On the West Coast, Southern California region, The Daily Bulletin, The Sun, The Chino Champion, The Victorville Daily Press, India West,Asia Today of Arezona and West Side Story News have also accommodated us.
Source/Credit: Baitul Hameed Mosque
By Imam Shamshad Nasir | December 25, 2012
Peace and blessings of God be upon you – a “Thank You” letter from the Ahmadiyys Muslim Community in Chino
The year 2012 has come to an end and we are left with some sad memories, but there were many blessings, too.
A true believer shows patience in the face of difficulties and is grateful when embraced by success. First of all, he thanks God Almighty who has guided the believers to “Be Grateful to Him” and not to deny and be ungrateful for the blessings bestowed upon them.
We learn from the conduct of Muhammad, the Prophet of Islam (peace and blessings be upon him), who is an Excellent Exemplar, that in order to be thankful for the Bounties of God, he would pray abundantly. Following his noble example, we should likewise increase our prayers. Also, when we witness the Bounties of Allah showered upon us, we should also concentrate more on the worship of God, and be regular in Tahajjud -- pre-dawn, extra prayers.
The Holy Prophet (pbuh) also said: “One who is not grateful to man is not grateful to God.” Therefore, at the end of 2012, I want to thank all the individuals and religious and civic organizations who have cooperated with us, one way or the other, through interfaith events or who have participated in our educational or Islamic holidays such as Ramadan.
I want to specially thank the Press and Media with whom we have had excellent relations over the years. The American Press enjoys freedom of expression and welcomes opposing views, but some of the Pakistani newspapers are not as open. Nonetheless, Pakistan Express, New York Awam, Dounya international and Pakistan Post have carried our opinion pieces and reported our news items without any prejudice. We are very grateful to them.
On the West Coast, Southern California region, The Daily Bulletin, The Sun, The Chino Champion, The Victorville Daily Press, India West,Asia Today of Arezona and West Side Story News have also accommodated us. Arabic papers, Al Entesharul Arbi and Al Akhbar covered our news and also published summaries of the Khutba Jummah (Friday sermon) of our 5th Khalifa, Mirza Masroor Ahmad. We are thankful for their service to us.
Our thanks also go out to BBC representative Hasan Mujtaba for his cooperation and to ICEEA Radio in broadcasting our Radio programs, and KNBC Chanel 4 for airing detailed news about us on multiple occasions. Similarly, for publishing correct news and articles about us, we are grateful to Daily Al-Fazal Rabwah Pakistan, Weekly Badr Qadian India and Weekly Lahore, and online sites Ahmadiyya Times and The Muslim Times for their timely coverage of our events as well.
Among the members of government, we wish to thank the Mayor of Chino, Dennis Yates, the Mayor of Upland, Ray Musser, San Bernardino County Supervisor Gary Ovitt, the Chino Valley Fire Department Chief and the Police Chief, San Bernardino County Sheriff's Department and all officers of both departments for all they do.
We the members of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community look forward to working together more extensively in the year 2013.
We also enjoyed good relations with religious leaders of the area and the members of various Interfaith councils, and we thank them from the bottom of our heart. They came to our meetings and asked questions that removed their misunderstandings and doubts about Islam, and we gained invaluable insights into their respective faiths.
We are moving ever forward in the new year, upholding our motto: “Love for All - Hatred for None.” This is the real teaching of Islam. Only with love can you win the hearts of the people. The Holy Prophet (pbuh) won the hearts of his enemies by forgiving them, even those who persecuted him and his followers severely, pouring insults and abuses upon them without mercy. This magnanimous display of compassion and forgiveness on the part of the Holy Prophet drew the hearts of his staunchest enemies towards him and the religion of Islam. We have to show the same example for the victory of Islam. We have to use the same weapon of love to eradicate hatred from the world and to keep on marching in the path of progress.
We the members of Ahmadiyya Muslim Community, extend our most heartfelt New Year’s Greetings to you in the spirit of brotherhood, and we pray for your good health and well-being. We see that the world is heading fast towards destruction. We can prevent this catastrophe if we can all make the correct choice between love and hate, and play our role as torch bearers of love, mercy and forgiveness.
At the end of year 2012, we held our 27th Annual Convention in which well over 1200 people participated. We are again grateful to the officials of local government who participated in this function or sent messages of peace and goodwill and who cooperated in many important ways to the success of our annual West Coast convention.
America as a Superpower should treat all nations fairly. Justice should be the hallmark of its policies. It should be remembered that the brave nation is not the one who dominates another, but the one who restrains its anger. We love America for what it stands for, and we know the anger displayed by some of the people of the world is not aimed against the people of America but against its unjust policies.
America is still a country that insures the freedom for its citizens to preach and practice their many different religions, which is something that cannot be said by Muslim countries. In fact, the American Constitution is closer to the true teachings of the Quran and Islam on justice and freedom than any Constitution of any Muslim nation. This is because these so-called Islamic nations are not following the real teachings of Islam and the Holy Prophet. We are grateful that we enjoy this freedom of religion in America that is rare in many other countries. We must take full advantage of this freedom by practicing and preaching our faith and delivering the message of peace and love.
Unfortunately, in the country of Pakistan, Ahmadi Muslims are deprived of all religious freedom. They cannot hold meetings, cannot express their viewpoint, they even cannot say As-Salamu alaikum, for that is punishable by imprisonment. Even at this time, many Ahmadis are suffering the hardship of imprisonment simply because they dare to call themselves Muslims in violation of the Constitution and civil laws of Pakistan. There is no such thing as freedom. The country is in the grip of some heartless terrorists. Life is cheap and the killing of innocents is on the rampage. Only recently, terrorists tied up the guards and their families and vandalized 120 graves in an Ahmadi graveyard.
We strongly condemn murder in the name of religion and the persecution of any person, whether Ahmadi, Shia, Hindu, Jew or Sikh or any other belief. We are saddened and condemn the killing of 20 innocent children and 7 adults in the senseless massacre in Newtown, Connecticut.
The world is in turmoil these days and unrest, civil war and the threat of much larger conflicts are on the horizon. We need to stop acts of terrorism whether they are carried out by individuals, groups or a society. We need to strive much harder for freedom and justice for all.
-- Peace and blessings of God be upon you – a “Thank You” letter
-- Ahmadiyya Times
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