Mosque welcomes neighbors of all faiths
Henna-tattooed children, Christian families and two Mormon elders removed their shoes in unison at the entrance of the MAS Katy mosque Saturday, where leaders welcomed Houstonians of all faiths for a day of friendship.
Houston Open Mosque Day attracted nearly 200 curious attendees who enjoyed a free lunch and learned about the highlights of the religion during a mosque tour and presentation about Islam that was organized by the Islamic Circle of North American Houston Chapter, the Muslin American Society Houston, the Masjid ArRahman and the Gain Peace.
“After the election, there’s been so much hate,” said Nafisa Munshi, a MAS Katy outreach coordinator. “People have so much fear. With most of the people I meet, their fear is that ‘Oh, they’re going to try to convert us.’ But when we open up the doors — despite their fear of the unknown — people come.” Fostering bonds
Open Mosque Days have taken place throughout the country with increasing frequency in recent years to help educate nonMuslims about the religion and foster interfaith bonds. At MAS Katy, volunteers offered informational brochures about varying subjects with titles like “Islam Is Not A Religion of Extremism,” “Muslims Heart Jesus” and “The Hijab: Reflections by Muslim Women.”
They also provided books about Islam and small copies of the Quran.
In the month following the signing of President Donald Trump’s executive order that revoked the previous travel ban and restricted travelers’ admission to the United States from Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria and Yemen for 90 days, Munshi has seen both ends of the political spectrum. Since the election civil rights groups have reported a spike in hate crimes with a significant portion targeting Muslims.
Her hope is that Open Mosque Day allows nonMuslims in the Houston community to gain a greater understanding of Islam, and therefore, learn not to fear it.
“They see us, and they see that we’re human,” she said. “We may be covered up, but we have the same concerns for our children, for our families.”
Representatives from the Islamic Arts Society, Muslims for Humanity: Helping Hand for Relief and Development and ICNA Relief USA manned booths in the mosque’s entryway. Female visitors perused the Islamic boutique, while others lined up for the buffet — an assortment of traditional halal foods including hummus, falafel, pita bread and baklava. Views have changed
Ahmad Solomon filled his plate and took a seat in the dining area, greeting passersby with a cheerful “as-salamu alaykum,” meaning peace be upon you.
Solomon came to the U.S. from Ninevah, Iraq — “a biblical city that’s 8,000 years old and is currently being destroyed” — when John F. Kennedy was still president. A former petroleum engineer, he now gives lectures around Houston about Arab culture.
Americans’ views of Muslims have vastly changed since he arrived. “When I first came here in college, people would pick us up to take us to their homes — they looked for us — to meet their parents, to learn,” Solomon said. “Now? No. Most foreigners, they come to college and nobody cares. No one wants to know them. The students in school will become friends, but that’s it.”
A small percent of people want to learn about Islam — the people who attended Open Mosque Day — but the majority pull back, he said.
Since the presidential election, members of the Houston community have become more suspicious and reserved, Solomon said. But despite the political nature of Trump’s presidential campaign, Solomon voted for him.
Solomon is not alone in exercising his right to vote.
This election cycle has inspired many Muslims to get involved in politics, Munshi said. After Trump’s travel ban, people “bombarded the voting centers,” she said.
Their friends and neighbors took notice.
Liz Hanley, the pastor of Covenant Lutheran Church, has long supported MAS Katy and the Muslim community. Shortly after the Pulse nightclub massacre in Orlando, Fla., Hanley hung a “Happy Ramadan to Our Muslim Friends and Neighbors” sign, to her community’s dismay, but she refused to take it down, Munshi said.
“We do a lot of stuff with MAS Katy, so we’re continuing to be intentional about creating a different public voice than what people hear in the news,” Hanley said.
“None of us are trying to convert each other — we’re just walking together as brothers and sisters in faith. We’re all children of the same God.” ‘Holy curiosity’
Hanley said her hope is that Covenant Lutheran and MAS Katy’s partnership will build a “holy curiosity,” a willingness to learn about other faiths.
She said that in some ways, the election helped the Katy community.
“We hosted a youth group from MAS Katy the Sunday after the election. They came and watched a Christian worship service and then they had lunch with us, and we asked questions and had conversation,” Hanley said. “We were a little unsure of how that would be because of the election, but what we found was it’s all the more call for us to stand together.”
Even so, MAS Katy’s presence in the community has caused backlash, Munshi said. Their Facebook page is often riddled with hate. Munshi is no stranger to this, but she believes in others’ capacity for love and understanding, no matter a difference of faith.
When she moved to the Houston area in 1995, she quickly became friends with a woman named Sandy. They watched each other’s children grow and became “like sisters.”
“The first thing Sandy did was she told our neighbors, ‘She’s not trying to convert you,’ and I told them, ‘Truly, I’m not trying to convert you at all. You guys are secure in your faith and I’m secure in mine.’ ”
Around 1:30 p.m., a man wearing an Islamic kufi cap began to sing over a microphone, signaling a break for prayer. The Muslim men and women separated to their designated prayer spaces.
Chairs were provided to the non-Muslim visitors for them to silently watch the sunlit act.
As Munshi guided the women upstairs, her friend Sandy appeared at her side.
Sandy asked Munshi if she needed to go to the women’s area, to which Munshi told her, “Today is about you guys. You choose.” Sandy nodded. “I’ll take a walk around. You just let me know where you end up because, you know, I want to go where you go.”