DESCRIPTION
Today, on the eve of 12th
Iftaar, I chose to stay in the office, Insha Allah, I will visit at least 25
Mosques this month. A few volunteers joined me during Iftaar to discuss the
8th Annual Unity Day USA to be held on Tuesday, September 11, 2012.
We hope to invite a 1000 people; the last highest attendance was 650. This is an
event that brings people of all faiths, races and ethnicities together as a step
towards building a cohesive America. Please visit www.unitydayusa.com for
details.
 |
| Muslim
families serving - 12 year old Zahra Cheema writes (story
below) |
At the Unity Day, we
recognize and appreciate up to 7 individuals a year who have gone out of their
way to build
bridges among Americans of all hues. Indeed, it is our duty to honor and cherish those
individuals who have dedicated their lives for the purpose. Here is a list of 22
individuals in the last 7 years.
Hon. Len Ellis, Hon. MaryAnn Thompson-Frenk, Dr. Imam
Zia Shaikh, Pastor George Mason, Dr. Harbans Lal, Rev. Bill
Matthews, Hon. Muriel Pinkus,
Rev. Bob Roberts, Bishop Mark Hernandez,
Dr. Basheer Ahmed, Hon. Jeff Weiss, Hon. Bob Ray
Sanders, Hon. Julie Ann Turner, Hon. John Hammond, Hon. Jonathan
Halsey, Hon. Steve Blow,
Dr. Rev. Petra Weldes, Hon. Marzuk Jaami
and Alexis Yancey, Hon. Late Elliott Dlin, Dr. Robert
Hunt, Hon. Sam Hodges,
and Hon. Daisy
Khan.
This year on Tuesday,
September 11, we have another great individual from the Muslim community who
will be recognized and 5 others from Hindu, Jewish, Christian and other
communities.
We have just begun the process
of serving the nation in every which way we can and have ways to go. We have to
be a part of the society; a well integrated society is good for every one of its
inhabitants in the long run. Please don’t look to the government or me to do it
(as some do, I am simply a volunteer and don’t get paid for any one to demand),
you do your share and take pride in it.
To paraphrase President John
Kennedy, “Ask not what the country can do for you, ask yourselves, what you can
do for the country”. It should resonate with Muslims strongly, ask not what the
Prophet can do for you, ask yourselves what you can do for the community, not
just Muslim but every American; it’s the free will we are blessed with. God
tells us to be individually responsible for our acts, and we will be
accountable for it individually, and on the Day of the Judgment we are on our
own. The best ones among us are those who care for their neighbors.
HOW ARE WE SERVING
We
have regular free Medical clinics in most cities in America. In Dallas/ Fort
Worth area we have three regular clinics to serve Americans. While the Al-Shifa
and Richardson Mosque clinics offer free outpatient checkups, the Ismaili clinic
offers extensive services for a small fee to be self operating with full time
nurses and the staff. Several other mosques have started smaller clinics. It was
an idea that began in the early Muslim societies and gaining momentum in America
now, thanks to the Muslim Doctors to do their share in providing medical care to
the un-insured.
I do urge Muslims in every City in USA and Canada to
write up about their community, an effort must be made such as the following
note. Don’t ask the organizations to do it, they have plenty of work to do, ask
yourselves what can you do about it, and just do it. We will be happy to share
it at the WorldMuslimCongress@yahoogroups.com
a service forum about co-existence and at the WorldMuslimCongress.org. Alhamdu
Lillah, many a magazines and Journals around the world are republishing the
material including ones in Somalia. In the past, Tehran Times, and Jakarta Post
have picked a few of the pieces as well as Arab News has published many of the
pieces from here. I have mentioned about Ramadan in Dallas
Morning News in my article today.
As an example of expressing to
encourage others to do the same, here is a 12 year old Zahra Cheema, who writes
to her Dad Tariq.
“AA
Baba
On Saturday, July
29th, Mama, Ibrahim, Bhaijaan, & I went to a Church called "Holy Ghost
Church". The reason we went was to volunteer in serving food to the homeless.
When mama told us that she signed us up, I was pleased because I've never
volunteered in anything exactly like this. It seemed really interesting, &
something new I would love to participate in.
So when we arrived there,
a man guided us to the kitchen & on our way in, there were so many mats on
the ground & their we're people sleeping/sitting on them. When I saw that
they must've spent the night, I thought it was really kind that the Church was
letting the homeless stay overnight. We got to the kitchen, & greeted the
Auntie that was hosting the event, & right away, I helped her daughter load
eggs into a pot before putting it on the stove ready to
boil.
The kitchen wasn't modern
at all, so everyone had to do more things manually. Yet still everyone had
smiling faces and were happy to help out the less fortunate. The breakfast was a
nice typical American breakfast. It consisted of, pancakes, hash browns,
different types of fruits, & other sides to go with. Each person was also
given out a goody bag with treats in them. After the food was served on a
buffet-style table, I started to wash the dishes with
Mama.
While we were washing,
the boys' we're helping pick-up, wash,wipe, & dry each mat. They had to fold
the pillows & blankets in a bag. & they sweeper the whole floor while
They were eating. The boys did a lot of physical work. Then, mama & I went
out of the kitchen to see what was going on. We saw the volunteers pouring the
food into each of their plates. It made me happy to see that these people got to
eat a generous ammount & fill their small
stomachs.
What made me sad/sorry
was when I saw a family with a couple, & about 4 children. I thought to
myself how hard it must be to have to worry about your 4 children eating
everyday. I wondered if this was the only proper breakfast these people were
eating all week. “
I am sure you have a story to
share, start writing as simple as Zahra has done, ask your kids to do it. They
are more expressive than we were at their age, at least that is the case with
me.
On the interfaith front, we don’t frequent Churches,
Synagogues, Temples and Gurudwaras, as we invite others to join us; we need to
visit them as well.
IMAM AND A PASTOR
A pastor in Dallas is
observing 30 days of fasting, as a way to connect with Muslims and feel the
spiritual part of fasting. Thank God, the public radio in Dallas broadcasted the
interview of Dr. Wes McGruder of Rowlett and Imam Yaseen of Plano. Here is the
pod cast -
MUSLIMS OBSERVING
LENT
For your information, many a
Muslims are reciprocating it as well, albeit with criticism. We cherish others
when they do our stuff and I hope we can do the same when our folks do the stuff
for others. I thank Allah for giving me the guidance to set a few stretched
benchmarks - observing lent, commemorating Holocaust, Baptized on the spot where Jesus was baptized and
visiting Krishn’s birth place among many other things. Alhamdu Lillah, as a
Muslim, I have been standing up for every community and Insha Allah,
my dream is to serve every human without reserve or hesitation.
We do
have volunteer at various Mosques that have done the work for Habitat for
Humanity, soup Kitchens, feeding the homeless, but the burden is on a few, who
keep doing again and again. I hope we all make a concerted effort to encourage
volunteerism. Our Imams hold the key in changing our perceptions through
encouragement to volunteer.
We have to compile all our
works together, to encourage more to participate and volunteer in building an
America that is good for every American.
If we can raise or invest the
funds, we can get a National Muslim paper to update every one about everything
we do, and need to do.
Indeed, of the many things we
do, we have dedicated this day to bring Americans together and rededicate our
pledge to the safety of America.
Jazak Allah Khair
Please mark your calendar for
the Unity Day USA, a positive event that brings all Americans Together to
rededicate our pledge for a peaceful, prosperous and secure America. We are a
part of America and we need to feel and live it. If you liked some of the
article, you will like the description of Unity Day USA at www.UnityDayUSA.com
A few other Articles to read
if you have the time:
What does
God really want?
MikeGhouse is committed to building
a Cohesive
America and offers pluralistic
solutions on issues of the day. He is a professional
speaker,
thinker and a writer on pluralism, politics, civic
affairs, Islam, India, Israel, peace and justice. Mike
is a frequent guest on Sean
Hannity show on Fox TV, and a
commentator on national radio networks, he contributes weekly to the Texas Faith
Column at Dallas
Morning News and regularly at Huffington
post, and several other
periodicals across the world. The blog www.TheGhousediary.comis updated daily.
