August 2013 Acting Editor: Nasir Ahmad B.A. LL.B. Vol. No. 8, Issue No. 13 IN MEMORY OF JALAL-UD-DIN AKBAR IBN-I ABDULLAH, SACRAMENTO, CALIFORNIA CONTENTS Page For the Freedom 4 Mr Olaf Kellrhoff, Karachi The First German Mosque The Daily Taz, Berlin 6 The Berlin Mosque: Photo Exhibition Christian Fessel, Berlin 8 Our Visit to the Berlin Mosque Aaiysha Ahmad, Woking UK 10 Why the Ahmadiyya Movement is Important to me Reza Ghafoerkhan, Hague 10 The Command of Education Mushtaq Ali 14 The Origin of Friday Congregational Prayers Hamad Ahmad 17 The Interpretation of the Qur’an Inshaal Ahmad 19 The Oldest purpose-built Mosque in Europe 21 Eid Milan Dinner in Hague, Holland 22 A S Hoeseni and Sjaikh Kasiem, Almere, Holland Formatting and Designing:Erwan Hamdani, Jakarta Photographs: A.S.Hoeseni and Sjaikh Kasiem, Almere Photographic editing: Faizaan Ahmad OUR CONTRIBUTORS Mr. Inshaal Ahmad Mr. Chrsitian Fessel Reza Ghafoekhan Mr. Mushtaq Ali Mr. Hammad Ahmad Mr. Ahmed Saadat Eid Milan Dinner in The Hague, Holland Hosted by the Lahore Ahmadiyya Jama‘ats in Holland Speeches, Songs, Qur’anic Recitation Competition, Workshop, and Sketches Mr. A. S. Hoeseni and Mr. Sjaikh Kasiem It is for the second year that all the Lahore Ahmadiyya Movement Jama‘ats in the Netherlands have jointly organised a get-togeth- er to celebrate the joys of Eid al-Fitr on a wider scale. A grand dinner was organised at the Tropical Hall in The Hague on 18 August, 2013. It was presided over by Dr Robert Mo- hamedamin, a prominent physician in the medical profession and an active member of the PaulkrugerlaanJama‘at , The Hague. Members of almost all the Jama‘ats in Holland, well-wishers, and people from different walks of life attended this colourful event. The youths, executive members, and other volunteers of all the Jama‘ats cooperated in organising the dinner, but it was mainly managed and planned by Mr A. S. Hoeseni of the Stichting Ah- madiyya Anjuman, Kepplerstraat, and Mr Sjaikh Kassiem of the Paulkrugerlaan Jama‘at, both in The Hague. Mr Chandrikapersad Santokhi, leader of the Indian Diaspora in Suriname and Chairman of the Unit- ed Reformist Party (VHP), conveyed his good wishes and greetings to the members of the Lahore 2 | Page Ahmadiyya Movement in Holland and other participants. Mr Firoz Razab Sheikh, Imam and vice-president of the Rot- terdam Jama‘at, gave a brief talk about the lesson Muslims learnt by observing a whole month of fasting, and he also read out an Eid message on behalf of all the Lahore Ahmadi- yya Jama‘ats in Holland. Mrs Bea Autar, who is a presenter of Islamic and other pro- grammes at Radio Amor of Rotterdam, Mrs Urmila Khoda- baks of the Federation of EEKTA, and Mr Johan Chandoe, for- mer member of the Municipal Parliament of The Hague, also, in their brief talks, congratulated the organisation of the Eid Millan dinner and appreciated the efforts of bringing people of all faiths to enjoying one another’s religious festivals. Mr Max Lalmahomed, president of the Utrecht Ahmadiyya Anjuman and secretary of the Netherland Federation, pre- sented a brief report about the cooperation which is steadi- ly progressing among the various Jama‘ats and announced that in the near future a sports day and a seminar will be held. Mrs Fariza Badloe of the Paulkrugerlaan spoke about her experience of the month of fasting and how it helped in developing her inner self to enable her to control it and channel it towards kind and charitable acts. She represented AJW, a youth organisation. A novel competition of colouring Arabic calligraphy, and a Qur’an recitation competition were also held. A young Moroccan girl, Asma Mulloghe, won first prize in both competitions. Prizes were given by the president, Dr Robert Mohamedamin, and the jury consisted of Mr Reza Ghafoerkhan as presi- dent, and Mr Razab Sheikh of the Stichting Ahmadiyya Anjuman, and Mrs Garieb of the Dgearastraat Jama‘at, The Hague, served as members. The Youth Eid Milan programme was conducted by Miss Alisha Hoeseni of The Hague and Miss Jas- mine Santoe of Rotterdam. A workshop based on the book Introduction to Islam by Dr Zahid Aziz was also held, in which Miss Jenice Nirhoe of the Stichting Ahmadiyya Anjuman and Miss Sarina Rahiembaksh of the Paulkruger- laan Anjuman, both of The Hague, took part. A sketch was also presented on the very interesting topic of whether girls can be forced by their parents to marry when the girls wish, instead, to pursue their studies at university. The basis of this subject is Chapter 4, Al-Nisa, verse 24, where marriage has been regarded a contract in which both parties should participate with a free will. Therefore, no party to the contract can be forced to enter an agreement, which is meant to be lifelong. The coordinating committee should be congratulated on this very joyful and entertaining function in which members of all faiths took part. We hope future functions will be equally educative and beneficial. (For more photographs see P.22) * * * Page | 3 FOR THE FREEDOM (Fur Die Freiheit) (We highly appreciate the efforts of a German NGO, Frierich-Naumann-Siftung fur die Freiheit, which is based in Islamabad, Pakistan, in promoting religious peace and tolerance. It has produced a beautiful calendar for 2013 with photographs of houses of worship and quotations from respective religious scriptures or sayings of the founders of the religion. The title of the calendar, “For the Freedom”, is food for thought for the religious and political leadership in Pakistan. There is a great need that an all-out effort should be made to promote and foster tolerance and peace among the rank and file of the people of Pakistan. The stability and solidarity in Pakistan can only be established through religious harmony and understanding. The media, and especially the print media, can play a very effective role in this field. A well-meaning start in this regard has been made by this German NGO by highlighting universal truths found extant in almost all religious scriptures and sayings of their celebrated founders. The Holy Qur’an has time and again emphasised guaranteeing religious freedom to the houses of worship and followers of all religions. The following verse is one such divine commandment: “And if Allah did not repel some people by others, cloisters, and churches, and synagogues, and mosques in which Allah’s name is much remembered, would have been pulled down” (22:40). – Ed.) * Message from the Resident Representative, Mr Olaf Kellerhoff The year 2012 witnessed sectarian tensions and killings as well as vio- lent protests. The traditional plural- istic and tolerant society of South Asia seems to get lost more and more. Religious confrontations are as old as mankind; but primarily these are or should be theological disputes and competitions, which develop religious understanding and theology further. The prolific author, A. Powell Davies, wrote in “The Meaning of the Dead Sea Scrolls”, where some Christian perceptions were challenged: “What we need is not the victory of one religion over other religions but the recognition of the noble and good in all religions. It is this and not exclusive claims that will draw the world together and bring mankind towards the needed unity.” The Pakistani Islamic scholar, Dr Aslam Khaki, has sharpened this even more: “Neither did the Holy Christ (as) come to Christianize the people nor did the Holy Prophet Muhammad (sas) come to Mo- hammadanize the people; both came to humanize the people.” When clashes and killings claiming religious reasons occur, we know that they are not based in reli- gion but are merely an expression of social and political changes. No quick fixes will help, but instead an integrated approach for solving the basic needs of life as well as exchange and communication in an open and democratic society. However, education for respect, peace and tolerance is needed, too. All religions can deliver it, and almost all religions have their anchor on Pakistani soil. It’s time to discover this rich heritage and to live. 4 | Page The following are extracts from each religious scripture or saying of the founder of the particular religion along with a photo of each house of worship. Parliament of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, Islamabad Freedom to profess religion and to manage religious institutions “Subject to law, public order and morality: (a) every citizen shall have the right to pro- fess, practise and propagate his religion; and (b) every religious denomination and every sect thereof shall have the right to establish, maintain and manage its religious institu- tions” (Article 20: Constitution of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan). Masjid in Naran Valley, Kaghan “God shows compassion only to those of His servants who are compassionate” (Mus- lim: 11:13). International Buddhist Centre, Islamabad “In the sky, there is no distinction of east and west; people create distinctions out of their own minds and then believe them to be true” (Gautama Buddha). Bahai Hall, Karachi “The foundation of all the divine religions is one” (Abdul Baha). Holy Trinity Church, Murree “For when the Gentiles, which have not the law, do by nature the things contained in the law, these, having not the law, are a law unto themselves: Which shew the work of the law written in their hearts, their conscience also bearing witness, and their thoughts the means while accusing or else excusing one another; in the day when God shall judge the secrets of men by Jesus Christ according to my Gospel” (The Bible: Romans 2:14-16).