 |
Mosques organize soccer tournaments and offer classes.(IOL Photo) |
VIENNA — Austria's mosques are edging more closer to performing the real role of mosque in Islam; serving as a place of worship as well as offering educational classes, cultural events and other community services.
"It is indeed a landmark achievement for mosques in Austria," Sheikh Ramadan Ismail, a preacher, told IslamOnline.net.
He said mosques in Austria have realized the daunting challenge ahead in the wake of the 9/11 attacks on the United States.
"Mosques have become cultural forums that attract many Austrian Muslims, and a fortress against extremist ideologies," added Ismail.
The mosque's social effort is also aimed at instilling Islamic values and traditions into the younger generations and help them integrate into society without losing their Islamic identity.
"They are preventing the younger generations from melting into the western pot of traditions and practices that go against the very essence of Islam," noted Abdel Aal Ayyad, the caretaker of Al-Fath Mosque in Vienna.
There are 200 mosques and prayer rooms across the European country, including 60 in Vienna alone.
A law issued in 1867, which guarantees respect for all religions, gives Muslims the right to build mosques and practice their religion in Austria.
Muslims, estimated at nearly half a million, make up some 6 percent of the country’s eight-million population.
Islam, which was officially acknowledged in Austria in 1908, is considered the second religion in the country after Catholic Christianity.
Exemplary Mosque
The Shura mosque in Vienna stands as an example on mosques are no longer just a place of worship but rather a multi-purpose institution that cater for Muslims of all stripes.
The mosque serves as a club organizing soccer tournaments, volleyball matches and races, renting the playground of a nearby club for this purpose.
In weekends, the mosque becomes a seat of learning, offering Qur`an, Arabic, German and computer classes for up to 100 students.
It enlists highly qualified students and provides them with sophisticated teaching tools.
Muslim students get a chance to socialize, which helps close the ranks of the sizable minority.
Magdy Sherif, a father of three, believes the mosque's role is indispensable.
"It teaches my children Arabic and helps them learn the Qur`an," he said, noting that state and even Arabic schools lack in this.
"I also want to nurture a love for mosque-attending in my children, and teach them their mother tongue," added Sherif.
Young Muslims seem to be making the best of the multi-services offered by mosques.
"I made new friends, mastered Arabic and memorized some parts of the Noble Qur'an," said Malek Ismail, 14.
|
