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California: Mosque makeover reflects growing pride

Feb 22, 2005 7:20 am By Robert Spencer

“Towering symbol,” from the Pasadena Star News, with thanks to EPG:

Sunday, February 20, 2005 – SAN GABRIEL — Masjid Gabriel is undergoing a transformation that will add a minaret and domed roof traditional elements of Islamic architecture to the mosque.

But the changes are more than cosmetic.

The renovation also illustrates the changing nature of the American-Muslim identity, mosque leaders say. It reflects the pride Muslims share in their religion, a commitment to rediscover their historic roots and teachings and a desire to ensure Islam is passed to the next generation.

“We are doing this for the children who come here so they can identify themselves with their faith and their symbols,’ said Imam Nissar Hai. “We may be immigrants, but they were born here and they have to feel that they belong here and to their faith and this is a symbol of our faith.’…

Even before the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks or the war in Iraq, local Muslims said they felt occasional unease during difficult times such as the Islamic Revolution in Iran or the Gulf War.

But Hai said Americans have deepened their understanding of Islam in recent years and understand that most Muslims are not radicals, he said.

Great. Now why didn’t the reporter, Marshall Allen, ask a few questions about this mosque’s funding, and pick up some of its literature? There’s no indication from this article that he looked at what was being taught there — and plenty of indication that he should have, based on what is being taught in other American mosques.

The demand for new space is driven in part by the mosque’s burgeoning children’s after- school program. Children study Arabic and the Quran for several hours every Monday through Thursday. The number of students, toddlers to teens, has more than doubled to about 50 in the past two years, Hai said. The increased demand for children’s education is partly a result of the Sept. 11 attacks, Hai said. Initially, the mosque’s membership declined after the attacks, but then the Muslim community seemed to take them as a wake-up call, he said. The American-Muslim community was feeling comfortable before Sept. 11, and then faced criticism of Islam, Hai said.

“So when you feel under attack you want to go back to your roots,’ he said. “It made us stronger.’

“You want to go back to your roots.” They study Qur’an for several hours for four days a week. Why don’t reporters ask them at such points what they think about the roots of Islam that involve working to impose Sharia rule? Why don’t they ask them what they do about the Qur’an’s harshness toward non-Muslims and commands to make war against them?

The time is long past for more intelligent reporting on Islamic issues, but we aren’t even close to getting it.

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