US: Thousands attend the 27th annual Muslim community convention at the Chino mosque

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While many of the workshops focused on particular religious teachings, some also were interactive sessions for parents and young adults, like "How to get into Harvard or Stanford."

Ahmadiyya Times | News Watch | US Desk
Source/Credit: Inland Valley Daily Bulletin
By Canan Tasci | January 10, 2013

CHINO - More than 1,300 Ahmadi Muslims attended the West Coast U.S. Ahmadiyya Muslim Community convention held at the Baitul Hameed Mosque.

The convention was from Dec 28 to 30.

"This was a unique convention because a lot of people traveled from all over," said Imam Shamshad Nasir of the Baitul Hameed Mosque.

"And this was a special convention because the national president of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community Dr. Ahsan Zafar spoke via Internet to the gathering."

While many who attended were from California, others traveled from Oregon, Washington, Nevada, Arizona, Texas, New Mexico, Chicago, Pennsylvania and Maryland and even Canada, the United Kingdom, Germany, Pakistan and Bangladesh.

The three-day event focused on presenting the life and character of Muhammad, the Holy Prophet of Islam and the life and character the founder of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community, Hadhrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad of Qadian, according to a news release.

He started the Ahmadiyya Community in 1889 to bring people back to God, reform the Muslims and restore the true teachings and spirituality of Islam and the Holy Prophet Muhammad. He claimed to be the Promised Second Coming of the Messiah for the Christians, Muslims, Hindus, Buddhists and others, according to a news release.

Preparation for the convention took about three months, said Naser Noor, the convention's project manager.

"We would start in October and would choose volunteers that would reach out to create subcommittees," he said.

By the end of the convention more than 150 individuals volunteered.

The theme for the 2012 West Coast convention was peace.

While many of the workshops focused on particular religious teachings, some also were interactive sessions for parents and young adults, like "How to get into Harvard or Stanford."

There were also workshops that discussed "Ingredients of a successful marriage, "Balancing my life through belief and values" and poetry sessions.

Ahmadiyya Muslim Community members live by the strongly held principle of "love for all, hatred for none."

"When people come together they have to increase their knowledge, spirituality, brotherhood and recognition of God," Nasir said.

Videos of the individual presenters and speakers on the men's side are available on YouTube.com. Type the words "West Coast Jalsa 2012" in the search window to watch the proceedings and speeches that were delivered over the three days of the gathering.

The annual conventions were started in 1891 by the founder of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community, Hadhrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad, to foster brotherhood and spirituality among the members. The first convention had 75 attendees. Today the annual conventions of the Ahmadiyya Community are held in nearly 200 countries where thousands, even tens of thousands, of Ahmadi Muslims attend each one. Some, like the convention held each year in Ghana, draw as many as 100,000 people, according to a news release.

Nasir said it it tough to say goodbye to the convention guests at the end of the three days.

"We create so much love and brotherhood for each other and the mosque is populated with different guests so we feel sad when they depart," he said.



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