Mosque opens its doors in bid to unite faiths
AMOSQUE has hosted a ‘ Unity Iftar’ with the aim of bringing together those of different faiths together during Ramadan.
Madina Masjid on Church Street in Newbold, held the ‘ Unity Iftar’ last weekend to explain to the wider community what Ramdan is.
Ramadan is observed by Muslims worldwide as a month of fasting, prayer, reflection and community while an Iftar is the evening meal with which Muslims end their daily Ramadan fast at sunset.
Nabeel Tariq, head of community work at Madina, said that around 60 people of different faiths and backgrounds attended the event.
He said: “We do it every year but we’ve had a break because of Covid. It was really successful, because we’ve had a break.
“We were just getting used to having events again; it’s different when you’re doing it in person.
“It’s for wider members of the community forma any faith or background where we explain to them what Ramadan is, what we do in Ramadan, “We also give them a tour of the Mosque and then we just have a chit chat and if they’ve got any questions we answer any of those.”
The ‘ Unity Iftar’ is an initiative which has been undertaken for the past 15 years by Mosques across the country.
Nabeel added that hopefully next year the vent will be ‘even bigger’.
“Certain people may never have been into a mosque; they may not know what it looks like. We answer their questions and make things clear for people,” said Nabeel.
“It’s simple questions like, can you have water?
How do you do it? Is it difficult? Some people who come to our events have even fasted that day to see what it’s like.
“It’s just nice to highlight these issues over some food as well.”
This year Ramadan ends on May 1, which will be followed by Eid al-fitr to celebrate the end of the month-long fasting.
Nabeel said: “We’re coming into the most important part of the month – the last 10 nights.
“The first couple days are always hard because your body is adjusting but after that you get used to it.
“It’s a spiritual cleanse as well as a physical cleanse so it’s been really good so far.”