The Ahmadiyya Muslim Community will hold an open house on the Qur’an at Norwich Public Library on November 22 from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. where it will provide information about Islam and copies of the Qur'an.
 |
| File photo: Members of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Youth Association of Canada visited the Norwich Library in 2012 to dispel misconceptions about the Islamic religion. |
Source/Credit: Norwich Gazette
By John Tapley | November 9, 2014
A Muslim organization is looking to condemn terrorism and dispel misconceptions about Islam by having volunteers knock on doors in Norwich on Saturday, Nov. 15.
“One Muslim group has to stand up and create a positive voice to show people true Islam - a voice of love, tolerance and peace,” said Noman Khalil, national executive director of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community of Canada.
A non-profit religious organization established in 206 countries worldwide, the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community has 86 chapters in Canada.
Members of the community previously canvassed Norwich in May 2011 and held an open house outlining their beliefs at the Norwich Public Library.
“We have been promoting peace, condemning terrorism and dispelling myths about Islam as part of our nationwide campaign for the past several years,” Khalil said. “Last year alone, we visited 650,221 houses throughout Canada, reaching out to an estimated 2,600,884 people with the help of over 4,000 volunteers.”
He said with the recent terrorist acts of ISIS in Syria and Iraq and the killings of Canadian soldiers by radicalized individuals here at home, “it has become even more important to condemn terrorism and dispel misconceptions about Islam.”
“People need to know that what ISIS is doing and anything to do with terrorism around the world has no basis in Islam,” Khalil said. “(In fact) the Holy Qur’an states: If you kill a single person it is as if you killed all of mankind.”
Khalil said Islamophobia is growing in Canada, pointing out that he recently received two hate messages via e-mail in response to an Internet advertisement promoting the organization's awareness campaign.
One message came from from Kincardine, Ont., and the other from Chatham, Ont. The author of one of the messages wrote: “Your religion is so backwards and you should go back to your people.”
“We like to think Canada is respectful and understanding of religious beliefs, but then there are people like (that),” Khalil said. “There is Islamophobia out there due to a lack of education and a lack of understanding. It's very important for us to reach out and explain what the truth actually is.”
With about 20 volunteers expected to be knocking on doors in the village on Saturday, Norwich is one of three communities, along with Kincardine and Chatham, where the Ahmadiyya organization chose to launch its latest campaign.
Khalil said Norwich was among the first communities selected for the launch based on past experience.
With one or two exceptions, Khalil said residents of Norwich have been very polite.
“And we found them to be very spiritual,” he said.
The Ahmadiyya Muslim Community will hold an open house on the Qur’an at Norwich Public Library on November 22 from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. where it will provide information about Islam and copies of the Qur'an.
“The purpose of the open house will be to allow residents of Norwich to come and learn what the Holy Qur’an truly teaches,” Khalil said. “Does the Holy Qur’an permit violence or holy war? Give any kind of justification for the acts carried out by ISIS? What does the Holy Qur’an say about Jihad or blasphemy?”
In January, 2015, the Ahmadiyya community plans to bring a campaign focused on how to prevent religious radicalization to Norwich and between 50 and 100 other communities across Canada.
“I think right now everybody's asking that question,” Khalil said. “'How do you guard against radicalization in Canada?”
He said the focus of his organization's efforts is simple: “We want to work with and stand united with all Canadians for a better Canada.”
Read original post here: Muslim organization bringing awareness campaign to Norwich
This content-post is archived for backup and to keep archived records of any news Islam Ahmadiyya. The views expressed by the author and source of this news archive do not necessarily reflect the views and policies of Ahmadiyya Times.
No comments:
Post a Comment
Thank you for your comments. Any comments irrelevant to the post's subject matter, containing abuses, and/or vulgar language will not be approved.