Source/Credit: PhillyBurbs.com
By Rose Krebs | August 30, 2011
WILLINGBORO — Hundreds marked the end of the holy month of Ramadan by praying and sharing a feast together Tuesday at Al-Nasr mosque on Bridge Street.
Many of the about 350 members of the Ahmadiyya Muslim community were in attendance, donned in traditional Islamic dress, to celebrate Eid-ul-Fitr, the end of the holy month of fasting and the second holiest day in the Islamic faith.
After a prayer service and sermon by Farooq Padder of Moorestown, members hugged and greeted each other before sharing a meal together.
Padder pointed out that the day is one for reflection and committing to righteous values such as peace, love, harmony, sympathy and compassion.
“Righteousness bestows the strength to avoid all vice,” Padder said. “It is the only lasting power and wealth.”
Waqas Asghar of Willingboro, leader of the mosque’s youth division, said giving up vices is a major feature of Ramadan.
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“The fast is for each part of the body,” Asghar said. “You avoid all these bad habits and get in the habit of the good life. We are trying to keep on that path.”
The purpose is also to foster “discipline, strength and increased focus on worship” and “sympathy for the hungry and poor,” said spokesman Naseem Ahmad of Delran.
As they prayed with family and friends, the community also continued its mission to dispel misconceptions about their religion.
“We had a Muslims for peace campaign nationally,” Ahmad said. “We need to educate (people) about what our beliefs are. The concern is that people are not getting our message.”
With the approach of the 10th anniversary of the Sept. 11 attacks, community members know religious tensions may be heightened.
Padder condemned recent acts of violence by Islamic extremists and noted that many violent regimes have fallen during the past year around the world. Their wealth and power was bound not to last because it was not righteous, Padder said.
“We should condemn and speak against these heinous crimes,” Padder said. “What we believe in and what we preach is peace ... we need to fight the strong current of evil thinking.”
Padder noted the community has organized a blood drive for Sept. 10 and 11 in memory of victims of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks. The blood drive will be held from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. both days.
“By doing so, we will uphold the sanctity of life,” Padder said. The goal is to collect 10,000 bags, which could help save as many as 30,000 lives.
“God doesn’t show up physically anywhere, but one of the ways he does show up is when people get together to celebrate peace, harmony and love. People coming together in harmony, that is a manifestation of God,” said Ahsanullah Zafar of Lambertville, national president for the Ahmadiyya community. “This blood drive is just an extension of that.”
Pam Moore of Willingboro, who is Catholic, attended the Eid-ul-Fitr celebration to learn more about the Muslim faith.
“They are very welcoming and caring people,” Moore said. “Even though I am not Muslim, we share the same God. We are all children of God.”
The Ahmadiyya Muslim community was founded in 1889 and has about 15,000 members in the United States, Ahmad said. It differs from other branches of Islam in its recognition of Mirza Ghulam Ahmad of India, who lived from 1835 to 1908, as the messiah.
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