Source/Credit: Access GA
By Ken Stanford | September 25, 2011
PENDERGRASS - A nationwide campaign by a Muslim group to collect blood to help mark the 10th anniversary of 9/11 came to Jackson County Saturday.
Muslims for Life is the theme of the month-long campaign and the Pendergrass Flea Market is one of several places in Georgia where the blood drives are being conducted. But, Hazeem Pudhiapura, president of the Georgia chapter of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community, admits that some people seem taken aback at the thought of Muslims collecting blood in the name of 9/11.
However, he says most seem to become more receptive when they are told that many Muslims believe like they do - in the "sanctity of life" and reject radical Muslim elements.
The nationwide campaign hopes to collect 10,000 units of blood by the end of September and to reiterate the message that Islam values the sanctity of life. Blood drives are held at mosques and prayer centers across the nation, and in collaboration with community organizations around the country.
Organizers say the terrorists who caused the death and destruction on 9/11 also hijacked the faith of Islam. By painting a violent, militant picture of the religion, terrorist extremists have created suspicion of all Muslims, they go on to say, adding, but the truth is that terrorists do not represent Islam or Muslims.
According to its Web site, Ahmadiyya Muslim Community has, since its founding, upheld the sanctity of all life as emphasized by Islam. "The Holy Quran teaches that life is sacred and reaffirms Biblical teaching that whoever unjustly kills a single person is as if he had killed all of mankind; and whoever saves the life of one person is as if he has saved the life of all of humanity (5:33)," the posting says.
In 2010, the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community launched its Muslims for Peace campaign in the United States and the United Kingdom, with the goal of demonstrating that Muslims do stand for peace. The campaign included bus and billboard advertisements, interfaith dialogue events and distribution of flyers by members door-to-door and in public areas.The goal of the Muslims for Life campaign is to collect enough blood to save 30,000 lives in honor of those who lost theirs on 9/11, and "is a natural continuation of the theme that Islam teaches peace and sanctity of all life."
Read original post here: Muslims collect blood in memory of 9/11 victims
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