USA: Local Muslims hope Ramadan events will build bridges with non-Muslims

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The Ahmadiyya Muslim Community in Groveport plans a July 27 interfaith iftar that will feature a panel of members of various religions discussing their own fasting traditions, said Dr. Abdus Salam Malik, the group’s president.

Ahmadiyya Times | News Watch | US Desk
Source/Credit: The Columbus Dispatch
By JoAnne Viviano | July 9, 2013

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Muslims in central Ohio are inviting their non-Muslim neighbors to learn more about the Islamic holy month of Ramadan by partaking in one of the evening fast-breaking meals that mark the observance.

Such meals, called iftars, start with water and dates and include prayer and often a reading from the Muslim holy book, the Quran.

The Ahmadiyya Muslim Community in Groveport plans a July 27 interfaith iftar that will feature a panel of members of various religions discussing their own fasting traditions, said Dr. Abdus Salam Malik, the group’s president.

“A lot of people have misconceptions, and problems arise in the community when people don’t know each other,” Malik said. “So we want people to come and get to know each other and, once they know each other, they realize that ... everybody has human values, good values. That creates better understanding and better peace.”

Ramadan begins its first full day today and ends with the Eid al-Fitr holiday on Aug. 8. Throughout the month, Muslims abstain from food, water, smoking and sex from sunrise until sunset.
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Ramadan 2013

Muslims begin their first full day of fasting today for the Islamic month of Ramadan. The month lasts until Eid al-Fitr on Aug. 8. Facts about the observance:

• Ramadan is the ninth lunar month of the Islamic calendar; it begins about 11 days earlier each year. Throughout the month, healthy adult Muslims abstain from food, drink and other sensual pleasures from sunrise until sunset each day and read as much as possible from the Islamic holy book, the Quran.

• Each evening at sunset, Muslims hold an iftar, or a fast-breaking, with their families and communities, often starting with traditional dates and water and then having a meal. The fast-breaking also includes prayer.

• Fasting became obligatory for Muslims in the year 624. It is called for in the Quran as a way to learn self-restraint. Muslims believe fasting helps them gain compassion for the needy, self-purification, discipline and a spiritual focus.

• Fasting is one of the “five pillars” of Islam. The others are a declaration of faith, daily prayers, charity and making a pilgrimage to Mecca.


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