Source/Credit: Suburban Life Publications
By Sara Smith | August 19, 2011
Glen Ellyn, IL — Today was the kickoff for the "Muslims for Life" campaign at the Baet-ul-Jaamay Mosque in Glen Ellyn. The campaign is a nationwide initiative created by the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community to bring a message of peace and sanctity of all human life.
"Terrorists have painted an untrue picture of Muslims," said Harris Zafar, spokesman for the Chicago West Chapter of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Society. "As we approach the tenth anniversary, (of Sept. 11) we thought the best thing to do… in remembrance of those who lost their lives, is to collect blood."
The Ahmadiyya Muslim Community is holding blood drives at 130 donation sites across the nation with the hopes of collecting 10,000 bags of blood — which would equal saving 30,000 lives.
In Glen Ellyn, the Baet-ul-Jaamay Mosque, 2S510 Route 53, will hold a blood drive and an interfaith prayer service on Sept. 11 to honor those who lost their lives.
"This program is built on blood (to save lives), but the broader purpose is to engage in dialogue. If you can't give blood, attend the interfaith prayer service," Zafer said.
Zafar said Sept. 11 impacted everyone, including the Muslim community.
"It was awakening for us… It gave us the sense that we need to be more vocal about our faith and beliefs," Zafar said.
Masood Qazi, president of the Chicago West Chapter of the Ahmadiyya society, said extremists have hijacked the religion, and the purpose of the campaign is showing the true face of Islam, which is to promote tolerance and harmony.
"Life is holy and humanity is supreme… we can not tolerate (terrorists doing these acts) in the name of our religion," Qazi said.
In addition to blood drives and interfaith prayer services, the Ahmadiyya community will fly a banner at the Air and Water Show in Chicago this weekend with the message "Give blood, save lives."
The Ahmadiyya community is a fast-growing international movement within Islam that was founded in 1889. The Ahmadiyya Muslim Community USA was established in 1920 and is the first American-Muslim organization, according to a release sent out by the group.
For more information about the campaign, visit http://muslimsforlife.org.
Read original post here: Muslims spread message of peace in remembrance of Sept. 11
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