorce
process, which they say is
not only stacked against
women and re-traumatising
for survivors of abuse, but
putting women's lives at
risk.
InTouch
Multicultural Centre
Against Family
Violence: 1800 755
988
1800 Respect
national helpline:
1800 737 732
Women's Crisis Line:
1800 811 811
Men's Referral
Service: 1300 766
491
Lifeline (24 hour
crisis line): 131
114
Relationships
Australia: 1300 364
277
'Now is the time for
change': Politicians and
advocates call for an urgent
review of the Islamic
divorce process
Muslim community leaders and
politicians are calling for
an urgent review of the
Islamic divorce process in
Australia following an ABC
News investigation that
revealed abused women are
being trapped in violent
marriages.
The report found many Muslim
women seeking religious
divorce from abusive
husbands are being denied it
by male imams who are
ignorant or dismissive of
the dangers and seriousness
of domestic violence, and of
the legal conditions of
family violence intervention
orders.
While imams and other
Islamic community leaders
have strongly condemned all
forms of domestic abuse,
public lectures delivered in
recent years by some
influential clerics contain
conflicting messages about
whether Islam allows or even
condones the non-physical
abuse and control of women.
As a result, advocates say,
women are being told by
imams who claim to be acting
in the name of Islamic law
to "be patient" with abusive
relationships. Those who are
denied divorce are
considered still married in
Islamic law and by their
community.
Now, as Muslim women begin
to tell their stories on
social media, advocates —
including the first Muslim
woman elected to Federal
Parliament — are calling for
broad cultural change.
'There needs to be a
cultural change'
Labor MP Anne Aly, who was
denied an Islamic divorce by
her abusive ex-husband 25
years ago, said that while
speaking out about domestic
abuse was important, more
substantive action was
urgently required.
The ABC's report, she said,
showed very little had
changed since her attempts
to escape a violent home as
a young mother.
"There actually needs to be
cultural change and a shift
around attitudes towards
women," Dr Aly, who in 2016
became the first Muslim
woman elected to Federal
Parliament, told The Drum.
"We need to start listening
to the real, lived
experiences of women who are
forced to stay married to
men who are abusive towards
them because they cannot
have access to a divorce."
These experiences, she said,
are far too common.
Dr Aly, who eventually got a
civil divorce and has since
remarried, said she remained
in her abusive first
marriage for longer than she
should have because her
ex-husband had refused to
agree to an Islamic — or
sharia — divorce.
"When I did finally get the
courage to divorce my
husband … he suddenly found
a use for religion and
brought up .… that I would
need to get a sharia
divorce, and that he
wouldn't agree to one. So I
stayed married to him,
though separated, for five
years."
Part of the problem, she
said, was imams' tendency to
prioritise keeping families
together over women's
safety.
"I've had one imam brag to
me that he has a 97 per cent
success rate at keeping
relationships together,
regardless of whether
they're happy marriages or
abusive marriages," Dr Aly
said.
"I think the issue runs
deep, and starts off with
the birth of a girl child
and the idea that a young
woman's value is only
measurable by the kind of
partner she can attract …
that a woman is not complete
unless she's married."
Many imams are 'unqualified'
Adel Salman, Vice President
of the Islamic Council of
Victoria, said it was clear
many imams were unqualified
to respond to cases of
domestic violence and that a
review of the Islamic
divorce process in Australia
was needed.
"A woman should not have to
go through this very
difficult, traumatic process
to seek what is her right —
especially when there is a
clear case of abuse," Mr
Salman told ABC News.
"A woman would not seek a
divorce lightly. She would
have gone through many
stages of … reconciliation
and clearly she has arrived
at this point that she
doesn't see any way back,
and I think that needs to be
given more priority and
emphasis when imams are
adjudicating these cases."
Mr Salman said his female
peers were deeply frustrated
by reports that Muslim women
were being denied religious
divorce.
"There is a general call for
change," he said. "Now is
the time for change and I
think it is very timely that
we are having this
discussion."
Mariam Veiszadeh, a lawyer
and diversity and inclusion
consultant who spearheaded a
statement on domestic
violence by Muslim figures
last year, agreed.
"The influencers in our
communities, be it our
clerics or otherwise, have
to do more to tackle the
deeply rooted patriarchal
views being spouted by
segments of the community
which keep making excuses
for the ultimate subjugation
of women," she said.
'Tipping point' reached
Maha Abdo, chief executive
of the Muslim Women
Association, said that while
domestic violence and gender
inequality were significant
concerns for Muslim women,
they were difficult to speak
openly about.
However, she said, the
response to the ABC's report
from within Muslim
communities suggested a
tipping point had been
reached. This was a
"moment", she said, to
understand and address the
problems.
"The reality out there is
very much what has been
captured [in the ABC's
report]. Women have had
various experiences and we
hear the voices of these
women and we need to listen
to their experiences," Ms
Abdo told ABC News.
"There's been little pockets
of engagement and that's
been a great achievement."
Ms Abdo, who has worked with
Muslim women escaping
domestic violence for three
decades, said women should
be included in
decision-making roles on the
currently all-male panels of
imams who adjudicate
divorce.
"It would be amazing if we
could have a panel inclusive
of scholars who are women,"
she said. "And there is no
shortage of that."
But Dr Aly questioned
whether simply including
women in the process would
lead to significant enough
change.
"It doesn't get to the
actual substantive issue
here, which is that women
are being asked to produce
evidence of violence in
order to justify their right
to leave a man who is
abusing them," she said.
Last Saturday (7 April) the
Queensland round of the
first ever Australian
National Islamic Quiz
Championship was held at the
Slacks Creek Mosque.
The championship, an event
initiated by the Islamic
Practice & Dawah Circle, saw
155 participants register
for four age divisions -
under 9, 10 to 12, 13 to 15
and 16 to 18 years of age.
Prizes such as tablets,
smart watches and robotic
kits were on offer for the
1st, 2nd and 3rd place
winners.
The event, being held around
Australia, is the first of
its kind, with finals
occurring on June 24th, when
the Queensland champions
will compete against the
champions of New South
Wales, Victoria and Western
Australia.
The feedback for the event
has been overwhelmingly
positive, with parents
feeling it provided their
children with the incentive
to acquire Islamic knowledge
to prepare themselves for
the quiz.
Islamic Council of
Queensland Vice President
Ali Kadri attended the event
to handover the prizes to
the winners.
The Holy month of Ramadan is
a season of fast, prayer,
Quran and charity. Muslims
around the world will be
preparing themselves in
dedication to Allah Almighty
and the rewards He will
offer His servants during
this sacred month.
Acts of worship in the month
of Ramadan are highly
regarded and the rewards in
this month are far greater
than any other month due to
its sacredness, and for that
reason many Muslims tend to
perform their annual alms
giving (Zakat) obligations
throughout this Holy month.
A common question asked
every year is what is the
threshold (Nisab) of Zakat
Al-Maal, the amount for
Zakat Al-Fitr and how is it
translated into a monetary
amount?
The Australian National
Imams Council has determined
the threshold (Nisab) of
Zakat Al-Maal to be:
• According to GOLD: 85
(Eighty-Five) GRAMS of
24 karat gold obtained
from the listed price on
the stock market. Gold
price as at the 17th of
April 2018 (24 Karat per
1 gram) is $55.78 AUD.
85 grams x $55.78 per
gram = $4,741.30 AUD
• According to SILVER:
609 (Six Hundred and
Nine) GRAMS of 100% pure
Silver obtained from the
listed price on the
stock market. Silver
price as at the 17th of
April 2018 (per 1 gram)
is $0.69 AUD. 609 grams
x $0.69 per gram =
$420.21 AUD.
Therefore the threshold (Nisab)
of Zakat Al-Maal according
to:
GOLD will be $4,741.3
AUD and SILVER will be
$420.21 AUD.
The Australian National
Imams Council encourages the
Australian Muslim community
to calculate their Zakat
according to the Silver
Nisab as it is for the
benefit and best interest of
the Zakat recipients.
As for Zakat Al-Fitr, this
will be set at MINIMUM $12
per person for this year
(1439H/2018CE).
The Australian National
Imams Council encourages, in
order to fulfil the needs of
the recipients and the
purpose of Zakat Al-Fitr,
that Zakat Al-Fitr is given
at the beginning of the
month of Ramadan.
The Australian National
Imams Council also
recommends all Muslims to
give their charities to
registered and reputable
organisations and ANIC
Partners.
On behalf of all the member
Imams of the Australian
National Imams Council, we
wish the Muslim community of
Australia and around the
world a blessed Ramadan.
IWAA’s CEO, Ms Galila
Abdelsalam and Sydney’s
Coordinator Alice Orozco
attended South Asian Muslim
Association of Australia (SAMAA)
lunch along with The Hon.
Jihad Dib MP and Imam Yusuf
Hassan from Islamic Relief.
With the Hon. Jihad
Dib MP
With
the retired Minister
and current Mayor of
Hornsby Shire,
Peter Ruddock
“How wonderful it is that
nobody needs to wait a
single moment before
starting to improve the
world”.
This beautiful quote by Anne
Frank was the first thing to
cross my mind after I
finished talking to the
co-founder of Shoebox 4
Syria on a bright Monday
morning.
Several
years ago, an enthusiastic
community development worker
– Khouloud Joumaa, along
with her cousin Saphia Al
Kakouni, driven by the
spirit of giving, started
Shoe Box 4 Syria — a
Sydney-based, non-profit
organisation for the
children who are orphaned
and displaced in Syria.
Now in its third year, the
organisation has had
hundreds of students, from
various schools across
Australia, come on board to
help make a real difference
to the lives of their fellow
young brothers and sisters
suffering and struggling in
Syria.
The venture seems to have
tapped into a niche of brave
little heroes, who in their
humble capacity, have proved
that age is no barrier when
it comes to doing good.
Here are the 8 questions we
asked to learn more about
this initiative.
1- Tell us about your
organisation?
We started in 2016. The idea
was to engage the community,
schools, and friends in
offering charitable
donations and gifts to the
kids in Syria.
Saphia, my cousin, had seen
the horrors of war first
hand in Syria and knew
better that the destructive
aftermath of the war extends
far beyond the battlefield.
She considered herself
fortunate to be alive and
able to flee back to
Australia with her kids, but
there was pain she kept
revisiting in her head— an
anguish that she felt on
witnessing the depravity of
the entire situation!
So one day, Saphia rang me
up on the phone, blissfully
unaware of how this mutual
pain could strike the chord
it did, we both decided that
no matter how small, we had
to play our part in making
life easier for the people
in Syria.
Hence, the brainchild
Shoebox 4 Syria was born.
2- Tell us how your past
experience has prepared you
in becoming the person you
are today?
After being diagnosed with
brain tumour and then making
a remarkable recovery to
battle my way back to
fitness has lent me
perspective, tremendous
positivity and the willpower
I needed to believe in
myself and help others in
distress feel better too.
Also, it was my role as a
teacher and the love for the
orphans that has helped laid
the foundation of our
initiative. I thoroughly
enjoyed teaching and making
a difference in children’s
lives. It is an honour to be
in this role.
3- How do you engage with
various communities?
We have made full use of
various social media
vehicles; such as Facebook,
newspapers, radio etc. We
have also created short
animated videos. Social
media alone has helped us
reach a wider audience. Word
of mouth, family and
acquaintances have been
quite resourceful too.
4- Describe your passion
for this mission?
In the wake of this
initiative some years ago, I
would’ve not imagined that
my passion for giving would
lead me to write a book one
day. Writing for me is
therapeutic and the message
I want to convey via my book
is to promote love not hate
for we are all one. My
passion for Shoebox 4 Syria
has morphed into a creative
outlet.
IWAA in collaboration with
ECCQ organised a lovely
weekend getaway for a group
of 70 participants. This was
one of many successive
sessions of the leadership
course.
Its aim was to strengthen
independence, mitigate
social isolation by active
participation in different
programs such story telling
session by Pam Blamey, surf
life-saving program and
other leadership activities.
Overall, feedback results
show that it was highly
successful.
The leader of Australian
fascist group the United
Patriots Front is
appealing a racial
vilification conviction
and using PayPal to fund
his defence.
Blair Cottrell has
called for photographs
of Adolf Hitler to be
hung in all Australian
classrooms, described
Jews as “parasites” and
boasted of terrorising
women with violence.
Right now he’s appealing
a legal sentence that
saw him convicted for
staging a grotesque
‘mock beheading’ to
protest a new mosque in
country Victoria.
To fund it, he’s using
PayPal.
But with voices like
yours we can stop this.
Pressure from members
like you has already
made PayPal block other
racist groups from using
its platform to spread
hateful and violent
views.
Tens of thousands of
SumOfUs members in
France successfully
pushed PayPal to stop
processing payments for
the violent French white
supremacist group
Génération Identitaire.
Members like you also
forced dozens of major
advertisers to pull
their ads from racist
site Breitbart (AKA
Trump News). And over
the last few weeks more
than 75,000 of you put
the heat on Mastercard,
Visa and American
Express to bar the
violent nationalist
group Britain First.
People power makes
companies act. With your
support today, we can do
it again, and this time
in Australia.
PayPal’s acceptable use
policy claims it forbids
“the promotion of hate,
violence [and] racial
intolerance”. But with
high profile racists
like Blair Cottrell free
to cash in on their
hateful views it’s clear
that little is done to
proactively enforce it.
United Patriots Front
and their political arm,
Fortitude Australia, are
splinter groups of
Reclaim Australia.
Together they are
responsible for violent
anti-immigrant protests
across Australia and
long running campaigns
to intimidate people
like refugees, Muslims,
and women.
Companies like PayPal
have an obligation to
prevent their services
being used to propagate
violence and hate.
Please add your voice
and tell PayPal to take
action now.
Newly built, double story, 5
bedroom home with 3
bathrooms fully tiled to the
ceiling (2 ensuites), 2
lounges, study/entry lounge,
butlers pantry, laundry,
double garage with built in
storage cupboard, undercover
patio to let in Pioneer
Valley, Kuraby. One ensuite
is on the ground floor with
a walk in robe. It has
ducted aircon, vaccumaid,
alarm system, Ceasar stone
bench tops throughout &
porcelain tiles.
This home will suit a family
looking to move into a new
home.
Taxis are parked out front,
shoes stacked at the door.
Latecomers shuffle inside,
dropping coins or notes into
a donation box, before
kneeling on a prayer mat at
the back of the room.
They shake hands and quietly
offer greetings. It's warm
and stuffy inside the
mosque, curtains shading the
sun. Copies of the Holy
Quran are stacked in ornate
shelves but otherwise the
room is sparse. Women and
children listen to the
sermon from behind an
adjoining wall.
Abdul-Jabbar's youngest son,
Talha peeks with wide brown
eyes through a gap in the
separating curtain.
"Muslims have an obligation
in this life that supersedes
personal fulfilment," says
Abdul-Jabbar from his
pulpit, a tiered wooden
chair with carved
balustrades.
His weekly sermon, at 1.45pm
every Friday, is a
reflection of how he lives
his life. "A believer is one
who positively affects those
around us."
There was no mosque when the
Abdul-Jabbars first landed
in Southland ten years ago.
They were involved in
founding the Southland
Muslims Association for the
growing Islamic population.
The association bought a
small industrial building in
the sleepy Invercargill
suburb of Hawthorndale and
in 2010 opened a permanent
masjid, or mosque, and
community centre to serve
around 80 Muslim families in
the region.
At first, locals eyed the
mosque with suspicion. It
wasn't helped when a
passenger of a
Pakistani-born driver
launched a foul-mouthed
anti-Islamic rant that was
caught on camera about how
he should "F*** off back to
where you come from… you
shouldn't be in New Zealand
in the first place ... we
don't require your Muslim
bulls*** in this country."
The Southland Muslim
Association accepted the
remorseful Invercargill
passenger's subsequent
apology and invited him to
the mosque to broaden his
mind on the religion.
And a year later, the
congregation learned they
were being covertly watched
by undercover Security
Intelligence Service (SIS)
officers.
Prime Minister John Key
confirmed at the time that
mosques around New Zealand
were being monitored after a
Kiwi Muslim allegedly linked
to Al-Qaeda was killed by a
US drone strike in Yemen.
Christopher Havard had spent
time in Invercargill around
three years earlier and
attended the mosque.
Abdul-Jabbar said
27-year-old Havard had
introduced himself as Saleem
but there had been nothing
to suggest radicalisation.
Since then, Abdul-Jabbar has
worked closely with both
security agencies and
police, and welcomes people
inside the mosque anytime.
A
Shaykh in Florida by the
name of Shaykh Azhar Nasser
is currently winning at
Twitter! Not too long ago he
began tweeting the questions
posed to him alongside
responses to those
questions.
It’s probably worth stating
at this point that if you
don’t have a sense of
humour, please read no
further.
His Twitter feed is a great
reminder that religion
doesn’t always have to be
about punishment, hell and
brimstone and that sometimes
we need to take a moment to
stop and actually have some
fun!
I’m not entirely sure what
the straw was that broke the
camel’s back, so to speak,
but the Shaykh isn’t holding
back anymore. Ask him
questions at your peril!
Here is another of these tweets
(continued from
last week's CCN):
There are approximately 1.84
billion Muslims in the world
today, making up 24.38% of
the world’s population, or
just under one-quarter of
mankind. As well as being
citizens of their respective
countries, they also have a
sense of belonging to the ‘ummah’,
the worldwide Muslim
community.
The Muslim500 publication
sets out to ascertain the
influence some Muslims have
on this community, or on
behalf of the 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.
Note that the impact can be
either positive or negative,
depending on one’s point of
view of course.
16
"Pluralism has always been a
part of Indonesia's DNA.
Despite many challenges,
Islam in Indonesia has
always a force for
moderation."
Joko Widodo, or Jokowi as he
is popularly known, became
the President of Indonesia
on October 20, 2014. He won
55% of the vote in the
presidential elections which
took place in July 2014; a
victory margin of 4%. He is
seen very much as a populist
leader, not enjoying the
support of religious
scholars, nor coming from a
wealthy or military
background.
Background: President
Widodo is the first
Indonesian president not to
be from the military or the
political elite. He comes
from a humble background of
Javanese descent. His father
had a small furniture
business, which often
couldn’t make ends meet.
They struggled to put him
through university, where he
graduated in the field of
forestry. After graduation,
Widodo worked for three
years in the forestry
service of a state
enterprise in Aceh before
returning to his family
business.
Successful and ‘Clean’
Politician: Widodo was
the mayor of Surakarta
before becoming the governor
of Jakarta in September
2012.
Mayor of Surakarta:
He was a successful mayor
who enjoyed a close
relationship with his
constituents. He focused on
promoting the city as a
centre of Javanese culture,
but also developed the
public transport system,
healthcare and business
relations with the
community. He forged a
reputation for being a
‘clean’ politician, avoiding
the charges of corruption
and nepotism which plague
most politicians.
Governor of Jakarta:
His political success
continued with his election
as governor of Jakarta. He
was equally successful as
governor making meaningful
reforms in education, public
transportation, revamping
street vendors and
traditional markets, and
implementing flood control.
Presidential candidacy:
Various awards (3rd place of
the 2012 World Mayor Prize,
one of the ‘Top 10
Indonesian Mayors of 2008’)
testified to his success as
mayor and governor, and
there was little surprise
when Megawati Sukarnoputri,
the former President of
Indonesia, chose Widodo to
be the presidential
candidate of the PDI-P
party. He has also enjoyed
the support of many
musicians and artists (he
himself is reported to enjoy
heavy metal music), and this
helped him greatly on his
presidential campaign.
Blusukan Culture:
President Widodo has become
well-known for impromptu
visits to see and hear
directly from people in
local communities. This has
allowed him to directly
address their concerns and
criticisms, allowing him to
develop a strong personal
relationship with the
public.
High Expectations:
There are high expectations
of Widodo. Many will be
expecting him to bring the
success he had in his mayor
and governor posts to his
presidential post. He will
be expected to maintain his
promotion of transparency
and accountability, and
whether he will continue
with methods such as
blusukun is something that
many people will keep an eye
on. Economic growth levels
have fallen to a 6 year low
leading Widodo to court
international investment.
ANOTHER FROM THE TOP 50
INFLUENTIAL MUSLIMS IN NEXT
WEEK'S CCN
14 stages of
love according
to the Arabic
language
By Rayana Khalaf
Arabs are in a
league of our
own when it
comes to
romance. I mean,
just look at the
ways we express
love, we're
always ready to
sacrifice our
skin and bones
for the people
we love.
Over-the-top
demonstration of
love goes beyond
our everyday
conversation, as
it is rooted
deep within our
literature.
There is no
shortage of epic
and fiery poems
in Arab
literature,
brought to us by
the likes of Abu
Nawas and Nizar
Qabbani.
In these poems,
we see
variations of
words referring
to love, like "'oshk"
and "gharam"...
but contrary to
popular belief,
these words are
not synonymous.
They each refer
to a unique
degree of love.
Actually, there
are 14 degrees
of love in
Arabic language.
Here they are in
increasing order
of intensity:
To Build a More
Just Malaysia,
We Need a More
Complex
Understanding of
Islamic Legal
Theory
By Zainah Anwar
How do we
apply authentic
Islamic
principles to
solve the
problems we face
in multi-ethnic
and
multi-religious
Malaysia, to
ensure that
justice is done?
Zainah Anwar is a founding
member and former executive
director of Sisters in Islam,
and is currently the director
for Musawah, a global movement
for equality and justice in the
Muslim family.
First, let us
stop assuming
that the
so-called
Islamic laws of
this country are
God's laws and
therefore
divine, perfect
and
unchangeable.
They are
men-made laws,
drafted by mere
mortals sitting
in government
departments and
passed by very
flawed mortals
sitting in
Parliament and
state
assemblies. If
they are indeed
divine and
perfect, why are
they amended and
continue to be
amended, and why
are they
different from
one state to
another, let
alone one Muslim
country to
another?
So let's stop
equating the
Islamic family
law, the Syariah
criminal
offences law,
the hudud
enactments of
the states of
Kelantan and
Terengganu and
all other laws,
rules, fatwas
made by human
beings to be
God's law, God's
words and
therefore divine
and infallible.
Such that to
question them is
to challenge
God.
Perfection
belongs only to
God. These
codified laws,
policies, fatwas
and other
pronouncements
are exercises in
interpretation
and political
choice. To think
that just
because one
invokes God's
name, one
becomes the
political
embodiment of
God and has the
right to
denounce anyone
who disagrees
with one's
pronouncement as
deviant or
apostate is
tantamount to
shirk -
ascribing one as
equivalent to
God, a grave sin
in Islam.
Second, let us
understand a few
key terms that
are so bandied
about freely and
interchangeably.
There are
distinctions
between Syariah,
fiqh, hokum and
qanun. Syari'ah
literally means
the way, the
path. What we
mean by Syar'iah,
is God's
revelation to
Prophet Muhammad
as embodied in
the Qur'an,
encompassing
ethical values
and principles
to guide humans
in the direction
of justice and
correct conduct.
No person nor
institution has
the authority to
claim certainty
in understanding
the divine will.
Only God
possesses
perfect
knowledge.
This led to the
development of
fiqh, which
literally means
"understanding."
It is the
process by which
humans attempt
to derive legal
rules from the
Quran and the
Sunnah
(practices) of
the Prophet. The
classical Muslim
jurists
developed
rigorous
methodologies
and principles
to establish a
legal system
that they
believed could
best reflect the
divine will. And
yet none of them
ever claimed
certainty over
their opinions
and rulings.
Certitude
belongs only to
God. So while
Syari'ah, God's
revelation, is
immutable and
infallible, fiqh
is changeable
and fallible.
Much of what we
call "shariah
law" today is
actually fiqh, a
human
construction.
Hukum are legal
determinations,
rulings in any
given case.
Qanun are
codified laws
and regulations
enacted by a
government.
Richard Flanagan
takes Yassmin
Abdel-Magied's
critics to task
To be Muslim is
not to be
politically
asleep, but
rather to be in
a permanent
state of
critique.
Flanagan singled
out the treatment of
Australian-Sudanese television
personality Yassmin Abdel-Magied
as an example of how Australia's
national days and myths have
become a "stalking horse" for
racism and Islamophobia.
Celebrated
Australian
writer Richard
Flanagan has
excoriated
Australia's
treatment of
refugees and
minorities and
the use of Anzac
day as a
"stalking horse
for racism,
misogyny and
anti-Islamic
sentiment".
The Man-Booker
prize winning
author of the
"The Narrow Road
to the Deep
North" - a book
inspired by
Flanagan's
father's
experiences as a
prisoner of war
in the Second
World War - made
the comments in
an address to
the National
Press Club
earlier this
week.
In the address
Flanagan singled
out the
treatment of
Australian-Sudanese
television
personality
Yassmin
Abdel-Magied
over her social
media comments
about Anzac Day
last year as an
example of how
Australia's
national days
and myths have
become a
"stalking horse"
for racism and
Islamophobia.
"Of late Anzac
Day has become
enshrouded in
cant and
entangled in
dangerous myth.
If this seems
overstated
ponder the
bigoted bile
that attended
Yassmin
Abdel-Magied’s
tweet last Anzac
Day in which she
posted
“LEST.WE.FORGET.
(Manus, Nauru,
Syria, Palestine
...)," he said.
"I read this as
a plea for
compassion
drawing on the
memory of a
national
trauma."
Flanagan said
Anzac Day was an
important day
for his family
to remember his
father's fallen
comrades and to
ponder the
horror of war
more generally.
He critiqued the
"state-funded
cult of Anzac"
where the
contemporary
victims of war
were forgotten
as a "tragic
mockery" of
those who lost
their lives in
conflict, that
helped entrench
official
glorified state
narratives of
war.
"And yet as the
attacks on
Abdel-Magied
showed, some
were seeking to
transform Anzac
Day into a
stalking horse
for racism,
misogyny and
anti-Islamic
sentiment. For
hate,
intolerance and
bigotry. For all
those very
forces that
create war," he
said.
"The great
disrespect to
Anzac Day wasn’t
the original
tweet but the
perverted
attacks made on
it, in, of all
things, the name
of the dead.
Those who think
they honour
Anzac Day by
forgetting
contemporary
victims of war
only serve to
make a tragic
mockery of all
that it should
be."
Abdel-Magied
expressed
support for the
comments in a
tweet.
Is
Islam a Conquest
Ideology? On
Jihad, War, &
Peace
By Shaykh Abu
Aaliyah (Surkheel
Sharif)
Shaykh Abu
Aaliyah (Surkheel Sharif) is an
imam, author, translator, and
Director of The Jawziyyah
Institute. Abu Aaliyah has
studied the Islamic sciences
(theology, law, and
spirituality) with a number of
scholars, and has been involved
in Islamic teaching both in the
UK and abroad since the late
1980s.
Does the
construct of
jihad equate to
‘perpetual war’
in Islam’s grand
political
scheme?
And was the life
of the Prophet
Muhammad ﷺ
mostly about
blood and gore
and body counts?
These are the
core issues
addressed here.
Muslim scholars
have long
identified two
types of jihad
(lit. “striving”
in God’s cause):
an outer form of
jihad and an
inner one.
The outer
usually refers
to
state-sanctioned
military force
(i.e., armed
combat), which
is waged to
defend both
religion and
realm, to fight
preemptively, or
to guard the
vulnerable
against
unjustified
aggression.
As for the inner
jihad (jihad al-nafs),
it refers to the
struggle to
oppose one’s ego
(nafs) and false
desires until
they are in
submission to
God. What
follows is a
perusal through
both types of
jihad—as per
Islam’s source
texts and the
words of
classical and
contemporary
Muslim jurists.
In Part I, I
begin with a
brief discussion
about the inner
jihad.
Part II consists
of a frank
discussion on
jihad as armed
combat; it also
answers the
question: Is
Islam a conquest
ideology more
than an actual
religion? Part
III, a
conclusion,
raises a few
contemporary
questions.
For the first
time in 35 years, Saudis are
allowed to go to the cinema. But
what did they watch?
What makes hadith so
controversial?
Yaqeen Institute
Hadith is an
important source of Islamic law
and belief that, if not properly
studied/analyzed, can be very
confusing.
Dr. Jonathan Brown discusses a
few pointers to keep in mind
when coming across hadith. Watch
the full lecture
here.
Islam101
No Clash with Clare Forestier
PLEASE
NOTE
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.
Kuwaiti
MP’s remarks on Hijab billboard spark
controversy
Safa Al-Hashem
is the only female MP in
Kuwait’s 50-seat National
Assembly.
KUWAIT: Kuwaiti MP has
stirred nationwide controversy by
criticizing a ministry advertisement
aimed at encouraging women to wear the
Islamic headscarf.
MP Safa Al-Hashem, the only female in
the 50-seat National Assembly, tweeted a
few days ago against a billboard
carrying the slogan, “My Hijab … makes
my life better.”
The advert is part of a pro-Hijab
campaign by the country’s Ministry of
Endowments.
Al-Hashem described the billboard as
“strange,” despite noting that she is
not against the notion of wearing the
Islamic headscarf.
In a tweet, she argued that it is
unacceptable for such ads to go on
display in a “civil state” like Kuwait,
which has a constitution “that
guarantees personal freedom.”
Al-Hashem said she would rather see the
country run a campaign to strengthen
national unity instead, adding that she
had requested the ministry to remove the
roadside billboards on the topic.
Her comments landed her in hot water
with religious-minded people and
conservative lawmakers, who strongly
lashed out at her and threatened the
ministry if it agrees to take the ads
down.
They responded to Al-Hashem by reminding
her that Islam is the state’s official
religion as per the constitution. They
also added that the headwear is
mandatory for Muslim women according to
Islamic teachings.
Ghana
to order mosques, churches to hush up, issue
call to prayer via WhatsApp instead
People pray
during the celebration of the
Eid al-Fitr, on June 26, 2017 at
the Independence square in
Accra.
GHANA: Authorities in the
Ghanaian capital Accra have asked
mosques and churches to use WhatsApp to
transmit the daily calls to prayer
rather than using loudspeakers in a bid
to curb noise pollution in urban areas.
The local government in Accra is
clamping down on noise pollution,
particularly at places of worship like
churches and mosques, which can generate
lots of traffic and general pedestrian
noise as crowds of worshippers
congregate on the streets, and
additional noise pollution from church
bells and calls to prayer.
“Why is it that time for prayer cannot
be transmitted with text message or
WhatsApp? So the Imam would send
WhatsApp messages to everybody,” said
Environment Minister Kwabena
Frimpong-Boateng, as cited by Deutsche
Welle. “I think that will help to reduce
the noise. This may be controversial but
it’s something that we can think about.”
“The Imam is not paid monthly. Where
would he get the money to be doing that?
We try to practice what is possible. So
the text message or any other message is
not a problem. But I don’t think it is
necessary,” Fadama community mosque Imam
Sheik Usan Ahmed, told DW.
There have been similar debates around
the daily calls to prayer issued by
mosques across the world, from Cologne
in Germany, to Michigan in the US, and
even in the Nigerian capital, Lagos,
which shut 70 churches and 20 mosques in
2016 in an attempt to curb noise
pollution.
Religion as Critique: Islamic Critical Thinking
from Mecca to the Marketplace
by
Irfan Ahmad
DESCRIPTION
Irfan Ahmad makes
the far-reaching argument that potent systems
and modes for self-critique as well as critique
of others are inherent in Islam--indeed,
critique is integral to its fundamental tenets
and practices.
Challenging common
views of Islam as hostile to critical thinking,
Ahmad delineates thriving traditions of critique
in Islamic culture, focusing in large part on
South Asian traditions.
Ahmad interrogates
Greek and Enlightenment notions of reason and
critique, and he notes how they are invoked in
relation to "others," including Muslims.
Drafting an
alternative genealogy of critique in Islam,
Ahmad reads religious teachings and texts,
drawing on sources in Hindi, Urdu, Farsi, and
English, and demonstrates how they serve as
expressions of critique. Throughout, he depicts
Islam as an agent, not an object, of critique.
On a broader level, Ahmad expands the idea of
critique itself. Drawing on his fieldwork among
marketplace hawkers in Delhi and Aligarh, he
construes critique anthropologically as a
sociocultural activity in the everyday lives of
ordinary Muslims, beyond the world of
intellectuals.
Religion as Critique
allows space for new theoretical considerations
of modernity and change, taking on such salient
issues as nationhood, women's equality, the
state, culture, democracy, and secularism.
KB says:
Sharing Raeesa Khatree's recipe from her The
Great Australian Bake Off appearance.
Like sunshine in
a bowl, this tropical, sugar-free trifle is all
about the pineapple.
Pineapple Trifle
Recipe by Raeesa Khatree
from The Great Australian
Bake Off
Ingredients
Method
Swiss roll cakes
6 eggs, separated
1/3 cup honey
˝ cup plain flour
˝ teaspoon
bicarbonate of soda
Ľ teaspoon vanilla
bean paste
For Swiss roll
filling
1 can coconut cream
(chilled in fridge
overnight)
2 tablespoon maple
syrup
1 tablespoon coconut
blossom sugar
For the biscuit
125 grams butter –
softened
60 grams coconut
sugar – grind
1 teaspoon lemon
zest
110 grams plain
flour – sifted
Ľ teaspoon cinnamon
1 egg yolk
˝ cup macadamia
pieces – toasted
˝ cup desiccated
coconut
Fruit required
1 fresh pineapple –
cubed and cooked
down in saucepan
with 4 tablespoons
coconut blossom
sugar/rice malt
sugar (to taste)
Ľ teaspoon cinnamon
1 pineapple – clean,
cut and grind into
pulp
1 pineapple – to be
divided into slices,
and flowers
For the custard
2 cups full cream
milk
2 eggs + egg yolk
˝ teaspoon cinnamon
˝ cup rice malt
syrup
1 tablespoon maple
syrup
˝ teaspoon nutmeg
Extra ingredients
Rapadura and coconut
blossom sugar
1 bottle rice malt
syrup
Eggs
Pure maple syrup
For the jelly
750ml water
Ľ cup maple syrup
2 teaspoons agar
agar powder
˝ cup pulped
pineapple
1 tablespoon lime
zest
Pinch of salt
50ml pineapple juice
from cooked
pineapple
2 heaped teaspoons
rice malt syrup
For the Chantilly
cream
600ml thickened
cream
2 tablespoons maple
syrup
1 tablespoon coconut
blossom sugar
For the
decorations
Pineapple dried
flowers (to be done
in oven)
Toasted coconut
flakes
Toasted macadamia
Piped cream in
rosette pattern
1. Heat oven to
170°C. Line a 24 x
30cm Swiss roll pan
with baking paper.
2. Beat egg whites
with electric
beaters until they
form soft peaks.
Using a stand mixer,
beat egg yolks and
honey until pale
yellow (1-2
minutes). Add flour,
vanilla bean paste
and bicarb soda to
yolks and honey and
beat until well
combined. Using a
metal spoon, mix 1/3
of the egg white
mixture into the egg
and flour mixture.
Gently fold in the
remaining egg
whites.
3. Spread into lined
baking pan and bake
for 12-15 minutes
until golden brown.
Prepare a sheet with
baking paper and
sprinkle it with
coconut blossom
sugar. When cake
comes out of the
oven, lift it from
the pan using the
baking paper. Place
on top of prepared
baking paper and
remove the baking
paper that it was
baked with. Start
rolling it up from
the longest side to
attain more mini
Swiss rolls. Keep
aside until needed.
For the crushed
pineapples:
1. Place into a
saucepan with enough
water to cover the
base. Heat over
medium heat until
boiling. Reduce the
heat to medium/low
and simmer, stirring
occasionally. Add
honey, rice malt
syrup, zest, and
lemon to taste. Once
it thickens, remove
from heat and place
into shallow bowl
and cool over ice
bath or place bowl
in freezer.
For the Swiss
roll filling:
1. Use electric
beaters to beat the
coconut cream that
has separated to the
top of the can
(about 1 cup). Fold
cooked crushed
pineapple through
the whipped coconut
cream. After cake
has cooled, unroll
and cut strips of
cake approximately
5cm wide to create
mini Swiss rolls.
For the jelly:
1. Place cold water
in saucepan and
dissolve agar agar
immediately.
Thereafter add other
ingredients and
whisk. Once it
boils, remove from
heat. Pour into two
round bowls similar
in size to trifle
bowl and line with
cling wrap.
For the custard:
1. Place milk in
saucepan with
vanilla and honey
and bring to almost
boiling point, then
remove from the
heat. Beat the eggs
in a mixing bowl
until combined. Pour
the hot milk over
the eggs and whisk
in well. Pour the
egg mixture back
into the saucepan
and cook over a
gentle heat,
stirring with a
wooden spoon until
it thickens and
coats the back of
the spoon. Remove
from the heat
quickly and pour
back into the mixing
bowl. Whisk well to
cool a little and
smooth it out. Check
for sweetness and
adjust.
For the Chantilly
cream:
1. Whisk the cream
till soft peaks,
then add maple syrup
and coconut blossom
sugar to taste.
2. For the biscuit,
cream butter and
coconut sugar, add
other ingredients
and combine. Form
balls and place on
greased tray and
bake on 175°C for 15
minutes or till
crisp and golden.
3. Prepare
decorative elements
such as pineapple
flowers and the
biscuit crumb.
4. To assemble,
start by layering
the Swiss roll first
in the base and
coming up sides of
the bowl, pour or
place over the
crushed pineapple
and syrup, then the
jelly, then place
pineapple pieces on
outer of bowl
creating a border of
pineapple pieces,
then a layer of
custard, then a few
more pieces of
pineapple, then
sprinkle biscuit
crumbs and repeat
all layers again.
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:
Visioneering
Bestselling author,
Andy Stanley,married
the words ‘vision’
and ‘engineering’
together to coin the
word ‘Visioneering’.
Stanley described
visioneering as:
“Everybody ends up
somewhere in life. A
few people end up
somewhere on
purpose. Those are
the ones with
vision.” (Andy
Stanley in his book
Visioneering:
Your Guide for
Discovering and
Maintaining Personal
Vision)
Once you are aware
of your purpose,
visioneering becomes
easier. At times
though, you may have
clarity in your
purpose but may lack
strategies on how to
turn your dreams
into action.
Especially if
procrastination is
your middle name.
9 Ways To Start
Visioneering
Below are nine
strategies that may
help you fly off
your procrastinating
perch and land on
your visioneering
vessel.
1. Identify your
ten core values,
i.e., what ten
things matter
most to you.
2. Pick five
from these core
values and write
them on a brand
new page.
3. Now put these
five core values
in order of
priority.
4. Define each
of these values
and write down
an example for
each. For
example, service
is something I
value. So I
would write down
‘service’ and
beside that I
would write an
example of how I
demonstrate
service to at
least one human
being everyday.
5. Now take a
few blank pages
and either draw
or describe in
detail YOUR
IDEAL DAY with
all five values
included. Be as
detailed as
possible. It
requires you to
really sit in
silence for a
few moments and
visualise that
ideal day where
you are able to
live out every
single one of
those five
chosen values.
It’s not
difficult. ALLAH
has given you a
mind with
infinite
potential - you
can do this.
6. Now write in
detail or draw
in detail on
Your Ideal Day
the specific
behaviours you
demonstrate
which align with
your five
values. For
example if one
of your values
is honesty, what
behaviours are
you
demonstrating on
your ideal day
to live up to
that value?
7. Go to a brand
new page and
write down which
of the specific
behaviours from
point number 6
are you
demonstrating in
your daily life
now and which
ones you need to
adopt.
8. Write down
action steps to
help you start
implementing
these ideal
behaviours.
9. Track your
progress daily
and reflect on
how you went in
terms of
implementing
those ideal
behaviours. The
box below may
help:
Core
Values
Ideal
Behaviour
corresponding
to core
value
Action
steps to
implement
ideal
behaviour
corresponding
to core
value
Achieved
(yes/
no)
Self-Reflection
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
In Shaa ALLAH, next
week we will explore
the topic:
What You Feed
Your Mind Determines
What You Feed Your
Body
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.
Jallalludin's son
asks his father “What is that strange hat you are
wearing?
Jallalludin replies: "Why, my son, it is a 'chechia.'
In the desert it protects our heads from the intense
heat of the sun.”
"And what is the long flowing robe you are wearing?”
asked his son.
“Oh, my son!” exclaimed the father “It is very simple.
This is a 'djbellah.' As I have told you, in the desert
it is not only very hot, but the sand is always blowing.
My djbellah protects the entire body,”
The son then asked: "But Father, what about those ugly
shoes you have on your feet?”
"These are 'babouches' my son,” the father replied. You
must understand that although the desert sands are very
beautiful, they are also extremely hot. These babouches'
keep us from burning our feet.”
"So tell me then," added the boy.
"Yes, my son."
"Why are we still wearing all this stuff, when we live
in London!!
Allah takes the souls at the
time of their death, and
those that have not died
during their sleep. He
retains those for which He
has decreed death, and He
releases the others until a
predetermined time. In that
are signs for people who
reflect.
Registrations are now open
for the Future Enterprising
Muslims!
The program aims to provide
business support, training
and mentoring to Muslim
women to help them
commercialize and
operationalise an idea into
a successful small business
in Ipswich.
The participants will be
provided with mentoring and
one on one skills to assist
them to establish their own
business. Participants will
also be able to
commercialise a business
idea, price and value it,
and be given step by step
guidance and ongoing
mentoring (from mainstream
businesses) to establish and
operationalise a business.
At the end of the 12 week
course participants will
have developed a simple
business and marketing plan,
set up an ABN, registered
their company, set up a
website and Facebook page;
set up accounting systems
and business processes , set
up weekly and monthly cash
flow and other simple book
keeping tasks and will have
established a customer base
and be working on their
business.
Ongoing mentoring and
support will be provided
through the Ipswich Chamber
of Commerce, and individual
business mentors selected to
be part of this program.
The main facilitator is
Christine Mudavanhu who also
resides and owns a business
in Ipswich.
There are only 8 places
available so participants
will need to register asap.
If you have any questions,
please do not hesitate to
contact Nora Amath at
nora.cams@iwaa.org.au.
Are you looking at starting your own
business? Do you have a business idea that you would
like to explore with a professional?
This interactive, practical
experience that provides you with tools to start or
grow your business!
Workshop 1: Thinking like an
Entrepreneur Workshop 2: The Entrepreneurship
Journey Workshop 3: Branding and Design Workshop 4:
Communication and Pitching
Alhaamdulilah,
the main structure is
already completed. Next is
the external and internal
deco & fittings. The
external wooden claddings
are going up on the wall.
The driveway into the
basement carpark is getting
completed.
We still need donations to
complete the project. Please
donate generously during
these auspicious months.
InshaaAllah, with your
support, we hope to expedite
soon the project.
The donations details are
shown below.
Fiji Flood Diaster Relief
Fund
Fiji is reeling from the
impact of a tropical cyclone
that has killed at least
four people and caused major
flooding, according to local
media.
The recent floods in Fiji
have created havoc and
devastation. Many lives and
homes have been destroyed
and substantial damage to
crops and animals have
occurred.
In these times of calamity
the people of Fiji need your
immediate help and
generosity to rebuild their
lives again by providing
food, clothing and shelter.
Fiji Humanitarian Relief
Foundation has been
established in Brisbane to
collect funds to help the
affected and needy people in
Fiji.
All money collected will go
towards funding of rations,
educational needs of
affected students and
rebuilding of homes.
Your generosity towards this
worthy cause will be highly
appreciated.
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..
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Several
years ago, an enthusiastic
community development worker
– Khouloud Joumaa, along
with her cousin Saphia Al
Kakouni, driven by the
spirit of giving, started
Shoe Box 4 Syria — a
Sydney-based, non-profit
organisation for the
children who are orphaned
and displaced in Syria.
A
Shaykh in Florida by the
name of Shaykh Azhar Nasser
is currently winning at
Twitter! Not too long ago he
began tweeting the questions
posed to him alongside
responses to those
questions.
Is
Islam a Conquest
Ideology? On
Jihad, War, &
Peace 
Kuwaiti
MP’s remarks on Hijab billboard spark
controversy 
post comments on
our Wall
7
August 2011