Challenges of Women Space in Masjids

This is worth reading and quoting in its entirety.

Last Friday, I was all set to give a Khutba about the need for Muslims to plan ahead on an individual and community level. My notes were ready and I was in full "Khutba mode". But before sermon time, I decided to change the topic completely -- to talk about the exclusion of Muslim women from the mosque and community life.

.
It wasn't an earth-shattering event that made me change the topic. It was an email. And it proved to be the proverbial straw that broke the camel's back. It was one of five emails I received last week about Islamic events with a clear "brothers only" statement. One notice for a regional conference even stated categorically that there was no space for women and children under 15 at the event.

.
But the emails were only part of the story. A week before, I had given a Khutba in another, brand-new mosque in the heart of Chicago. After the prayer, while in the elevator, I overheard four Muslim sisters speaking angrily about their experience in the Masjid.

.
"If I wanted to watch TV, I'd stay home," said one of the women, disgusted. I asked them what was wrong, and they told me how they could only see the Imam through a TV system set up in the women's section. Moreover, the space was inconvenient, uncomfortable and was changed twice that day. This was despite the fact that months ago, the leadership of this mosque had promised me that they would involve sisters in decision-making about how the women's space would be set up.

.

The Khutba

.
I was speaking in Chicago's oldest mosque where the main prayer hall accommodates about a thousand people. It has a small, curtained off space in the corner for about 40 or so women. Due to the sensitive nature of my topic, it did occur to me before the Khutba that I might not be invited to give a Friday sermon there in the future. Nonetheless, I made the following points and asked these questions:

Who decides how women's space in the mosque is allocated and organized?
How many women sit on the Board of Directors of our mosques?
If women are part of the Board of Directors, are they elected, chosen by women, selected by both men and women or are they simply the wives of male board members?

.
I also reminded the audience that in the Prophet's mosque, women could hear and see the Prophet Muhammad, peace and blessings are upon him, and later, the leaders of the Muslims (Khulafa) when they spoke from the pulpit. Actually there are reports of interaction with the Prophet when women raised questions. Caliph Omar even went back to give another sermon to withdraw his opinion when a women from the audience gave him critical feedback after his Khutba.

.
Moreover, when the Prophet felt that the women were too far away to hear or he had specific points to make, he would walk over to their section and present a Khutba for them.
Examples from Islamic history
.
Women in early Islamic history were active not just as "mothers and wives" but contributed as individual Muslim women in all aspects of the community.

.
On a scholarly level, there was Aisha, may God be pleased with her. She is credited with disseminating the knowledge of Islam and information about almost all aspects of Islamic life. Today, nearly half of the Islamic jurisprudence of the Hanafi school of thought (which is followed by about 70 percent of the Muslim world) comes through the students of Aisha alone.

.
On a political level, there was Umm Salama. During the signing of the Treaty of Hudaibiya, when none of the Muslim men agreed to forego Hajj due to the demands of the pagan Meccans, the Prophet consulted Umm Salama. Her advice to him was to perform the rituals indicating that they would not be performing the pilgrimage, and the Muslims would follow. He heeded her advice, and as she suggested, the Muslims accepted this.

.
After the death of the Prophet, one major issue was how to preserve the authenticity of the Quran. Although the Quran had always been committed to memory and writing, the written pages were scattered. When a master copy was put together at the time of the first Khalifa, Abu Bakr, that copy was not kept with him or any other Muslim man. It was kept with a woman -- Hafsa (may God be pleased with her).

.
Finally, in Madina during the leadership of Omar (may God be pleased with him) Al Shifa Bint Abdullah was made in charge of trade and commerce in the city.

.
These are just a few examples of the dynamic role women played in early Islamic history. But they are of no use if the inclusion of Muslim women in the mosque and community is reflected only in theory.

.
"Men's Islam" or Islam for All
.
While sisters are a full part of the community, many mosques are run as though Islam is just for men. This is evident by looking at women's spaces, their decoration, their uncomfortable size and design, the absence of women from the Board of Directors of most mosques and the relegation of their activism and ideas to a "women's committee".

.
Muslim women in North America are as professional as Muslim men and contribute as generously. I remember fundraising in a New Jersey Masjid. Five Muslim women contributed $25,000 each within the first 12 minutes. It inspired me to ask the audience: is there a man who can match these donations?

.
And that's how women's participation is. They know they will not get to Jannah because of the good deeds of their husbands. Each man and women has to find his or her own way to success in this world and next, knowing that God's promise is this:

"I will deny no man or woman among you the reward of their labors. You are the offspring of one another." (Quran 3:195).

.
"Each person shall reap the fruits of his/her own deeds: no soul shall bear another's burden." (Quran 6:164)

.
The Reaction to the Khutba

.
Normally, two or three people will approach me after a Khutba to thank and compliment me for it. This time, ten times more people came over, appreciating what I had said, Alhamdu lillah. That's one of the most positive instances of feedback I've ever gotten in years of giving Khutbas! Although I have yet to hear the response from the leadership of the Masjid, this gives me hope that the community is ready for change.

.
A few board members also spoke very positively about the points I raised, including one of the founding members. The question is, who is stopping the change?

.
Current Chicago Masjid Spaces for Women

.
In Chicago, I estimate that in about ten percent of the Friday prayer locations, there is proper space for sisters' participation. In these places men and women are in the same location without a curtain or wall separating them. In terms of the remaining 80 percent of mosques that do have a space for women, these are often cramped and inconvenient. By inconvenient, I mean that women cannot see the Imam or do not know what is happening in the congregational prayer. In about 10 percent of the Chicago-area mosques there are no spaces for women.

.
One Muslim sister in the city related to me her experience after visiting one of the largest mosques in Chicago that had an inconvenient room for women. When she entered the women's area, a group of sisters was standing in line, thinking prayer had started because the recitation of the Quran could be heard. Taking Quran recitation as a cue for congregational prayer, the sister joined the others in line. After several minutes, when the man ended his recitation without calling for the next step of prayer, Ruku, the women learned that it was not a prayer. Needless to say, the women were humiliated and upset about this confusing situation. This is just an example of the practical problems this segregation in prayer places causes.

.
An additional problem in mosques where women cannot see the Imam is the fact that the noise level often becomes unacceptable. This tends to be because most men dump the responsibility for taking care of their active children on their wives when they go to the men's section of mosque. Also, since women can't see what's going on, they end up talking to each other. This leads to the Imam asking women to "be quiet please," furthering tension and exclusion.

.
When women are out of sight, it's also more likely that they will be out of mind. That means their discourse and participation are ignored on a Masjid and community level. Moreover, few women have easy access to the Imam, which worsens the problem, since the Imam is the one man who can make a significant difference in bringing women's issues and problems to the attention of other Muslim men in the community. This perhaps explains why you don't normally hear many Khutbas on women's challenges here in America or abroad.

.
Negative Dawa

.
The situation becomes worse when non- Muslims visit. They see there are hardly any women present in the mosque. Or, if there are a few, they are confined to a small and less ceremonious corner. What kind of Dawa is this? What kind of impression does this give in our current context, where the battle against stereotypes is ten times harder than it was pre-9/11 America? This visual impact is far greater and far more lasting then tens of books lauding the status of women in Islam. Since Shahadah (witnessing) is the first pillar of Islam, this obstacle to outreach must be dealt with.

.
Of course, women, unlike men, are given a choice by the Prophet to pray at home or in the mosque. But the Prophet was categorical in telling men "do not stop women from coming to the Masjid." Friday prayers are also optional for women. But considering that Friday sermons are the only Islamic educational opportunity available to most women in the North America Muslim women should attend Friday prayers. This is especially important because we do not yet have a widespread tradition of female teachers, as is the case in the Muslim world. I am pretty sure Caliph Omar would have encouraged Friday prayer attendance by women if he was alive today in the United States, may God be pleased with him.

.
Who is stopping women from the Masjid

.
Knowing both of these Masjids, their volunteer leadership, and the fact that women are on their boards, I don't think either of them stops women from attending and participating. The first Masjid's president did make an announcement twice in front of me inviting women to visit the new location to help determine the sisters' space. I think, perhaps, need sisters taking these issues more seriously instead of accepting the current situation.

.
In the second Masjid, I learned that some sisters prefer to pray behind a curtain. An easy solution could be to make a larger area where women who do not want a curtain between the men and women, as was the practice in the mosque of the Prophet, can pray. Behind them, women who are comfortable praying behind a curtain can do this.

.
With lower donations as a result of donor chasing by the FBI, extra expenses for security and legal battles, which six or seven Masjids in the Chicago-area are going through, the last thing on the mind of Muslim leadership is women's space. About 80 percent of the Masjids in the Chicago area do not have any permanent Imam. Volunteers like me are asked to offer the Friday sermon on a rotational basis. Almost all of these Masjids' leaders are busy professionals who volunteer their time to run the community centers, schools and Masjids. Unless someone is pushing for something, things will continue as they have been.

.
This is why I have come to the conclusion that the agenda of women's space will not come to the forefront unless Muslim women take it upon themselves.

.
Establishing a Muslim Women's Caucus

.
It is time that sisters come together and provide leadership in clearly defining a Muslim women's manifesto for change in mosques in North America. If these sisters are practicing Muslims, they will have a far higher level of success in demanding change and leading it.
I would like to make a plea to leading Muslim women in North America who are respected and honored by the community to call a national women's caucus on these issues. In this conference, the following things need to be discussed and tackled:

.
1. An agenda outlining change in the Muslim community centers and Masjids in which
Each Masjid should formally declare that it is unIslamic to stop women from attending a mosque

.
The need to restore women's space in the mosque as it was at the Prophet's time (i.e. without a curtain or a wall separating men and women) is stressed

.
Develop a welcoming space where they have a clear view of the Imam

.
2. One-third of Masjids' Board of Directors should be composed of sisters, one-third of brothers, and one-third of people born in North America.

.
3. A mechanism for an ongoing Muslim Women's Caucus needs to be developed

.
On the issue of women's exclusion from the mosque, this Muslim Women's Caucus may want to do the following:

.
Invite the leadership of major mosques, as well as national and continental Muslim organizations to a closed-door dialogue with an equal number of Muslim women leaders present.
Give a deadline to all Masjids that do not have a space for women to allocate one in consultation with women.
If space is extremely limited and there is no cultural and ideological objection to it, then allocate time for additional congregational prayer for women lead by women as was done by Umm Waraqa with the Prophet's permission when she lead her staff regularly in prayers in her own home as reported by Sahih Abu Dawud. (If thousands of women lead other women in prayers throughout Pakistan, it can be done in a mosque here as well).

.
Shura (consultation) has been a way of life for Muslims (42:38). If our families and our communities are not run on Shura, open communication and proper representation, how will we grow?

.
"The true believers, both men and women, are friends to each other. They enjoin what is just and forbid what is evil; they attend to their prayers and pay the alms and obey God and His apostle. On these God will have mercy. He is Mighty and Wise." (Quran 7:71)

.
Source: soundvision.com

Islam, the American way

Although America has plenty of Islam-bashers ready to play on people's fears, it offers better protection to the mosque builders.

.

The American way? Compared to the ways or Eurabia, which presumably means the European way ...

I am still waiting for Islam - the Islamic way!!

Egypt adjourns Muslim converts' appeal

An appeal by 12 Egyptian converts to Islam who wish to return to the Coptic Christian Church convened briefly on Saturday before being adjourned to November 17, a judicial source told AFP.

.
In April, a lower court ruled that reversion to Christianity by the 12 converts would amount to apostasy under Islamic law and constitute a "manipulation of Islam and Muslims."

.
What's there to ponder? Why 3 months?
.
So much for [2.256] There is no compulsion in religion;

Muslim world not a monolith

...

The Muslim world is not a monolith, and Muslim understanding of their faith-tradition -- Islam -- in lacking a centre analogous to the Vatican, remains widely dispersed.

The differences among Muslims on how the Koran should be read and Islam practised reach back to the earliest years of Muslim history and have been the source of much internal conflict. These differences are compounded by the convulsions in varying degrees the Muslim world is experiencing presently from the effects of the fast moving global economy.

...

Muslims ethnically are a diverse people, and Islam is no more an Arab religion than Christianity is a Jewish heresy. More than 80% of over one billion Muslims are non-Arabs, and most Muslims are located in south and southeast Asia

Don't you just love it when someone reinvents the wheel or discovers something so self-evident and that has been matter of fact for years. Check out Amazon.

Why can't anyone come up with something new? WHy do we have to rehash everything over and over, even the protests over stuipd cartoons?

Amnesty condemns Egypt's treatment of Muslim Brotherhood

Human rights group Amnesty International said Friday it was "greatly concerned" by the arrest of two Egyptian lawmakers from banned Islamist opposition group the Muslim Brotherhood.

The London-based organisation condemned the detention last week north of Cairo of Ragab Abu Zeid and Saber Amer, who had their parliamentary immunity lifted earlier this year.


"Amnesty International is greatly concerned by the recent arrests, detention and prosecution on terrorism-related charges of leading members of the Muslim Brotherhood, apparently because of their peaceful exercise of their right to freedom of association and assembly," it said in a statement.

The Muslim Brotherhood, Egypt's main opposition group, describes itself as a moderate Islamic organisation that wants to bring Islamic law to Egypt.

Amnesty said the crackdown on the movement, which has more than a fifth of the seats in Egypt's parliament despite being banned, coincided with the trial of 40 other Muslim Brotherhood members.

"These arrests are the latest in a long-standing pattern of repression by the Egyptian authorities against the Muslim Brotherhood," its statement added.

"More than 500 members are believed currently to be detained, many of them without charge or trial."

Shades of Guantanamo?

Amnesty called on the Egyptian authorities to release prisoners being held "for their non-violent expression of their political beliefs" and to stop holding civilian trials in military courts.

Yeah! and Egypt will bend over backwards to comply ...

Bashing the Muslim Brothers

Egypt's rulers are giving their Islamist compatriots an even worse time than usual.

Worse than usual? What can be worse? Hanging them like Qutb was?

There are understandable reasons not to love the Muslim Brotherhood. Egypt's oldest and largest Islamist group did eschew violence in the 1970s, and now proclaims a belief in freedom, democracy and the rule of law. Yet the Brothers still declare that death in the cause of God is a wonderful thing. Their enthusiasm for violent jihad and their constant framing of Islam as a faith threatened by vicious enemies have helped spawn more radical Islamist groups, from Hamas in Palestine to the suicidal mass-killing zealots of Iraq.

.

Violence alone is hardly the reason!!

.

This is why quite a few Egyptians nodded agreement when their president, Hosni Mubarak, recently chided the Brothers for “hiding behind religion to turn back the clock”.

Turn back the clock indeed!! Back to the dark ages!

.

So the current campaign against the Brotherhood, which remains officially outlawed despite members having won a fifth of seats in the last parliamentary elections as independents, has brought the group widespread sympathy. Aside from the mass arrests, the crackdown has included the transfer of some 40 leaders to trial before military courts, bans on travel for other leaders, confiscation of personal assets, and harassment of Brotherhood-affiliated schools, summer camps and clinics.

.

I suppose it is just the panic resulting from them winning all those seats which caused the recent crack-down, but they won them because the voters were grateful for schools, clinics, housing etc in their areas, a void the government can't / wont fill.

New Muslim cartoon protests in Pakistan and Iran

Fears grew of a new confrontation over images deemed blasphemous by Muslims as Pakistan joined Iran in protest over a sketch by a Swedish artist portraying the prophet Mohammed as a dog.

Pakistan's foreign ministry said it had summoned the Swedish charge d'affaires to condemn "in the strongest terms, the publication of an offensive and blasphemous sketch of the Holy Prophet".

A rerun of last year's incidents? Isn't there anything new?

The move adds to a chorus of criticism over the series of drawings, by artist Lars Vilks, one of which was published earlier this month by a regional Swedish newspaper.

Artist Lars Vilks has not confined his provocative cartoons to Islam however. Another drawing, featured on his website, features a giant hook-nosed pig looming over hillside houses.

The caption reads: "Modern Jew sow, swollen by capitalism, on her way to tear apart some peaceful villages".

Looks like he just wants to be in/famous for something and the easiest way is to offend ...

...



On another take, artworks depicting Osama bin Laden in a Christ-like pose and a statue of the Virgin Mary covered in a burqa have caused a stir in Australia after they were showcased in a prestigious religious art competition.



Why aren't there any protests about that? And to call this art? Bit far off ...

Israeli soccer fans filmed cursing Prophet Muhammad

Turkish reporter who joined Maccabi Tel Aviv's trip to Turkey records group of fans singing songs against Muhammad, Muslims. TV channel decides to shelve video in order to avoid possible flare-up.

.

The network decided to shelve the tape following appeals from senior government officials. The video was filmed by a Turkish reporter of Channel 24, Elif Ural, who accompanied the Maccabi Tel Aviv soccer team on its flight from Israel to the Turkish town of Kayseri, where it is scheduled to play against local team Erciyesstor Thursday evening.

A group of fans who were on the plane with the team were caught on video singing songs against Muhammad and Muslims. Ural, who has been living in Israel for the past three years as the network's Mideast correspondent, was deeply offended by what she witnessed and heard, and by the club's officials' failure to intervene and put an end to the offensive behavior.

.

"The decision not to broadcast the video was the right one and I don’t have a problem with it," Ural said. "There is really no need to risk relations between Israel and Turkey because of 10 idiots. I understood that if the incident is published, the potential for a violent outbreak at the stadium and in the city could grow significantly. But what I felt on the plane would be very hard to forget."

.

Just what is cursing the Prophet going to accomplish?

.

Only 10 idiots?

Obstacles Keep Iraqi Refugees From U.S.

Despite a stepped-up commitment from the United States to take in Iraqis who are in danger because they worked for the American government and military, very few are signing up to go, resettlement officials say.

.
The reason, Iraqis say, is that they are not allowed to apply in Iraq, requiring them to make a costly and uncertain journey to countries like Syria or Jordan, where they may be turned away by border officials already overwhelmed by fleeing Iraqis.

.
Not allowed to apply in Iraq??? Jeez, what a strange requirement or rather constraint! No wonder!

.
This year, for the first time, administration officials began publicly discussing the special dangers faced by Iraqis working with Americans here and acknowledging the need to grant them safety in the United States.

.
For the first time??? pecial dangers faced by Iraqis working with Americans??? acknowledging the need to grant them safety??? Doesn't take much to figure that out now does it?

.
A spokesman for the United States Embassy In JOrdan said all Iraqis who had worked for the United States would have their refugee applications sped up once they fled Iraq and reached neighboring countries like Jordan or Syria.

.
Sure thing! flee first and then Insha Allah everything will be in order!!!

.
“The big question mark is for those who can’t reach us here,” said Rafiq A. Tschannen, chief of the Iraq mission for the International Organization for Migration in Amman, Jordan.

.
Indeed! What about those who can't / won't leave?

.
Well, they are only Iraqis I guess, children of a lesser God!

Muslims celebrate Raksha Bandhan

Forgetting religious barriers, Muslims here have also come forward to celebrate Raksha Bandhan, a Hindu festival that celebrates the bond between a brother and a sister.

...

"I do not have a sister. But there are two Hindu girls in my locality who love me like their own brother. I go to their house on Raksha Bandhan and present gifts," said Mohamad Salman.

.

Well Done! And no bidaa, because Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Whoever believe in Allah and in the Last Day, should be kind to his neighbour." And after all aren't all humans brothers and sisters in humanity?

.

Happy Raksha Bandhan to everyone, celebrating or not, Hindu, Muslims, Jews or Christians!