“We had one gentleman, he was a high school student, very young, and I was very surprised and very pleased, as well that he knew a lot about Islam.”
Source/Credit: Lloydminster Meridian Booster
By James Wood | March 10, 2016
Despite a small turnout, the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community is pleased with the way an information night turned out at the Lloydminster library.
According to the local imam of the group, Tariq Azeem, the small-scale event was put together earlier this week. The setup of the two-hour event had a set of banners describing different parts of the Qur'an to attendees, along with Azeem on hand to discuss the information presented with those in attendance.
“It was a very small room, we had the banner on display, and we used very limited means to promote the event,” said Azeem.
“Even then, we had a decent turnout at the event, and those that came were very interested in learning. They showed general interest in learning about the Holy Qur'an.”
Azeem said there were around 10 to 12 people who passed through the room, with at least three observed by the Meridian Booster reading over the materials presented.
“We had one gentleman, he was a high school student, very young, and I was very surprised and very pleased, as well that he knew a lot about Islam,” said Azeem.
“I personally thought that it was a very good time for our community, that if young people are showing interest in each other’s faiths, we could have a very pluralistic and harmonious society here. We are pleased with the people here already, but it could get better as we continue to learn about one another.”
Azeem had promoted the event on What’s Happening in Lloydminster, a popular Facebook page, but his posts were removed multiple times due to arguments and angry commentary from those who saw the listing for the event. Despite this, Azeem was still happy to see dialogue happening, and called the back and forth “interesting discussions.”
“There were a few negative comments, but I was very pleased to see how the majority of Lloydminster stood up for having a dialogue, and defended the right of Muslims or any faith to present their teachings and invite people to have a dialogue,” said Azeem.
Azeem also said he received some personal messages from Lloydminster residents after the posts were removed, apologizing for the behavior of those who had written the angry comments.
“Our community is very special in this way, and I respect the people in Lloydminster,” said Azeem.
“They respect the faiths of one another and the rights of one another.”
Azeem said there are no events coming up in the foreseeable future for the Ahmadiyya congregation, but he indicated there is a plan to invite the community to the group’s mosque once the building is finished.
“It is necessary that we should learn about each other’s faiths, because if we don’t, we might start assuming things that we hear on the TV, on the radio, or somewhere else, that are not true,” said Azeem.
“It is better to get firsthand knowledge of everything, rather than being ignorant of that knowledge.”
Read original post here: Azeem says event a success
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