A successful Intrafaith-Interfaith Naatia Mushaera Pictorial Report in Dallas February 21, 2014
45 PICTURES AT: http://www.flickr.com/photos/mikeghouse/sets/72157641382648224/Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) is referred to as Rahmatul Aalameen, i.e., mercy to mankind. HIS message is for the whole humanity and not just for Muslims. Tonight’s program is a reflection of that ideal; his message belongs to all of us regardless of our faith.
It was a purposeful event with three clear goals; to share Prophet Muhammad’s (pbuh)teachings with fellow Americans; Muslims and non-Muslims alike, to focus on how Muslims can adopt his teachings to benefit the society at large, and to bring Muslims of different denominations together in understanding his message of peace.
Alhamdu Lillah, Praise the Lord, we achieved that goal.
Muslims from Ahmaddiya, Bohra, Ismaili, Shia, Sunni and WD Muhammad communities attended the event, and each community was represented in reciting the Naat. Thanks to our Hindu, Sikh and Christian friends for joining and participating in the program. I believe, this is the first time in Muslim history, that all the Muslim denominations have come together. However, we missed the Sufi Muslim Community - InshaAllah, we will have them all next one.
Notes continued after the report below
Host: Mike Ghouse
MC: Shazia Khan
Honored Guests: Rizwan Sheikh and O S Modgil
Organized by: World Muslim Congress
FIRST SEGMENT
1. Opening - Mike Ghouse
2. Introduction of
Muntazim Shazia Khan
3. Tilawat-e-Quran;
Sura Fateha – Imam Muhammad Zafarullah Hanjra
4. Hamd – Amna
Khatoon
5. Naat by different
Muslim communities in Alphabetical order
6. Ahmadiyya Muslim
Community - Muzaffar Janjua
7. Bohra Muslim Community
– Dr. Yusuf Kundawala
8. Shia Ismaili
Muslim Community – Imran Boodhwani & Khairunissa Meghani
9. Shia Muslim
Community – Rizwan Zaidi
10. Sunni Muslim
Community– Saba Jasim
11. WD Muhammad
Muslim Community – Iman Rashida
12. Naat by Hindu
Community - DD Maini
13. Introduction of
Honored Guests (5 Minutes)
14. Dr. Basheer Ahmed
(5 Minutes)
15. Acknowledgement of Sponsors
16. Purpose of the
program – Mike Ghouse (5 Minutes)
17. Naat by
Suhel Najmi – Shazia Khan
Pictures are in the same sequence as numbers above.
Pictures are in the same sequence as numbers above.
18. Mike Ghouse |Os Modgil
19. Dr. Shamsa
Qureshi
20. Ahmed Ali
21. Shah Alam Asar
22. Abdus Samad
23. Naheed Shad
24. Zohra Chisti
25. Masood Quazi
26. Noor Amrohvi
27. Dr. Qaisar Abbas
28. Omar Abidi
29. Saeed Qureshi
30. Tariq Hashmi
31. Yunus Ijaz
32. Iqbal Haider
33. Salaam and Duwa -Led by Amna Khatoon and Saba Jasim, and joined by all
34. Team Members
Notes continued:
If God is Rabbul Aalameen (Creator of Universe) , and Prophet is Rahmatul Aalameen (Mercy to mankind), then it makes sense for us to become Maqhlooqul Aalameen (Universal beings) – simply meaning belonging to all of creation—matter and life and vice-versa. It also means we are one large family created out of a single couple and it makes sense to know and live with each other in harmony.
By the end of 2020, there will not be a major city in the world, where you will not find people of different faiths, sects, cultures, ethnicities, races, nationalities and social backgrounds working, eating, playing, marrying, and doing things together.
We need to prepare ourselves for those eventualities to prevent possible conflicts, and lay a good foundation for nurturing goodwill and effective functioning of the societies. Exclusive communities will become a thing of the past. If you live amidst others, you must also respect the otherness of others, as you expect them to do the same for you.
At the Foundation for Pluralism, and World Muslim Congress, a think tank, we have defined Pluralism as a behavior of “respecting the otherness of others and accepting the God-given uniqueness of each other.” Pluralism is not a religion, it is simply an attitude of live and let live. Indeed it is Quran based and the bottom line of all faiths as well, i.e., to create harmonious societies where no human has to live in fear of the other.
Just about every Muslim you talk to expresses the same desire, “I hope we can work together for the common good.” This desire has remained a pipe dream for the last fifty years since the turmoil among Muslim communities started taking root.
The good news is a new determination among Muslims to become participants and contributors in creating a better world for all of God’s creation is spreading inch by inch.
The World Muslim Congress has announced a series of programs to bring Muslims of different denominations together for the purpose of creating cohesive societies, where Muslims and non-Muslims can live without fear of the other.
Singularly, I cannot have peace for myself, if people around me are not, if I dislike others, I cannot demand others to love me. If I threaten others, I am as afraid of them as they are of me.
We have to come together to bring goodness to all of us, if people around us are at peace; we are bound to have peace, and when we are at peace, we will focus on prosperity and living a better life free from in-fighting and a fully grown Ashraful Mukhlooqat (honored species). Uniting does not mean joining hands and marching against someone to be destructive.
SHAME ON US
Most of us cringe and shudder at the thought of men and women pulled out of the busses, and single them out for Shia and murder them in broad day light. Torching Christian Churches and homes, harassing Ahmadies, abducting Hindu women and forcing them to convert and of course Sikhs and Ismailis were not spared either. This is not Islam, and we know it, but what are going to do about it?
Prophet Muhammad had said, if you cannot stop bad things from happening, the least you can do is to speak out against it.
There is a fallacy out there, “what will my single voice do?” – in reality, each voice adds up to the momentum. Majrooh Sultanpuri’s couplet expresses it the best;
I started walking alone towards the destination
People started joining me and the carvaan was building
MaiN akela hi chala tha jaanab-e-manzil magar
log saath aate gaye aur kaaravaaN banta gaya
Do your dharma (duty) and if all of us do ours, it adds up and builds a momentum, and your singular voice becomes a voice of the majority.
Thank God, the news papers in India, Pakistan, Iran and Arabia have carried this good news and God willing the report of this event will also be shared by others.
We hope over a period of next ten years our Naats can become transformative sessions for Muslims to follow the Prophet – and become the Amins of the society and Rahmat (mercy) to fellow beings.
I sincerely hope, Muslims invest their money and time in building bridges within Muslims and with fellow humanity.
If you wish to support these efforts —zero overhead costs, let us know. All funds will be accounted in public
PRE-EVENT PUBLICATIONS:
POST EVENT PUBLICATIONS:
If God is Rabbul Aalameen (Creator of Universe) , and Prophet is Rahmatul Aalameen (Mercy to mankind), then it makes sense for us to become Maqhlooqul Aalameen (Universal beings) – simply meaning belonging to all of creation—matter and life and vice-versa. It also means we are one large family created out of a single couple and it makes sense to know and live with each other in harmony.
By the end of 2020, there will not be a major city in the world, where you will not find people of different faiths, sects, cultures, ethnicities, races, nationalities and social backgrounds working, eating, playing, marrying, and doing things together.
We need to prepare ourselves for those eventualities to prevent possible conflicts, and lay a good foundation for nurturing goodwill and effective functioning of the societies. Exclusive communities will become a thing of the past. If you live amidst others, you must also respect the otherness of others, as you expect them to do the same for you.
At the Foundation for Pluralism, and World Muslim Congress, a think tank, we have defined Pluralism as a behavior of “respecting the otherness of others and accepting the God-given uniqueness of each other.” Pluralism is not a religion, it is simply an attitude of live and let live. Indeed it is Quran based and the bottom line of all faiths as well, i.e., to create harmonious societies where no human has to live in fear of the other.
Just about every Muslim you talk to expresses the same desire, “I hope we can work together for the common good.” This desire has remained a pipe dream for the last fifty years since the turmoil among Muslim communities started taking root.
The good news is a new determination among Muslims to become participants and contributors in creating a better world for all of God’s creation is spreading inch by inch.
The World Muslim Congress has announced a series of programs to bring Muslims of different denominations together for the purpose of creating cohesive societies, where Muslims and non-Muslims can live without fear of the other.
Singularly, I cannot have peace for myself, if people around me are not, if I dislike others, I cannot demand others to love me. If I threaten others, I am as afraid of them as they are of me.
We have to come together to bring goodness to all of us, if people around us are at peace; we are bound to have peace, and when we are at peace, we will focus on prosperity and living a better life free from in-fighting and a fully grown Ashraful Mukhlooqat (honored species). Uniting does not mean joining hands and marching against someone to be destructive.
SHAME ON US
Most of us cringe and shudder at the thought of men and women pulled out of the busses, and single them out for Shia and murder them in broad day light. Torching Christian Churches and homes, harassing Ahmadies, abducting Hindu women and forcing them to convert and of course Sikhs and Ismailis were not spared either. This is not Islam, and we know it, but what are going to do about it?
Prophet Muhammad had said, if you cannot stop bad things from happening, the least you can do is to speak out against it.
There is a fallacy out there, “what will my single voice do?” – in reality, each voice adds up to the momentum. Majrooh Sultanpuri’s couplet expresses it the best;
I started walking alone towards the destination
People started joining me and the carvaan was building
MaiN akela hi chala tha jaanab-e-manzil magar
log saath aate gaye aur kaaravaaN banta gaya
Do your dharma (duty) and if all of us do ours, it adds up and builds a momentum, and your singular voice becomes a voice of the majority.
Thank God, the news papers in India, Pakistan, Iran and Arabia have carried this good news and God willing the report of this event will also be shared by others.
We hope over a period of next ten years our Naats can become transformative sessions for Muslims to follow the Prophet – and become the Amins of the society and Rahmat (mercy) to fellow beings.
I sincerely hope, Muslims invest their money and time in building bridges within Muslims and with fellow humanity.
If you wish to support these efforts —zero overhead costs, let us know. All funds will be accounted in public
PRE-EVENT PUBLICATIONS:
- The News International: http://www.thenews.com.pk/TodaysPrint.aspx?ID=9
- Shia News Service - http://pakistan.shafaqna.com/viewpoint-2/itemlist/tag/Richardson.html
- Original Press Release at World Muslim Congress http://worldmuslimcongress.blogspot.com/2014/02/prophet-muhammads-pbuh-intrafaith_9.html
- Momentum for Islamic Intrafaith and Interfaith programs URL- http://worldmuslimcongress.blogspot.com/2014/02/momentum-for-islamic-intrafaith-and.html
POST EVENT PUBLICATIONS:
- The Muslim times - http://www.themuslimtimes.org/2014/02/americas/successful-intrafaith-naatia-mushaera-in-dallas-usa
- Shah Alam Siddiqui - http://worldmuslimcongress.blogspot.com/2014/02/a-successful-interfaith-natia-mushaera.html
Thank you.
Mike Ghouse
World Muslim Congress
Dallas, Texas
(214) 325-1916/text.talk
To be a Muslim is to be a peace maker, one who seeks to mitigate conflicts and nurtures goodwill for peaceful co-existence of humanity. Our work is geared towards building a cohesive society where no human has to live in apprehension or fear of the other. If we can learn to respect the otherness of others and accept each other's uniqueness, then conflicts fade and solutions emerge.
Mike Ghouse
World Muslim Congress
Dallas, Texas
(214) 325-1916/text.talk
To be a Muslim is to be a peace maker, one who seeks to mitigate conflicts and nurtures goodwill for peaceful co-existence of humanity. Our work is geared towards building a cohesive society where no human has to live in apprehension or fear of the other. If we can learn to respect the otherness of others and accept each other's uniqueness, then conflicts fade and solutions emerge.
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