Eid: Straight Talk from Bangladesh

Eid

An enjoyable and powerful Eid commentary from Bangladesh
by Zafar Sobhan

Eid-ul-Azha is just around the corner. Watching images of the Hajj on TV and seeing how the Dhaka streets have emptied as people return to their villages to spend this holiday with their near and dear ones and sensing the mood of tranquillity that has descended on the country, I am reminded of my thoughts on returning to Dhaka in December in the midst of the annual Biswa Ijtema.

That too had been an impressive outpouring of faith, with an estimated four million participants thronging Tongi for the occasion. What I was reminded of, then as well as now, was that many if not most Bangladeshi Muslims are religious people and their faith is important to them.

Nor is this true only of Muslims in our country. Be they Muslim or Hindu or Christian or Buddhist -- we are by and large a religious people and our religion is an important part of how we live our lives.

This is something that we need to take into consideration when thinking about the future of religion and more importantly religion-based politics in Bangladesh.

I consider myself a staunch secularist. I am not a fan of religion-based politics, be they the politics of the religious right in the US, the Sangh Parivar in India, the ultra-rightists in Israel, or of the Islamist parties in Bangladesh.

My sympathies are always with the secularists, as I think it is the only way for different communities to live together in harmony in a plural society.

The problem for secularists -- and not just in Bangladesh -- is that they are often thought to be anti-religion.

This is the problem the Democratic party faces in the US, and there is persuasive evidence to suggest that this perceived opposition to religious faith on the part of the Dems is one of the factors that propelled President Bush to re-election.

Even though John Kerry is a church-going Catholic, the impression remains that if you are a religious person then the Democratic party is hostile to your faith. This is an extremely unfair perception, but one that nevertheless is quite widespread.

The perception is one that the Democratic party has to counter if it wishes to remain competitive at the national level. Simply put, if you are identified as anti-religion then you will not receive much sympathy from a lot of voters.

Similarly, in Bangladesh, secularists also need to work hard not to turn off religious voters or let the impression form that they are opposed to religion.

It should always be made clear that secularists are often people of faith themselves, and if not, then they at least respect the religious faith of others.

This last is a crucial point, because it stands in stark contrast to many fundamentalists, who evince a striking lack of respect for the religious faith, rights, and sensibilities of others. The current shameful campaign against the Ahmadiyya community is a case in point.

But I think that it would be a worthwhile exercise to look a little more closely at the religious impulse in Bangladesh, specifically among Muslims, instead of dismissing political Islam as the ideology of fanatics and fundamentalists that has no hope of gaining popularity among the general public.

The first thing to note is that right now, with Islam perceived to be under threat around the world, many Muslims are experiencing a resurgence of faith, and feel that they must publicly identify with and rally around their besieged religion.

With the neo-colonial and neo-imperialist ambitions of the West apparently running rough-shod over the world in which their voice has been silenced to a whisper, many Muslims are going to be looking for an alternative view of the world to that espoused by the neo-cons and their supporters in the White House.

In the context of Bangladesh, you don't have to be religious to believe that things are heading in the wrong direction, that public and private morality is at an all-time low, and that perhaps a complete cleansing of the system and a new start is the only solution.

After all, what solutions do the mainstream parties have to the wrongs and injustices that we see entrenched all around us? None that I have heard.

But the Islamists have a solution. They have a prescription for what needs to be done. They have a vision for the future.

They claim to be able to cleanse the system of its immorality. They profess an egalitarian vision which will offer hope and opportunity to all. They speak to and for the dispossessed. They have a strategy for Bangladesh to gain respect and recognition on the world stage.

In an ironic sense, the Islamists are the new communists. There is always going to be a strong anti-western constituency in the country that is implacably opposed to the rampant forces of neo-imperialism and neo-colonialism. It used to be the communists and leftists who spoke the language of these people, but who is speaking to this constituency today except the Islamists?

So, until the mainstream parties or liberal civil society actually comes to the table with an equally compelling competing vision, the fundamentalists will only get stronger.


For many Bangladeshis, if the price to pay for a functional state is that women must wear the hijab or that Friday prayers are made mandatory, that's a price well worth paying.

For me it is not. I think that the fundamentalists' explanation for what is wrong in the country misses the mark and that their prescription for the future is equally flawed.

But if things continue to head in the wrong direction, if fundamental wrongs are not righted, then I could be in the minority very quickly.
The issue isn't whether we are at heart a secular people or not, but who has a more compelling vision for the future, the secularists or the fundamentalists.

If secularists want to counter the rising tide of fundamentalism, they need a vision for the future that is at least equally compelling.

Secularists need to urgently address issues such as corruption and crime, such as education and opportunity for the dispossessed, such as our place in the world.

Secularists need to ensure that they are not considered irreligious, thereby losing the support and sympathy of the many religious people in this country who also want a tolerant and plural country.

Secularists need to point out that their vision for the future -- with education for women and full rights and opportunities for minorities -- is the more compelling one, and the one more in keeping with the founding ideals of the nation and the long-cherished values of its people.

But it is critical to understand that if the mainstream parties continue to neither listen to the people nor deliver what they want, then that space will be filled by the fundamentalists.

This is already happening to a certain extent. True the religious parties have never won too many seats in parliament, but consider the following:
Their seventeen seats in the current parliament are the most ever, and is almost 1000 percent higher than their representation after the 1996 elections.

Then consider the fact that the hijab are far more in evidence today than at any time in the past.

Then consider the activities of vigilante Islamist Bangla Bhai in the North-West and the on-going campaign against the Ahmadiyyas and the steady clip of attacks on minorities.

The BNP, which has formed a coalition government with the more respectable of the Islamists, thinks it can co-opt the fundamentalists. The AL seems to think that it can just ignore them. Both are wrong. The only way to counter fundamentalists is to understand where their popularity comes from and to give people a reason to support you rather than them.

Zafar Sobhan is an assistant editor of The Daily Star.

Hasan

Eid card
Hasan Hakeem Photo

Hasan and grandsons
Hasan Hakeem Photo

Yusef Lateef and Muhaiman Karim
Hasan Hakeem Photo

Muslims Vs. Muslims: An unreported battleground

Muslims Vs. Muslims By Sherrie Gossett January 13, 2005

What goes largely unreported is the fact that Muslims have been attacking, desecrating, and destroying their own mosques, shrines and holy sites.

Throughout the war in Iraq, much has been heard about the alleged desecration of Muslim holy sites by American troops killing terrorists. Even though the terrorists stay in mosques and store their weapons there, protests against American troops have been held around the world and Arab governments have issued statements of condemnation.

What goes largely unreported is the fact that Muslims have been attacking, desecrating, and destroying their own mosques, shrines and holy sites. One case involves turning the Prophet Mohammed's childhood home into a public restroom.

The Wahhabism form of Islam regards these religious buildings, structures and relics as idols to be destroyed.

At the same time, the Ahmadiyya sect of Islam has had its mosques attacked and reduced to rubble and their creeds erased from the front of mosques. This sect is singled out as heretical because it is dedicated to non-violence and opposes terrorism.

The destruction is largely occurring in two countries¯Pakistan and Saudi Arabia. One expert says that "…it can be stated without any risk of contradiction that since the advent of Islam never as many mosques have been desecrated in any Islamic state as in Pakistan during the last 15 years."

In June of last year, the Islamic Supreme Council of America, (ISCA) called for the support of the world community, UNESCO and the United Nations to stop the destruction of venerated Muslim relics in Saudi Arabia.

They issued two press releases detailing the damage being done. Three months later the Wall Street Journal covered the issue in a front page report, and the Weekly Standard followed suit, but a LexisNexis search turns up no other coverage.

Bangladesh: A culture of bombs?

By Dan MorrisonTHE WASHINGTON TIMES

SYLHET, Bangladesh — One recent afternoon, Farjana Siddika, 34, opened her office mail and found she was marked for death. "We are going to kill all the atheists, and you are on the list," the typed letter read. "You cannot live with a Hindu on the holy soil of Sylhet. You must make amends or face the consequences."

"At first I thought it was a hoax," said the literature professor, whose marriage to a Hindu is a rarity in this country of 140 million Muslims, and whose liberal views are equally rare at the technical college where she teaches.

"But when my family heard about it, they went into a panic." No wonder. Sylhet, a northern Bangladeshi city known better for tea gardens than religious extremism, was terrorized by dozens of death threats last year and seven grenade blasts that killed five persons and injured more than 100.

"This bomb culture is completely new to Sylhet," said Mayor Badaruddin Kamran, who was the target of a blast in August that killed a close friend.
The attacks are not limited to academics and politicians: Three movie theaters have been bombed and Sylhet's holiest shrine, the tomb of Hazrat Shah Jalal, a Seventh Century Sufi saint, was hit twice by grenade attacks. Islamist radicals believe praying at shrines — a common practice in most of the Muslim world — amounts to idolatry. No one has been charged in either attack.

The attacks mirror a pattern of unchecked violence across Bangladesh, raising concern that religious radicals nurtured by Islamic charities linked to al Qaeda and protected by the government are undermining long-held traditions of tolerance.

"If there is a country in the world today in danger of completely breaking down, it's Bangladesh," said Gowher Rizvi, a Bangladeshi who heads the Ash Institute for Democratic Governance and Innovation at Harvard University.

The violence made world news last summer when Sheikh Hasina Wajed, a former prime minister, was nearly assassinated in a grenade attack that killed 20 persons in Dhaka, the capital.

In May, the British High Commissioner Anwar Choudhury was hurt and three Bangladeshis were killed in a blast at the Shah Jalal shrine in Sylhet.

Salauddin Quader Chowdhury, Prime Minister Khaleda Zia's parliamentary affairs adviser, discounted talk of rising Islamist extremism. "I don't think I'd take it too seriously," said Mr. Chowdhury, who is a member of the Jamaat-e-Islami, Bangladesh's leading Islamist party.

"These cases may be politically motivated to harm the image of the government." Others say Mrs. Zia's Bangladesh National Party is allowing militants to tip the balance against Mrs. Wajed's rival Awami League. "By unleashing fundamentalist forces in the country, they will be able to contain the Awami League," Mr. Rizvi said.

Mrs. Zia's ruling coalition includes two Islamist parties and her government includes men accused of war crimes during the 1971 war for independence from Pakistan. It is estimated that Pakistani soldiers and their allies in breakaway Bangladesh killed as many as 1 million people during the fight to separate what was then East Pakistan.

Politics in Bangladesh is captive to the rivalry of Mrs. Wajed and Mrs. Zia. Mrs. Hasina's father, Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, led Bangladesh from its birth until 1975, when he was killed by army officers. Mrs. Zia's late husband, Gen. Ziaur Rahman, ruled after Mujibur Rahman's death until he too was slain in 1981.

This blood feud divides the army, the civil service and the press, leaving education and public health to thousands of aid groups and charities. Corruption is pervasive.

Following 15 years of army rule, there have been three successful national elections. Despite her Islamist partners, Mrs. Zia is pushing to reserve a third of the seats in parliament for women, and wants to reform the country's divorce laws. She defeated Mrs. Wajed in the 2001 elections by promising law and order.

But violence has only grown. On Oct. 29, a mob of 1,000 people razed a mosque of the embattled Ahmadiyya Muslim sect during Ramadan prayers. Islamist radicals consider the Ahmadiyya heretics.

Some analysts fear the conditions that allow a mob to tear down a mosque could draw foreign militants to Bangladesh. Local and foreign press describe the lawless southeast as a potential haven for Islamic militants. Riduan Isamuddin, known as Hambali, the reputed ringleader of the 2002 Bali bombings in Indonesia, was en route to Bangladesh when he was captured in Thailand in 2003, regional officials said.

The newspaper Prothom Alo detailed a network of training camps in Bangladesh run by the terrorist group Harkat-ul-Jehad Islami. The camps are connected to local mosques and madrassas — Islamic boarding schools — funded by charities with reputed ties to Osama bin Laden's al Qaeda network.

Bangladesh has 6,900 government-regulated secondary-level madrassas that teach modern subjects alongside the Koran, a rarity in Muslim countries. But an additional 6,500 secondary-level madrassas and 18,000 elementary madrassas are funded by unregulated private donors, often charities that espouse a more intolerant strain of Islam than is usual in Bangladesh.

The U.S. government has named at least two major supporters of madrassas in Bangladesh — the Pakistan-based Rabita Trust and the al-Haramain Islamic Foundation, which Saudi Arabia dissolved last year — as conduits for al Qaeda.

Mr. Chowdhury downplayed such funding. "You're looking for accountability from a madrassa that gets $600 from a lousy foundation in the Gulf?" he asked. "Look, Bangladesh is a country where most of the people live on less than 2,000 calories a day. If someone offers money, we'll take it."

Courtesy of the Washington Times

The Importance of Collective Prayers in Islam

According to the Holy Prophet, on whom be peace and blessings of Allah, Salat is the pinnacle of the spiritual life of the believer.

It is the highest form of Divine worship. The Holy Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, is further reported to have observed: Prayer brings the believer into communion with his Lord.

Allah says in the Holy Qur’an [22:42] “Those who, if We establish them in the earth, will observe Prayer and pay the Zakat and enjoin good and forbid evil. And with Allah rests the final issue of all affairs.”

In addition: “Surely those who follow the Book of Allah and observe Prayer and spend out of that which we have provided for them, secretly and openly, are pursuing a commerce that suffers no loss, for Allah will give them their full reward, and will add to them out of His bounty. He is surely, Most Forgiving, Most Appreciating.” (35:30-31)

It must be realized that sincere prayer never goes in vain. Sometimes, the deep spiritual experience of the intense love of God brings tears to the eyes. Sometimes, a milder pleasure of love fills the heart with sublime happiness. These experiences are signs of the Prayer being alive, meaningful and fruitful. Otherwise, just a performance of formality is not enough to benefit man.

That would be obeying an order without one's heart being in it. That is why it is highly essential that every beginner should keep this noble objective before him and always try to make his Prayers come alive. How do prayers come alive, read the writings of the Promised Messiah, alaihissalaam, begin to work with sincerity on your prayers and eliminating ego in self that prevents you from bringing sincere prayer into your life.

We as Ahmadi Muslims are blessed that we recognized the Imam of the age and that Allah has united us via the Khilafat and made us strong. We pray to Allah that He should keep on blessing us in this manner and that He enables us to be thankful for His blessings and that we should be enabled to make use of the Mosque, or mission house as it should.

We should remember that in order to obtain the blessings of Allah, it is essential to pay attention to the worship of Allah and to discharging our duties towards our fellow beings and by spreading the good in the world. Allah says that when you are given the power in the earth then your preferences should not change.

You should pay more attention to prayers so that you may be deserving of more blessings. Also, your future generations should be such that would attract Allah’s Blessings so that you may remain strong.

The same subject has been stated in verse 56 of Sura Al-Nur.

[24:56] Allah has promised to those among you who believe and do good works that He will, surely, make them successors in the earth, as He made Successors from among those who were before them; and that He will, surely, establish for them their religion which He has chosen for them; and that He will, surely, give them in exchange security and peace after their fear; They will worship ME and they will not associate anything with ME. Then whoso disbelieves after that, they will be the rebellious.

[24:57] And observe Prayer and give the Zakat and obey the Messenger, that you may be shown Mercy.

The Islamic prayer has the effect of removing one's sins. A Hadith relates that some people asked the Prophet why Muslims need to pray five times a day, and the Prophet was reported to have said, "Tell me, if there is a stream at the door of one of you, in which you bathe five times a day, wouldn't it then remove all dirt from your body?" They said, "It would." The Prophet then said, "This is the likeness of the five prayers, with which God blots out all faults.

Muslims perform the salat as a gratitude to God for giving them His favor in whatever form and however small or insignificant. The salat makes a Muslim remember God every moment of the day and helps him to keep away from committing faults intentionally or unintentionally. It must also be said that it becomes increasingly difficult to harbor unkind thoughts or perform ill-deeds when you keep God in the forefront of your conscience.

In a sense, salat is food for one's own soul. As such, no Muslim can ask another to do the salat for him, just as no hungry person can ask another to eat for him. Just as we eat a few specific times a day to keep our physical body nourished, a Muslim does the salat five times a day to keep his soul nourished.

The service of prayer is divided into two parts, one to be said in private and the other to be performed in congregation, preferably in a Mosque. While the private part is meant simply for the development of the inner self of man, the public part has other ends as well in view, ends, indeed, that make the Islamic prayer a mighty force in the unification of the human race.

The importance of congregational prayer. A greater reward as compared to
individual prayer.

In principal, collective prayer is more meritorious than individual prayer, the former, it is said, having twenty-seven times the spiritual value of the later. From this, therefore, ensures the importance of the Friday prayer, al-Jumu'ah, the day of the great gathering of the community of Islam.

The Qur'an specifically mentions the Friday prayer in Al-Jumu'ah (62) verse 9 to wit: O you who have attained to Faith! When the call to prayer is sounded on the day of congregation, hasten to the remembrance of God, and leave all worldly commerce: this is for your own good, if you but knew it. (Qur'an 62:9)

Throughout the Muslim world l mosques are frequented five times a day, a task which appears to be over-much demanding to a casual observer. This aspect should be further elaborated to build a more comprehensive picture of the role of congregational prayers in the Muslims' way of life.

Muslims are urged to perform their daily prayers in congregation, and must do so for the Friday noon congregational prayer. This creates a bond of love and mutual understanding, arouses a sense of collective unity, fosters a collective purpose, and inculcates a deep feeling of brotherhood and sisterhood.

If we are steadfast in out prayers we will remain strong as long as you keep paying the Zakat and making financial sacrifices and enjoining good and forbidding evil. It is also mentioned that the end result is still in the hands of Allah. Our task is to obey the instructions with pure intentions and not merely for show.

It is reported by Hazrat Jabirra where the Holy Prophet, saw, said that the distinguishing factor between a believer and a non-believer is the non-performance of Salat. According to this Hadith, a believer is a person who is regular in the offering of his prayers. Otherwise there is no difference between that person and a non-believer.

The Promised Messiah, alaihissalaam. writing about prayer said: “In short, prayer is that sovereign remedy which converts a handful of dust into precious metal. It is the water which washes out inner impurities. With such payer, the soul melts and, flowing like water, falls at the threshold of the Divine. It stands before God and bows down before Him and prostrates itself before Him. Indeed, the salat that Islam teaches is a reflection of such prayer.” (Lecture Sialkot, Ruhani Khaza, vol.20, pp. 223-224).

In conclusion let us pay special attention to offering our prayers in congregation in the manner that would make us deserving of Allah’s Blessings. May Allah enable us to do so. Aameen

Hasan

Tsunami: A prayer

It’s the New Year and our celebrations were dampened as we watched the Tsunami tragedy being repeatedly played throughout the day. And with each day, we listened as the numbers continued to grow with no end in sight to this tragedy.

What is and continues to be impressive has been the world’s response to Asia’s needs including a response by the people of America, who were embarrassed by our government’s disappointing initial reaction to the Tsunami devastation.

The aid supplies and humanitarian relief effort is more than impressive as Americans responded with money, supplies and prayers.

We share the grief and feel the pain of the incredible loss of life resulting from this natural disaster.

We have made our donation through Humanity First, USA and we pray:

Inna Lillahe wa Inna Ilahie Rajioon

(From Allah we come and to Him we return)

Hasan

A license to kill: Religious extremes and so-called blasphemy laws

Bangladesh Ahmadi Muslims
Love For All, Hatred For None

In general blasphemy described as consisting in speaking evil of the Deity with impious purpose to derogate from the divine majesty and to alienate the minds of others from love and reverence of God."

By Kazi Anwarul Masud

Should the world dread the possibility of the rise of religious intolerance? Should we read into the Bush victory a not so insignificant role played by the Christian Right which appears to have blended well with the prominent shade of the Republican Party's conservative wing epitomizing the values of economic individualism, Social Darwinism, and nationalism?

Historian Bernard Lewis and his critical essays on Islam are read with messianic devotion. Samuel Huntington, credited with providing a credible explanation of global turbulence in terms of clash of civilizations, is now being adulated as a great native son for his enquiry into the hybridization of the US mainland due to the "invasion and settlement" of large number of Spanish speaking people from the south whose language and culture are distinct from those of mainstream Americans.

Transnationalism, an inevitable phenomenon of globalization, is now treated with suspicion in the West despite having the power to define, in the words of Ziauddin Sardar, "freedom, progress and civil behavior, law, tradition and community; what is real and what it means to be human. The non-western civilizations have simply to accept these definitions or be defined out of existence."

This phobic suspicion of anything remotely different from the core politico-cultural practices is of course a result of 9/11, but now translated as intrusion into the privacy of groups of people, citizens and aliens alike, totally repugnant to the liberal values hitherto espoused and practiced by the West.

This intrusion has been particularly pre-eminent in the lives of people practicing religions not followed by the majority in the West. Scholars have generally believed that religions have too often been used to "justify the violation of human rights, in part through the hierarchical and selective use of role ethics and postponement of temporal justice to divine judgment."

It has been argued that the ethic of reciprocity demands religious tolerance. In Christianity, for example, the concept has been defined in one of the gospels as: "Therefore all things ye would that men should do to you, do ye even so to them."

If a Christian considers his religious ethic of reciprocity is of paramount importance, then he would want people of other beliefs to enjoy freedom of religion, speech, assembly, and other freedoms enumerated for example, in the UN Universal Declaration of Human Rights and other documents.

However, it is to be acknowledged that religious freedom is one of the most complicated matters in the whole of human rights law and practice. It comprises an assortment of related rights and entitlements such as freedom from discrimination because of one's religion, freedom to live in a society that does not give preference to any particular religion over others, and freedom to enjoy civic respect for one's religion.

Thomas Hobbes, who was one of the first modern Western thinkers to provide secular justification of the state that marked a departure in English philosophy from the religious emphasis of scholasticism, observed that people being fearful and predatory must submit to the absolute supremacy of the state in both secular and religious matters for self-preservation.

Since the world we live in is far from the Kantian world federation of perpetual peace, where actions of any sort are neither taken from a sense of duty nor dictated by reason and often are performed for expediency, absolute freedom of speech and expression on religious matters had to be circumscribed at that time in history.

Thus in the British criminal law the crime of blasphemous libel was developed mainly during the 18th century to protect the Anglican version of Christianity but exempted other religion or beliefs. That is why the British court did not entertain a blasphemy case leveled by British Muslims against Salman Rushdie for his The Satanic Verses because Rushdie's irreverence was not recognized as a crime in British law.

Are to assume that the Western paranoid suspicion has come to such a stage where the decimation of the Taliban (albeit totally justifiable), the removal of Saddam Hussein, and the current debate on taming the Iranians would not be enough to safeguard not only the Western way of life but also their religion?

That it might be necessary to invoke inquisitional methods including implementing blasphemy laws where they exist and legislating such laws where they do not? According to Black's Law Dictionary blasphemy is "any oral or written reproach maliciously cast upon God, His name, attributes or religion.

In general blasphemy described as consisting in speaking evil of the Deity with impious purpose to derogate from the divine majesty and to alienate the minds of others from love and reverence of God."

Though blasphemy law in England was enacted to protect the Anglican version of Christianity, its application has been rare. Americans too feel uncomfortable by the idea of punishing someone for blasphemy. It runs counter to the freedom of religion and freedom of expression, both guaranteed in the First Amendment of the US Constitution.

The US Supreme Court never had to decide on a blasphemy case. But in 1952 it ruled on a similar matter. Justice Tom Clark observed: "It is not the business of government in our nation to suppress real or imagined attacks upon particular religious doctrine." Gradually, state courts found prosecution of blasphemy cases unconstitutional or unenforceable. No prosecution for blasphemy has taken place in the US since 1971.

It would perhaps be instructive if the impact of blasphemy laws in neighboring countries were discussed. In the Indian sub-continent the British enacted the blasphemy laws to protect minority Muslims from possible attacks from majority Hindus.

After the creation of Pakistan, as the Muslims became the majority community there was no reason to keep the laws in the statute book. But instead of abolition, the laws were made more stringent. Legislation undertaken during 1980-1991 (life imprisonment was replaced by mandatory death penalty) made the Muslims more intolerant towards non-Muslims.

From 1948-79 eleven cases of blasphemy were registered. Only three cases of blasphemy were reported during 1979-86. Forty-four were filed during 1987-99. In 2000 fifty-two cases were registered out of which forty-three were against Muslims and nine were against non-Muslims.

This shows that the Muslims against fellow Muslims to settle old scores are abusing the laws more blatantly. Jurists have raised questions as to whether a non-Muslim can be sentenced to death as he is already a "kafir" (non-believer) and not a "murtad" (a person who repudiates Islam after embracing it).

Without delving into the complexities of the Islamic laws on this issue, one can safely make the observation that the blasphemy laws and their stringent applications have not raised the image of Pakistan in the world as a tolerant Muslim country. The UN Commission on Human Rights, referring to Pakistani blasphemy laws, observed: "When religious discrimination is inscribed in laws and imbedded in societal structures, this often lads to victimisation of minorities as well as killings and assassinations."

The UN Commission reminded Pakistan that the laws over the years have resulted in religious intolerance and violence against Christians, Hindus and members of the Ahmadiyya community.

The commission further reminded Pakistan of the Catholic Bishops Conference of Pakistan which held that the mere use of the laws was an abuse since the laws were inherently bad legislation, the language of the laws were ambiguous, the objectives were dubious, and the laws lacked the protection of guarantee against misuse.

The UN Commission called upon Pakistan to repeal all discriminatory laws including the blasphemy laws and ratify human rights treaties that it has not yet ratified.

We in Bangladesh should be cautious about the dangers of religious extremism in view of the on-going agitation by an extremist Islamic group to declare the Ahmadiyyas in Bangladesh as non-Muslims. Amnesty International head Irene Khan has expressed her grave concern over this continuing agitation.

She reportedly viewed Bangladesh as a fractured society, one group trying to adorn the country with democracy and modernity while the other in bent upon taking the country along the path of religious intolerance.

Our caution needs to be redoubled due to the mistaken belief in some parts of the West that the convulsions in the Islamic world are because of its intolerance of the House of the Unbelief -- Christendom -- a competing world religion and a distinct civilization; little realizing that the convulsions could have been caused by the struggle between monotheistic Islamists and the moderate Muslim elements to capture the soul of the Islamic world.

It would, therefore, be unwise to give the impression that there is an incipient movement of neo-Islamic conservatives at a time when the world is experiencing raging turbulence of clash of civilizations. We have to continue our efforts to convince the world that an acceptable level of religious freedom exists in Bangladesh.

Kazi Anwarul Masud is a former Bangladesh Secretary and Ambassador.
The Daily Star, Sunday, November 28, 2004

Black Friday: A Shopper's Search for Inner Truths?

searching for a bargain
Love For All, Hatred For None


It’s the day after Thanksgiving and thank God I’ve been able to avoid and survive a very strange and quirky American ritual. It's known as Black Friday.

A day when the "Almighty Dollar" rules over common sense. Black Friday, the day after Thanksgiving in the United States, is historically one of the busiest retail shopping days of the year. It marks the official beginning to the Christmas shopping season.

The "black" in the name comes from the standard accounting practice of using red ink to denote negative values (i.e., losses) and black ink to denote positive values (profits). Black Friday is the day when retailers traditionally get back "in the black" after operating "in the red" for the previous months. (From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia)

And while national economic growth has been steady, people continue to lose their jobs at a rate that should have an impact on holiday spending. I wonder if Black Friday has more to do with the damage all that shopping does to our bank accounts?

Yet, as I scanned newspapers across America, it was evident that there was nothing, including the lack of money, to keep shoppers away from those bargains.

Last year's Black Friday saw $7.3 billion in sales, according to the International Council of Shopping Centers and the U.S. Commerce Department. For some retailers, holiday sales make up as much as 80 percent of the year's revenue. The National Retail Federation projects total holiday retail sales will increase 4.5 percent compared to last year.

Those wild and crazy newspaper editors responsible for goofy headlines traditionally have a field day on Black Friday. They focus on witty and silly headlines that describe this ritual. Here’s a small sample I found:

Holiday Hoards Hit Stores Early; Throngs Sleepwalk to Sales; Come and Get It; Ready, Set, Shop; Shop ‘til You Drop; Black Friday Rakes in the Green for Retailers; Thrill of the Hunt; Get Set…Shop!; It’s In the Bag; Traditional Insanity; A Shopper’s dream and Shopping Outside the Box.”

And how do you do the “Black Friday Hustle?” For those in need of exercise how about signing up for the “Black Friday Marathon?” This is some good stuff. One editor, who was apparently tired of the redundant use of Black Friday came up with this little quip: “Shoppers enjoying “White Friday.”

Whatever the headline the storylines accompanied by the traditional photo ops of shoppers hanging outside of shopping centers like zombies…in case you haven’t noticed, demented zombies are always to be found heading for the shopping malls in horror movies. I’ve always wondered why?

Now, while everyone is partying and jumping for job with a lot of loose money to spend during this season of joy, there always has to be some mean spirited grinch inventing new ways to steal our joy.

This year the “meanie award” has to go to those insidious little creeps who managed to apparently glue the locks on dozens of the biggest retailers in Lafayette, La, preventing managers from opening up promptly on lucrative "Black Friday." Hundreds of shoppers, some of whom arrived before dawn, were forced to wait outside Barnes & Noble, Old Navy and other stores while managers summoned locksmiths.

At least 200 locks on dozens of businesses were glued, including main entrances, rear doors and employee entrances, locksmith Garan Wilson said. Wilson's first job at about 5 a.m. Friday was to make his way to the front door lock at Old Navy by pushing through about 500 shoppers waiting outside, he said.

"I found about a half a tube of glue stuck inside," he said.

Kevin Vizena, head locksmith for Pop-A-Lock in Lafayette, said the vandals squirted the glue deep inside the keyholes, forcing him to drill holes and remove the locks from the doors.

The "doorbusters," those who show up at dawn for early-bird sales were not to be stopped by this little prank.

But big party goes on in America, as evident by the many hotels, motels seeking to turn a profit offer a special “Black Friday” package for you shop-til-you-droppers. One of the best offers I found in Denver, Colorado offered a “Turkey Raid Buffet”. Full from a second round of tryptophan, they’ll send you off to bed for a good night’s rest for the 6 a.m. shuttle over to Cherry Creek Shopping Mall , where the “Early Bird Gets the Deal” sales begin at 7 a.m.

And Black Friday apparently is raking in the green for retailers. As a result of the buying frenzy, Americans spent $8 Billion dollars in one day…wow! The figure represents 10.8 percent more than last year.

It may all be a little crazy to some who don’t participate in the frenzy but the relationship between shoppers and retailers is a love affair that is as one editor wrote: “Early Bird Shoppers Discover inner truths.”

Hasan

My Eid Sermon: We are a family.

Ramadhan
Love For All, Hatred For None

The Prophet constantly prayed, O Allah ! Grant me the ability to perceive things as they really are.

This kind of reflection is ever the more significant today for people of faith, especially as Muslim Americans.

At a time when we face the worst anti-Islamic propaganda and Islamophobia is running rampant.

Look not at the “I”, but at the “me” Look not at the I, but at the community.

What is “my” role in a troubled world at a difficult time? What is your role in the Jama’at (community)? There is a dire need for introspection, honest self-evaluation and self-criticism and a concerted effort to bridge the gap between values and actions, ideals and realities, sloganizing and activism, past glory and a viable future.

We cannot inspire others to higher values of peace, equality, love and justice if we ourselves do not embody these inwardly and practically in our lives.

We need to align our lives with our highest values and behave in ways that we believe all will need to behave in order to create the world we want to live in. All change begins with us, and remember: Allah will not change your condition unless you change yourselves.

“You are the best people raised for the good of mankind; you enjoin good and forbid evil and believe in Allah.” Enjoining what is good and forbidding what is evil change societies, shape them and make them distinctive.

Islam teaches us that we are to carry out His commands for the welfare and benefit of all of existence. Such a role relies heavily on the interpersonal conduct, behavior, character and morality of each and every individual Muslim, in essence, the "quality" of each personality.

This is one of the foremost responsibilities of Muslims, following the example of the Prophet, to model good human relations. Each human personality is unique.

The Qur'an expounds in very clear terms a distinct concept of individual growth and development. A human being is body and soul, matter and spirit. It is the unique balance between these that makes humans uniquely what we are, and according to Islamic belief, the highest of all created beings..."Surely, We have created man in the best make" [Qur'an 95:5].

Surah Al Imran (3:135). The translation reads: "Those, who spend in prosperity and adversity, and those who suppress anger, and pardon men; and Allah loves those who do good"

In his Eid Sermon early today, Hazoor, ayyadahullahu ta’ala binasrihil-‘aziz, once again reminds all Muslims of their responsibility and duty to avoid self-centeredness and the tendency not to forgive the other person’s fault.

This is how, Hazoor, ayyadahullahu ta’ala binasrihil-‘aziz, said, family quarrels ensue and even squabbles with strangers can instigate.

In this environment of intolerance the responsibility upon the Ahmadi Muslim is to abide by the teachings of Islam and as stated in the Quranic verse: and those who suppress anger, and pardon men; and Allah loves those who do good"

It is also stated in verse 200 of Surah Al A’raf (7:200)
Do thou ever forebear, O Prophet! and enjoin kindness, and turn away from the ignorant.

As Muslims we are urged to restrain one’s temper and seek forgiveness for the one who has angered you. If this does not work and someone or persons continue to anger you, then it is better to remove yourself from the situation.

Some say that by suppressing anger and walking away, you allow the perpetrator of the crime to “get away” with his abuse and oppressive behavior, but we are reminded in the Holy Quran, Surah Al Shura (42:41) "Remember that the recompense of an injury is an injury the like thereof; but whoso forgives and thereby brings about an improvement, his reward is with Allah. Surely, He loves not the wrongdoers."

It is better to forgive if there is hope of reformation; otherwise punishment has to be given for misdeed committed. Bur it is important to remember that not everyone who is wronged can retaliate and one has to resort to the law of the land that can deal with the matter.

Today, Hazoor, ayyadahullahu ta’ala binasrihil-‘aziz, called on members of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community to avoid the “Satantic Circle” of arguing and fighting with such hatred that it does damage to the dignity of the Jama’at.

He strongly urged every Ahmadi to exercise patience and restraint and to use the system of our Community, the Nizam e Jama’at to resolve disputes.

In a previous sermon, he said people who are disciplined for an offence are often verbose about the virtue of forgiveness, failing to notice that it is indeed also Allah’s command to punish a wrong.

As ever elucidating the subject further with ahadith Hazoor, ayyadahullahu ta’ala binasrihil-‘aziz, related that the Holy Prophet (peace and blessings on him) said that the greatest excellence was to overlook and pardon one who mistreats you and that the more a man forgives the more Allah raises his station.

The Holy Prophet (peace and blessings be on him) greatly enjoined to pardon the mistakes of one’s employees. Once he was displeased with Hadhrat Abu Bakr (may Allah be pleased with him) who had, after displaying remarkable patience to a reproachful man, had eventually responded to him.

The Holy Prophet (peace and blessings on him) said as long as Hadhrat Abu Bakr (may Allah be pleased with him) was silent Allah’s angels was keeping an eye on him but once he responded Satan came in.

Hadhrat Ayesha (may Allah be pleased with her) said that the Holy Prophet (peace and blessings be on him) did not ever retaliate to personal mistreatment.

He also most magnanimously pardoned the man whose assault on his daughter had caused her a miscarriage and eventual death. After the fall of Mecca, the Holy Prophet (peace and blessings be on him) also famously forgave Hind, the once vicious wife of Abu Safyan, who had committed incredible brutalities against Muslims.

Hazoor, ayyadahullahu ta’ala binasrihil-‘aziz, said each episode of pardon and forgiveness in the blessed life of the Holy Prophet (peace and blessings be on him) surpasses the other. Today, each Ahmadi must adhere to his teachings.

Next Hazoor, ayyadahullahu ta’ala binasrihil-‘aziz, recounted a few examples of forgiveness from the life of the Promised Messiah (on whom be peace) on how he would totally forgive blunders made by people who worked for him and how he was resolutely fair-minded and honourable even when dealing with his staunch enemies.

By his example, we are enjoined to control one’s anger and forgive, to adopt taqwa (righteousness), The Pormised Messiah (alaihissalaam) wrote: ‘The reformation of each community primarily begins with good manners.’

Let us resolve at this time in our lives to be among those who exhibit great fortitude, who adhere to the teachings of the Holy Qur’an, who follow the Sunnah and who mould themselves according to the wishes of the Promised Messiah (on whom be peace).

Living a positive, meaningful and effective life requires living to our full potential and manifesting the cardinal virtues in our daily lives as social beings. The Cardinal Virtues/ al-Ma’roof – (Enjoining what is good and forbidding what is evil) are those principles of social living that are universally acknowledged and globally applicable.

The Ancient Greek philosopher, Plato suggested that the cardinal virtues are wisdom, courage, self-control and justice. Each one should pursue a life of Integrity.

People of Integrity are Character-Driven

Therefore, they are motivated by commitment, not convenience. They are encouraged by the common good, not only personal gain. They make decisions based on principles, not on expediency. They continue when challenges/problems arise, rather than quit. They do right then feel good; rather than doing right when it makes them feel good.

Doing your best at being your best leads to the best results, for as Allah poses the rhetorical question in the Qur'an [Qur'an 55:60] ... [55:61] Is the reward of goodness anything but goodness?

Times are not really bad

We live in a time when academic standards are high and moral standards are low; where people are more likely to demand their rights than fulfill their responsibilities; where the age is made the scapegoat for lack of individual character.

“Don’t let yourself be victimized by the age you live in. It is not the time that will bring us down any more than its society. There is a tendency today to absolve individuals of moral responsibility and treat them as victims of social circumstance. You buy that and you pay with your soul. What limits people is a lack of character.” [Author, Tom Robinson]

Remember that...fashions do change, beauty fades, wealth becomes depleted, friends and fame come and go; but of lasting value are acts that emanate from sincere hearts, acts that reflect integrity and good character .."As you do so shall you benefit" [Prophet Muhammad (pbuh)]

Your spiritual journey during this month has ended and we are always saddened at the passing of a good friend and indeed the fast has been a good friend.

This 30 day journey has been an awesome exercise in pursuit of Divine blessing, Divine approval and an attempt at manifesting the best of ethical values and moral practices, don’t let it end today. Don’t walk out that door today without a pledge to make this day a start of a new day in your life.

A day of reformation and reconciliation with self…a day to forge ahead and be a better person in the world. A better Muslim in the family. A better Muslim in the Jama’at. What can I do today to better serve Islam?
You have the power to free one's yourself from the shackles of those basic animal tendencies within our selves.

So as our friend, Ramadhan moves on, we need to perpetuate the positive spirit we have imbibed and continue on the spiritual journey towards fulfillment and excellence. May Allah make this Ramadhan for each and everyone of you here today a source of spiritual change and strengthen your lives.

Today, let us pray for our nation and those young soldiers who give their lives for this nation, let us remember the Muslim Ummah, peace, progress and prosperity of the world; our brothers and sisters in Bangladesh, the prisoners of conscience, the martyrs, the sick, the needy, the helpless, the homeless, the unemployed, and lastly, remember those who are seeking the truth…may Allah the Almighty help them to enhance faith, belief and understanding to accept Ahmadiyyat.

Hasan

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Cover up the faults of others

secrets
Love For All, Hatred For None

He who covers up [the faults of] a Muslim, God shall cover up his faults in this world and the next.

Disclosing other people's secrets leads to social discord and at times to animosity. Therefore, it is considered a vice and has been condemned in a large number of traditions.

This vice may take various forms, one of which is to recount to someone the derogatory remarks made about him by another individual, thus creating discord and hostility between them.

Another form is to recount to someone in power and authority something that another may have said or done against him, thus inciting him to the detriment of the victim.

In general, the vice of creating conflict and discord among people and stirring up hostility between individuals can take various forms, and disclosing people's secrets is one of its forms.

The opposite of this vice is the virtue of working to create good feeling, harmony, and love amongst people, which is a quality of great value. In opposition to the vice of revealing other people's secrets is the virtue of guarding their secrets and concealing them.

Exposing sins lead to humiliation and embarrassment, which ceases the possibility that the sinner might someday regret his mistake, seek forgiveness from Allah and purify his soul from sins because one of the things that prevent one from committing sins is the fear of humiliation.

However, if the sinner knows that the people are already aware of his sins, then he does not experience the shame and distraction which he used to feel before and this might encourage him to commit sins openly!
Secondly, when sins are repeatedly mentioned in gatherings, etc. the fear of committing sins vanishes from the people's hearts.

We are opposed to those in this society enjoy talking about their sins, enjoy making personal confessions regarding old sins…they say as a means for personal therapy and freedom. We are opposed to this type of therapy.

We are opposed because the sin will become easy on people's tongue and gradually he, who does not feel any shame in mentioning the sin, will not find it difficult to even commit the sin.

How many times have we heard people say: “I’m saved, now I can share with others how I defeated drugs by confronting drugs…as a result of such public discussions, drug usage increases instead of decreasing…This is how, sins spread in the society!

So, if someone becomes aware of his brother's sins and realizes that nobody except him has seen him committing the sin, then he should keep the sin a secret. He should not encourage people towards sins by exposing his faults.

Allah, the Almighty, has not only condemned committing sins in the Qur’an but He has also condemned those people who mention sins in public.

The Messenger of Allah (salallahu alaihe wa-sallam) said: "My entire nation is safe, except al-Mujahirin (those who boast of their sins). Among the Mujaharah is that a man commits an (evil) act, and wakes up in the morning while Allah has kept his (sin) a secret, he says: "O Fulan! Last night I did this and that." He goes to sleep while Allah has kept his (sin) a secret but he wakes up in the morning and uncovers what Allah has kept a secret!" [Saheeh al-Bukharee]

The Holy Qur’an says [24:20] “Those, who love that indecency should spread among the believers, will have a painful punishment in this world and the Hereafter. And Allah knows and you know not.” meaning, those who like to see evil talk about them (the believers) appear. [Tafseer Ibn Katheer]

Allah says in Surah an-Nisa: [4:149] Allah likes not the uttering of unseemly speech in public, except on the part of one who is being wronged. Verily, Allah is All-Hearing, All-Knowing.
Ibn Abbas (radiyallahu anhu) commented on this verse, "Allah does not like that anyone should invoke Him against anyone else, unless one was wronged. In this case, Allah allows one to invoke Him against whoever wronged him…Yet, it is better for one if he observes patience." [Tafseer Ibn Katheer]

Today sins have become widespread in the society because we have forgotten the teachings of Allah's Messenger (salallahu alaihe wa-sallam), who discouraged people from revealing one's mistakes and sins as well as others. As a result, people have lost the fear of committing not only minor sins but even major sins - Moreover, we find people proudly attributing sins to themselves!

Today, there are also many novel channels through which sins are propagated in the society; like such book, magazines and television programs that mention the crimes of others, illicit acts, and immorality under the name of creating awareness among the people.

These programs which are meant to help people to be aware of and fight crimes are in reality, helping the crime to spread fast in the society! Crimes, which were previously unknown to people have become common offense.

In any case, all the various forms of 'ifsad bayn al-nas (corrupting mutual relations between people) are considered sins and condemned in many Quranic verses and traditions.

We have to be kind to each other: Allah's Apostle (peace be upon him) said: Aisha, verily Allah is kind and He loves kindness and confers upon kindness. Kindness is not to be found in anything but that it adds to its beauty and it is not withdrawn from anything but it makes it defective. Sahih muslim: Book 31, Number 6274.

A Muslim is the brother of a Muslim. He neither oppresses him nor humiliates him nor looks down upon him. The piety is here, (and while saying so) he pointed towards his chest thrice. It is a serious evil for a Muslim that he should look down upon his brother Muslim. All things of a Muslim are inviolable for his brother in faith; his blood, his wealth and his honor. Sahih Muslim Book 31, Number 6219.

Qur’an says: “and speak to men kindly and observe prayer, (Baqarah 84) A kind word and forgiveness are better than charity followed by injury. And Allah is Self-Sufficient, Forbearing. (Baqarah 264). ‘A Muslim is brother of another Muslim. He does not wrong him, or insult him or humiliate him.’ (Muslim), and ‘The thing which will make the majority of people enter paradise is fear of Allah and good manner.’ (Tirmidhi).

From among the teachings of Allah's Messenger (salallahu alaihe wa-sallam) is to keep sins a secret matter. If someone commits a sinful act which is against the Commandments of Allah, or is against the moral character, or is such an act that may cause harm to one's honor, then he should keep it a secret and seek forgiveness from Allah in the darkness of night.


Abdullah Ibn Masoud (radiyallahu anhu) related, 'A man came to the Prophet and said: 'O Messenger of Allah! I have mingled with a woman in the far side of al-Medina, and I fulfilled my desire. So, here am I, judge me according to what you decide.' Umar Ibn al-Khattab (radiyallahu anhu) then said: 'Allah had kept your secret, why did not you keep your secret?' [Sharh Muslim]

Similarly, if one becomes aware of somebody else's sin, he should keep it a secret. Allah's Messenger (salallahu alaihe wa-sallam) said: “he who covers a Muslim (meaning his mistakes and shortcomings), Allah will cover him in the Dunya and the Hereafter…”[Muslim]

Abdullah Ibn Umar (radiyallahu anhu) related, "The Messenger of Allah (salallahu alaihe wa-sallam) once rose above the podium and then said with a loud voice, "O those who have embraced Islam only with their tongue, while Eemaan has not yet entered their hears, neither harm Muslims, nor mock them, nor try to expose their mistakes, for he who follows (searches for) the errors of his brother, Allah will follow his errors, and he whom Allah follows his errors, He will expose him even if he was in the middle of his home." [Saheeh al-Jamee]

Qur’an says: “and speak to men kindly and observe prayer.” Ahmadi Muslims should avoid the practice of labeling people as sinners, said Hazur in his sermon today. Allah says that the righteous servants are kind and merciful to others. Allah knows the faults of everyone and he covers those faults.

We need to focus on self. Focus on our own weaknesses and turn to God seeking repentance and forgiveness. If Allah were to put us to account for our sins today, we would all be destroyed but He covers our sins with the shadow of His Mercy.

And our last words are All praise is due to Almighty Allah, Lord of all the worlds. O’ Allah we seek your protection in this world and the next. We beg you to cover our weaknesses and grant us sanctity from our fears. Ameen!

Hasan

My friend, Adell

Adell Crump
Love For All, Hatred For None


I don’t have many friends, only God knows why. It isn’t that I don’t like people because I do, but friendship is something that for me is light years beyond the point of “…you are my friend because I like you.”

A good friend, in my humble opinion, is someone you love and care for because of his love for you. A love that is never stated and never marginalized by repeated military like declarations at birthdays, or whenever you meet.

I have such a friend, his name is Adell Crump.

Now, to set the stage for my journey with Adell Crump, we must delve into the wonderful world of friendship. What do others, the philosophers, great men and women, what do they say about friendship?

The answer is easy for me because I have this big old impressive book – The New Dictionary of Thoughts. If I don’t know something in this crazy world, it’s the “good book” that has quick definitions and answers for me on a myriad of subjects.

Its not a holy book like the Torah, Bible, Holy Qur’an, Zabur, or Suhufi Ibrahim…of course I’ve been taught to recognize the truth of all sacred scriptures. The Dictionary of Thoughts, which I found in a thrift shop, just looks like a holy book, but I know it doesn’t qualify for sacred scripture status.

In 1955, the authors said this about the book: “…a cyclopedia of quotations, from the best authors of the world, both ancient and modern, alphabetically arranged by subjects. Furthermore, the authors make this prolific thought pondering statement:

“In this twentieth century, with the radio and the improvements in modern publishing greatly enlarging the field for speakers and writers, it is more valuable from the purely practical point of view than ever before.”

So, there it is folks! Do I need to say anymore about my quasi-holy book, “The New Dictionary of Thoughts.” You can simply refer to it in quiet, spiritual-like reverence, as the village idiot’s cyclopedia. A good book with good definitions. Amen!

After sniffing the old book smell, the pages flipped open (akin to something in the Twilight Zone) these are just a few of the many quotations on friendship. There are a whole bunch on friendship and just a few for hatred.

“A friend should be one in whose understanding and virtue we can equally confide, and whose opinion we can value at once for its justness and its sincerity.” -- Robert Hall

“By friendship you mean the greatest love, the greatest usefulness, the most open communication, the noblest sufferings, the severest truth, the heartiest counsel, and the greatest union of minds of which brave men and women are capable.” – Jeremy Taylor

“A true friend is the gift of God, and he only who made hearts can untie them.” – South

Okie dokie, that’s enough for now, if you want more go out and find your own cyclopedia. Although, I believe there are only a few like mine left on earth.

Now, before boredom begins to creep into this story, let me tell you about my friend, Adell.

First of all, let’s be clear about one thing…Adell is not perfect and he certainly isn’t a saint, if you don’t believe me ask his wife, Rose. She is the saint who will be given a special seat in paradise for putting up with the very strange behavior of a creative Adell.

You see, Adell is an artist. And he isn’t just any old goofy artist who spends his life painting stuff that ultimately finds its final home in a thrift shop galleria. He is an artist who has a gift from God that has caused him to take on the crazed look of a madman. It goes with the occupation for anyone who knows anything about the creative soul.

Adell isn’t a madman in the sense that we may have to lock him up tonite, but he is madly in love with his creator, who endowed this brother with a love for that which is created by man. He is a lover of God.

If you don’t understand just take a look at what he has created with love, affection and compassion beginning with his family.

It was his mother, who found his wife. God is truly wonderful, now I understand why they say “paradise lies at the feet of all mothers.” She is simply his Rose. Any other name would have been the wrong name for Rose Crump.

Through the many years of marriage, pain and suffering, love and contentious relations, they have survived with patience, trust and a strong belief Almighty God. Somewhere along the way, they took time to bring seven wonderful (I believe…I stopped counting at five) children into this world.

The love story is legend in the Crump family archives and oral history with some variations and embellishment as time moves along, but somehow truth always manifest itself in history.

Adell’s mamma found Rosemary Crump in a Waukegan factory. Mrs. Crump knew her quirky son was not the man to be left on his own when it comes to making a big decision about a woman. I tried to tell you he wasn’t perfect.

It was a mother’s love for her son. It was the best gift she could give to a son that she knew was destined for greatness. This story is so good I should write a book about it and have Adell work on the illustrations (let’s talk later, Adell).

Rosemary walked into his life and she almost walked out because Adell just couldn’t grasp what his mother saw to be divine. But as it is that God protects the ignorant, children, the elderly and wayward artists who can’t see beyond the canvas.

Now, let me make this a little clearer to those who still haven’t understood this beautiful love story. Adell’s mother somehow knew Adell was stuck on himself. This isn’t a bad thing, as some might think. He is totally consumed by his work. It’s a passion and a love affair that has nothing to do with how he feels about relationships. It’s a different world. It is a a weird world of creativity, free expression, color, shapes, illusions, perspectives and things that only he sees in his world. Some might think that he’s on drugs, but the man is a borderline saint. He doesn’t booze, smoke, nor is he a dope head, although he can be a little dopey.

Rose walked into his life with some fear and trepidation for the brother’s behavior but somehow she fell in love with him. Adell isn’t a bad looking guy. In his youth, he thought he was cool and maybe a little cute. Some would say that in his youth he resembled a young Muhammad Ali. It could be that his killer smile touched Rose’s heart, she won’t tell and he doesn’t have a clue.

It certainly wasn’t money. Rose was working in a factory making big bucks back in the day. She could buy and sale the penniless Adell, who was a struggling artist. As an art student at the Chicago Academy of Fine Arts, Adell sold Rose on the idea that he was going to be a big time artist. At that point, you would have thought she would have hit that door running and screaming: “Feet don’t fail me now.”

But Rose, ever so humble and loving, didn’t run and the rest is history. Adell did distinguish in the field of art as a graduate of the Chicago Academy of Fine Arts. He paid for his own education by working odd jobs and he was mentored in the art of sign painting by the renowned African American sign painter, Ed McAllister, who operated the only black owned sign painting business in Lake County.

His hard work as a student was a blessing that led to a permanent job with Dickens Design Group, a package design specialty firm in Chicago. In the American spirit of hard work and dedication, Adell focused on his work and rose through the ranks to become a vice president of the firm.

The world of package design is something that is so abstract to the average consumer who is the focus of the creativity of an artist seeking to catch your fleeting attention with a colorful and useful package that literally jumps on a shelf and into your shopping basket.

To understand this world just take a quick stroll through any major grocery store without any intent to make a purchase. As you walk along the aisles, take notice how your eyes are drawn to certain packaged goods. What is it that causes you to stop and pick up an item for closer examination?

You may have picked up a package designed by Adell Crump. You have entered the world of the package designer who uses colors, designs and shapes of plastic containers and seemingly innocent packages to entice the consumer. Adell and others in the world of package design agonize and have sleepless nights over packages that we take for granted and at the end of a day toss with ease into the nearest garbage container.

The package designer is an artist/magician who dibble and dabble in a creative process that involves the environment, safety and ultimately how to help sell a product. Adell’s designs were of the highest quality and some of his designs are still found on everyday products in the supermarket.

But of course, Adell’s journey and celebration of life was to take him far beyond the world of package design. As a humble soul from a very poor rural background in Newport, Arkansas, Adell settled in Lake County, close to Chicago where he and his wife built a lovely home in Beach Park.

With his talent in a variety of art medias, Adell founded his own design firm, Crump Designs. He takes on a variety of projects including one of my personal favorites for the Head Start program in Lake County. Using animal characters, inspired by his grandchildren, Adell created several large wall murals with a colorful menagerie of animals. Children and visitors walking through the facility find themselves in the midst of these beautiful, lifelike animals that convey a feeling of learning in a safe environment.

While all of his contemporary accomplishments are captivating, his story took a downward turn when Adell was diagnosed wikth Hodgkin’s lymphoma, cancer of the lymph system. It was a crushing blow to family and friends. How could it be that an Almighty God would allow the precious life of someone we all loved so dearly to slip away from this world?

While family and friends shed tears, Adell refused to give in to the doctor’s prognosis and instructions to “go home and prepare for death.” Adell sought relief and recovery through prayer and those prayers were answered. He completely recovered and returned to his daily family responsibilities, along with longer fishing trips much to the distress of friends who are completely baffled by his uncanny fishing ability.

The Adell Crump story continues to move on as his work gains national attention. It was a simple city sticker design for the first African American Mayor of North Chicago (located 40 milies north of Chicago) that brought him more attention and notoriety. Mayor Bette Thomas, was catapulted to the national scene, after a decale designed by Adell featured the colorful and outspoken mayor with the American flag as a backdrop.

Adell, in his innocence as an artist, had no idea that the political fall-out from the design would result in national coverage by the media. The historical city sticker was blasted by local politicians who said it was an abuse of authority by the mayor. The entire story, plus images of Adell’s work, was carried by national newspapers including a prominent feature in Jet Magazine (Sept. 8, 2003).

It’s ironic that the black magazine is published by a man most admired in Adell’s collection of great African Americans, none other than John H. Johnson. Adell also had the honor of once being featured in Johnson’s Ebony Magazine’s “Speaking of People” section as a designer at Dickens.

As one of his many friends and admirers, you can’t help but wonder what his legacy will be in life. I really believe one day the world will discover the work of Adell Crump after he is long gone. It is the way of life for the artist. We fail to appreciate the talent that God has give us through the artist, until he his no longer with us. I celebrate the life of Adell Crump today. He is a special person in the life of his wife, family and many, many grandchildren who will one day tell others about Adell from their own personal and loving perspectives.

I believe what distinguishes Adell from others is not only his talent but his good, righteous qualities, a sense of responsibility along with a profound love and fear of Almighty God.

I’m honored to be his friend!

Hasan

The victory of Ramadhan: A time for reflection.

As we near the end of Ramadhan…We continue to seek Almighty Allah’s forgiveness.

Sunday marks the end of the Holy Month of Ramadhan. It is a victory for those who have been engaged in prayer, reading the Holy Qur'an and content with the remembrance of Allah. It is a victory for those who begin their day with the intention to fast and close the day in remembrance of Allah by stating:

“O Allah, for Thee I kept the Fast and upon Thee I have faith and I am breaking the Fast with the provisions provided by Thee.”

It is a time of healing and seeking relief by simply focusing on the favors that Almighty Allah has bestowed on humankind through his grace and turning to Him for forgiveness.

We are not perfect beings and human beings are bound to make mistakes as it says, “to err is human and to forgive is divine.”

There is not a day that goes by that we are not challenged by our satan within to fall into error, to sin, to make small or major mistakes that cause us to reel and rock in despair sometimes to the point of becoming ill with short or long term depressive behavior.

But we should not despair because the Qur’an teaches that Allah is a Judge and He also punishes, but Allah is not bound to punish. The justice of Allah, according to Qur’an is that Allah does not and will not inflict undue punishment on any person. He will not ignore the good of any person. But if He wishes to forgive any sinner, He has full freedom to do that. His mercy is unlimited and His love is infinite.

There are many verses in the Qur’an and sayings of the Holy Prophet Muhammad, sallallaho alaihe wasallam -peace be upon him- on the love, mercy and forgiveness of Allah.

In one of the prayers that the Prophet taught, he said, “O Allah, You are most Forgiving One, You love to forgive, so forgive me.”(reported by al-Trimidhi and Ibn Majah). We need Allah’s mercy and forgiveness all the time.

There is a remedy for sin but you seek it by repenting, seeking forgiveness and being remorseful by turning to Him. The Promised Messiah (a.s.) says: “This means that if they do evil in conformity with the demands of their ego, or an evil thought arises in their minds and they seek remedy through repentance and seeking forgiveness, God forgives them. If they stumble repeatedly and are remorseful each time and repent, the remorse and repentance wash out the stain of their sin.”

The Holy Qur’an states: “Whoso does evil or wrongs his soul, and then asks forgiveness of Allah, will find Allah Most Forgiving, Ever Merciful.” (4:111)

Almighty Allah’s only request is that you turn to Him… seeking His forgiveness – astaghfirhu! While you sit wondering what has happened to you as a result of your own choices in life and then you sit thinking or scheming how to get out of a problem, you forget to turn towards Him. You made those mistakes, yet a loving God continues to reach out to you with a remedy. A cure for what ails you, but nothing can happen without you first accepting, understanding and turning towards God for help.

And he says in the Holy Qur'an: “O my servants who have committed excesses against their own soul; despair not of the Mercy of Allah, surely Allah forgives all sins. Verily he is Most Forgiving, Merciful.” (39:54)

Thus does the Holy Qur'an reveal to us a message of hope. A message that should lift every spirit that there is a remedy to sin and we should not despair and become despondent as we grapple with those sins in daily life. We have a wonderful loving God who says, “ (My) forgiveness is Oft-returning with mercy—( Inna-hu Kana tawwaba)

The attribute, Al-Tawwab used in the Surah, translates as: “He who is oft-returning.” This name of Allah is mentioned in the Qur’an about 11 times. Allah accepts the repentance of those who sincerely repent and turn to him. The word “tawwab” gives the sense of “oft-returning” which means that Allah again and again accepts the repentance. We make sins and mistakes then we repent, He accepts our repentance. Then again we commit sins and make mistakes and when we repent, He again very kindly accepts us and gives us another chance.

Seeking Allah’s forgiveness is paramount for anyone who is troubled by his sins and his inability to overcome the modus operandi (A method of operating or functioning). We become entrenched and isolated by our egos and embarrassed by our mistakes, misdeeds or whatever you want to call sins.

What we all have to do is to get back to the basics during the remaining days of Ramadhan. Look forward to each and every day of this fast as if it were your last day on earth – who knows it may be! Do not despair if you have made a mess of the fast, so far…turn towards Him, purify your heart and accept with a passionate belief that you are a believer who repents and seeks forgiveness from Almighty Allah.

If we say we love Allah, now is the time to reach out and call his name. Seek forgiveness from Allah. Seek His forgiveness and cry out to him, express the pain that you feel honestly and openly through prayer.

The Promised Messiah (a.s.) has given us further insight into the meaning of Istighfaar or to ask Almighty Allah in all humility and remorsefulness to cover our sins and safeguard us against natural weaknesses and bestow on us “…power from His power, and knowledge from His knowledge, and light from his light.”

As a creature created by God, He has never become separate from humankind. And we are reminded in the Holy Qur’an that it is God who has created us and “Allah is He, save Whom none is worthy of worship, the Ever-Living, the Self-Subsisting and All-Sustaining (2:256)…”

It is only God who sustains us in the good and the bad times. It is only God who we pray to five times a day as we supplicate: Iyaka na abudu wa Iyyaka nastaeen -- “Thee alone do we worship and thee alone do we implore for help.”

We should be joyful today. At the end of Ramadhan, we take a deep breath and ponder over His Grace. We should be joyful and full of hope knowing that our Lord is Gracious, very Merciful, very Benevolent and Bountiful.

And we conclude with this prayer:

“O Lord, our devotions and actions are nothing but we have perfect faith and hope in Thee that thou will deal with us with Mercy, Grace and Favor. We pray that Thou will forgive our wrongs and make us enter the Paradise of Thy Pleasure through thy Grace. O Lord, enable us to always be Grateful and Thankful servants and praise Thee.”

Ramadhan Mubarak, Hasan